Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
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WAITSBURG - The Weller Public Library looks fresh after Walla Walla's Meticulous Touch Painting, LLC finished painting the front room and hallway. The building's historic tin ceiling stands out with a new coat of paint highlighting its decorative details. The shelves in the front room are painted and ready for library staff to restock, with books available for checkout starting on November 29. The Friends of the Library are busy with holiday projects and programs. They held an ornament painting...
WAITSBURG - The seats were filled in the Waitsburg High School gymnasium for the Veterans Day program, "Honoring Those Who Served," under the direction of music director Elizabeth Jagelski. Principal Joe Wirtzberger and ASB President Blake French welcomed veterans, followed by the presentation of the flags. The K-5 students entered the gym singing Neil Diamond's "America." French, Makenna Barron, and Cedar Stegall gave the history of Veterans Day. The students worked many weeks to prepare for...
OLYMPIA — The Washington State Department of Commerce is pleased to announce the 11 winners of the 2023 Governor’s Smart Communities Awards. The program has been presented annually since 2006 and recognizes local governments and their partners for exceptional land use planning and development. The awards showcase the effective implementation of the state’s Growth Management Act (GMA). The honored local programs and projects serve as leading examples for other communities as they seek to address similar land use planning issues or look for i...
WAITSBURG - The Royal Block Reading Series welcomes prolific author and globally renowned explorer Richard Bangs for a reading from his 20th book, "The Art of Living Dangerously," at the Royal Block in Waitsburg on November 22, 2023, at 6:30 PM. Admission is free and open to the public (21+). In 1973, Richard Bangs co-founded Sobek Expeditions, now MT Sobek, the world's original and largest adventure travel company with over a million clients guided since its beginning. The Art of Living...
WAITSBURG - It was a scary time in the Preston Hall gym on Monday, October 30 for those who dared to walk through the haunted house. With the leadership of Waitsburg staff member, Dusty Wirtzberger, the gym was transformed into five rooms featuring scary clowns, a chainsaw madman, ghosts, goblins, and creatures with glowing green eyes. Numerous adults and students hung black plastic from the balcony to create a maze for attendees to venture through. The decorations were scary, and there was a...
If the vision that launched Lions Club International (LCI) in 1917 still applies to local Lions Clubs across America, it surely applies to the Waitsburg Lions Club. Formed in 1940 as a chapter of LCI, Waitsburg's Lions have been a stable element of social life and community service for 83 years, something not to be taken for granted. The club and others, including the Freemasons, Eastern Star, Philanthropic Educational Organization (P.E.O.), and Kiwanis, support community life and friendship,...
WAITSBURG - The November 2023 ballots have arrived and Waitsburg has several contested races to decide. School Board, District 2 There are two candidates for Waitsburg School Director, District 2, incumbent Christy House, and first-time candidate Tia Hays. Hays has been a Waitsburg Home and School Association member for two years and a member of the school's booster club. Her professional experience includes 26 years in banking, and is now a Certified Pharmacy Technician at the VA Medical...
WAITISBURG - The Weller Public Library offered patons and Waitsburg students an interactive experience on mammals using a Burke box from October 11 through 25. The Burke Museum provides the boxes which include museum-quality objects, artifacts, and activities covering culture, earth science, and life science topics. Library staff took the Mammal Burke Box to all the classes at the Waitsburg elementary school and several at the high school and middle school. The library will continue hosting...
WAITSBURG - Wearing pajamas to school and decorating the high school started Homecoming Week 2023. The week was filled with fun activities, dress-up days, a football game, and finally, the dance. On Tuesday, classes were assigned specific age groups for "dress your age" day. The first-year students dressed as babies, and each class "aged," with the senior class dressed as senior citizens. At the pep rally, the senior class lost a very competitive game of dodgeball; at their "old age," they...
WAITSBURG — The Waitsburg Parks and Recreation board completed a second survey asking the community to provide input on the direction of the district. The survey showed respondents continue to want the Waitsburg Parks and Recreation District and Friends of the Waitsburg Pool to keep working to make a community pool a reality. The survey results collected in September 2023 showed clear top priorities. Respondents were asked to rank a collection of priorities that ranged from building and improving infrastructure to creating activities and h...
WAITSBURG - The fourth Waitsburg Happening will occur on Saturday, October 7. This Saturday, the businesses on Main Street will be celebrating National Old Farmers Day. Expect to see tractors, combines, hay bales, horseback riders, and enjoy special cocktails, entertainment, and treats. There will be vintage tractors and combines from Rob McKinney and Ed Burlingame displayed throughout town between 3 p.m and 6 p.m. The Plaza Theater will play "The 1919 Walla Walla Tractor Show." Artist Barb...
WAITSBURG-It was a beautiful sunny day for the annual Pioneer Fall Festival at the Bruce House in Waitsburg on Sunday, September 17. An occasional gust of wind blew through, but it did not deter visitors from all the festival had to offer. After the morning community church service on the front lawn of the Bruce House, the Waitsburg Historical Society recognized Barbara Danforth as the 2023 Pioneer of the Year. Danforth, a lifelong resident of the area, was accompanied by her daughter Susie as...
WAITSBURG—As luck would have it, the timing of a recent call to Waitsburg’s Deanna Coulston was almost perfect. Getting in touch with Coulston to talk about the P.E.O Sisterhood (Philanthropic Educational Organization) Chapter BE revealed that the local group will celebrate 100 years of existence in May 2024. “This is great!” Coulston said in a recent interview. “Our chapter started in 1924, and we’ll soon be starting to make plans for how to celebrate next year.” Waitsburg’s Sisterhood has...
