Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 51 - 75 of 119
WALLA WALLA-The Walla Walla YMCA is currently open with significant Phase 2 restrictions in place. Only members may visit, locker rooms will have limited access, there is a health screening at entry, and reservations are required for most areas. In order to provide fitness opportunities for a greater number of people, the YMCA is now offering a Virtual Membership for a $25 monthly fee. The Y's online offerings provide a way for people to maintain their physical health from the shelter of their...
WALLA WALLA—Individual business owners in Walla Walla are all managing Governor Inslee's mask wearing proclamation in their own unique ways. Cugini's Italian Import Foods on Wallula in Walla Walla posted a sign noting masks were required, but clothing was optional! At Ellen's Cutting Edge Barbershop, notices on the door required masks, as well as a prior appointment to get a cut. I had been a frequent customer of Saager's since I moved to town nine years ago-as it was where I had my two young s...
WALLA WALLA—Whitman College and Northwest Archives is creating a digital archive of the Walla Walla community’s experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. As our community begins to reopen, it is important to reflect on our experiences of the pandemic, including our experiences at work and school, our social and family interactions, and the changes to our routines. The college welcomes submissions in all languages from all members of the Walla Walla and regional communities. In partnership with the Walla Walla Mutual Aid Network and the Soci...
WALLA WALLA—At the Walla Walla City Council meeting held on June 24, plans were outlined for three, possibly four, virtual Town Hall meetings. The meetings will be held in July and August to address public concerns over a variety of law enforcement issues. Council members were all in agreement with the need to schedule the meetings “sooner, rather than later,” and opted for the virtual meeting plan due to ongoing COVID-19 restrictions. The plan came as a response to local protests, rallies, phone calls, and over 1,891 emails received relat...
WALLA WALLA-Two U.S. Army Corps employees at Little Goose Lock and Dam created a device that removed debris blockages within the dam. Mechanical Engineering Technician Jay Haugen and Maintenance Worker Kreg Buryta combined their talents in 2019 to design and fabricate a tool that could be used to remove debris from orifices (openings) within the dam. Logs, trash, and other debris adversely affected the Endangered Species Act (ESA) listed salmon and steelhead along the Snake River. Successfully c...
Skills and experience gained along with bonds of friendship WALLA WALLA-A Walla Walla native and WA-HI graduate, Jenna Watts was just finishing up a nine-week traveling nurse stint at Harlem Hospital in New York City when she and I spoke a week ago. "New York has a special place in my heart, my dad lives here, and I spent all of my summer's here growing up," she said. The coronavirus crisis and Governor Cuomo's appeals for doctors and nurses to help, resonated with her. In early April, The New...
WALLA WALLA-The cancellation of the Walla Walla Fair and Frontier Days was met with both a sigh of relief and a breath of frustration. Youth exhibitors, especially market animal exhibitors, are hopeful an alternative sales opportunity will be found. Raising a market animal is expensive. Hogs, for example, are purchased in early to mid-March as weanlings. From the day the animal arrives, the 4-H or FFA member has to care for and work with their project. FFA and 4-H members must purchase special...
WALLA WALLA-Plans are underway to boost business income in Walla Walla's downtown corridor through active collaboration between the City, local agencies and business owners. The proposals all encourage utilizing outdoor spaces which many believe is a safer alternative to dining indoors, recognizing data that shows the coronavirus is transmittable through prolonged contact in enclosed spaces. The Walla Walla City Council has approved a number of measures to increase outdoor seating, allowing rest...
WALLA WALLA-A grassroots group of people of color from the Walla Walla Valley community organized a second Peace Rally on Sunday, June 7 near Walla Walla's Land Title Plaza. With impassioned speakers and music, the rally gave a platform for people of color to be heard and for non-POC to listen. The gathering attracted a larger crowd than the May 31 rally at the same location. Estimates of crowd size for both events vary from several hundred to over 2,000. There is no disagreement, however, to th...
WALLA WALLA—At a meeting on Monday, June 8, Walla Walla County Commissioners voted to cancel the 154th Walla Walla Fair and Frontier Days due to safety concerns amid the coronavirus pandemic. Commissioners said that the decision did not come easily. The decision ultimately came down to a safety issue, as coronavirus numbers are slowly beginning to rise in the county again. Meeting attendees expressed that they were uncomfortable hoping that Walla Walla County would be in the proper phase of G...
WALLA WALLA-The amateur baseball team, the Walla Walla Sweets, announced the cancellation of the 2020 season last week due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects felt across the Northwest. Season ticket members with 2020 tickets will be able to roll over their tickets automatically to next year-and they'll receive tickets to two extra games at no additional charge "We are disappointed that there will not be Sweets baseball this summer," Sweets general manager Cody Miller said. "We did...
WALLA WALLA-The news of repeated break-ins and killings of birds at the Pioneer Park Aviary in Walla Walla has prompted an outpouring of support and funding from community members. Walla Walla Police reported that there have been multiple incidents over the past two weeks of someone cutting the netting at the Aviary and killing approximately 12 birds. The City is offering a $1,000 reward for the arrest and convictions of the person(s) responsible for the killing of the birds. The reward money...
