Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 501 - 525 of 625
Dear Editor, Two years ago, Sheriff Turner approached me and asked me a question about the next new hire. His question to me was “would you trust this guy in a gun fight; would he stand by you or run?” Little did I know he asked the deputies the same about me when I was hired. I thought about the three candidates running for Sheriff and asked myself the same question, which is why I am choosing to endorse Mark Crider. Not so much for the gun fight situation, though it wouldn’t hurt, since he is a firearms instructor. But I know he would suppo...
(Editor’s note: We received this letter this week from a young reader with a special connection to Waitsburg, and we are very pleased to publish his letter.) Dear Mr. Graham, My name is Sean William Stonecipher Sollars and I’m in the 6th grade. My mom is Suzanne Stonecipher-Sollars and she grew up in Waitsburg. I’m a Boy Scout and pleased to write about one of my Boy Scout stories. I am working on my communication merit badge, and this is one of the things I’m required to do! As a small kid, all I wanted was to be a Boy Scout like my cousins...
Dear Editor, Matthew J Stroe is one of my favorite people. He and his wife, Elizabeth, share the same family values my wife, Jessica, and I do. His devotion to service and community in Walla Walla County is unparalleled. Wherever and whenever he is part of something, he throws his whole self into it. I first met Matt when I was a security officer at Whitman College and he became the new director. I had the rare opportunity of training my new boss. We agreed that security should be visible and approachable in all areas of campus. Thus, while...
Dear Editor, In my ministry, I’ve always tried to stay out of politics and publicly voicing my personal political inclinations. Why? Because I feel that my main job is to bring people together and to share the love of Jesus. The political arena can be a divisive area and can lean more on the individualistic rather than the whole, and that’s a tough area to navigate as a pastor. However, my wife and I recently placed our first-ever political sign in our front yard, and we were asked the question “What is it about this person that you feel so pa...
Dear Editor, I’m writing to express my ardent support for Matt Stroe as a candidate for sheriff of Walla Walla County. I met Matt as a student at Whitman College while working for the Security Department in a work study position. Matt is an outstanding director of security. He found innovative ways to improve safety on campus and gained the trust of students in a way that facilitated a to-my-knowledge unprecedentedly positive relationship between the student body and security. Outside of his accomplishments for the Security Department, Matt w...
Dear Editor, I apologize to the community for showing off doing wheelies with my old Ford Tractor in Saturday’s Waitsburg Parade, May 19th. A dumb, selfish thing to do and a bad example for the youth. Thinking about it later if an accident had happened, I would have spoiled the day’s celebration and lives forever. Please help me to thank God for His mercy and Grace that nothing bad did happen, and hope I will think beforehand and remember not to do dumb things again. Thank you all for a Forgiving heart. Philip Manfort Waitsb...
Dear Editor, I believe most would agree the discussion of the fate of the Waitsburg Fairgrounds Grandstands has been going on for too many years. Differing views by members of the latest Grandstand Committee regarding public support for the grandstands resulted in the recent Advisory Vote. The results of that vote left little doubt as to the “will of the people” but now even that is being questioned by some. If the Waitsburg City Council is still not willing to accept and act on the outcome of the advisory vote may I offer one final sug...
Dear Editor, There is a virus spreading across America. It harms the 1 in 5 Americans affected by mental health conditions. It shames them into silence. It prevents them from seeking help. In some cases, it takes lives. What virus are we talking about? It’s stigma. Stigma against people with mental health conditions. But there’s good news. Stigma is 100% curable. Compassion, empathy and understanding are the antidote. Your voice can spread the cure. May is Mental Health Month and Blue Mountain Counseling is raising awareness in the role men...
Dear Editor, I want to share an opportunity for Dayton Parents and members of the community to help us make decisions about schools in our state. Our state’s lead office for education – the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), led by State Superintendent Chris Reykdal – just opened a survey to the public asking for input on public K-12 education investments for the future. This is the first time families, educators, students and community members will have an opportunity to give input about the areas where state leaders shoul...
Dear Editor, Across the country, the “Age Wave” of older Americans are taking part in activities that promote wellness and social connection, sharing their wisdom and experience with future generations, enriching their communities. They’re working, volunteering, mentoring, learning, leading and engaging. Older Americans Month (OAM) recognizes older Americans and their contributions to our communities providing an opportunity to hear from, support, and celebrate our nation’s elders. This year’s OAM theme, “Engage at Every Age,” emphasizes th...
Dear Editor, In February of this year, 2018, an extraordinary thing occurred to benefit our dear town. By extraordinary, I mean something that doesn’t happen every day or even every year. Michael Haight and Cathy Lee-Haight decided to make some very large gifts for the good of our community. They gave to enrich and strengthen what we already have that is vibrant and to help a new organization get up and running. To the Dayton Historic Depot Society, they contributed $20,000 toward the operations endowment that the Depot has been working to i...
Dear Editor, Regarding the proposed water bottling plant, the commission looks at this decision as a “Land Use Issue” which I understand. In that regard here are points they need to consider: Use of the land is important, although the commission does not regulate morality, I doubt they would allow zoning for a house of prostitution. This is agricultural land, there is no industrial zoned area nearby. Wineries are agricultural and produce water as a product with added value. Irrigation returns the water to the ground from which it came. The irr...
Dear Editor, The Waitsburg Times account of publisher Ken Graham’s interview with County Commissioner Todd Kimball was accurate as far as it went. It gave more than adequate coverage to the Commissioners’ perspectives on the Dozier’s request to start a water bottling business on their land. What was missing was any acknowledgment whatsoever of the well-reasoned legal, zoning and resource-savvy positions that oppose this misuse of the county’s valuable and limited water supply. The Times repeated the claim that since wineries and distilleries ar...
