Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
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Two Ritzville residents, both of whom were subjects of a two-year investigation in Ritzville, were arrested in Moses Lake on the night of Nov. 12. Taylor Hermsmeyer-Rogers, 25, and Cassandra Rand, 19, were arrested on drug charges when police found them unconscious in an illegally parked car with drug paraphernalia in plain view. Ritzville Police Chief Dave McCormick told The Journal that the arrest came one day before the two suspects were scheduled to be arrested in Ritzville. Hermsmeyer-Rogers and Rand were two of the subj...
Due to the Thanksgiving holiday, The Journal’s office will be closed on Thursday, Nov. 28, and Friday, Nov. 29. The Journal office will re-open at 9 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 2. Deadlines for the Nov. 28 issue of The Journal have been updated as follows: Legal notices must be sent to The Journal by Monday at 12 p.m., news items must be sent by Monday at 12 p.m., advertising must be sent by Monday at 12 p.m. and classifieds must be sent by Monday at 12 p.m....
Avista recently announced that it is beginning to install new smart meters in Ritzville and Adams County. Last week, The Journal received a letter from Avista stating that a crew would be visiting our office in the following weeks to install the smart meters. The smart meters, Avista says, are designed to better monitor and manage a building's energy usage, which in turn they say will allow them to "improve the safety, reliability and efficiency of energy delivery for all of o...
The Washington State Patrol announced on Nov. 19 that it will be conducting emphasis patrols beginning today, Nov. 21. The patrols will run through Dec. 1 as Washington State University students travel across the state for the Thanksgiving holiday break. During the emphasis, troopers in District 4 (Adams, Spokane and Whitman counties) and District 6 (Grant and Kittitas counties) will be focusing on speeding, which includes driving too fast for conditions, distracted/impaired driving and other collision-causing violations. An...
On Nov. 18, the Washington State Board of Health expanded its emergency rule on vapor products to include a new section that bans the sale of vapor products containing vitamin E acetate. The update was recommended by the Department of Health, who based the decision on a new finding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that found a connection between vitamin E acetate and vaping-associated lung injury. The new study was deeply alarming to Washington Secretary of Health John Wiesman. “While we still need more r...
OLYMPIA – Bankers are suing the state Legislature for enacting unlawful taxes under a “title only” bill. On Nov. 5, the Washington Bankers Association, represented by former State Attorney General Rob McKenna, filed suit over House Bill 2167, a title-only tax increase passed in the waning hours of the 2019 legislative session. House Bill 2167 was introduced April 10 and only included one sentence: “The legislature intends to enact legislation concerning tax revenue...
Lind residents may be paying more for utilities soon as more discussion regarding the possible increase of prices was held at a public hearing before the regular town council meeting on Nov. 12. Currently, Lind residents pay $62 for water, $69.50 for sewage and $19.50 for garbage for a total of $151 a month. As previously reported, a town ordinance automatically raises the cost of water by 1.73% and sewage by 1.74% every year. Increasing garbage prices as well was previously discussed at a workshop meeting on Oct. 15, but...
John R. Miller, born October 18th 1932, passed away peacefully in his home at Ritzville, WA, in the presence of family, on November 5th 2019. John was born in Ritzville, to Pete and Violet Miller and grew up on the family wheat farm west of town. In elementary school he met the love of his life and future wife Velda Klein. They both graduated from RHS in 1950. John attended Eastern Washington College for a short period of time before enlisting in the United States Air Force in...
If you don’t already know, I am a big college football fan. When I get the chance I enjoy watching several games on any given Saturday or Thursday or Friday for that matter. Many of these kids are getting a quality education because they know there is a good chance they won’t be turning pro. So going to class, hit the weight room and practice is an everyday occurrence. One thing I don’t like to see is a player getting injured no matter the position. Since most every game...
The Lind-Ritzville/Sprague volleyball team has won the WIAA Scholastic Awards Program state championship for 2B volleyball teams. The award is given to the team with the highest GPA in the state. According to the WIAA website, the program is "to recognize and reward those teams or groups that maintain a high collective academic standard. It is open to Varsity or Sub-varsity (JV, Freshman, etc.) sports teams, activity squads such as Dance & Drill and Cheer squads, and fine...
The East Adams Library District was recently awarded a World War I poster series that will be on display at the Ritzville Public Library the rest of this month. The poster series, “World War I: Lessons and Legacies,” explores the history of the war and the lasting impact it has had on American life. The series is organized by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service and the National Museum of American History. “We are excited to display this fantastic collection of educational posters throughout Novem...
Four LRS Bronco football players received a total of six All-Opponent Team honors in the Northeast 2B South Division. On offense, senior linemen Cole Cameron and Spencer Miller were named to the All-Opponent 2nd Team, as was senior running back Spencer Gering. Gering was named to the team for his contributions as a receiver. On the season, Gering caught 41 passes for 430 receiving yards and three touchdowns. His best game of the season was against Asotin on Senior Night, when...
