WAITSBURG - This weekend will mark the end of the well-received "Tying the Knot: 120 Years of Walla Walla Weddings" exhibit at Walla Walla's Kirkman House Museum. The exhibit features 12 decades of bridal gowns, artifacts and the stories of Walla Walla Valley residents - including several items from Waitsburg resident Joan Helm, a distant relative of Isabella and William Kirkman.

Helm (whose maiden name is Potts, which is where the Kirkman connection comes in) grew up on her family's farm near Lamont, Wash. The 50-year WSU graduate taught "all over" before she and husband Jim moved to Waits...