Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 27
WAITSBURG-Seventy-five thousand pounds of food from participating sponsors was dropped off at the Waitsburg Elementary School parking lot over the weekend. The semi-trucks that hauled it disappeared as soon as the trailers were empty. Countless smiling volunteers helped distribute every single bit of food to anyone and everyone who drove up. The food was prepackaged in 30-pound boxes. Dairy staples, including yogurt and butter, and other essential pantry items like fresh potatoes, onions, and...
WAITSBURG—On March 15, Washington State Governor Jay Inslee released an emergency proclamation concerning updates to school reopening plans. The directive stated that all schools in Washington State must offer in-person instruction for elementary students by April 5, and in-person instruction for high school students by April 19. On March 25, the Washington State Department of Health adopted guidance from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) that lessened the six foot physical distancing requir...
DAYTON—Columbia County Prosecuting Attorney Dale Slack has wasted no time heading off a headache for local law enforcement due to the State Supreme Court ruling Washington State v. Blake on February 25, 2021. As reported in the March 18 edition of the Times, the ruling struck down as unconstitutional Washington’s strict liability drug possession statute, RCW 69.50.4013, which made possession of a controlled substance a felony. The Court’s ruling said the state law was unconstitutional becau...
Barbara Carlton from Dayton sent this from Spring Break in South Florida. Or should we call her Lady Barbara?...
OLYMPIA—The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission invites the public to celebrate the spring season and Earth Day with two free days at state parks in April. On free days, visitors do not need a Discover Pass for day-use parking. The first free day is Saturday, April 3 —a springtime free day. The next free day is Thursday, April 22, in honor of Earth Day. The free days are in keeping with legislation that created the Discover Pass. The pass costs $30 for an annual pass or $10 for a one-day permit. It is required for vehicle acc...
DAYTON—The Dayton Memorial Library began operating with new hours on March 29. The library will be open 10 a.m-5 p.m on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. On Thursdays, the library will be open from 12 p.m-7 p.m....
DAYTON—Raya and the Last Dragon, a new animated movie from Disney, has received lots of public buzz and positive reviews. It has been dubbed a “vibrant action-fantasy epic” on Digitalspy.com. This story begins long ago, in the fantasy world of Kumandra, when humans and dragons lived together in harmony. But when an evil force threatened the land, the dragons sacrificed themselves to save humanity. Now, 500 years later, that same evil has returned. It’s up to a lone warrior, Raya, to track down the legendary last dragon to restore the fractured...
WAITSBURG—House Bill 2005 was introduced in 2017 to improve the business climate in Washington State by simplifying the administration of municipal business licenses. The bill went into effect in July 2017. The Waitsburg City Council officially voted to align with the state’s business license system in November of last year. The bill stated that cities that require a general business license must partner with the Department of Revenue for issuance and renewal of any business license through the...
OLYMPIA—Phase Finder, the state’s online vaccine eligibility tool, will no longer be required to verify COVID-19 vaccine eligibility starting March 31. That means that people who want a vaccine should check DOH’s prioritization guidance webpage to see when they are eligible to get vaccinated. Those who are eligible can then use the Vaccine Locator to find an appointment. After March 30, those who visit the Phase Finder site will be directed to Vaccine Locator. The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) has informed vaccine providers of th...
OLYMPIA—The Washington State Department of Commerce opened applications for Working Washington Grants: Round 4 on March 29. Business owners can find information about the program and a link to the application portal at www.commercegrants.com. This is the fourth round of the Working Washington Grant program. Legislators approved $240 million for the current round as part of an early action bill that also provided additional funding for rent assistance and other COVID-19 response efforts. Some of the criteria outlined in this legislation i...
DAYTON—The Port of Columbia has been planning a Public Information Meeting for the Touchet Valley Trail (TVT) 30% design review for several months. Because all three Port commissioners will be in attendance at the meeting, it is considered an official public meeting and must follow the laws of the state of Washington, particularly the Open Public Meetings Act. At each point in the decision-making process, current guidance from the state regarding holding public meetings during the COVID-19 pandemic has been reviewed. Organizing the me...
WAITSBURG—On March 26, the Walla Walla County Sheriff’s Office responded to reports of an unresponsive male in the basement of a home on Main Street in Waitsburg. Undersheriff Joe Klundt said that the situation appeared to be a suicidal incident, and no further information was available from the Sheriff's Office. Suicide rates across the nation have risen with the COVID-19 pandemic. Information presented by the Johns Hopkins Psychiatry Guide (JHPG) indicates that suicide rates have increased with prior pandemics; an increase was reported aft...
PRESCOTT—The Prescott School District is currently searching for a school psychologist. While the position is based in Prescott, the new psychologist will also be available to Waitsburg and Dayton students. The School Psychologist position serves primarily to identify, assess, and provide diagnostic information related to individual student educational success. They will serve as a member of multi-disciplinary and IEP teams in all three districts. The school psychologist will efficiently maintain relevant records and required reports, in a...
March 25 Suspicious activity at Columbia County Transfer Station. Cottonwood Street Citizen contact. Main Street Assault at Dayton High School. 3rd Street March 26 Animal call. Cameron Court Threats at Dayton High School. 3rd Street Theft at the General Store. Main Street March 27 Traffic stop. Main Street DUI Investigation. Main Street Welfare check at Classy Chassy Car Wash. Main Street March 28 Non-injury accident call. Bluewood 9-1-1 call. Country Village Hit and run reported. Cameron Street...
