Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 987 - 1011 of 5665
DAYTON—Dayton School District Superintendent Guy Strot talked about some loosening of school sports restrictions by the state when the Dayton School District Board of Directors met in a work session last week. The state has decided to allow summer athletic conditioning from Sept. 27 to Nov. 27, he said. A typical summer season is for a team to have 20 organized practices in the months of June and July. With that in mind, he and Mark Pickel, Waitsburg School District Superintendent, and Martha La...
If you drive down Main Street Waitsburg, you'll see a cute pink house with white trim. That little house is one of many that Jason Gillen, owner of JLG Painting, has finished in the area. While 'professional painter' sits at the top of Gillen's resume, 'powerlifter/strongman' follows in a close second. Gillen has been into weight lifting since a young age, saying that it is a hobby as it is a lifestyle. "I got my first pair of barbells from my dad. I was, oh, seven or eight years old," Gillen...
WALLA WALLA-The Walla Walla Association of Realtors and the Blue Mountain Action Council (BMAC) are kicking off the season with a hunger for helping. The Care and Share Food Drive looks a little different this year, but the cause remains the same. For more than three decades, the Care and Share Food Drive, which takes place in October, has sent more than 100 volunteers out into the community to drop off orange donation bags on doorsteps. The Association of Realtors and BMAC decided that the bags...
Those of us who may be familiar with one Becky Wilson in Waitsburg will be tickled to learn that there is now a second Becky Wilson in town. Recently, this Becky Wilson purchased the old Hofer farm property on Highway 12, about a mile south of Waitsburg. The four-acre property includes the house, a massive barn, garage, a large shop building, and two towering Locust trees. Wilson closed on the place in June, parked her Airstream trailer next to the house, and went right to work on restoration....
With eight grandsons and nine great-grandkids, Norma Jo Shay has more than earned the title of Great Grandma. For many years she's been the mandolin strumming frontwoman of the band Grandma & the Boys and is affectionately known in all the local bluegrass jams. Grandma Jo is a friend to many Waitsburgers. She shares old songs and fresh fish, the winningest combination. She's been a tournament toxophilite, a skilled hunter with bow and arrow, rifle, or fishing rod in her illustrious past. The...
WAITSBURG-Last Friday, the Washington State Penitentiary Employee Association (WSPEA) presented the Waitsburg Resource Center with a $500 donation. "Originally, the money was intended for the flood relief efforts," said President Lanny Adams. "By the time we were able to meet with the correct organizations, they had a surplus of donations. We decided it would be best to hold onto the money and get it into the community through another entity." The WSPEA is an organization within the Washington S...
Funding Proposal on the November Ballot DAYTON—In cooperation with the City of Dayton and the Town of Starbuck, the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) formed the Columbia County Flood Control Zone District on June 17, 2019, with resolution 2019-34, pursuant to RCW 86.15. Per RCW 86.15.020, the district may be formed in two ways: 1) A resolution by the BOCC; or 2) A petition by the citizens. Columbia County’s Flood Control Zone District (FCZD) was created to establish a county-wide response to the growing threat of flooding. The mission is...
WAITSBURG–Waitsburg's fire hydrants are getting a much-needed flushing. It is important that all hydrants receive semi-annual maintenance by the city water utilities or local fire departments. Hydrants need to be checked for leaks, debris build-up, damage from accidents and any other issue that would be the difference between a home saved or destroyed. This month the District #2 fire department has taken on the job and there is discussion that a more robust type of flush will also be needed t...
WAITSBURG—Schulke Family Pumpkins have made their way back to Waitsburg for another year of fundraising for the Ronald McDonald House. The by-donation fundraiser is the Schulke family’s way of honoring their son, Cooper, who passed away in 2002 after a valiant fight against a brain tumor. Cooper was just seven and a half years old. In 2007, Cooper’s siblings, Emerson and Campbell, came up with the idea of selling pumpkins to raise money for the Ronald McDonald House, a place that became a ‘home...
DAYTON—Columbia County Hospital System (CCHS) CEO Shane McGuire is concerned about how the Flood of 2020, COVID-19, wildfires, and the smoke from them, is impacting the emotional health of CCHS employees and people throughout the local community. He shared those concerns with the Hospital District board of commissioners at their meeting in September. “We are experiencing a mental health crisis in our community and state,” he said. “In our own community, we have seen an uptick in suicide attempt...
Landowner participation is crucial COLUMBIA COUNTY-Columbia County is in the beginning stages of gathering the data required to determine if the Voluntary Stewardship Program has met its initial goals and benchmarks. With the five-year report due January 2020, the Columbia County VSP hopes the county deems the program a success. The VSP is an optional, non-regulatory alternative that allows area stakeholders to develop and implement work plans to protect critical areas while promoting agricultur...
DAYTON—Despite economic challenges, building activity in Columbia County and neighboring jurisdictions is going strong, according to Columbia County Planning Manager Dena Martin. In her department update to the Board of County Commissioners at the end of September, Martin reported that despite a temporary spring construction shut-down due to COVID 19, all jurisdictions served by the County have already met 2020 projected annual permit revenues. “This is especially encouraging because there hav...
