Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 453 - 477 of 997
WALLA WALLA - When about 20 women take the stage in harmony the sound sure is sweet. The Blue Mountain Chorus Sweet Adelines have been hitting the high and low notes since 1975 and have several awards to prove their musical chops. Just this year the group placed third for small chorus at the annual contest the group participates in. The Sweet Adelines proved their musical skills to the community in their recent Broadway music con- cert last weekend in Walla Walla. Chorus member and Waitsburg...
DAYTON - A group of six students and six parents met at Dayton High School last Friday armed with signs and an agenda to call attention to bullying in the Dayton School District. Parent Kim Suchodolski was one of the leaders of the parent-student group who made the meeting at the high school last Friday a call to ac- tion for parents and students. The group carried signs outside the school that said "National Anti-Bullying Day," "Stop the bullying," "Please help the students" and "We won't stand for it." "I believe our children have had enough...
DAYTON - The Dayton City Council took action Monday night to continue the safety and security of students who use the city skate park. The city council unanimously passed an ordinance during Monday's meeting that could inflict fines on skaters who dis- obey the rules posted at the park. Violations of the ordi- nance may result in a civil infraction and may be pun- ished by a civil fine. The first infraction fine is $100, second infraction is $150 and third and subsequent infractions could be up to $250. City Clerk-Treasurer Trina Cole said the...
WAITSBURG - Deer hunting season opened Oct. 13 and the Department of Fish and Wildlife said the week had been quiet in terms of the numbers of hunters. But, local law enforce- ment still reports instances of trespassing on private lands and poaching in the Touchet Valley area. "Trespass during hunting season is a problem," said Madonna Luers, a public information officer with the Washington State Depart- ment of Fish and Wildlife's Spokane Valley office. "It's their responsibility to know where...
WALLA WALLA - Corn and costumes made a perfect pair- ing last Thursday for the 45 Preston Hall students who visited the corn maze in Walla Walla. It was a warm, sunny fall day for the students who rushed off of the bus at the maze. Many donned costumes. Teacher Maddie Martin sported a crab hat and the kids were dressed as WP football players, serial killer monsters and even a dark fairy. Lori Bartlow, the school's administrative assistant and middle school athletic director said the kids who...
WAITSBURG - An un- usual governor-mandated burn ban in all counties followed by a spurt of wet, windy weather has frustrated local farmers who are afraid they won't get their seed in the ground before the cold weather sets in. Both Walla Walla and Columbia counties had been under a local burn ban since early July. These local burn bans are annual bans set by the area fire districts, and farmers must wait every year until these bans are lifted to do any agricultural burning. And at the end of September, when the local fire districts lifted their...
DAYTON - Interested at- tendees listened to candidate positions and a brief summary of eight measures on the ballot this fall in preparation for the upcoming General Election last Wednesday night at the Liberty Theater. Judge William D. Acey spoke first. Acey, who ran unopposed for his judicial posi- tion, addressed the eight measures on the upcoming ballot. Information about the measures is available on Secretary of State Sam Reed's voter guide website, sos.wa.gov. Columbia County commis-...
WAITSBURG - Waitsburg may have a new team to cheer for this spring. Jorge Martinez and Jeff Knowles, both of Walla Walla, have approached the Waitsburg School Board with their idea of starting a minor-league football team in the Touchet Valley and they want to use Waitsburg's football field for practices and games. The school board last Wednesday night unanimously approved going forward with the proposal for the football team pending final approval of a writ- ten agreement. "The potential for the community is kind of neat," said Stephanie...
DAYTON - In an eco- nomic climate where jobs seem impossible to come by, one local farmer can't seem to hire employees fast enough. Dayton's Warren Orchards is (Above) War- ren Orchards on North Touchet Road in Dayton looks idyllic in early morning light last week. ( Right) Owner Bill Warren loads apples into a truck last Thursday at Warren Orchards. on about 100 acres and pro- duces apples and pears. The orchard is run by Bill Warren who took over in 1994. Warren is now faced with a difficult s...
DAYTON - The large sliding glass doors framed with gold-hued curtains are more reminiscent of a comfortable living room than a stiff and imperson- al emergency room. And Chief Operations Officer Shane McGuire said it is intentional. "Nobody wants to come to the ER," McGuire said. But when emergencies arise, McGuire said the staff hopes to minimize as much stress as possible. Little details around the updated Columbia County Health System emergency room were made with local patients in mind. The...
WAITSBURG - The WP cross country team is raising money for breast cancer pa- tients by selling wristbands. All cross country team members will be selling breast cancer awareness wristbands through Oct. 12 for $2 each. Coach Joanna Lanning said if all of the bands are sold, the team will be able to donate $600 to the Breast Cancer Special Needs Fund at Providence St. Mary's in Walla Walla. The idea for the fundraiser was Lanning's. She said she liked how NFL teams and the Walla Walla Rodeo par-...
WAITSBURG - The Waitsburg Clinic's new Ad- vanced Registered Nurse Practitioner Kortney Killgore- Smith brings emergency room experience to the Columbia County Health System and is ready to take on new family practice patients. Even though she is new to the health system, she's not new to the Waitsburg Clinic. Killgore-Smith spent 30 days working with Advanced Reg- istered Nurse Practitioner Dawn Meicher to learn the ropes of family practice. Meicher had months ago asked the health system to...
DAYTON - Goats were the main event at the ninth annual OctoBoer Fall Finale Boer Goat Show & Buck Futurity show at the Columbia County Fairgrounds. The show brought breeders, exhibitors and owners out to show and see Boer goats Satur- day, Oct. 6, and Sunday, Oct. 7. Show Secretary and Host Terry Brown said she was happy with how the event went. "It was good," Brown said. "We had a lot of new people." Brown said she has been in- volved with the festival since its inception. The event is usually...
