Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
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Last January, Boeing was poised for another record year. The company’s order book burst at the seams. Things seem to be going Boeing’s way. In 2019, Boeing planned to step up deliveries of KC46 aerial refueling jets to the U.S. Air Force and the new 777 composite-wing jumbo jet was entering its critical test phases with plans to begin deliveries within the next two years. Boeing’s contracts for new aircraft climbed to 1,500 Dreamliners (787) and over 5,000 Max (737) jets. The company is capable of handling increased production. Its mammoth manu...
Dear Editor: It’s never too late to say “Thank you”!. We have been planning to send personal notes out to the many volunteers that helped make our Waits- burg Celebration Days Parade, but as usual some- times, life just happens. The biggest issue is that we do not have each of your mailing addresses so that makes it a major project, one that we do not have time for right now. Therefore, we are thanking each of you, via The Times with this Letter to the Editor. First of all, we thank the WCD Board of Directors for their support. They conti...
On April 21, 1962, the Seattle World’s Fair opened. The “Century 21 Exhibition” ran for six months, drew 11 million visitors, turned a profit and left the Northwest with a wonderful Seattle Center. Well over a half century later, many of the fair’s landmarks remain and the Center’s 73-acres is a gathering place for people from all walks of life. It is Seattle’s Central Park. The Space Needle has become Seattle’s landmark. Conceived in an architect’s notebook, it was constructed in eight months...
There are dams that should come down and those that shouldn’t. Hopefully, as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers conducts its review of the 14 federal dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers, that will become abundantly clear. That review is expected to be ready for public comment in late 2020. Here is the difference. Demolishing the two dams on the Elwha River west of Port Angeles was a good thing. They were built in the early 1900’s to bring electricity to the Olympic Peninsula at a time when sal...
Waitsburg High School National Honor Society Advisor Liv Leid shared this recently received email from the American Red Cross, regarding the recent NHS blood drive with The Times readers. Dear National Honor Society, Thank you for coordinating the Monday, April 29, 2019 blood drive. We are very pleased with the drive overall, and the willingness of the donors to share this life saving gift. The efforts of the Waitsburg Community have always been greatly appreciated and their support of the community blood program will go a long way toward...
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With the dust settling from the 2019 legislative session, the focus is assessing the impacts on taxpayers and our economy. Our state’s budget grew by a whopping 17.5 percent, which is one of the largest increases ever. Gov. Jay Inslee and his Democrat colleagues who controlled the legislature came to Olympia last January set on raising taxes despite higher than projected revenue collections. “Rather than looking for cost savings, lawmakers chose to raise more than $1 billion in new taxes over the next two years and $2.5 billion over four yea...
Dear Editor, Waitsburg Celebration Days is fast approaching. The reason for it was to maintain the date formerly held by Days of Real Sport after horse racing disappeared from the local scene. Volunteers are the key to the success of these events. Waitsburg Commercial Club proposed doing something to reserve the third weekend in May and the result was Waitsburg Celebration Days. Many of those involved with the weekend’s events are “retiring” due to various reasons. Walt & Gwen Gobel have co-chaired the Parade Committee for many years and this...
Montana’s legislature took the unusual step of exempting older, less-valued mobile homes from property tax as a way to stem homelessness. The bipartisan legislation, which Gov. Steve Bullock signed into law last week, aims to keep people in their homes. It exempts mobile and manufactured homes worth less than $10,000 and at least 28 years old from taxation starting next year. In Montana, a state with just over a million people, there are more than 22,000 residences where owners are in danger of losing their homes and being evicted if they c...
By Randy Hinchliffe, Administrator With spring finally arriving, the City would like to update you on a few items it is working on for the upcoming months. You may have noticed that the Walla Walla County Public Works crew has been in the City recently, crack sealing and patching some of the streets. This work is being done in preparation for the County crew to return and chip seal Orchard Street, Academy Street, Harmon Street and East Camp Road around the middle of June. This work is being done as a preventive measure to help keep up our...
“One of the biggest challenges of the 21st Century is dealing with the progress of the 20th Century - especially old computers, monitors, cellular phones and televisions. These appliances depend on potentially hazardous materials, such as mercury, to operate. After a five-to-eight year useful life, many are tossed into dumpster and sent to landfills where they can leach into the soil and groundwater.” That was the opening paragraph of a column I wrote 20 years ago. However, today the pro...
Dear Editor: Each year older adults are making positive impact by taking part in activities that promote wellness and social connection, sharing their wisdom and experience with future generations, and enriching their communities. They are volunteers, employees, employers, educators, mentors, and advocates. Older Americans Month (OAM) provides resources to help older Americans stay healthy, independent, and provides resources to help communicate support and celebrate their diversity. This year’s OAM theme is “Connect, Create, and Contribute”, w...
