Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
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DAYTON-Dayton High School's Class of 2020 graduated last Saturday. Like graduation ceremonies across the nation, Dayton's ceremony looked a lot different than in years past. Due to pandemic-related restrictions, only graduates and family were able to attend the ceremony. Dayton High School provided a live-streamed feed on Facebook for the community to enjoy. The stream is still available to watch on the Dayton Secondary Facebook page. Graduation celebrations started Saturday afternoon with a...
Fishing desert lakes April through June is tough to beat. Flipping around on a float tube, the warm spring sun across my back, and wild trout smacking small streamers like mini freight trains is what I have come to love about desert lakes. Well, that, and the rugged, burgundy and chocolate-colored basalt rims punctuated by milky-emerald big sagebrush, random white plumes of yarrow and brilliant canary tufts of balsamroot blooms. Having had quite enough of COVID-19 self-isolation, I decided to...
WAITSBURG-The Waitsburg High Alumni Association has honored Jack and Nancy White Otterson (WHS Alumni Classes of 1956 and 1957) with the Karen Huwe WHS Alumni Service Award on Tuesday, June 2, 2020 via a Zoom Meeting of the Alumni Board facilitated by outgoing President, Chelsey Smith. They were surprised with a visit from Wendy Richards and Beth Anne Wood who provided the technology so they could be participants. On the call as well, were Tammy Otterson Wood, her husband (Scott) from Arizona,...
WAITSBURG-Treasure comes in all shapes and forms, to one Waitsburg resident treasure looks like model cars, lots of model cars. Bert Baxter's extensive car collection includes over 1,000 models, racing memorabilia, and more. Baxter's love for all things automotive started at an early age and in 1952 he took up racing mini sprint cars for 15 years. He walked away from the racetrack after witnessing a tragic accident and went from driving to working on cars as he poured his heart and soul into his...
WAITSBURG-"It never fails, the hottest day of the year is always graduation day," spectators echoed jokingly last Friday at the Waitsburg Football Field. Instead of gathering in the Waitsburg High School Gym, as is tradition, friends and family of the Class of 2020 stood outside the field's fences and watched a socially distanced high school graduation. If you've ever attended a WHS graduation ceremony, you know that they fall on what seems like the hottest day in spring, with the infamously...
DAYTON-Rancher Marty Hall will face incumbent Commissioner Mike Talbott, for Position 2 on the Board of County Commissioners in the November general election. "I want to do what I can to keep Columbia County a good place to live, to do business in, and to attract more families with good living wage jobs," Hall said. Hall said the most important issue facing the county is the budget shortfall because of damages to county from the recent flood, and from the consequences of the COVID-19 challenge,...
WALLA WALLA-The announcement for the protest was seen on a Facebook post, listing the 1 p.m. time, the Land Title Plaza as the place, with the words 'Peaceful Protest' as the title. The post also featured an image of George Floyd's face and the words "I Can't Breathe." George Floyd's death on Memorial Day in Minneapolis, under the knee of a Minneapolis police officer, sparked other protests across the country, in Europe, and beyond. The idea for the event came to social media specialist Lindsey...
Gov. Jay Inslee ordered a statewide activation of the Washington National Guard on Sunday, May 31 in response to the spread of destructive protests and looting in Washington state. The activation will allow unarmed troops to be deployed in response to requests from local governments. The governor already authorized at least 600 troops earlier this weekend to help in Seattle and Bellevue. The state received a request from Spokane County on May 31 for National Guard assistance after what was described as a rogue group began looting and damaging...
Valedictorian Kylee Laughlin Salutatorian Kira Boggs 2020 Graduates: Marissa Barzo McKenzie Dobbs Jurnee Griffen Emma Houdak Alex Jenkins David Lewis Kiya McCaw Carlos Norris Lillian Patterson Quinton Rapoza Sergio Rivera Tayven Seney Elise Steinhoff Josiah White...
Shortly before graduation the idea to line Main Street with custom banners honoring the graduating seniors quickly gained traction. Senior Advisor Matt Wyatt contacted DiJulio Displays in Brier, Wash., to help him create and print the banners. This is the same company who worked with Scott Kirk on Dayton’s senior banners. Rita Pruczinksi, of DiJulio Displays took on the task of printing the red banners and developed an unexpected relationship with Dayton and Waitsburg’s Classes of 2020. A sma...
You know what sounds great right now? Some nice escapist literature. You know what I'm not in the mood to do right now? Think up a nice escapist plot. This, then, is the story of an intrepid adventurer (and also her mother) on a quest through the plague-stricken wastes of Middle America to retrieve the long-lost Treasure of Apartment 1-B in time to avoid the Curse of the Lost Security Deposit. Our quest begins at an obscenely early hour as our two heroes race down the darkened highways of...
WAITSBURG-High school graduations are looking a little different this year, and Waitsburg High School's ceremony is no exception. A gallery drive through town followed by a drive through 'ceremony' is scheduled for May 29, starting at 6 p.m. The Class of 2020 Gallery Drive will begin at Preston Park, with the students as passengers, lined up in alphabetical order, following a pilot car. Each vehicle will have one student in cap and gown. Twenty-two cars will make their way down Main Street,...