DAYTON - Visible progress is being made at the Blue Mountain Station site at the west end of Dayton on Highway 12 and Jennie Dickinson, the manager of the Port of Columbia, is hoping to have more commitment letters signed soon. "I've got more inquiries than I've got space for," Dickinson said last Friday. In July, Dickinson announced two letters of commitment had been signed from businesses interested in moving their food operations into the first build- ing of Blue Mountain Station. The station...
WAITSBURG - At the end of August, the Mc- Gregor Company bought about 25 acres of land from the City of Waitsburg, but don't expect any expansion plans anytime soon, accord- ing to company officials. Pat McConnell, the gen- eral manager of retail operations for McGregor, said the land purchase was a wonderful opportunity to keep a Waitsburg branch of the company in operation. "In order to consider Waitsburg for expansion in the future, we need more acres," McConnell said. " The opportunity was...
YAKIMA - The Times Publisher Imbert Matthee was honored with a second place award for his story about a marijuana bust in Dayton in August 2011 at the Washington Newspa- per Publishers Association convention in Yakima l ast weekend. The piece, "It Just Kept Going and Going," was awarded in the "Best News Story - Long" category at the conference. Matthee's story revealed all of the details on the biggest marijuana bust in Washington during 2011. The grow operation dis- cussed in Matthee's story stretched for more than 600 yards along the Eckler...
(Must be 21 or older to consume spirits) As part of The Times' research for the story about Oola's distillery, Publisher Imbert Matthee and Ad- vertising Manager Larry Davidson, an experienced sommelier, visited the jimgermanbar. Bar owner and mixologist Jim German graciously provided them with taste samples of Oola's bourbon, vodka and gin. The only product they did not try was the hot pepper vodka. Here are their preliminary findings: Waitsburg Bourbon Warm and oaky, slightly nutty with a hint of caramel in the nose. Roasted meat notes,...
SEATTLE - Kirby Kallas-Lewis wanted to operate his boutique distillery in Waitsburg. He and his wife KT Niehoff bought the Lounda- gin Building on Main Street four years ago to redevelop as a hotel just at the time Kallas-Lewis began to take an interest in making spirits. For a while he explored the idea of setting up his operation in the basement. Regulations for a distillery on the premises of a lodging establishment, however, proved tough. So, he abandoned his vision for the distillery,...
WAITSBURG - After nearly 20 years of little to no activity at the 10 acres of property the Port of Walla Walla owns in Waitsburg, the piece of farmland will soon become a light indus- trial park. Jim Kuntz, the execu- tive director of the Port of Walla Walla, said the port obtained about 16 acres of land east of the city through donation from the city of Waitsburg and through a land sale in 1993 and 1994. He said the land was always planned for a future light industrial park. Small...
WAITSBURG - The Waitsburg City Council de- cided to level the city's BMX bike track at the north end of town because of lack of use in a 3-1 decision last Wednes- day night. About one year ago, the council discussed leveling the track because it seemed as though the local children weren't using it. Former Councilman Orville Branson provided vocal support for the track that the Lions Club installed years ago. Branson monitored the use of the track for one year and the Lions Club provided $300 to spray the track for puncture vine on the track....
DAYTON - Gerardo Agu- irre-Hernandez and Ramon Estrada-Gonzalez pleaded not guilty last Thursday in Columbia County to charges of growing marijuana and to being illegal aliens in posses- sion of firearms. Both men are expected to appear in court for a two-day trial on Nov. 8 and 9 in Day- ton. Agu- irre- Her- nandez, 41, and Estrada- Gonzalez, 61, were arrested on Sept. 4 in a forested area east of Dayton after the Wash- ington S t ate Patrol's Cannabis Eradica- tion and Reclamation Team...
WAITSBURG - School staff members and administrators are worried students are not getting enough food to fuel their brains because of new fed- eral nutritional guidelines enacted this school year. Susan Wildey, the food services supervisor for the Waitsburg School District, said the amount of food offered for breakfast and lunch by the district's caf- eterias has been reduced this school year. The change in nutritional guidelines for all school districts across the country is because of the...
WAITSBURG – Erma Lee Smith will be honored this Sunday as Pioneer of The Year because her family history in Waitsburg is extensive – she hails from the Hales who date back to 1890 in the Waitsburg area. “I’m Pioneer of the Year and turning 80,” Smith said last week. “I’m flying high.” She learned last spring via a letter from the Waitsburg Historical Society that she would be receiving the award this year at the Pioneer Fall Festival. Smith will be honored on Sunday following the 11 a.m. community church service at the Bruce House Museum on...
DAYTON - Two men were arrested on Sept. 4 for growing marijuana and il- legally possessing firearms in a forested area east of Dayton. The two Hispanic men, 41-year-old Gerardo Aguirre-Hernandez and 61-year-old Ramon Es- trada-Gonzalez , were ar- raigned Sept. 6 and will next appear in the Colum- bia County Courthouse on Sept. 20. Both men were charged with one count of manufacturing a controlled sub- stance, a class C felony, and one count of being an alien in possession of a firearm, also a class C felony. The Washington State Patrol...
DAYTON - Recent van- dalism at the Dayton city skate park was the final tip- ping point for the Columbia County Sheriff's Office after at least three reports of van- dalism, theft and inappropriate behavior in the park recently. The sheriff's office closed the park with a padlock, pending a city council meeting at 7 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 10 at City Hall. It has been almost three years since the park opened after fundraising efforts by a group of 4-H students who call themselves the Colum- bia County Curb Stompers brought in $37,000 to remodel...
