Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
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Emily Adams placed second in Extemporaneous Public Speaking and Loren Negron placed second in Prepared Public Speaking at FFA sub-districts on March 14. They will advance to the District contest on March 28. "The freshman did great and placed in the top 10 in Creed. They presented well and grew from the process," said Waitsburg FFA Advisor Nicole Abel....
WAITSBURG – The Waitsburg City Council approved members for the newly-formed Tree Committee at their regular March 15 meeting. Three citizens applied for the two citizen representative positions, including Allison Bond, Ethan Carpenter and Paul Gregutt. Carpenter, and Gregutt were approved for the position following a short discussion by the council. Mayor Marty Dunn asked City Attorney Jared Hawkins if there is any conflict of interest with Gregutt being on the committee, since his wife, K...
New Business: -Walla Walla County Sheriff John Turner gave a 2016 year-end update on sheriff’s office activity in Waitsburg. -The council unanimously approved resolution 2017-670, which approved the use of city streets for the annual Tour of Walla Walla bicycle race on April 21 and April 23. -The council voted to re-open elections from March 22-24, to accept declarations of candidacy for city council positions, due to a lack of candidate applicants to fill the vacant seats. The voting deadline will be extended to April 17. See story on Page 1...
Transportation/Maint./Facilities: -Board approved the expenditure of approximately $2,500 to $3,000, after a Pacific Power incentive, to upgrade light fixtures in Preston Hall and the high school. The upgrade is expected to save the school approximately $3,000/year in energy savings. -Board approved bringing part-time custodian, Rick Suchodolski, on full-time during spring break to perform deep cleaning. Public Comment: Board approved the purchase of paint for Jacob Elder to paint the football field bleachers as part of an Eagle Scout project,...
WAITSBURG – Having a slate of candidates running unopposed is not unusual for Waitsburg’s annual elections. But having a shortage of candidates filing to fill the council seats is something new – at least in the recent history, according to city staff. The deadline for filing declarations of candidacy for Waitsburg mayor and five council seats was Friday afternoon. Incumbent Marty Dunn and former councilwoman Debra Callahan will run for mayor, but only four candidates filed to fill the five vaca...
Search consultant Dr. Bill Jordan stresses the importance of community feedback WAITSBURG – Following an executive session with members of the Waitsburg School Board, Dr. Bill Jordan, of Northwest Leadership Associates, addressed the public with an update on the timeline and process for Waitsburg School District's superintendent search. Jordan stressed the importance of community involvement in the later stages of the selection process. Jordan said he will meet with the board to review files a...
WAITSBURG – Thirty-seven kids from the Touchet Valley participated in the Top Chef Contest on Feb. 23-25 and Feb 27-28 held at the Walla Walla County Extension Office and St. Patrick's Church in Walla Walla. Four members of the Waitsburg Homegrown Go Wild 4-H club participated, and all walked away with awards. Timothy Daves received three first-place awards. The first was in "Table Setting" for his "Fourth of July"-themed spread. Next, he won "Food for All Occasions" by serving a marinated Londo...
WAITSBURG – Waitsburg High School seniors unanimously agreed they would rather spend two Saturdays in school to make up snow days, than make up the missed days after graduation, District Suprintedent Carol Clarke told the school board at their March meeting. Waitsburg students have missed four days of school and had two late starts due to weather so far this year. Clarke said the district is required to make up at least three school days. Those three days will be made up on June 12-14. Clarke sa...
WAITSBURG – United States Air Force Airman Caitlyn Jones, 2016 Waitsburg High School graduate and daughter of Collette Jones, of Waitsburg, has reached another educational milestone. Jones completed her Basic Military training in November and graduated from the Class 015 Dental Assistant Apprentice Course in March The intensive eight-week basic training included training in military discipline and studies, Air Force core values, physical fitness, and basic warfare principles and skills. Jones a...
WAITSBURG – A record high number of musicians from the Waitsburg High School band participated in the Southeast Washington Music Educators’ Association High School Honor Band in Colfax on Monday. Eight Waitsburg musicians participated, including Jacob Elder on tuba, Kevin Murphy and Bradley Sandau on tenor saxophone, Anna Miller on baritone saxophone, Kitty Lambert on alto saxophone, Leena Baker on clarinet, and Loren Negron on percussion. The first honor band rehearsal took place March 6 at Clarkston High School, where band members met wit...
WAITSBURG – The Waitsburg FFA Chapter has four State FFA Degree recipients and eight members who received proficiency awards. Members will receive their degrees and awards at the State FFA convention in May. State Degree recipients are: Tom House, Brandon Boudrieau, Jared Farley, and Devin Newman. The State FFA Degree is given to the top members of a State FFA Association. Recipients must meet a minimum of nine requirements, that include 180 hours of ag instruction, participation in a supervised ag experience program, demonstration of l...
Waitsburg Elementary School students enjoyed dressing up, reading Dr. Suess books, and participating in fun, Suess-related activities as part of Dr. Suess Day last week....