WAITSBURG—The Waitsburg City Council met Wednesday, May 20 at 7 p.m. via conference call. All board members were present except councilman Karl Newell. The council discussed the Complete Sidewalk Project Award, a capital library grant, and the status of the city pool. City Administrator Randy Hinchliffe gave an update on the Complete Sidewalk Project Award that the City received earlier this year. He said that he has been in contact with property owners who will be impacted by the project, a...
DAYTON-At the May 13 Port Commission meeting, Executive Director Dickinson expressed a desire for people to follow all the social distancing guidelines set forth by in the Governor's Phased Approach to Reopening Business and Modifying Social Distancing Guidelines, so the county can move from Phase II into Phase III more quickly. "For the most part it is going fine, she said. "I'm proud of our businesses and our community." Dickinson said the Lyons Ferry Marina Concessionaires are making great...
WAITSBURG—The Waitsburg School Board met Thursday, May 21 at 6 p.m. All school board members were present. During the meeting, the board discussed graduation plans, a continuous learning plan, and other items. Secondary principal Stephanie Wooderchak reported to the board that the middle school had been invited to the Milton Freewater Drive-In Theater for the 8th grade promotion. After some discussion, the board decided it was best to come up with another plan in the event that Walla Walla C...
DAYTON— The Dayton School Board met Wednesday, May 20 at 6:00 pm via Zoom virtual meeting. All board members were present. During the meeting, the board discussed budget information, the high school graduation ceremony, and the upcoming school year among other items. Elementary principal Doug Johnson reported that Dayton Elementary staff and teachers are continuing to improve their online learning models. Mr. Johnson said that a scheduling committee has been formed for the sole purpose of p...
I am convinced that about half the stuff on the Internet these days is lists of things to do in quarantine. Fifteen recipes to try, twenty home-repair projects you can do in a day, the one hundred and thirty plants you absolutely need to squeeze into your yard while you have the free time to plant them. I'm sure you've read at least a couple. As a journalist, I will let you in on a secret about these lists: they are found at the very bottom of the idea barrel. Sure, there are some...
Fire District #2 commissioners met on Tuesday, May 12th at the Waitsburg Fire Station. The search for a part time fire chief for the district continues, as the May 1 deadline for letters of interest from candidates for the job passed with no applications received. Commissioners' will keep the application open and plan on increasing the sites for placing ads to attract applicants. The purchase of four new automated external defibrillators (AEDs) was approved, along with a training module for the...
Walla Walla-The Walla Walla Community College Board of Trustees Chair Tim Burt announced last week that Acting President Dr. Chad Hickox has been named the permanent President of the College effective May 20, 2020. "In this rapidly changing environment, Dr. Hickox has proven he is a trusted leader who is well-qualified and ready to lead through these unprecedented times," said Board Chair Tim Burt. "The Board heard from members of the faculty, staff, and students, as well as members of the...
DAYTON-Vic Bottomly is a private practice attorney in Clarkston, Wash., focusing on Criminal and Civil Law for Asotin, Garfield and Columbia Counties. Bottomly said he never before set out to be a judge because he has been happy in his 27-year- career as a trial lawyer. But over the past several years the Superior Courts in the three counties have struggled with an increasing caseload and lack of resources. The courts have also had to "trudge" along without a sitting judge for over a year,...
Filing for the 2020 elections closed last Friday, May 15, clarifying the races to come. A three-way competition is on for the Walla Walla County Commission District 1 seat. Currently held by two-term incumbent Jim Johnson of Waitsburg, he will not be seeking re-election after his successful battle with cancer. The District 1 seat encompasses the central and southern voting districts in the city of Walla Walla and the south-central part of the county up to the Oregon state line. Three...
The Class of 2020 will have a virtual graduation ceremony to include the following: Pictures of our Class of 2020 Seniors in their caps and gowns will be posted on www.waitsburgsd.org on May 29, 2020. Recorded reflections of each student of the Class of 2020 will be posted on www.waitsburgsd.org on May 29, 2020. A Congratulation speech by Mr. Pickel, Waitsburg School District Superintendent will be posted on www.waitsburgsd.org on May 29, 2020. The Honor Speeches from the Class of 2020 will be...
Mrs. Stephanie Wooderchak It has been a pleasure to work with you over these past years. I wish you much happiness in your new life adventures. Mr. Gabe Kiefel I wish for each of you a rich life, full of authenticity. It has been said that to wish someone to live in interesting times or an exciting life could be considered a curse. This would be because interesting times may be full of surprises and discomfort. An exciting life carries with it the possibility of danger or injury. I do not wish...
WAITSBURG- The third weekend in May is historically an exciting one in Waitsburg. Waitsburg Celebration Days was one of many area events cancelled amid the coronavirus pandemic, but a small group of classic car enthusiasts and a handful of equestrians weren't willing to let the weekend slip away completely. Fred Gonzalez, the president of the Waitsburg Classic Car Show and Swap Meet, rounded up more than 50 local car enthusiasts from Waitsburg and Walla Walla for a (Non)Celebration Days car...
East Coast born and raised, Liz Fraser of Walla Walla is known for her candor. Two weeks ago, she openly let her Facebook friends know that she had tested positive for the Coronavirus. In the post, she joked that she'd "never had a cavity until I needed a root canal...and never had the flu until I got covid (sic)..." Since then, she's kept her Facebook friends updated with the progress of the virus and was even willing to take some time to talk with me on the phone. Her journey from becoming...
