Big fun in a small town

HARTLINE — With a population of 180 at the last census, Hartline is the second-smallest town in Grant County and the 11th smallest in Washington state, but its residents do love their annual celebration, Hartline Community Days. 

“We have a parade in the morning and then things going on at the park, kids' games and several things,” said Mary Sieg. “Then we have lunch across the street by donation. Our auction starts at 1 o’clock and the money from the auction goes to scholarships for (Almira/Coulee-Hartline) students.” 

The parade started at the old Hartline School, now a second-hand mall, and walked, rode or rolled the five blocks to the town park. The Veterans of Foreign Wars led the way with a color guard, followed by grand marshals Russ and Julie Dingman. Behind them came honorary grand marshal Tina Thomas, grinning and waving in a white 1955 Thunderbird convertible. From there it was a combination of farm equipment, a couple of fire trucks and just plain local people walking together, some in elaborate costumes. The ACH High School cheer squad was there too, chanting the praises of the Warriors from a flatbed trailer. 

At the end was a party at the park, with auction items laid out on a table, a dunk tank and tables selling T-shirts, pop and water. Live music was provided by Whitley Rushton, who sang accompanied only by her guitar. At noon, lunch was served from the Methodist church across the street: smoked brisket, barbecued beans and homemade potato salad. All the money raised went to scholarships for local high school seniors, except for the T-shirts, which raised money for the Hartline cemetery.

The amount of money raised wasn’t available, event organizer Lynn Franklin said, but the auction items alone raised $4,000. 

“It will actually be more than that, because they’ll have to add in cash and checks that were donated previously, and the lunch,” Franklin said. 

The brisket was donated by the grower who raised it, Franklin added, which meant that much more of the money could go to the scholarships.  

“The people who do the lunch are Cheryl and Randy Bradshaw,” Franklin said. “She always had really amazing food. It’s different every year.” 

Many of the students who would benefit from the scholarships were there to help with the fundraiser. ACH senior Aubrey Rimel was helping to sell cold water and pop. 

“I’m hoping to go to WSU and major in psychology, so I can be a child psychologist,” Rimel said. 

This is the 44th Hartline Community Days, but the town has always been big on celebrations, said 82-year-old Bill Sieg, a native of the town who came back home when he retired. The big celebration when he was growing up in the 1950s was Memorial Day, Sieg said. 

“People from out of town would come home and decorate graves, and in the school, they’d have a program at the auditorium and then a big potluck dinner,” Sieg said. 

There was a lot more to the town in those days, though, Sieg said. The population wasn’t a whole lot bigger, but there were more businesses as people were less likely to go out of town to shop. 

“The grocery store was going when I was young,” he said, and that building over there with the roof gone, that was a boardinghouse. And a little gas station (on U.S. 2).”  

“You know, if there was housing here, there’d probably be 400 people,” he added, “because people want a place to live that’s rural.” 

The town isn’t completely devoid of new blood, though. Shonn and Brandilynn George moved to Hartline from the west side about five years ago to raise their three children, and they couldn’t be happier, Shonn said. He’s been working as a mechanic in Coulee City, he said, but he’s getting ready to open a shop in Hartline. 

“It’s been awesome,” he said. “The school district’s been great. Living here in town, there’s no issues. It’s super quiet and everybody’s super nice. If somebody was going to look into moving over here, I would say I wouldn’t even give it a second thought.” 

    Kimburlee George, 9, and her 4-year-old brother Gavin George dash after candy flung from the Hartline Community Days parade Saturday morning. The George family moved to Hartline about five years ago, father Shonn George said, and couldn’t be happier with their new hometown.
  

    Whitley Rushton sings at the Hartline Community Days celebration at the town park.
  

    Almira/Coulee-Hartline High School student Dayana Mendoza drops into the dunk tank as her classmate Meryssa Gonzales watches in awe at Hartline Community Days Saturday. The dunk tank was one of several fundraisers to support scholarships for ACH students.
  

    David, left, and Tammy Rinehart of Chelan look over auction items at Hartline Community Days Saturday. The auction itself raised about $4,000, according to organizer Lynn Franklin, not counting the other fundraisers going on at the park.
  

    Cason Thomas, 4, waves to the crowd from his tractor in the Hartline Community Days parade Saturday morning.
  

    Almira/Coulee-Hartline High School cheerleaders Emily Buchanan and Meryssa Gonzales sell buttons with raffle numbers at Hartline Community Days Saturday.