Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 978 - 1002 of 1805
PRESCOTT – At their Feb. 25 school board meeting, the Prescott School Board approved the purchase of 90 Chromebook computers to improve teaching efficiency. The computers come with a $35,000 price tag, but will be paid for through a federal grant that must be used or forfeited. Prescott Superintendent Brett Cox told the board that a staff survey indicated that teachers are eager to improve what they can do, from a technology standpoint, in the classroom. He said the staff voted to pursue the u...
Waitsburg Elementary School fifth grade students celebrated their graduation from the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) program last week. Deputy Ian Edwards runs the local D.A.R.E. program and has been visiting the classroom weekly since about mid-October....
WAITSBURG – What is happening – or not happening – at the Waitsburg Fairgrounds has been a hot topic around town in recent months. Concerned citizens have the opportunity to become part of the solution by attending a public fairgrounds revitalization meeting on Thursday, March 3 at 6:30 p.m. at the Lions Club Building at the fairgrounds. At the Jan. 6 community forum for the previously-proposed Waitsburg Raceway, Mayor Walt Gobel, along with fellow city council members, expressed frust...
WAITSBURG – Because Waitsburg is governed under its original charter, the city must elect, or re-elect, its city council and mayor each year. Deadlines for this year’s elections are quickly approaching and City Administrator Randy Hinchliffe said there seems to be a renewed interest among citizens in running for public office this year. At the February 17 city council meeting, Hinchliffe informed the current council that the upcoming ballot slate will be set before the next council meeting. The...
WAITSBURG - Elizabeth Gonzalez says they can't recall the specific spark, but something caught her daughter, Andrea's, attention last fall, and Andrea has been obsessed with running a food drive ever since. The just-turned-eleven year old took advantage of her February 21 birthday to do just that. The Gonzalez family hosted a Star Wars party at the Plaza Theater, then went next door to Gleason's Galley for hot dogs, ice cream, cupcakes, and arcade games. Fred Gonzalez owns Silver Star...
WAITSBURG – Waitsburg's Laht Neppur Brewing Company walked away with the People's Choice "Best Cure for Cabin Fever" award for the third year in a row at the Palouse Cabin Fever Brew Fest at the Palouse Community Center on Sat., Feb. 13. Laht Neppur won top honors with their Hot Chocolate Strawberry Porter and earned second place with their Bluewood Barley Wine. Third place went to Paradise Creek Brewery's Berliner Bar. Paradise's Invective Stout tied with Black Label Brewing Company's Piper's P...
WAITSBURG – A structural engineering report on the Waitsburg Fairgrounds grandstands indicates that the structure is in serious need of either repair or demolition, City Administrator Randy Hinchliffe told the Waitsburg City Council at their Feb. 17 meeting. Muran Engineering and Design completed the assessment and listed three recommendations: bring the structure up to standards, tear it down and remove it, or barricade it from public access, Hinchliffe said. Hinchliffe said the grandstands wer...
WAITSBURG – The Waitsburg Garden Club, organized by Karen Gregutt, will celebrate its 10th anniversary this year. The club will kick of 2016 with its first meeting of the season on Saturday, March 5 at 9 a.m., the home of Susan Donegan, at 209 W. 4th St. Gregutt has passed the reins of club president to Donegan this year. Gregutt started the club in 2007, shortly after moving to Waitsburg. She said she organized the club to support and appreciate the beauty of the town, especially its trees a...
Waitsburg resident Karl Newell brought this photo by The Times and said that Makenna Barron stopped by Waitsburg Hardware Store & Mercantile last Saturday to surprise Jack McCaw with a heart-shaped Valentine's cake. Newell said Makenna and Jack have performed together in many Liberty Theater productions, and have become close, and Makenna wanted to do something nice for Jack. It looks like he enjoyed the surprise....
Preston Hall Student Spotlight students for the month of January were (l to r) Mya Wood, 6th grade; Hannah Sullivan, 7th grade; Avery VanBlaircom, 8th grade. Preston Hall second quarter honor roll: 8th grade 3.25 or better Logan Baker Wyatt Bohlman Grace Coulston Veronika Grace Seamus House Braden Kitselman Kailyn Lewis Anna Miller Kirsten Miller Kevin Murphy Cason Nichols Bradley Sandau Sawyer Tardif Avery VanBlaricom 7th grade 3.25 or better Zach Bly Koby Harris Riley Hubbard Teagen Larsen...
WAITSBURG – Last Friday was a school day, but the slopes at Ski Bluewood were filled with students, and they weren't play hooky. Waitsburg fifth graders joined students from Dayton, Starbuck, and Jubilee Leadership Academy at Bluewood to focus on something other than the three R's – learning to ski. Ski Bluewood General Manager Kim Clark said Bluewood offers special school rates for multi-week lessons, as well as single-day field trips, to Touchet Valley schools. They also offer special group pr...
WAITSBURG – A discussion of the Feb. 9 special election results and a vote on the Dayton-Waitsburg 2016 football combine were top agenda items at the Feb. 10 Waitsburg School Board meeting. Special Election “We clearly need to celebrate the success of the maintenance and operations levy,” Superintendent Carol Clarke said. “We had really strong community support. That says we’re doing something right.” As of Tuesday, the levy, which will collect $559,000 in 2017 and $570,000 in 2018 was passing a...