Dear Editor, I am dismayed that “one of us,” the Doziers, would request permission to ship raw water out of our semi-arid area. Further, I am even more disappointed in our county commissioners for entertaining such a request. Our water should only be removed from our area in an added value state, such as farm or garden produce, not in tankers or bottles. Those of us who continually have to negotiate with state agencies to maintain our rights for irrigation water should find this bottled water request completely out of line and not be con...
Dear Editor, There are a bunch of wonderful people working hard to bring our annual celebration to our great, One-of-a-Kind, little city. That event is Waitsburg Celebration Days and it is being planned for the weekend of May 18, 19 and 20. So far, our community has responded very well to helping make this weekend really special. The Parade will once again be held on Armed Forces Day, and so the theme will be “Celebrate Waitsburg, the American Way”. As Waitsburg citizens are wonderful volunteers, we (The Parade Committee) are seeking nom...
Dear Editor, Several groups have offered input concerning the fairgrounds. The latest, the Grandstand Advisory Committee, was created by council. It was created to exist for a limited time which, I believe, has expired. Due to busy lives this committee met no more than a half-dozen times and never had all members present. There were varying opinions by Committee members at the last meeting regarding public interest. That led to the request for an advisory vote on the city election ballot. Currently the grandstands are a potential liability. Som...
Dear Editor, I received my property tax bill last week. It was really high. But then again, I knew it would be, because the Washington State Legislature in 2017 imposed new taxes upon the citizenry in order to “fully fund our schools.” Just how much that translated into as additional taxes, I did not know for sure until the tax statement arrived in the mail, three days after the election date for the Dayton Schools $800,000 Capital Levy. Carolyn Henderson Dayton...
To the Editor: Isn’t it funny how, within the mass propaganda campaign to “Vote Yes for Our Kids,” so little is mentioned about how the taxes we are encouraged to regularly, every two years, levy upon ourselves are not predominantly spent on school maintenance and repairs? Four years ago, the Dayton School District floated a (failed) 20-year, $19.9 million construction bond to fix a school they lamented was simply falling apart. In an April 5, 2014 Union Bulletin article by Rachel Alexander, superintendent Doug Johnson brought out, reluc...
Dear Editor, Washington State’s governor appears not to have understood when voters expressed their opinion of a carbon tax at the polls. Governor Inslee continues to press that issue in an interesting manner. Staffer Chris Davis has been working from Africa on that issue for the governor. Working remotely takes on a new meaning. Is Davis still being paid by state taxpayers for working from afar on one of the governor’s pet projects which voters turned down? Also according to the Seattle Times, another Inslee advisor, Reed Schuler, is bei...
Dear Editor, We are writing in support of the upcoming Dayton School District capital projects levy. This levy will replace the current 2017-2018 levy. The primary purpose for this levy is to upgrade the boiler systems for the School District. The boilers for the Elementary and High School buildings are 33 years old and have reached the end of their estimated lifespans. The Ag - Wood Shop boiler is the oldest at 52 years old. The large hot water heater unit is also over 30 years old. The aging equipment continues to have breakdowns and is not...
Dear Editor: It is once again time to for Columbia County residents to give serious thought to Dayton’s school and its infrastructure. A school is just like our own homes; it has buildings and systems that need constant care and do not last forever. Heating equipment gets old, fails, and requires expensive repairs. Water heaters fail and must be replaced. Dayton School District is facing issues like these right now. A large water heater/heat exchanger unit is over 30 years old and its reliability is a concern. Three heating boilers need to be r...
Thanks to Terry Jacoy for his vote against entering into an agreement with the Corps of Engineers to fund a study of Waitsburg’s flooding by the Touchet River and Coppei Creek. Councilman Jacoy’s dissent of this study shows someone is thinking with open eyes that such knowledge is at the exclusion of wisdom. Waitsburg’s $225,000.00 share in a $550,000.00 package would go a long ways in lessening this city’s flood damage in order to clean out and deepen the river bottom in and beyond city boundaries. Doing what is needed, not “studyi...
Dear Editor, The Friends of the Library would like to thank the following businesses for their donation for our fundraiser basket to purchase books for the Weller Library: Blue Crystal, Dumas Station, Midway Food Mart, Clarence Stearns, Gary Thomas Lawn Service, Whiskey Canyon, Laht Neppur, Waitsburg Grocery, Blush Salon & Spa. The basket raffle raised $710 to buy books for all ages! Veronica Sandau’s ticket was drawn to win the basket. We also had a recent donation from Jim Walsh of $100 to buy books. Karen Huwe President - Friends of the L...
Dear Editor, On Saturday, December 2, with the Columbia County-Walla Walla County Fire District 2 volunteers and community members, the Waitsburg Resource Center was able to deliver 260 Christmas stockings to children in the City of Waitsburg. The leftover stockings were donated to Santa to deliver at 10 Ton. What a fun day for the children, and for us. But we could not have completed this project without the help of the volunteers, and especially the volunteers at the fire district who were willing to donate their time on a Saturday. Where...
Dear Editor, Maybe you have been reading in our local paper about the plans being made for our Columbia County Fairgrounds, which includes tearing down one of the large historic buildings, The East GrandStand.This could be just the beginning of removing, piece by piece, our historic fairgrounds.We now have someone working in the area,who has closely inspected the grandstand, and knows what needs to be done to preserve its special significance. He is willing to work with us to do this. There are many other areas of our Fairgrounds that also...
