Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
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The Lind-Ritzville Band program is hosting a fundraiser on Oct. 5-6 selling pumpkins at the corner of Division Street and First Avenue in Ritzville, near the hardware store. Partial proceeds from the fundraiser go to support the local band program. The band members are selling pumpkins from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. on Saturday, and back downtown from noon until 4 p.m. on Sunday. The pumpkins have been grown locally at Owen York’s Pumpkin Patch in Ritzville.... Full story
The annual Mennonite County Auction and Relief Sale returns to the Menno Mennonite Church grounds on Saturday, Oct. 5, for the 36th consecutive year. The day begins with a pancake breakfast from 7-9 a.m., followed by the booths opening at 10 a.m. The Liberty Quartet will be featured at 10:30, and the auction begins at noon. Parking and admission for the event is free. The Mennonite County Auction and Relief Sale is one around 50-relief sales held in the United States and Canada. Proceeds from the auction are used to support...
The Friends of the Library organization members are hosting “Genealogy 101: A Beginner’s Course” at the Ritzville Public Library on Tuesday, Oct. 8. The group is hosting two separate sessions, with the first session running from 2-4 p.m. and an evening class from 6-8. The course is free to the public, and Shirley Penna-Oakes of the Eastern Washington Genealogical Society is leading the course about how individuals can trace their ancestry. For more information, contact the Ritzville Public Library at 659-1222. The libra...
LaPrele Hernandez will offer a wealth of information on the Affordable Healthcare Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, at next week’s Ritzville Area Chamber of Commerce’s general membership meeting. Beginning at noon on Thursday, Oct. 10, at Memories Diner on Main Avenue, the presentation will include information about how the ACA affects individuals and businesses. Hernandez established Benefit Partners Unlimited, Inc., which is the healthcare insurance contact for Sloan-Leavitt Insurance Company. Hernandez, who spe... Full story
Sterling Bank in Ritzville has again partnered with KXLY TV News 4 for the annual Coats 4 Kids drive. The drive began on Monday, Sept. 16, and continues until Friday, Oct. 11. The Sterling Bank branch in Ritzville is a drop-off location for new or gently used winter coats. With the help of generous local communities, KXLY has collected and distributed nearly 290,000 coats for area children in the past 27 years. Cold days are just around the corner and community help is needed to make sure every child has a coat to keep them...
The Lind Calvary Assembly of God Church is hosting a Goodwill truck from Oct. 11-13 during the Lind Community Yard Sale weekend. All household items will be accepted. The Goodwill truck is to be located on West Third Street, in front of the Good Hope Lutheran Church, and is accepting donations throughout the weekend. Drop off hours are from 3-5 p.m. on Friday, returning from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and concluding on Sunday from 11:30-2 p.m. All proceeds go to the group mission trip to Ecuador in December for 16 local...
The 2013 Lind-Ritzville/Sprague Homecoming Pep Assembly is being held on Friday, Oct. 11, at 2:40 p.m. in Gilson Gymnasium. During the assembly, all of the athletes from the LRS football and volleyball rosters will be introduced, followed by the introduction of the homecoming royalty. The public is encouraged to attend the assembly. The LRS Broncos take the field for the homecoming game at Jimmie Snider Field at 7 p.m. on Friday against Mary Walker, before the Lady Broncos wrap up homecoming week with a match against Reardan...
Aging and Adult Care of Central Washington (AACCW) is offering a Senior Center Dental Program on Friday, Oct. 18, at the H.E. Gritman Senior Center. Individuals who qualify for this service must be over the age of 60; have limited income; no dental insurance; and have not seen a dentist in over one year. Services are performed by a registered dental hygienist and includes visual assessments for tooth decay, gum disease and oral cancer; scaling and polishing; topical fluoride treatments; and dental referrals if necessary. The... Full story
The AAUW, Page Turners and Ritzville Public Library Book Clubs have announced meeting dates for the month of October. The AAUW Book Club is meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 9, beginning at 10 a.m. at The Ritz Roadhouse. The club is discussing “Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl” by Harriet Ann Jacobs. The Page Turners Book Club for children between the ages of eight and 12 are discussing “Once Upon a Marigold” by Jean Ferris. The club is meeting on Oct. 16 at 3:45 p.m. in the Ritzville Public Library basement. On Thursda...
Adams County Fire Protection District No. 1 Chief Scott Kembel, Ritzville Fire Department Chief Andy Lefevre, and Adams County Fire Protection District No. 2 Chief Kevin Starring, have announced that burning season will open on Saturday, Oct. 5, for areas serviced by the listed agencies. The season ends in the spring when vegetation starts to dry in the warmer weather. The chiefs remind city and county residents that burning is allowed only for yard waste and absolutely no burn barrels are permitted. Yard waste piles should...
Lind residents gathered at Lind Senior Center on Wednesday, Sept. 25, for a candidate forum, highlighting the two mayoral candidates for the upcoming election. Lind Town Mayor incumbent Jamie Schmunk has announced her decision to run for reelection, while former mayor Larry Koch is running as the opposition. Barbara DeVore coordinated the forum and former Lind resident, Keith Deaton, served as the moderator. The mayoral candidates were provided with three minutes to provide residents with an opening statement, before answerin...
Wednesday morning construction crews connected a section of brand new water main to the Division Street supply line. The new water line runs under West First Avenue from Division to Jackson. By the end of the week, Halme Construction was expected to begin replacing the aging 24-inch storm drain system that lies underneath West First Avenue. When that portion of the street improvement project is completed, crews will begin smoothing out the roadway, bringing it to the proper grade in preparation for the road bed to be placed,...
