Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
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CORRECTION! the siren was not tested at noon, it was tested at 10am on Friday, October 21. It was tested in its capacity as a fire, flood, or disaster alarm system. It was sounded in an undulating wave of sound, peaking at its loudest for six seconds, lowered for six seconds and repeated. The noon siren or whistle was not tested but will eventually be sounded at noon on Monday through Friday for 10 seconds. WAITSBURG-Last spring, after a resident asked council members at a regular Waitsburg City...
DAYTON—Columbia County’s Election Supervisor, Cathy Abel, said there are many checks and balances to ensure election integrity in the county, from the time an election ballot leaves the voter to when it is certified by the state. Ballots have prepaid postage and are returned through the mail or at ballot drop boxes. Abel hopes that if people vote by mail, it will be sooner, rather than later. Votes will be tabulated and counted if postmarked by election day or dropped off by 8 p.m. on the day...
DAYTON—Last week, voters in Columbia County received a mailer produced by the Columbia County Conservatives. The local political group asked voters to vote against Proposition 1, which would create a Joint Metropolitan Park District (JMPD) to fund and operate a new pool for the county. They also requested voters choose CCC endorsed candidates for the JMPD board of commissioners in case the proposition is approved. Members of The Friends of the Dayton Pool, who have spent the last few years surveying residents, raising money, and developing d...
DAYTON – The Port of Columbia Commissioners held their regular meeting on October 12, 2022, at the Port of Columbia conference room and on Zoom. Present for the meeting were Commissioners Genie Crowe, Seth Bryan, Johnny Watts, and the Executive Director, Jennie Dickinson. Members of the public attended using Zoom and in person. The meeting focused on budget discussions, as the board must complete and approve next year’s budget by the end of November. Bryan objected to taking the legally allowed one percent increase to the Port’s tax levy limit...
DAYTON- The Dayton City Council held its regular meeting on October 11, 2022. Mayor Zac Weatherford and council members Shannon McMillen, Teeny McMunn, James Su’euga, Kyle Anderson, Laura Aukerman, Dain Nysoe, and Tiger Dieu were present at City Hall. The meeting opened with the Pledge of Allegiance, as was decided at the last meeting. During the first public comment period, a citizen asked about the status of promised flood mitigation efforts planned by the city. Weatherford said he has been unable to schedule a meeting with U.S. Army Corps o...
DAYTON-The Dayton chapter of the American Association of University Women held a Candidates' Forum on October 5, to allow voters in Columbia County to hear from and ask questions of candidates for local races. Candidates for Columbia County Sheriff, Columbia County Commissioner from District 3, and the Joint Metropolitan Park District attended the event at The Liberty Theater in Dayton. Columbia County Commissioner District 3 Columbia County Commissioner Charles Amerein is seeking reelection to...
PRESCOTT-Thanks to a grant to Carnegie Picture Lab from the Walla Walla Chapter of the American Association of University Women (AAUW), students at Prescott School have a new collection of art books in their library. Carnegie Picture Lab, a Walla Walla 501(c)(3) nonprofit, has been supporting art education in Prescott School through its innovative and comprehensive Rural Art Initiative. The initiative has included a robust artist-in-residence program, take-home art kits, field trips, and art...
WALLA WALLA-The YWCA Walla Walla invites the community to read two books this month for Domestic Violence Action Month (DVAM) and then meet for discussions and soup suppers at the YWCA Reception Room. The first selection is "No Visible Bruises: What We Don't Know About Domestic Violence Can Kill Us." Written by journalist Rachel Louise Snyder and published in 2019, "No Visible Bruises" uses personal accounts to shed light on the complex problem of domestic violence. "The humanity of each person...
DAYTON-The Dayton Branch of the American Association of University Women will hold a Candidates Forum at the Liberty Theater on Wednesday, Oct. 5, from 7 to 9:30 p.m. The public is advised to arrive at 6:30 p.m. in the theater foyer, where they can fill out question cards for the candidates before the Forum begins. The completed questions cards will be the only opportunity for members of the audience to ask questins of the candidates. A "Meet and Greet" session will follow the Forum. The Forum will be presented in two parts this year. Part one...
DAYTON – The Dayton School Board met for their regular meeting at 6 p.m., September 21, 2022. Present in the high school library were board members Zac Fabian, Jeffrey McCowen, Korinda Wallace, Grant Griffen, and Superintendent Rich Stewart. Aneesha Dieu arrived about 20 minutes into the meeting. Participation was also available on Zoom. Grace Trump gave the ASB report, including a summary of Homecoming activities. In his report, Combine Athletic Director Sam Korslund said thirty-six girls are participating in high school volleyball. All are c...
Waitsburg High School celebrated homecoming week September 19- 24. The students decorated the high school cage and link areas, participated in dress-up days, class competitions, field night, buff puff volleyball, a parade, a Wolfpack volleyball game, a Wolfpack football game and ended the week with a dance on Saturday night. Dayton High School held their homecoming activities also. Monday was pajama day followed by character/twin day on Tuesday. Senior Sarabeth McGowen (as Wednesday from the...
WAITSBURG-Hundreds of people visited the Waitsburg Pioneer Fall Festival on Sunday, 18 September, following a two-year hiatus due to COVID protocols. Early morning rain showers caused some concerns, stopped just before noon and the afternoon was ideal for the event. Local artisans sold hand-forged bottle openers and coatracks, handspun woolen products, hand-dipped candles, quilting products, and handmade jewelry. Food vendors served the favorite fare of bison burgers, brats, baked goods, ice...
