Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 4246 - 4270 of 5713
DAYTON – Charges have been dismissed against the last of three archeologists charged with theft and destruction of prehistoric artifacts from the Umatilla National Forest and Wenaha-Tucannon Wilderness in 2013. Charges were dismissed against Richard Lee Lyman in a plea agreement filed in Columbia County Superior Court on Dec. 2. Lyman, 64, is a professor and chair of the department of anthropology at the University of Missouri. On July 22 he was charged with second-degree theft and s...
WAITSBURG – The Waitsburg City Council will take a fourth attempt at reaching an agreement on issues surrounding employee compensation, at a workshop for that purpose on Dec. 14 at 6:30 p.m. At October’s council meeting, City Administrator Randy Hinchliffe was given the go-ahead to prepare the city’s 2016 preliminary budget with adjustments to city employee pay and benefits. Council members K.C. Kuykendall and Marty Dunn were absent at the October meeting. When the preliminary budget came before...
DAYTON – The Dayton Historic Depot is planning an exhibit next year of quilts made by people living in Dayton and Columbia County. This will be the third consecutive quilt show hosted at the Depot. In 2014, quilts in the collections of the Depot and the Boldman House were on display. In 2015 historic quilts owned by people living in Dayton and Columbia County were on display. The new exhibit will begin in January and will run through December. Quilts will be on loan to the Depot for the exhibit. Quilts can be of any age and any style. They c...
WAITSBURG – Waitsburg resident, Tyler P. Judd, 32, entered a plea of not guilty to child rape and drug charges at his arraignment in Walla Walla Superior Court on Nov. 30. Judd, a registered sex offender, was arrested in Walla Walla on Nov. 17 and, according to police documents, admitted to having sex with a 15-year-old girl and supplying her with methamphetamine. In a separate incident, Judd is accused of selling methamphetamine to a confidential informant earlier this year. Judd is charged with Rape of a Child in the Third Degree, a Class C...
Columbia County Superior Court Dec. 2, 2015 Arraignments/Pleas: Gary Marshall, 60, Burbank, WA; Pleaded not guilty to attempting to elude a pursuing police vehicle, a Class C felony. On Nov. 28, Marshall was allegedly clocked by radar at a speed of 88 mph. at mp 363 Hwy 12. Marshall allegedly outran the pursuing police vehicle into Waitsburg and pulled into a driveway on E. 3rd St. Marshall allegedly repeatedly refused police orders to stop and show his hands. After being tazed and dry stunned, he was tripped to the ground, restrained, and...
DAYTON—For many months, a task force of committed parents and community members has been working to develop an after school program for children in the Dayton School District. The goal for creating an after school program is to provide academic support and promote social, emotional, and physical development through collaborative community development At a Strategic Planning Workshop in October, task force members gained clarity about how to proceed with developing a viable program. Some key s...
WAITSBURG – When the Waitsburg School Board approved the district’s 2015-16 schedule, high school principal Stephanie Wooderchak expressed concern that the two-week holiday break might leave some students without adequate nutrition during a time when family resources are already stretched tight by holiday expenses and heating bills. Thanks to the Waitsburg Resource Center, that is no longer a concern. Not only will children be able to enjoy a healthy lunch at no charge, they’ll also have a war...
DAYTON-At a special meeting on Nov. 24, the board of commissioners for the Columbia County Hospital District offered Chief Operations Officer Shane McGuire the position of District Superintendent and Chief Executive Officer for Columbia County Health System. "I'm thrilled to have the support of the board, staff, and community, and I look forward to our continued partnership as we do great things here, starting with the electronic health records system, and the renovation and enhancement...
WAITSBURG – Fire department volunteers and FFA members have already been busy preparing Main Street for this weekend's Hometown Christmas 30th anniversary. Groups and individuals work together to create the two-day event filled with fun activities for the entire family – a perfect example of small-town life at its finest. Earlier this week, fire department volunteers and FFA kids began hanging wreathes and garland on Main Street, and stringing lights and setting out trees for the FFA's Fes...
WAITSBURG – Sometimes, there's simply no time like the present, even when it comes to getting married. Fortunately, Historical Society member Anita Baker was up for a bit of spontaneity when Brain Pendleton and Darchelle Worley gave her a call last Friday to ask if they could get married in the Bruce House Museum – in a couple of hours. Anita was glad to accommodate and even played "Here Comes the Bride" on the antique parlor organ as the bride made her entrance. Anita said the ceremony was a s...
A column by Dena Wood Waitsburg P.E.O. members agree that they've been holding a Career Day at Waitsburg High School every other year "for at least 30 years." On Tues., Nov. 26, I was privileged to attend and participate in this year's event, hosted by P.E.O. president and Waitsburg School Superintendent Dr. Carol Clarke. Dr. Clarke explained to WHS sophomore and junior girls that P.E.O. celebrates the advancement of women through scholarships, grants and recognition. The purpose of Career Day...