WAITSBURG – The City of Waitsburg received an unpleasant surprise when bids for the Main Street Bridge project were opened on Feb. 23. The lowest bid came in nearly $100,000 over the engineer’s estimate, leaving the city to re-evaluate their options. The cost discrepancy wasn’t due to a shortage of bidders. Twelve companies submitted bids for the job, with totals ranging from a low of $1,379,825 from Harry Johnson Plumbing and Excavation, Inc., to a high of $2,591,216 from Wesslen Const...
WAITSBURG – The annual Waitsburg city government election process is underway. As The Times went to press, incumbent Marty Dunn had filed a declaration of candidacy for mayor as had prior council member and mayor candidate Debra Callahan. K.C. Kuykendall and Karen Gregutt had filed to retain their council seats. Candidates have through March 10 to file declarations. The top five council candidate vote-getters will receive council positions. Ballots will go out in the mail on March 17. Completed ballots must be received by 8 p.m. on April 3 a...
WAITSBURG – WHS senior Emily Adams was honored at a Boys and Girls State Honor Night at Town Hall on Mon, March 6. The event was hosted by the Waitsburg American Legion Post #35 and the Legion Auxiliary, which sponsor Waitsburg students each year. Adams attended the 2016 Evergreen Girls State at Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Wash. last June. She said she left the experience with a much better understanding of how government runs and politics works, and made many lifelong f...
Celebration Days banners will liven up Main Street this spring WAITSBURG – Waitsburg's Main Street will pack a patriotic punch this spring when Celebration Days boulevard banners are hung from the Main Street light poles in April. The Celebration Days banner committee hopes to raise enough funds to purchase winter banners as well. The WCD banner committee worked with John Sasser, of Integrity Designs in Walla Walla, to create a design that both reflects the current Waitsburg Celebration Days a...
WAITSBURG – Last March, the Waitsburg Resource Center board purchased 60 emergency blankets and 100 hand-generated flashlights to aid the community in the case of disaster. The WRC will continue their emergency preparedness efforts by hosting a disaster preparedness course on May 6. Flood warnings from The National Weather Service for Walla Walla and Columbia counties in February have kept residents on alert this winter. To date, runoff from a high snow pack combined with exceptionally heavy r...
WAITSBURG – Inclement weather, combined with other factors, resulted in fewer than anticipated applications for the soon-to-be-open Waitsburg School District Superintendent position, according to retiring Superintendent Dr. Carol Clarke. In response, the superintendent search timeline has been extended. The deadline for applications has been moved from Feb. 17 to March 10. Preliminary interviews, originally slated for March 7-8, will take place March 21-22. Final interviews will be held March 28-31 with site visits, background checks, and c...
WAITSBURG – The cost of starting a neåw business in Waitsburg just got a little bit cheaper – at least for the next year. At their Feb. 7 meeting, the Waitsburg City Council voted unanimously to waive the requirement for new businesses to pay a $50 registration fee. The suspension is good for one year – through Feb. 6, 2018 – as a good faith gesture to encourage business owners to do business in the city. An extension of the waiver is not anticipated unless the suspension “is wildly successful...
Waitsburg Elementary students raised approximately $1,200 for the American Heart Association through their annual Jump/Hoops for Heart event on Feb. 22....
It was a full house in Waitsburg's Town Hall on Friday night at the coronation dinner for 2017 Waitsburg Celebration Days Queen Cheyanne Shoun. Court advisor Ann Adams said approximately $2,300 was raised between the spaghetti dinner, dessert auction, and silent auction....
PRESCOTT – In September, long time music teacher Rebecca Wilson moved from the band room to the classroom and began teaching fourth grade at Prescott Elementary School. Jeremy Irland was hired as her replacement and is very much enjoying his gig as the district's new K-12 music teacher. Irland's down-to-earth attitude and contagious enthusiasm belie his impressive resume. The Canadian-born opera singer lived in California and Seattle before moving to our area in junior high, but says he c...
WAITSBURG – The death of a man whose body was found in Preston Park on the afternoon of Tues., Feb. 2 has officially been ruled a suicide. Sheriff’s deputies found the body of William Joseph Irving, who operated Irving’s Leather in Waitsburg, with a note and a handgun. The cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head, according to coroner Richard Greenwood. Eyewitnesses to the event immediately contacted officials and were able to redirect traffic and pedestrians until Walla Walla County Sheriff’s deputies arrived on the scene....
FFA members voted on 2017 Harvest Ball court members who then competed in "ag olympics" events to earn the title of king and queen. The titles were won by seniors Jade Alleman and Devin Newman....
WAITSBURG – Sheriff's Office officials were on the scene to retrieve a dead body discovered in Preston Park at about 2:30 p.m. on the afternoon of Tues., Feb. 21. Walla Walla Sheriff's Office Chief Matt Brown said the death was an apparent suicide and the victim's will not be released until the family has been notified. He said there is no reason to believe there is any risk to anyone. No further information is available at this time....
