Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
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WALLA WALLA—Walla Walla Community College (WWCC) announced the launch of Warrior Pledge, a new scholarship program that will provide free tuition and other support to eligible students, enabling them to enroll at WWCC regardless of their financial circumstances. The Warrior Pledge program starts with a pilot cohort of 50 students beginning college in Fall Quarter 2022. The program was created to help students who may not otherwise be able to enroll due to financial constraints. WWCC pledges to cover eligible recipients’ cost of tuition, boo...
DAYTON – The Dayton School District held a special board meeting on Wednesday, June 29, 2022, at 5:00 p.m. in the Dayton High School Auditorium and on Zoom. For the first hour, the board held a joint meeting with the Waitsburg School Board to discuss the DW Combine. The combined school boards discussed ten items that were previously identified as issues that required further clarification. The two boards agreed to change policy to require principals, or their designates, to attend the monthly C...
DAYTON—The Hospital Board of Commissioners has given the nod to hospital administrators to have Hallway II at the Booker Rest Home evaluated for turning it into a childcare and early learning facility, as proposed by CCHS CEO Shane McGuire at last week’s board meeting. Hallway II at the rest home is the wing closest to the Touchet River and Rock Hill. It will be empty later this year when many nursing home residents go to live in the new assisted living facility. McGuire said he was walking aro...
WAITSBURG-The first Small Town Big Heart Showcase is headed to Waitsburg this weekend. More than 20 vendors will set up at the Gary Thomas Lot at the corner of Coppei and Preston Avenues on Saturday, July 9, starting at 9:00 a.m. Sponsored by the Waitsburg Commercial Club, President Kim Smith said she hopes this will become an annual event. Smith said that while the vendor list is already extensive, more businesses may sign on before the weekend rolls around. Vendors will offer products from...
WAITSBURG—After recent Dayton City Council actions delaying compliance with Department of Ecology guidelines for effluent release, residents of Waitsburg brought concerns to Waitsburg city officials. City Administrator Randy Hinchliffe contacted the Department of Ecology’s Water Quality Program manager Llyn Doremus for guidance. In an email response, Doremus stated that the effluent from the Dayton Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) meets the required permit limits for fecal coliform. “The fecal coliform content measured (weekly) has been signi...
WAITSBURG-Waitsburg is a town that is full of heart, and when it comes to our kids, the community is ready to give at a moment's notice. The Jace Strong Fundraiser dinner, supporting a local nine-year-old battling cancer, was no exception, as nearly 300 people gathered last Saturday to help out. At the end of May, Jace Grende was rushed to the hospital where it was found that he had a significant brain bleed. He was airlifted to Seattle, where they discovered a large tumor that was pressing...
WAITSBURG—Waitsburg City Council gathered for a regular meeting on Wednesday, June 15. All council members were present. Joy Smith commented on a report she shared with the council before the meeting. The report had information regarding employment in the area, housing prices, and local effects of inflation. The noon whistle was brought up by a community member who asked if the city would consider bringing it back. The siren had been operated by Columbia County EMS, who had requested to end t...
DAYTON – The Dayton School Board met for their regular meeting at 6 p.m., June 15, 2022. All board members were present in the auditorium, Aneesha Dieu, Zac Fabian, Grant Griffen, Chair Jeffrey McCowen, Korinda Wallace, Madison Richardson (Student Representative), and Superintendent Guy Strot. The meeting was also available on Zoom. At the start of the meeting, Superintendent Strot announced four changes to the agenda. First, Strot said he plans to schedule a joint board meeting with the Waitsburg School Board to further discuss the athletic c...
They had a dream that they worked together to fulfill – and they did. Twenty-nine years ago, Ed Harri (who grew up in Dayton) and his wife Pat launched the Wenaha Gallery at 219 East Main Street. The couple, who both loved art, decided to share that love with Ed’s hometown by opening up an art and framing gallery in 1993. Though the Harri’s lived in Salem, OR, they hired excellent associates who kept in daily contact with them. Ed and Pat also drove regularly from Oregon to Washington to be in the gallery in person and connect with their clien...
WAITSBURG-On June 10, Waitsburg first graders released more than 130 spring chinook salmon into the Coppei River. This was the fifth year Mrs. Hinchliffe's class partnered with the Tri Cities Steelheaders for the Salmon in Schools Program. Students worked with instructor Alex Lau, learning about the lifecycle of the fish and raising their own school from egg to fry....
DAYTON—The Dayton City Council met on June 14, 2022, for a regular meeting. All council members were present in the meeting room. Many residents filled all available seats, and as many as 25 logged in on Zoom. Multiple public comments were heard, with the majority focused on the wastewater treatment project. All but one speaker, Kathy Berg, were residents of Dayton. Berg, a former Dayton City Councilmember now living in Walla Walla, encouraged current members to attend training and get i...
The comprehensive plan, and potential litigation are discussed in public and executive sessions. LYONS FERRY MARINA– The Columbia Port Commissioners held their regular meeting at 5 p.m., June 8, 2022, at the Lyons Ferry Marina after having a tour of that facility. The operators lease the marina and camping area from the Port of Columbia. All Commissioners were present in person, Genie Crowe, Seth Bryan, and Johnny Watts. The Executive Director, Jennie Dickinson, was also present. Some members of the public attended using Zoom. The C...
WAITSBURG/DAYTON—The Waitsburg and Dayton School boards met on June 1, 2022, for a joint meeting to discuss details surrounding the future of the DW Athletics Combine. The loosely followed agenda included discipline, middle school athletics, finances, and future joint board meetings. On the topic of discipline, Dayton School Superintendent Guy Strot and Waitsburg Superintendent Mark Pickel suggested the secondary principals handle disciplinary issues with the combine athletes. This would r...