DAYTON – The Columbia Port Commissioners held their regular meeting at 5 p.m. on September 14, 2022, at the Port of Columbia and on Zoom. Commissioners present were Genie Crowe, Seth Bryan, and the Executive Director, Jennie Dickinson. Members of the public attended using Zoom and in person. Johnny Watts did not attend. Dayton Resident Teresa Eier addressed her comments during public comment to Commissioner Bryan. She said Columbia County Commissioner Chuck Amerein told her to investigate issues for herself, which she said she had. The c...
DAYTON- The Dayton City Council held its regular meeting at 6 p.m. on September 13, 2022. Mayor Zac Weatherford and council members Shannon McMillen, Teeny McMunn, James Su’euga, Kyle Anderson, Laura Aukerman, and Tiger Dieu were present at City Hall; Dain Nysoe was absent. The Interim 911 Director and Dispatch Supervisor, Desirae Lockard, gave a brief report, including an update on the 911 phone system, which will have an upgrade on September 20, 2022. She said 911 calls might be redirected to Walla Walla for up to six hours that day. With t...
WAITSBURG-Since Ed and Cathy Lambert started visiting Bob, Waitsburg's beloved donkey on E. 8th, they have developed a love for the breed. Lambert said that for many years the couple would visit and bring him treats. It wasn't until their daughter Kelly connected them to Peace Valley Donkey Rescue (PVDR) that they had a chance to adopt their own. The PVDR application process was very thorough and detailed, explained the Lamberts. They began the process in early June of this year. After...
COLUMBIA COUNTY-Virginia Schmidt is the ever-capable Clerk of the Board for the Board of Columbia County Commissioners (BOCC), in that position for a year and a half. Here is what this reporter learned by picking her brain last week and by following up with various department heads. Chris Mills, Columbia County's Assessor, has announced her last day with the County on Sept. 30. She has been with the County for over thirty years, first as the Chief Deputy Clerk in the Assessor's Office and the...
DAYTON – The Dayton School Board met for its regular meeting on September 7, 2022. Present in the high school auditorium were board members Zac Fabian, Jeffrey McCowen, Korinda Wallace, and Superintendent Rich Stewart. Grant Griffen did not attend, and Aneesha Dieu arrived during the “Character Strong” presentation. Participation was also available on Zoom. The Board approved the Consent Agenda, hiring Cole Kenney and Elizabeth Sutton as Elementary Paraprofessionals and Jeremy Trump as a volunteer Middle School Football coach. There were no pu...
WAITSBURG-This year, the Waitsburg Historical Society has selected the Albert Land Family as the 2022 Pioneers of the Year. Albert Land's three surviving children, Elaine Reese, Joan Miller, and Tom Land will be at the Waitsburg Pioneer Fall Festival on Sunday, Sept. 18 to receive the honors. Albert's grandfather, Edmund Land was born in England in 1823, and went on to travel the world. As his obituary noted, he "crossed the Atlantic Ocean four times and the Pacific Ocean twice." Living in New Z...
WALLA WALLA-At the Walla Walla Fair and Frontier Days this past weekend, the region's students competed to show the four-legged friends they raised over the summer. In each livestock class (steer, sheep, goat, and swine), students from Waitsburg, Dayton, and Prescott had noteworthy achievements. Starting with the steers, Elsie Mann of Waitsburg FFA won FFA Grand Champion Market Steer and Overall Reserve Champion Market Steer. Mann has been showing since she was nine and understands the importanc...
WAITSBURG-Richard Harbuz is an overlander explorer making his way on an electric scooter. He has ridden the well-outfitted scooter from his home in Colorado across Canada to Alaska. And back again, finding his way to Ten Ton Coffee in Waitsburg. As a self-described overlander, Harbuz enjoyed taking his bike and riding long distances from his home. After suffering a back injury while working in his daughter's home, he found it difficult to ride his bike. He missed being able to take off on his...
WAITSBURG-The newest members of the Weller Public Library in Waitsburg, started work this past Saturday. Sarah Roberts and Amanda Withers join Librarian Twila Tate in opening the doors with new books, computers, and programs for patrons to enjoy. As a rural library, funding is always a challenge and the open hours for the public are still limited to 16 hours per week. The new staff seem determined to create programs and offer services to make each open hour inviting and educational. The new...
DIXIE-When Stacy Startin, his wife Maria, and their five-year-old daughter Arla moved to Dayton from Moses Lake, they had no plans to buy a store. Startin explained that it was a "spur of the moment" decision when he made an offer on the little corner store that sits along Hwy 12. Before Startin's interest in the grocery store, the building had been empty for nearly two years. After the purchase of the building, the new owners made several upgrades, including new septic and wash sinks. After...
DAYTON--Last week, Columbia County Health System CEO Shane McGuire provided updates on different initiatives at the monthly meeting of the hospital board of commissioners. He spoke about the partnership with Walla Walla University in College Place for CCHS to operate its on-campus health care clinic. CCHS had been working on the partnership for over a year. The University clinic is located near campus and had been without an operator since COVID-19. Many of the current CCHS providers and...
WAITSBURG-Weller Public Library (WPL), located at 22 Main Street in Waitsburg, Washington, has been operating as a public library since the 1940s in the historic building that had been the Exchange Bank in 1905. Weller Library like other libraries in small, rural communities, serves as a community hub connecting patrons to information and people, and a haven for children and youth. It provides access to updated public computers, wireless printing, and library materials. New technology brought...
The Times reached out to Todd Vandenbark, MLS, Director of Library Services for Columbia County Rural Library District to respond to the recent requests to remove content from the collection during public comment at the last Library Board meeting, The following is a statement “The Columbia County Rural Library District welcomes feedback from patrons, community members, and others regarding its collections and services. The presence of visitors at this and other Board meetings demonstrates that the library is an important institution in the life...
