Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
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WAITSBURG- Homemade red velvet doughnuts, build-your-own sandwiches and themed dinners will soon be served at 206 Main Street, as the Callahan family wraps up the last few preparations for a soft opening of Millstone Cafe and Bakery. "I have always wanted to own a restaurant," owner Deb Callahan said. "I have been cooking all of my life, I've catered a good portion of my life." Deb said that her husband, Jim, is getting ready to retire and they are looking forward to having a business that, with...
WALLA WALLA—Walla Walla County Department of Community Health (DCH). has confirmed that Sunday, April 19th, 2020 had the largest spike in daily cases for COVID-19 in the county. Over the weekend, they reported six additional cases of COVID-19, five of which resulted on Sunday. A total of seventeen additional cases have been confirmed since Friday, April 10th , 2020 increasing Walla Walla County’s case count to thirty-seven. It is important to note that the local daily case count for COVID-19 is not at its peak. According to the April 21, 202...
DAYTON—Learning has taken a curious shape in the Dayton School District since brick and mortar schools were shut down on March 17. The school closures have provided opportunities for teachers and staff who are working from home to provide continuous learning in different and creative ways, and not just distance learning, said Superintendent Doug Johnson, at last week’s board meeting. “We’re trying to continue educating the students in any manner, shape or form we can between now and when we can...
CAMP MURRAY, Wash.—On April 17, 2020, the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) was alerted by UW Medicine to discontinue use of a recently-procured batch of COVID-19 specimen collection kits that UW Medicine believed may have a quality control issue. As a result, on April 16 DOH recalled approximately 12,000 kits sent to local health jurisdictions, tribal nations, and state agency partners across the state. “Though the quality control issue has only been observed in a small number of tubes of viral transport media, we adhere to the hig...
According to Associated Press reports, thousands of people gathered in Olympia, WA on Sunday, April 19 to protest Gov. Jay Inslee’s stay-at-home order designed to combat the spread of the coronavirus. Protesters could be seen holding signs that read “End the Shutdown” and “Give Me Liberty or Give me Covid 19”. In nearby Richland, WA, the Tri-Cities Herald and YakTriNews.com reported that hundreds of protestors of all ages lined George Washington Way in front of John Dam Plaza with signs, American flags, and bullhorns. Hundreds of protestor...
This cute redesigned cabinet is the home of the Little Free Pantry located at the First Congregational Church, corner of Third and Spring Street, Dayton. Take what you need, leave what you can....
PRESCOTT—Prescott Joint Parks and Recreation District recently announced the retirement of Patsy Welch Adams Warnock, a 13-year member of the local Recreation District. Her post at Position #2 expires in 2021, therefore the Commissioners must seek a replacement in the meantime. This is a four year volunteer position that helps direct the activities of the town, including the Prescott Pool. Interested persons can contact the PJPRD office at (509) 849-2314 for more information....
WALLA WALLA—There are currently three open positions on the Waitsburg-Coppei Flood Control District Board of Directors. The district has been inactive for some years. There is an interest in reactivating the district to assist with certain flood control activities in the City of Waitsburg. By state law (RCW 85.38), such vacancies are filled by appointment by the board of county commissioners in which the largest part of the district property is located, which is Walla Walla County. Appointees shall hold office until the next district e...
Deanna Tipton planned a birthday parade to celebrate her mother Doris Huffman's 90th birthday this past Monday. Friends and neighbors drove by her Orchard Street home with signs and merriment to celebrate....
"I am using a combination of methods-old and new-to communicate with my students and their parents. During the first week I sent a letter home to seniors and their parents, encouraging them during this strange time and reminding them about some things they could be doing during our six weeks apart. The second and third week I used Skyward (our online platform for grading and communication) to send individual classes messages. I've also sent some messages and pictures through the Waitsburg High S...
WAITSBURG— The Waitsburg City Council met on Wednesday, April 15 via conference call. Mayor Marty Dunn, Councilmembers Jim Romine, Kevin House, Kate Hockersmith, KC Kuykendall, and Terry Jacoy were present. Incoming council members David Paxton, Karen Gregutt and Karl Newell were present, as well as city administrator Randy Hinchliffe. The council reviewed and certified the 2020 Election results. Hockersmith, Kuykendall and Jacoy stepped down and voters filled the empty positions with Gregutt, Newell and Paxton. Marty Dunn was re-elected as m...
To the Publisher: Thanks for running the interview with the YWCA DV advocates and sharing information about domestic violence in the time of stay-at-home orders. I work for Northwest Justice Project, a statewide nonprofit law firm which helps low-income people with legal needs. We’ve been worrying a lot about escalating DV paired with reduced opportunity to seek help. So the article was genius! A related, timely reporting idea is the eviction and foreclosure moratoriums currently in force. In addition to the moratoriums, there are programs whic...