Santa Claus, a.k.a. Columbia County Commissioner Merle Jackson, had a visit from his twin grandsons, Austin and Alex Jackson, during Dayton's Christmas Kickoff Saturday. The twins are sons of Merle and Joelle Jackson's son Dave and his wife Kim, who live in Moscow, Ida....
WAITSBURG – After 24 years of dedicated service, Greg Zuger is retiring from his position on the Waitsburg School Board this year – somewhat reluctantly, he says. The community is invited to a reception in Zuger’s honor on Dec. 9 at 6:30 p.m. at Preston Hall Middle School. Zuger began serving on the school board in 1991, before his own children were in school, and remained for four years after his youngest graduated. “It’s been my pleasure to have been on the board. I got to hand all my kids,...
Weller Public Library, Waitsburg “The Martian,” by Andy Weir (Science Fiction): Astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars but after he’s nearly killed in a dust storm and his crew evacuates and leaves him for dead, he may be the first to die there as well. Stranded alone on Mars with a limited food supply and no way to signal Earth, Mark uses ingenuity, his engineering skills, and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit, as he confronts one obstacle after another. “Rogue Lawyer” by John Grisham (Fiction): Sebastian...
WALLA WALLA – Tyler Paul Judd, 32, was arrested on multiple child rape and drug charges in Walla Walla on Nov. 17. Judd lists his address as 512 W. Second St. in Waitsburg. According to police reports, an officer observed Judd exiting a Walla Walla residence, followed closely by a fifteen-year-old girl. Judd is a registered sex offender, and the officer questioned the girl and Judd about their relationship. Both allegedly admitted to having had sexual relations on numerous occasions beginning i...
WAITSBURG – According to Operation Christmas Child shoebox media coordinator Fay Smith, this was a big year this year’s collection drive, coordinated by Samaritan’s Purse, which culminated Thanksgiving week. A record 18,084 gift-filled Christmas Shoeboxes were given by residents of Dayton, Waitsburg, the Tri-Cities, and eastern Oregon. There were 1,270 more boxes donated this year than last year and a record 196 came from the Waitsburg and Dayton area. That is a increase of 44 above last year’s local collection. The shoeboxes were brought...
WAITSBURG – If Brandon Kelly gets his wish, Waitsburg will become the home base for regional dirt-track car racing events. Waitsburg's city council was intrigued enough to invite Kelly back to give a more detailed presentation at their Dec. 16 council meeting, but councilor K.C. Kuykendall called the enterprise a "long shot." Kelly approached the city last month about the possibility of modifying the fairgrounds horse racing track to use for car racing events. City Administrator Randy H...
Pacific Power lineman Doug Hinds (left) is confronted with a lineup of Dayton Elementary School students wishing to have their ornaments hung on the highest possible branch. Hinds helped set up the Dayton Community Christmas Tree in front of Elk Drug last week. Lights have been strung and ornaments are in place....
DAYTON-There is a wealth of material in possession of the Elizabeth Forest Day Club about that women's civic and educational organization, and much more in the Dayton Public Library about the town's founding mother, for which the club is named. In 1913, the Draper Club was formed by local women for the purpose of promoting civic and educational activities. Meetings were held in individual homes, and membership was by subscription to ten-volume sets of "Draper's Self Culture" books, which...
Local families came together at the Waitsburg Elementary School multipurpose room on Saturday morning to prepare and deliver Thanksgiving dinner boxes as part of the third annual Kids’ Big Give. The group provided turkey dinners for 25 families this year....
WAITSBURG – Bev Rising addressed the Waitsburg Commercial Club last week to discuss Banner Bank and the conversion of Waitsburg's AmericanWest Bank to Banner Bank. Bev is the Dayton Banner Bank branch manager and was a teller for 23 years. Rising said that Banner Bank merged with AmericanWest Bank on Oct. 2 but the final conversion will not take place until February of next year. She said that federal regulations prevented Banner from taking over over the Dayton AmericanWest Branch because B...
Students at the Dayton schools spent much of last week building gingerbread houses for the Dayton Christmas kickoff competition. Entries will be on display this weekend in the former Grainhouse Grill building on Main Street. The public is invited to vote for their favorite houses. Winners will get a free ice cream party thrown by the Dayton Chamber of Commerce....
WAITSBURG – The heavily utilized restrooms at Preston Park are out of commission after being vandalized earlier this month. The restrooms, located just off of Highway 12, are a popular stop for tourists and the city hopes to have them re-opened in time for the holiday weekend. At the Dec. 16 city council meeting City Administrator Randy Hinchliffe said that vandals “took every piece of metal they could get their hands on,” stripping the restrooms down to the bolt on the deadbolt plate. The vandals even jerked the heaters from the walls, leavi...