Ritzville City Council unanimously passed a moratorium prohibiting the production, processing and retail sales of recreational marijuana Tuesday. The state, in response to the passage of Initiative 502, is preparing to launch its regulation of the new marijuana industry. Voters overwhelming voted to legalize the use of marijuana in the state, thus supporting the establishment of a regulated commercial industry that Washington will monitor and tax. The state has determined that two retail marijuana operations will be allowed i... Full story
John Munroe has been spending his time working in the New Ritz Theatre, installing new electrical distribution panels and working on the total rewiring of the electrical system. Munroe, who recently retired from his Seattle business, Ocean Currents, is donating his labor in an attempt to help the Ritzville Downtown Development Association complete a major remodel of the vintage theater. He has joined the effort, working to ensure that future generations can enjoy the theater.... Full story
Caring Neighbors recently donated $1,000 to the Adams County Sheriff’s Office. The money will be used to purchase an upgrade of the software/hardware for the Crash Data Retrieval (CDR) system. The program upgrade will be beneficial in car accident investigations for the department. Caring Neighbors is a nonprofit entity established by Big Bend Electric Co-op. The members of Big Bend Electric Co-op have donated the funds for Caring Neighbors....
After stepping into the position of Adams County Auditor in 1987, Nancy McBroom has officially retired from the position on Monday. The nearly 27 years as the county auditor has been filled with laughter and learning, but McBroom is excited to begin a new chapter in her life. McBroom originally began working in a part-time position in the payroll department before being hired full-time in the elections department. The atmosphere and camaraderie in the departments has always... Full story
Kirk Danekas ended his tenure as a member of the Board of Commissioners of East Adams Rural Hospital on Thursday, Sept. 26. The hospital district is now searching for a replacement to fill the Position No. 1’s unexpired term. Danekas has moved out of the area, which was the reason for his resignation from the board. Chairman Stacey Plummer is calling for letters of interest from citizens who live within the specific boundaries of the commissioner district previously held by Danekas. Letters of interest should be delivered t... Full story
The City of Ritzville will likely spend $75,000 to install a steel liner casing in its new 1,557-foot deep well, located at Ritzville Municipal Golf Course. The city’s engineering firm Varela & Associates, Inc., recommended the casing during Tuesday’s council meeting as a method of preventing any cave-ins or pump damage as a result of pumping loose rock fragments. The static water level is at 730 feet. The first 883 feet of the well have a 20-inch steel casing already in place. The engineering firm’s proposal calls for insta... Full story
The Ritzville Public Library is beginning computer classes for local residents starting on Oct. 22 at 6 p.m. The classes are being taught on a monthly basis, with the future class dates to be determined at a later date. The computer classes cover a basic introduction course on using computers, email and Internet. All of the courses are taught by instructors from Big Bend Community College, using the eight computers donated by the college. The classes are free, but due to the limited number of computers, participants are asked...
The candidates for Lind Town Council Positions No. 1 and No. 2 gathered at Lind Senior Center on Sept. 25 to introduce themselves to the community and participate in a candidate forum. Candidates running for council positions are Karissa Labes, Calah Kulm, Rose Elkington and Kathy White. Elkington is currently the incumbent for the council position No. 1 and is running against challenger Labes. Each of the candidates had three minutes to introduce themselves to the audience members and discuss any concerns or ideas they had...
Eric Walker joined the Board of Commissioners of Adams County Public Hospital District No. 2 Thursday night. He was appointed by the commissioners to fill the remainder of Jeff Reynold’s term. Reynolds resigned his position in order to accept employment with the district as its business office supervisor. Walker had filed to run for election in November for the same commissioner position and was unopposed in his quest. The current term expires at the end of the year....
Construction crews were expected to begin installing new concrete curbs and gutters Wednesday at the Division Street/Smitty’s Boulevard/Bauman Road Improvement Project. The curb and gutters should be in place by the end of the week, according to Jake Youngren from Varela and Associates. The project is on schedule at this time. Weather permitting, paving will commence during the third week of October. The majority of the realignment of the intersection has been done. Traffic started flowing better through the construction z...
A Walla Walla based company will be hired by the City of Ritzville to use strategically placed explosives to fracture and break up the 20-inch thick concrete foundation of the old high school. Council members decided Tuesday to take that route, which will take just a few days to complete, rather that have Eastside Wood Recycling rent heavy equipment and a hydraulic breaker. Using the hydraulic breaker would take up to three weeks to break up the foundation and cost about the same amount as the explosives option. The... Full story
The Washington State Weed Conference, one of the largest meetings of its kind in the United States, is celebrating its 63rd Anniversary Nov. 6-8 at the Coast Wenatchee Center Hotel. The nearly three-day event includes over 40 speakers, workshops, general and concurrent break-out sessions, an indoor and outdoor tradeshow, luncheon, social and a weed quiz with cash prizes. Attendees have the opportunity to earn pesticide license recertification credits for Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. There are also Certified Crop Advisor... Full story
The LaCrosse-Washtucna/Kahlotus Tigercats hosted Sunnyside Christian in the league opener game on Friday night in LaCrosse. After a scoreless first quarter for both teams, the Sunnyside Christian Knights quickly gained the scoring advantage over the Tigercats, with the Knights eventually winning the league game 56-12. The Tigercats came off of a two-week practice schedule, after having a bye week the previous Friday after Milton-Freewater did not have enough athletes to play a full varsity game. With the bye week added in,...