WAITSBURG – Four Waitsburg teachers each recently received $200 mini-grants from the Walla Walla-Columbia School Retirees Association. The mini-grants, as well as scholarships for local students, are funded largely by the group's annual Teddy Bear Tea fundraiser. This year's tenth annual Teddy Bear Tea will take place from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. on Sat., Feb. 27 at the St. Francis Catholic Church Social Hall, located at 722 W. Alder Street in Walla Walla. According to group member Joan Helm, the ass...
Board members: Karen Tonne, Sara Fletcher, Leann Griffin, Erik Young, Eva Madrigal Leann Griffin was sworn in as a newly elected board member for Position/Seat 4. First reading of Policy #5401 dealing with sick leave. Discussed fees and utilities charges for district rental units. Superintendent Cox will follow up with Bill Clemmons and R.E.A. about solar panels. Superintendent Cox reported that last year approximately 15 junior high and high school students were active in sports. This year, 60 students are active. The school...
WAITSBURG – The Waitsburg Commercial Club is accepting nominations for Community Service Award and Business of the Year Award recipeints, now through March 17. The awards will be announced in April. This will be the second year the Business of the Year will be awarded. Last year, it was awarded to Dan and Trina Cole of Waitsburg Grocery. Kate Hockersmith received last year’s Community Service Award for her work with music and local youth. To nominate a business or community member, send a letter or note as to why you feel they are des...
Waitsburg's Town Hall was the happening spot in town on Sat. Feb 13 as community members enjoyed a fundraising Prime Rib Dinner put on by the Town Hall Association. All proceeds will be used for the operations and maintenance of Town Hall....
John Mason was named Booster of the Year at Waitsburg's Senior Night at last Friday's basketball games. "John has given enthusiastically of his time and resources helping the students of Waitsburg. . . (Click on photo to read rest of caption)...
Hansen describes the international seminar as life-altering WAITSBURG – Having been home for only a couple of weeks, Melissa Hansen is still mentally and emotionally processing her recent trip to Thailand and Laos, but she knows for certain that it was life-altering. The trip, called an international seminar, was just one part of the 18-month AgForestry Leadership program that she will graduate from in May. The Washington Agriculture and Forestry Leadership Program (AgForestry) awards f...
WAITSBURG - City Administrator Randy Hinchliffe will ask the city council to choose a rail design for the soon-to-be-replaced Main Street Bridge a the upcoming Feb. 17 city council meeting. The public is invited to attend that meeting to offer input or to come by City Hall and let Randy know their preference in advance. Anderson Perry & Associates has submitted three options: a cross and circle pattern imprinted on the concrete (mimicing the look of the existing barrier), an open window...
Graduating senior winter athletes were honored at senior night in Waitsburg on Friday. They had some fun posing here for Dayton photographer Nick Page before the game. . ....
WAITSBURG – What do you do when you have an idea that just won’t go away? That’s what Pam Conover has been asking herself about the idea of starting a “Lord’s Laundry” in Waitsburg. She finally decided to go public with the idea that “just won’t go away” to see what kind of community interest there might be in the project. Conover said the idea of opening a laundromat in Waitsburg first came up during a women’s Sunday School class discussion at the Christian Church. A group of ladies were brai...
WAITSBURG – January’s winners for the Shop Waitsburg First drawing were Wendy Richards (Waitsburg Grocery), Mike Cook (Waitsburg Grocery), and Dena Wood (Midway Food Mart). Each winner received a check in the amount of their purchase (up to $50) from the Waitsburg Commercial Club. The Commercial Club sponsored the drawing as a way to encourage residents to spend money locally – one of the goals set by the club. Other club goals include drawing visitors to town, encouraging overnight stays in lo...
WAITSBURG - Last week, the animal rights group, PETA, came out with a harsh attack against the values of the National FFA Organization in a blog post titled "FFA is Lame . . ." that went viral and caused a strong response from FFA members on Facebook. Hashtags like #FFAProud, #FFAStrong, WHYIFFA, and #FFAPride ran rampant as members jumped to the organization's defense. Below are exerpts of posts from just a few of the local FFA members who responded. Timber Froherich:"Considering I am a proud...
WAITSBURG – The City of Waitsburg utility customers now have the option to view and pay their utility bills online. The City has partnered with InvoiceCloud, a web-based electronic invoice presentment and payment company, to provide faster, more convenient billing services to residents. The new online payment service will offer residents more flexibility in paying their bills. The system is easy to use and will allow residents to pay their bills with either a bank account or credit/debit card. No registration is required to view an online r...
WAITSBURG – Fellow actors, musicians, co-workers, and friends are banding together to offer support to Melissa and Mike Ferrians in their time of need. Several fundraisers are being organized to raise funds for the Ferrians, as Melissa walks through a recently diagnosed battle with colon cancer. The Ferrians stepped down from pastoral life last May, when Mike retired after serving 25 years as pastor of the Waitsburg First Christian Church. During that time, Melissa was right beside him, s...