WALLA WALLA-The announcement for the protest was seen on a Facebook post, listing the 1 p.m. time, the Land Title Plaza as the place, with the words 'Peaceful Protest' as the title. The post also featured an image of George Floyd's face and the words "I Can't Breathe." George Floyd's death on Memorial Day in Minneapolis, under the knee of a Minneapolis police officer, sparked other protests across the country, in Europe, and beyond. The idea for the event came to social media specialist Lindsey...
Walla Walla-The Walla Walla Community College Board of Trustees Chair Tim Burt announced last week that Acting President Dr. Chad Hickox has been named the permanent President of the College effective May 20, 2020. "In this rapidly changing environment, Dr. Hickox has proven he is a trusted leader who is well-qualified and ready to lead through these unprecedented times," said Board Chair Tim Burt. "The Board heard from members of the faculty, staff, and students, as well as members of the...
WALLA WALLA-In less than a week, private citizens, cities, agencies and fire departments in the Walla Walla area stepped up to donate over $174,000 through the Providence St. Mary Foundation to make rapid testing for COVID-19 available in this community. As hospitals across the nation grapple with the economic pressures from the pandemic, it is becoming increasingly difficult to generate the operating revenue needed to invest in technologies and equipment. The hospital's foundation is playing a...
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...
WALLA WALLA-Walla Walla High School seniors found a surprise waiting for them on their front lawns last week. Bright blue signs were posted in the yards of every senior in the Class of 2020. The yard sign idea came from the school's Associated Student Body Leadership students, under the guidance of Adviser Arch McHie. The class leaders wanted to let seniors know they were appreciated and missed as schools will remain closed for the remainder of the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 400...
WALLA WALLA—The Blue Valley region is fortunate to have an option for an additional temporary inpatient hospital should there be a surge in hospitalizations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Providence St. Mary Medical Center has been working 12-hour days for the past three weeks to prepare the former Walla Walla General Hospital building at 1025 S. Second Ave. in Walla Walla to receive patients. The temporary hospital is located at the Providence Southgate Medical Park and will be an extension o...
WALLA WALLA, Wash. — Due to the demand for services at the Sudbury Landfill, the City will reopen the facility to the public from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. on weekdays beginning tomorrow, Thursday, April 9, and also on Saturdays beginning April 18. Due to a variety of health-related issues, the facility has been operating with reduced staffing. In addition, personal protective equipment (PPE) has been in short supply because the Public Works Department gave most of its PPE to the Fire/Ambulance Department for use by first responders. Based on these f...
WALLA WALLA—The speed of sound for Walla Walla music Organization (WWMO) is about three years, give or take a few months. Three years is about how long it took founder Rodney Outlaw to build a substantial course load of audio production education and to find the students passionate about learning to populate it. Outlaw teaches students how to produce, record and manage music and sound. Audio engineering is a broad term for managing signal flow through channels. There is a science to it. The g...
The Gesa Power House Theatre presents country group Farewell Angelina in concert on Saturday, March 7, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. Named after a haunting Bob Dylan song, Farewell Angelina features four powerful vocalists, dynamic songwriters and accomplished multi-instrumentalists. Their stellar blend of heart-stopping harmonies over blazing double violins and guitars has earned soaring praise across the board. Roughstock calls Farewell Angelina a "Superstar Act...with Killer Songs." Rolling Stone says,...
WALLA WALLA—Only a handful of single tickets remain for the Seattle Rock Orchestra performing Pink Floyd in concert at Gesa Power House Theatre on Saturday, March 21 at 7 p.m. This will mark the fourth consecutive year the performance group has sold out at the Power House. This year, Seattle Rock Orchestra will pay tribute to psychedelic rock pioneers, Pink Floyd, with a complete performance of their landmark album The Dark Side of the Moon. As one of their most popular and frequently p...
WALLA WALLA-Danielle Garbe Reser announced her campaign for State Senator in the 16th Legislative District as a Democrat on Tuesday, January 21. She will be vying for outgoing Senator Maureen Walsh's seat along with former two-term Walla Walla County Commissioner Perry Dozier (R - Waitsburg) and two-term State Representative Bill Jenkin (R-Prosser.) Garbe Reser, a Walla Walla resident, recently stepped down as the CEO of Sherwood Trust, a private foundation serving Walla Walla and Columbia...
WALLA WALLA—The Walla Walla Fair & Frontier days will present information about the upcoming 154th event at the Walla Walla Fair & Frontier Days at the Showcase Kick-Off Party on Saturday, February 1, 2020, at the historic Fairgrounds Pavilion. Doors open at 4:45 p.m. Professional Rodeo Clown, JJ Harrison, will be the evening’s Master of Ceremonies. A dinner catered by A Chef’s Creation takes place at 6:00 p.m. and there will be a presentation announcing the featured concert performers, a silent and dessert auction. The evening caps off with...
WALLA WALLA—The Downtown Walla Walla Foundation is hosting their first Walla Walla BrewFest on Saturday, February 8 from 12 - 4 p.m. The event will feature samples from 25 breweries and cideries from Washington and Oregon, including Paradise Creek Brewery, Chief Springs Fire and Irons Brew Pub, Blue Mountain Cider Company and more. Five-ounce sample sizes will be served at 16 venues in downtown Walla Walla including Allegro Cyclery, Book & Game, Coffee Perk, Marla June’s Clothing, Sears Hom...