March 23 Informational report. Walla Walla A lock was cut to gain entry to a storage unit area, another lock was cut on a storage unit. Unknown if unit was entered, nothing reported missing at this time. Burbank March 25 A man conspired with another man to violate an order for protection. Walla Walla March 26 Report for information. Touchet March 28 Unknown suspect damaged personal land in Walla Walla County. Burbank March 29 A theft was reported. Waitsburg A jar of marijuana was found. Walla Walla County Male and female going through a...
Marie was born to Reginald Henry Belanger and Frances Katherine Beatty Belanger in New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada. The family moved to the United States when she was very young. Marie attended schools in Spokane WA and Dayton WA. Marie married D. Dean Shea in 1956 (divorced in 1980). Their family life started in Spokane as Dean was enlisted in the USAF. His career took them to many places around the world while they grew their family. They moved about every 2 years, being stationed in Spain, Nevada, Everett, WA, Germany, Colorado,...
DAYTON-At a special meeting last week, the Dayton City Council appointed Fred Crowe to fill the remainder of Matt Wien's term on the council. Wiens resigned from the Dayton City Council in January, but his term was to end on Dec. 31, 2021. Crowe will begin his service on the Transportation, Planning and Community Development, and Parks and Recreation committees, according to Mayor Pro-tem Dain Nysoe. Crowe and his wife Genie have lived in Columbia County since 2010. They were drawn to Dayton...
WAITSBURG—Spring has sprung, and daffodils aren’t the only things popping up around town. Last week, a couple of Waitsburg residents posted on social media, warning of solicitors going around town selling air purification products. According to the Waitsburg Municipal Code, solicitors are defined as: ‘Any person who goes from house to house or place to place in the City of Waitsburg selling or taking orders for or offering to sell or take orders for, goods, wares or merchandise, for prese...
Honestly, I have no legitimate excuse for not having returned. The experience still calls like a siren song playing softly in the background. Snow-capped peaks and glaciers. Expansive vistas of low-country lakes surrounded by ghostly granite, golden grasses, and solemn conifers. Hot springs and chaparral scrublands. Mountain quail. And honest-to-God golden trout. The jewel of California's Sierra Nevada Range. It was a bucket-list trip. One I had dreamed of for how many years, I am unsure. We had...
THE TIMES-Roadside assistance is closer than ever for Waitsburg residents. Kyle's RSA, owned by Kyle Sickles, is now available for "everything but the tow." Sickles said that he got the idea for a roadside service business after speaking with local towing company owner Trevor Johnson, who suggested that Sickles start small with a service business before investing in a tow truck, and other necessary equipment. "They told me that it's a lot to take on," Sickles said. "They said to start with the r...
The PAC-12 continued its dominance this week in the NCAA tournament, with three teams advancing to the Elite Eight. USC, UCLA, and Oregon State each won their third games of the tournament. Only Oregon failed to advance, losing to USC 82-68. A great start allowed USC to get out to a big lead at the half 41-26. It was a lead that Oregon would cut to 69-60 in the second half but could get no closer. Normally a great three-point shooting team, the Ducks had a down day shooting 5-21, good for only 23.8%. USC made five more three-pointers, 10-17 for...
DAYTON—The Wolfpack charged up and brought home one final win for the 2021 season. Playing against White Swan Cougars, the final scores were 26-24, 18-25, 19-25, 25-8, 15-13. The team was led by seniors Katherine Houchin, who had 16 digs, 13 kills, and one ace, Sadie Seney with ten digs, ten kills, six blocks, and five aces, and Teagan Larsen, who ended the match with 17 assists, seven digs, three kills, one block, and two aces. Megan Forney played a big part in the final victory, with 13 assists, 11 digs, two kills, four aces under her n...
WAITSBURG-Dayton Waitsburg had a tough night moving the ball against a senior-heavy Columbia Burbank team, on the Coyotes' senior night. Columbia Burbank came out firing last Thursday night and put up 35 points in the first quarter to set the tone for the night, according to coach Troy Larsen. "We had a really hard time picking up their front 5 and when they brought even more via the blitz, they put us in some bad situations, pretty much eliminating our run game," said Larsen. "Columbia was...
DAYTON-The Dayton Kiwanis Club met Thursday, March 25, at noon, for a regular meeting. Attendees heard from Dayton High School Alumni Keith Nealey, Director of Engineering at KIRO TV and esports enthusiast. Nealy has more than 30 years of experience creating graphics and integrating statistics for traditional sports broadcasts. He has worked with companies including CBS, ABC, and ESPN. He has worked closely with Seattle-based professional sports teams, the Sonics, Seahawks, and Sounders FC....
WAITSBURG-Monday, March 15, was the first day of the 2021 Homecoming Week at Waitsburg High School. The first costume challenge was Zoom Call Dress Up: Business on the top half, casual on the bottom. The Senior class won both the dress-up contest and the BuffPuff volleyball game, giving them a strong advantage over their lowerclassmen. Sophomore Natalie Teal was voted the "Best Dressed Girl," while Senior Shawn Evans was voted the "Best Dressed Boy." On March 16, the Seniors won the Spirit Day d...