WAITSBURG—Everyone in the Touchet Valley knows where to find Waitsburg Grocery. Some may not have realized that the building is the home of Masonic Lodge #16. Waitsburg’s current lodge was constructed in 1913 for $26,000 after the original structure was lost to fire. Members rebuilt with a second floor for Masonic use, reserving the ground floor for a local business. For decades, that business has been Waitsburg Grocery, now owned and operated by Jamie Allen. “That way, the lodge would have...
WAITSBURG-The the Waitsburg Historical Society proudly announces Barbara Danforth as the 2023 Pioneer of the Year. Danforth never thought in her wildest dreams that she would one day be "Pioneer of the Year." Both sides of her family were pioneers in Oregon but moved to the farm outside Waitsburg in 1928. "I was stunned as I never dreamt I would receive such an honor," said Danforth. Born at the original Walla Walla General Hospital on May 6, 1930, Barbara was an only child and raised on a farm...
WAITSBURG-On Monday, August 28, 2023, Scout Troop 337 convened a Court of Honor at the Lions Club building in Waitsburg. The troop is a joint Cub Scout and BSA Troop with a history in Waitsburg. After years without scouting, Troop Committee Chair Sarah Roberts, Cubmaster/Committee member Jon Roberts, Scoutmaster Justin Stegall, and Assistant Scoutmaster Tim Hollingsworth began meeting in March to bring back Troop 337. The first official troop meeting followed in April. The evening's events on...
WAITSBURG-School spirit was in full force Monday night at Waitsburg Booster Club's Membership Drive and Community Kick-Off event. The multipurpose room at the Elementary School was packed with students, family, staff, and community members, all in support of the fall sports season for Cardinal athletes. David Long of Walla Walla DJ set the energy just right with his tasteful tunes and gave special introductions to the football, cheer, and volleyball students. Attendees enjoyed a tasty BBQ...
WAITSBURG - Waitsburg's new school chief doesn't see himself as a "top-down" kind of administrator. Think of him as being more of a round-table man. Woods came to Waitsburg from the East Wenatchee School District, where he served as the middle school Assistant Superintendent and Special Education Director for 900 students. He earned a bachelor's degree from Montana State University. His master's degree and principal and superintendent certifications came from Washington State University. He is...
DAYTON—The Dayton School Board met at 6 p.m. on August 16, 2023, in the High School library. School Board members present were Chair Jeffrey McCowen and Grant Griffen. Superintendent Rich Stewart was also present. Zac Fabian and Aneesha Dieu used Zoom to establish a quorum. One seat on the board remains vacant. The board approved the consent agenda, which included approval of prior minutes, bills, and payroll, hiring Kerry Johnson as a Title 1 Paraprofessional, and accepting the resignation of Amber McDonald as a Title 1 Paraprofessional. I...
WAITSBURG-Waitsburg City Council convened at city hall for its regular meeting on August 16, 2023. Present were Mayor Marty Dunn, council members Randy Charles, Jillian Henze, Court Rupenthal, Jim Romine, City Administrator Randy Hinchliffe, and city attorney Jared Hawkins. City attorney Jared Hawkins was also present. Member Kevin House was absent. Hinchliffe gave an update on the city's Public Hearing Capital Facilities Plan. Hinchliffe said there are minor updates from last year. The council...
WAITSBURG - When Andrew Knee and his wife, Tricia Adams-Knee, moved from Seattle to Waitsburg earlier this year, it signaled the start of a new chapter in their lives. Little did Andrew know that it would include a summer side hustle. Knee described that their search for a new home had not been straight-line process. Having decided to move to the Walla Walla Valley, looking online at homes for sale, Andrew would show Tricia a house in Walla Walla. "She would say, 'Oh, that's nice.' Then she...
WAITSBURG-Dr. Paula Strait wants folks of all ages, to come out for a Round Traditional Folk Dance at Waitsburg's Preston Park on Sunday evening, August 20. You could be one of those dancing in that circle. That is, if you accept Dr. Paula Strait's invitation to participate in this fun, healthy, and social event. After practicing medicine for nearly 40 years, Dr. Strait, DO, retired to the Touchet Valley in April of this year. She brings a lifetime of concern about what really ails us. "The...
Waitsburg City Council met for its regular meeting on July 19, 2023, at city hall. Kelly Steinhoff will be returning to Waitsburg City Hall. City Councilmembers Jillian Henze, Randy Charles, Jim Romine, Court Ruppenthal, Kevin House, Mayor Marty Dunn, and City Administrator Randy Hinchliffe were in attendance. The council approved Ordinance 2023-1082 updating the Waitsburg Municipal Code regarding nuisance abatement and imposing a fine for non-compliance after the first notice. The council approved contracting with Vision Municipal Services to...
WAITSBURG—The Waitsburg City Council held its regular meeting at city hall on June 21, 2023. City council members Jillian Henze, Jim Romine, Kevin House, Court Ruppenthal, Mayor Marty Dunn, and City Administrator Randy Hinchliffe were present. Council member Randy Charles was absent. Washington State Senator Perry Dozier presented a recap of the recent legislative session. He discussed the capital, operating, and transportation budgets. Dozier worked to replace $21 million diverted from the 2015 “Connecting Washington” transportation packa...
Adult Fiction "The Swimmers" by Julie Otsuka This short novel begins with the unspoken rules and norms used by a community of swimmers at an aquatic center. A crack that forms in the pool's floor unhinges the rules and coincides with one swimmer's battle with dementia-a powerful and heartfelt story. "The Covenant of Water" by Abraham Verghese The follow-up to Verghese's bestseller "Cutting for Stone," his new book follows three generations of a family, from 1900 to 1977, that suffers a peculiar...