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By Senator Maureen Walsh (R) I want to offer my heartfelt apologies to those I offended with my comments on the Senate floor last Tuesday. I was tired, and in the heat of argument on the Senate floor, I said some things about nurses that were taken out of context – but still they crossed the line. I was trying to drive home a point about House Bill 1155, the bill we were debating at the time. It will impose inflexible staffing requirements on hospitals that will dramatically increase their costs. I am worried that 61 of our critical access hosp...
By Jeremy Field, Regional Administrator, Pacific Northwest U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) When it comes to growing the economy, we often focus on job growth through starting a new business. However, there is also a lot to be said about job retention and growth through transitioning current businesses to the next generation. Our country has started riding the wave of the “Silver Tsunami,” the increasingly large number of Baby Boomers retiring. Research shows millions of Baby Boomers will sell or close their businesses during the nex...
Dear Editor, The April 17, 2019 now deceased shooter in Lewiston, Idaho was in Idaho from Washington under the terms of an interstate compact, because he had numerous previous felony convictions. Dispatchers noted Cook had recently been hospitalized on a mental hold but had left against doctor’s wishes and made threats to law enforcement. Cook was prohibited from owning a firearm and had a number of criminal convictions, many involving violence. He was convicted in October 2016 of unlawful possession of a firearm and sentenced to one to two y...
Dear Editor, I hope the voters that elected Senator Maureen Walsh are paying attention to her behavior in the Washington Legislative chamber. Lawmakers are expected to be well informed about current issues. Senator Walsh presents a confused understanding of the nursing profession and how healthcare is organized in Washington State. Erik Jonas, RN...
People across our planet are increasingly aware of the growing amounts of trash floating in our oceans. While we are finding new ways to collect it, the more vexing problem is what to do with it. The garbage is accumulating in “gyres” which are large systems of circulating ocean currents, kind of like slow-moving whirlpools. Though the oceans are home to many gyres, there are five that have a significant impact on our environment. For example, our litter which makes its way into the open ocean m...
Although there is only one week each year when the nation takes time to “officially” recognize Public Safety dispatchers, I just wanted to share with you my appreciation for the hard work, skill, dedication, caring and compassion that is just part of every dispatcher’s workday in our 9-1-1 dispatch center. Our team at Walla Walla Emergency Services Communications (WESCOM) 9-1-1 is staffed with 12 exceptionally dedicated dispatchers, 3 Supervisors, and one Administrative Assistant who continually strive to deliver the best possible servi...
Before lawmakers wrap-up their work in Olympia, they should re-examine their hefty new state spending plan. The budget may not be sustainable even with a substantial increase in taxes. It may force legislators to return to the State Capitol to cut workers, programs and services; or, even hike taxes yet again. It has happened in the past. For example, in the early 1980s, Gov. John Spellman (R) and a Republican legislature were forced to meet in special session continuously to deal with rapidly...
By Friends of the Dayton Memorial Library President Pearl Dennis I go into my library and all history unrolls before me. - Alexander Smith Maintaining a thriving library within a rural community relies on committed individuals who are driven by a desire to improve their communities. Dayton has been blessed with a long line of civic-minded individuals dedicating their time, energy and resources towards developing and building the Columbia County Rural Library District. The history of the Dayton library dates back to 1919 when a small...
By Don C. Brunell Each year Americans throw away more than three billion batteries constituting 180,000 tons of hazardous material and the situation is likely to get much worse as the world shifts to electric vehicles. Everyday-green.com reports more than 86,000 tons of single-use alkaline batteries (AAA, AA, C and D) are thrown away. They power electronic toys and games, portable audio equipment and flashlights and make up 20 percent of the household hazardous materials in our garbage dumps....
We face a lot of division in America today, but there is a movement underway to build a more inclusive, united and tolerant nation. This movement is made up of individuals of different ages, different genders, different races and different political backgrounds. It’s a movement of people from across the country, all who can agree on this: We must teach our children what it means to belong and what it means to empathize with those who are different from ourselves. Through its Unified Champion Schools program, Special Olympics is teaching t...
With National Library Week being April 7-13, The Times asked locals to share a few of their favorite reads. Lynn Carpenter: "Cryptonomicon" by Neal Stephenson and "Grapes of Wrath" is a favorite classic. Matt Oakley: "Game of Thrones" series by George R. R. Martin Sarah Groffman: "Mother Night" by Kurt Vonnegut Lane Gwinn—"War With the Newts" by Karel Čapek John Avery: "Watership Down" by Richard Adams Suze Wood: "The Scarlet Pimpernel" by Emma Orczy Luke Chavez: "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel García Márquez and "Geek Love" by Kath...
By Don C. Brunell Before our country, in haste, dives totally into renewable energy, we must carefully evaluate its impacts. By just focusing on eliminating natural gas, liquid fuels (gasoline and diesel) and coal to combat climate change, we ignore the effects of other forms of pollution generated by processes in which renewable energy components are made. Under the Green New Deal, the United States would become 100 percent reliant on renewable energy in a decade and eliminate CO2 producing fuels. It would cost up to $93 trillion over...