DAYTON—Residents, business owners, and concerned neighbors gathered at Dayton High School last Wednesday, seeking clarification on the status of the city’s wastewater project. Concerns were raised after the Dayton City Council twice voted against a purchase that was one of the critical steps towards solving the city’s wastewater issue after a decade of planning. “What happens next?” was on everyone’s mind at the June 2 town hall gathering. Cynthia Wall-Fuller, Washington State Department...
DAYTON- The Dayton School Board held a work session meeting at 6 p.m., June 1, 2022, in the high school auditorium and Zoom. All members of the Dayton School Board were present in the auditorium, Aneesha Dieu, Zac Fabian, Grant Griffen, Chair Jeffrey McCowen, Korinda Wallace, Madison Richardson (Student Representative), and Superintendent Guy Strot. The consent agenda included the resignation of M.S. math teacher Brenda Henderson and the hiring of Martin Surridge as an HS English teacher, Pam Nolan Beasley as the elementary STEM teacher, and...
DAYTON- A dedicated group of swimming and water safety enthusiasts are asking for help as planning for a new swimming pool in Dayton enters a critical phase. The Friends of the Pool (Friends) has contracted with Schemata Workshop, Seattle (architects), and Ballard King & Associates LTD, Highlands Ranch, CO (recreational facility planning and operation consultants). The firms will assist with data collection, development of a community assessment, and designs for a new facility. They will also...
The district to facilitate community safety sessions this summer WAITSBURG—Parents of Waitsburg School District students had a scare after a post on Facebook alerting users of a ‘school shooting threat’ was rapidly shared online. The events happened less than 24 hours after 19 students and two teachers were killed by a gunman in Uvalde, Texas. On Wednesday, May 25, a parent of a student enrolled in the district posted on social media that she was aware of death threats being made at the schoo...
PRESCOTT—On Thursday, June 9th, Prescott School will be having a unique all-school experiential art activity titled, “When the River Becomes a Cloud.” Prescott School’s long-term Artists-in-Residence, Amanda Leigh Evans and Tia Kramer, will choreograph students from Pre-K through grade12, in concert with school staff and teachers, into an embodied river that moves through the school campus. Wearing a rainbow of monochromatic shirts created for the event, the school community will move through a series of art experiences simulating aspects...
. WAITSBURG—The Waitsburg School Board held a regular monthly meeting on May 16 at the Waitsburg Elementary School. All board members, Sarah Boudrieau, Christy House, Stephanie Cole, and Lisa Morrow, were in attendance, with Carol Clarke joining via Zoom. During the secondary principal’s report, Stephanie Wooderchak said the well-attended prom was enjoyable for all. Students from both Dayton and Waitsburg celebrated together at the combined event. Waitsburg’s Megan Forney was selected as the Wal...
DAYTON – The Dayton School Board held its regular meeting at 6 p.m., May 18, 2022. All Board members, Aneesha Dieu, Zac Fabian, Grant Griffen, Jeffry McCowen, and Korinda Wallace, were present in the high school auditorium, Superintendent Guy Strot and student representative Madison Richardson. Members of the public attended in person and on Zoom. The board approved the consent agenda, including hiring two elementary teachers, Angela Kenney and Amanda Wade. It also included the retirement of the high school science teacher, Doug Yenney. Dr. C...
The weekend kicks off on Friday evening with the ATV Sunset Cruise WAITSBURG-The third weekend of May is here, and after two years of cancellations, Waitsburg Celebration Days is back and bigger than ever. The weekend-long event will kick off on Friday, May 20, with the annual Sunset Cruise ATV Ride. ATV riders can check in at the Waitsburg Fairgrounds, near the former parimutuel betting booths, starting at 4:00 p.m. Route information will be available at check-in, and riders and drivers are...
DAYTON-The committee on the task force looking into developing a childcare facility and early learning center in Dayton will provide the public with an opportunity to learn more at a meeting on Monday, May 23 at 6 p.m. at the Columbia County Fairgrounds Pavilion. Former State Representative Terry Nealy will moderate the seven-member panel. Childcare will be provided. "There appears to be a lot of misinformation out there, including this is government-run daycare, that hospital district taxes...
DAYTON- The Port of Columbia held its regular meeting at 5 p.m., May 11, 2022. All commissioners were present, Genie Crowe, Johnny Watts, and Seth Bryan. Port Director Jennie Dickinson was also present in person. Members of the public attended both in person and on Zoom. The meeting began with a presentation on affordable housing in Columbia County by Community Council representatives Catherine Veninga, Rachel Elfenbein, and Laura Prado. The presenters used the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) definition for affordable h...
Land purchase voted down in split city council vote. DAYTON- The Dayton City Council held a regular meeting at 6 p.m., May 10, 2022. Mayor Zac Weatherford and council members Misty Yost, Teeny McMunn, Dain Nysoe, Kyle Anderson, and Tyler (Tiger) Dieu were present at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church parish hall, while Laura Aukerman attended on Zoom. The city council voted unanimously to authorize the mayor to sign an annual membership for $35 with the Municipal Research and Services Center of Washington (MRSC). MRSC is a nonprofit organization o...
WAITSBURG-Time to send The Times your yard sale information to be included on the official Community Yard sale Map. The map will be printed in The Times June 2 edition, on The Times Website, and on social media. Let us help buyers find your sale. Let us know the location of your sale. Please include any information about what you will have on offer. you can even send a few photos of your most delectable sale items. Include your name, contact number, or email for The Times' use only. Email...
