WAITSBURG – Waitsburg holds the honor of being home to the very first Grange in Washington, even before Washington was a state. And while memberships have ebbed and flowed over the years, the organization is still alive and ready to become a strong community asset once again.

Members of Waitsburg Grange #1 are looking to revive the family- and community-centered organization with a community potluck at 4 p.m. on May 7, to be held at the Waitsburg Grange Hall, just across from Midway Food Mart on Highway 12.

In 2015, members voted to sell the then-unusable Grange Hall and look for a new meeting place, in hopes that the group could hold functions and become active again. The hall did sell, but it turns out members don't need to find a new location, after all. They'll be meeting in the same building they have used for nearly 80 years.

Eric Turbe, of Seattle, purchased the building and had opted to remain anonymous and keep a "low profile" until recently. He plans to make the building available to rent for meetings and events, in the future. Turbe is a Grange member himself, and gave the organization permission to use the building, and is even retaining the building's name as the Waitsburg Grange Hall, according to newly elected Grange President, Penny Hazelbaker

Hazelbaker said Turbe is working with Travis Richardson of Dayton Construction, and they have cleaned the building, remodeled the inside, replaced windows, and installed new electricity, water, and a bathroom. They have also added gravel to the lot, replaced the concrete slab out front, and there are plans to replace the kitchen.

There is still cosmetic work, such as painting, that needs to be done, but Hazelbaker said Grange members are happy to help with that as a "thank you" for being allowed to use the building.

About 20 members were present at the April Grange meeting, where Hazelbaker was elected president. She assumed the position left empty her late husband, John Hazelbaker, who had been Grange President for more than 20 years.

"We want people to know that this is happening! We're not going to sit idle, anymore," Hazelbaker said.

Waitsburg Grange #1 was organized in 1873, when Washington was still a territory, and fell under the jurisdiction of the Oregon State Grange. The Washington State Grange was organized two months before Washington became a state. The Waitsburg Grange was the first chapter chartered in Washington in 1889.

The organization originally met in the Huntsville schoolhouse, before building the hall on Highway 12 in 1938. The organization first built the floor of the building and held dances on it for a couple of years to raise funds for further construction, according to Rick Ferguson.

Granges are unique in that they welcomed women as equals from the beginning, granting them voting rights and the ability to hold office. As a family organization, children are encouraged to participate in meetings and voice their opinions alongside the adults. Children are considered full members at age 14, the Fergusons said.

The Fergusons explained that community involvement and service is an integral part of the Grange, and chapters were expected to make their halls open to activities for both members and nonmembers. The halls often served as the town's community center.

Prior to the flood of '96, which rendered the Grange Hall unusable, there were more than one hundred active members of the Grange, according to members Rick and Terry Ferguson. Following the loss of a meeting space, numbers dwindled, but the group has continued to take responsibility for Waitsburg's annual Ester Egg Hunt, where Rick has played Easter Bunny for over 40 years, and Grange members hide and color the eggs.

"The neat thing about the Grange is that it can be whatever you want it to be. Each Grange is in tune to its own community, and each community has its own needs," Terry Ferguson told The Times in 2015, prior to the sale of the building.

The Waitsburg Grange was once an active part of the community, offering social events like BINGO, an annual haunted house, benefit dinners, auctions for people who were ill. They also extended a helping hand to the local FFA chapter and provided annual scholarships.

Hazelbaker said the group is looking forward to holding BINGO and holiday events once again.

"This is a family organization, and we very much want the kids to be involved. Eventually, we will have a scholarship again. The members vote on what they want to do in the community," Hazelbaker said.

With a meeting place available again, local members are excited to find out what needs the organization can fill in the community. The entire community is invited to the May 7 potluck to visit with neighbors and learn more about the Grange. Hazelbaker said Turbe plans to attend the meeting and will be happy to visit with community members as well.

Anyone interested in membership or learning more about the Grange should contact Penny Hazelbaker at (509) 520-5245 or Rick or Terry Ferguson at (509) 337-6207.