WALLA WALLA-The 2020 ArtWalla grant season is open for applications until November 16. Arts Education Grants include the Arts Build Community (ABC) Grant for organizations creating arts programming for the community and the Dan Dunn Memorial Grant for individual artists of any discipline. "These introductory grants are perfect for young or emerging artists and budding organizations," said ArtWalla board member Natalie Lyons-Cohen. With the mission of enriching local artistic vitality and...
STARBUCK-Wally and Joanne Knouf are finalizing plans to purchase the Starbuck/Lyons Ferry Marina KOA business from Steve Klontz representing 7 K's Enterprises of Washington, Inc. The Knoufs are the KOA concessionaires, operating the campground, restaurant, and store at the marina. They will take over from Steve Klontz on Nov. 1. The Knoufs were "work campers" at the KOA when Klontz took over as concessionaire from Jim and Angela McArthur, in 2018. They were hired by Klontz to manage the day to...
Thursday morning, I met up with my friend and local businesswoman, Regina, to have breakfast at Locally Nourished in Dayton. As soon as I drove up and parked in front of this café, I felt welcomed by the beautiful greenery forming an arch over the doorway. Walking in, I was struck with the casual and elegant design of the dining room. The menu and menu boards are clear and easily read from a distance. There is a display case with the daily specials and staples promising fresh seasonal treats...
Stubble and Clouds, 2020. A beautiful fall landscape, photographed from Middle Waitsburg Road by local photographer and accomplished home chef, Bill Rodgers....
WAITSBURG-At the September City Council Meeting, Waitsburg City Council members voted to memorialize Elmer Hazelbaker, a man with a rich history in Waitsburg. The Taggart Road Extension, which connects Taggart Road and Highway 12 at the end of the city limits, was named Hazelbaker Road in September. The project, which began in 2019, is getting close to being finished with crews moving in to pave last week. The road extension aims to improve traffic safety along Taggart Road. At the regular City...
DAYTON-The Columbia County Public Health Administrator shared information about COVID-19 at last week's meeting of the Board of County Commissioners, and it was mostly positive. Martha Lanman said the last time anybody in the community tested positive for COVID-19 was on Sept. 2, and that person has since recovered. The schools are open for in-person learning, Personal Protective Equipment supplies are stable, and a strong collaborative partnership has developed between the Health Department, em...
DAYTON—Shane Laib is leasing the building at 262 East Main Street for use as an indoor marketplace. For the past several months, he has been busy with painting, installing new carpet and lighting, and creating individual spaces for vendors when the marketplace opens in October. Vendors were displaced when VS Mainstreet, a vintage/antique mall at 245 East Main Street, closed its doors earlier this year, and some of them will be moving to the Main Street Marketplace. “All of the vendors still des...
STARBUCK-Zonia Dedloff was appointed mayor at a special city council meeting on Sept. 22. She replaces Richard Ells, who has resigned, in part, for health reasons. City Clerk, Jan Ells, has also turned in her resignation, effective Sept. 30. The Ells are planning on traveling and enjoying their retirement. Zonia Dedloff has lived in Starbuck for fifty years. "I love Starbuck. I always have," she said. Dedloff has served on the city council for the past four years and was the Mayor Pro-tem...
9- year survivor tells her story DAYTON—Eileen McMunn, “Teeny” to those who know her, is an eighteen-year survivor of breast cancer, an amazing feat considering her cancer was identified as triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). This type of breast cancer is not fueled by estrogen and progesterone receptors, or by HER2, a type of protein. It accounts for 15-percent of breast cancer in the Caucasian population and 35-percent in the African American population Though TNBC cancer can have the s...
DAYTON-Librarian Kristie Korslund said Dayton Memorial Library staff attended a conference on Space Planning Progress last November. They learned about traffic flow and how to maximize patron enthusiasm for library collections. When patrons are finally allowed back inside the Dayton Memorial Library, they will be pleased to see what has taken place since the building closed in March because of COVID-19. The library board and staff have moved forward with making upgrades on the main floor level...
Things will look different, but Waitsburg students will return to the classroom on Monday WAITSBURG—Starting October 5, the hallways at Waitsburg schools will be full of students again, actually half of them at a time. Students will return to class two days a week, in ‘A’ or ‘B’ groups. On Monday and Tuesday, group A will attend classes at their respective school. Group B is scheduled for Thursday and Friday. Wednesday is reserved for independent work and targeted assistance, as well as deep c...
WAITSBURG-The Waitsburg Gun Club has a busy schedule for October. With hunting season just around the corner, the volunteer-run gun range has training, sight-in days, and trap shoots planned. On October 3, at 9 a.m, the Waitsburg Gun Club will be hosting a Range Safety Officer (RSO) training. Range Safety Officer training teaches volunteers the necessary knowledge, skills, and temperament essential for organizing, conducting, and supervising safe shooting events and activities, as well as range...
PRESCOTT-There are more than 20 years of combined early childhood education experience making up the Prescott ECEAP program. Lead teacher Sofia Mercado, Assistant teacher Karlie Mathews, and Family Support Specialist Marina Cortez offer quality early childhood education for their second year in a row. "The Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program, or ECEAP, is a whole child, comprehensive, family-focused preschool program, providing free services and support to eligible students," Mercad...
