50 years of art

OTHELLO — The Old Hotel Art Gallery will celebrate its 50th anniversary at its benefit auction Saturday. 

“We’re going to have a photo booth, and a champagne toast,” said gallery Director Samantha Copas.  

Chantal Kimball of Booker Auction will conduct the auction, and Othello dentist Chris Dorow will be the master of ceremonies. Dinner will be catered by a community member, who will make barbecued tri-tip and chicken. 

“We’ll have our buffet, and wines from Gingko Winery and Gård Vintners,” she said. “And this year we have an open-air photo booth from Trios in the Tri-Cities, so guests will be able to get free prints of the photos they take.” 

Among the auction items are a baseball autographed by Willie Mays, an antique child’s desk, Spokane Indians baseball tickets and a year’s worth of homemade pie, Copas wrote in an email to the Columbia Basin herald, as well as a variety of gift certificates for local services and events. 

Ninety-five people attended last year’s auction, which raised about $30,000, Copas said.  

The Old Hotel started out as just that, a hotel, in the early years of the 20th century, according to Columbia Basin Herald archives, mostly serving railroad workers. It was acquired in 1964 by a man named Benjamin Deodies Curry and gained a reputation as a hub for prostitution and drugs. In 1974, Curry shot and killed 17-year-old Errol Tucker at the hotel and was sentenced to 10-20 years in prison. Curry was released in the early 1980s, according to Columbia Basin Herald archives, and died in 2007. 

Following Curry’s conviction, the hotel was abandoned for a year, and in 1975 was sold to a nonprofit group that was formed to encourage arts in the community, according to the gallery’s website. A restored 1946 railroad caboose was added to the gallery in 2006. 

The money raised at the annual auction goes to maintain the gallery, including administrative costs and repairs, Copas said. 

“The deck alongside the caboose is starting to kind of bow in and needs to be replaced,” she said. “It’s becoming a safety issue.” 

There’s also a sign that used to stand outside that was knocked down in a windstorm, Copas said. 

“We haven't been able to put it back up,” she said. “So that's another thing that I want to use these funds to fix, either to put that one up or to get a new sign.” 

Tickets were still available Tuesday and can be bought at the door, Copas said. The cost is $20 for general admission and $18 for seniors. 

What constitutes a senior? 

“Anyone who says they are,” Copas said. “I’m not asking that question. If they say they’re a senior, that’s good enough for me.” 

Old Hotel benefit auction 

6 p.m. Oct. 18 

Sacred Heart Catholic Church Parish Hall 

616 E. Juniper St., Othello 

    Attendees look over auction items at last year’s Old Hotel auction. This year’s event is Saturday.
  

    Last year’s auction brought in 95 people and raised about $30,000, according to Director Samantha Copas.
  

    The Old Hotel Gallery is more than 100 years old, according to Columbia Basin Herald archives. The sign in front of this 2019 photo describing the gallery’s history was knocked down in a windstorm, according to Director Samantha Copas, and some of the money raised at Saturday’s auction will go to restore or replace it.