April 23: Claudia Cunningham, Juanita Gluck, Vera Webber, Sandra Cox, Caleb Durkee, Nico Harri and Lisa Kysar. April 24: Betty Callahan, Julia Manyak, Rick Huwe, Bess Harter, Geneva Pettichord, Jason Sickles, Cheyenne Frohreich. April 25: Sharon Pauley, Nancy Meyers, Bernice Mock, Richele Heilburn and Randy Schuster, Michael Bessey April 26: Charlie Baker, Lane Gwinn, Ernest Hermanns, Delores Nettles, Dain Henderson, Rich Lee, Gregory Kalahele-Stearns, Bryan Thomas, Patsy Donavon, Dawn Keith, Anna Newbury and George Porter. April 27: Kathy...
OLYMPIA—During this challenging time, Washington Women, Infants, and Children Nutrition Program (WIC) is here for vulnerable families. WIC is the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children. WIC gives families access to nutritious foods, nutrition education and breastfeeding support, health assessments and referrals. WIC is for pregnant people, new and breastfeeding moms, infants, and children under five. These services help diverse communities address their health needs during and after pregnancy and in early c...
While at the time of this writing, there are only 37 cases of COVID-19 in Walla Walla County, I have been keeping pace with the spread of the outbreak by checking in with friends around the country. On my return from my recent trip to the Dominican Republic in late February, I had the opportunity to visit with some dear friends in Brooklyn, in Kings County, New York. As of Monday, April 20, Kings County, NY was second only to Queens County, NY for total confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States, with 34,476 cases and 2,606 deaths. My...
On April 16, 2020, the Environmental Protection Agency (epa.gov) announced their final rule to withdraw the federal water quality standards for certain human health criteria in Washington (40 CFR 131.45) The final rule will be effective 30 days after posting in the Federal Register. Washington State Department of Ecology Director Laura Watson issued a statement last Friday, April 18, on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to roll back the water quality standards for Washington state that the agency approved in 2016: “The EPA’s d...
OLYMPIA—On April 16 Gov. Jay Inslee expanded protections for renters as COVID-19 continues to impact the finances of Washingtonians statewide. “It is clear that as we deal with the challenges around COVID-19, the financial impacts on Washingtonians are significant,” Inslee said. “People have lost their livelihoods through no fault of their own and we must continue to take steps to ensure they don’t also lose the roofs over their heads. Continued support and protection for tenants is the right thing to do and I am extending and expanding...
CAMP MURRAY, WA—The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Washington State Department of Health, and Bloodworks Northwest are partnering to make the antibodies of people who have recovered from COVID-19 available to those currently sick with the disease. This is one potentially effective treatment that can be administered and evaluated soon, while vaccines are being developed. This month, CDC began sending letters to people in the state of W...
Walla Walla winery Nocking Point Wine has pivoted recently to involve global celebrities and fundraising for the COVID-19 outbreak. Co-founders Andrew Harding and actor Stephen Ammell (the Green Arrow in The CW television series Arrow, and The Flash and Supergirl) heard from celebrity friend Mila Kunis, who reached out to Harding to suggest the creation of a QUARANTINE-themed wine that could be used to raise proceeds for multiple COVID-19 response efforts. Together with her husband Ashton...
When I was a child, everyone said that my father and I were like “two peas in a pod.” Physically we had a strong family resemblance, similar mannerisms and a strong stubborn streak. Politely, we listened intently to people’s advice, then usually did what we had initially planned. Thankfully, the one thing I didn’t inherit from him was his horrific sense of direction, he could get lost going around the block, and did once when picking me up from school. He hated gardening, he didn’t want to “man the grill,” he hated doing home repairs, and...
Last week's Times ran a couple articles about gardening. As offering unsolicited advice is one of my favorite pastimes-and as I'm sure you're not interested in another week's worth of secondhand finals stress-I figured I'd share a couple horticultural tips of my own. (As for my qualifications, I do have some green stuff coming up in this year's garden, and barely half of it's weeds!) Yes, seeds are cheaper than plants. Yes, there's usually more variety in the seed-packet display than there is...
"Music soothes the savage beast" is a common expression with an uncommon history. It's a misquote from The Mourning Bride, a poem by William Congreve written in 1697, which opens "Musick hath charms to sooth a savage breast, to soften rocks, or bend a knotted oak." I know little or nothing about savage breasts, but I have quite a lot of experience playing guitar for a wide variety of savage beasts, mostly cats. The right sort of music actually does seem to be soothing for them, although cats...
WAITSBURG— The Waitsburg School Board met April 16, via Zoom video conference. Superintendent Mark Pickel, board members Ross Hamann, Pam Chapman, Sarah Bodrieau, Lisa Morrow and Christy House were present. Seven other staff and community members were present. During the secondary report, board members reported that they are hearing lots of positive feedback from parents and students about the online learning programs that teachers have implemented. Christy House asked for clarification on t...
The Waitsburg Garden Club used proper social distancing to deliver this year's flowers to Main Street's plant pots....
Photographer Bill Rodgers shared "Springtime in The Hollow", 2020 with The Times. He notes: "Late April is always beautiful in the Touchet River Valley, with Cottonwood trees leafing out in brilliant chartreuse and all the other spring green hues in the fields." The charm of the light red barn and the hint of the other outbuilding rooftop completes the scene....