Sept. 9 — Ned Barnath, Ritzville, to Marsi Smith; Lots 4-7, Block 39, Northern Pacific Addition; $175,000. Sept. 11 — Garry and Lisa Gfeller, Lind, to MRM Farm LLC; Lot 2, Gfeller Short Plat; $100,000. Sept. 20 — John and Valeria Wiitala, Ritzville, to Dawn Wolf; Lot 1, Block 74, Greene & Proutys 2nd. Sept. 24 — Kara Willis, Ritzville, to Karl and Judy Littlejohn; SW 1/2 of Lot 4 and all of Lots 5 & 6, Block 69, Greene & Proutys 2nd. Oct. 1 — Northern Agriculture II LLC, rural Ritzville, to White Charlie II LLC; 12 total par...
The state’s organization serving as the “voice” of the Columbia Basin Project elected new board of trustees to serve in 2020. The Columbia Basin Development League (League) has supported the Bureau of Reclamation’s Columbia Basin Project and its future development since 1964. Last month, two board members were elected with nine being re-elected to the board. The new members include: - Kelly Cochrane, Cochrane Farms, Kahlotus. - Christina Wyatt, Big Bend Electric Coop, Ritzville Nine board members were re-elected includi...
The Washtucna Historical Museum and Community Center received a $5,000 donation from Avista on Nov. 13, which will go toward helping to repair the museum's roof. The donation came via the Avista Foundation, which is Avista Corporation's community investment program. The foundation provides funding to non-profit organizations in the communities that Avista serves in parts of Washington, Idaho, Oregon and Montana. The check was presented by Paul Kimmel, the local manager of...
The grounding of the 737 MAX is testing Boeing’s resiliency. It has turned the company upside down in just six months. Boeing executives and engineers have been under duress since the two fatal crashes killing 346 people in Indonesia and Ethiopia and that is likely to extend well into 2020. What started as a continuation of a most successful 2018 for Boeing has turned into prolonged migraine. Hopefully, the world’s most successful aerospace company will weather the storm and...
The students of Job Corps Civilian Conservation Centers were recently given a second chance. Earlier this year, the future of these programs was threatened when the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) proposed closing 9 of the 25 Civilian Conservation Center (CCC) programs and transferring the operations of the remaining Centers to the Department of Labor (DOL). This transfer to the DOL would have been contrary to the very mission of the Job Corps Civilian Conservation Centers, which aims to train the next generation of...
The Turkey Trot will launch from in front of the Ritz Theatre at 8:30 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning for a brisk three-mile tour of the Ritzville Path. All are welcome: speedy runners, strollers pushed or wagons pulled with little ones aboard, friends who find a leisurely stroll allows the best conversation, and in some years ice-gliders using walking sticks. Whatever the weather conditions, the Turkey Trot is a Ritzville tradition, now in its 32nd year. Before setting out on the morning trot, a quick assessment of the group...
An Adams County resident was injured in a multi-vehicle collision in the early morning of Nov. 14 that has the Washington State Patrol seeking witnesses to the collision. Othello’s Blanca Garza, 50, was travelling northbound in a 2019 Ford Expedition on State Route 17 at Lee Road, about two miles northeast of Othello, when a 2000 Subaru Forester driving southbound crossed the centerline, rotated and struck Garza’s vehicle at approximately 6:35 a.m. The owner of the vehicle driving southbound, Skylar Martin of Sultan, WA, was...
With the holiday season underway, the Giving Tree is making its return to Umpqua Bank as Christmas inches closer. Forms for The Giving Tree are now available to be picked up at Umpqua Bank on 108 E 1st Ave. The forms need to be turned back into the bank no later than Nov. 29. The bank will not accept any forms that are turned in late. The community can start picking tags off the tree the first week of December to purchase gifts for the families. All presents will need to be dropped off no later than Monday, Dec. 16. Presents...
The H.E. Gritman Senior Center will be hosting a Thanksgiving meal next Tuesday, Nov. 26 at 1 p.m. The senior center has enough food to feed 36 people. Reservations are required to be made and must be made no later than 12 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 25....
The Washtucna Lions Club will be holding their annual Turkey Bingo on Saturday, Nov. 23. A meal will be served at 5 p.m., with bingo play beginning at 6 p.m. The event will be held at the Lions Club, at 240 SW Main St....
The Lind-Ritzville High School National Honor Society will be holding the LRHS & Community Blood Drive on Monday, Nov. 25. The blood drive will go from 12:30-2:45 p.m. in the bus outside of the Gilson Gymnasium. To sign up to donate blood, make an appointment with Donna Koch at [email protected]....
On Nov. 18, anti-tax activist Tim Eyman emailed Adams County Commissioners as part of a statewide effort to have county-level government officials to intervene in a lawsuit against Initiative 976. I-976 is the measure that would, among other things, limit annual license fees for most vehicles at $30 and would result in a projected revenue loss to the state of $1.9 billion and a loss to local governments of $2.3 billion over the next six years. It was approved by the state's vo...
A shed with a woman living inside of it caught on fire in the early evening in a Ritzville neighborhood on Nov. 14, and was quickly put out by emergency responders. According to Ritzville Police Chief Dave McCormick, the shed, located behind a house on E. Alder Avenue, caught fire after 4 p.m. with the woman still inside of it. The woman escaped without harm and the fire had been put out by the time The Journal arrived on scene around 4:30 p.m. McCormick said he was told by a...