Erratics to discuss geology pioneer

WENATCHEE — The Wenatchee Valley Erratics Chapter of the Ice Age Floods Institute will host a talk on a pioneer in the geology of the Columbia Basin, according to an announcement from the organization.

Events for February 2024

In February, love is in the air and spring is lurking somewhere around the corner. Here are a few things that are happening around the Basin this month.

Irvin Kent Howe

Jan. 11, 1945 — Jan. 25, 2024

Irvin Kent Howe was born to Ellen Alberdina Galloway Howe and Lawrence James Howe in Ontario, Oregon. He spent his first years in Ontario with his parents and older sister, Vivian Nadene Howe. Later on, his younger sister, Rita Howe, joined the family. When Irvin was four years old, he contracted polio, so he was taken to Boise, Idaho, and put into an iron lung. He also spent time at Shriner’s Hospital in Portland, Oregon, undergoing surgery to repair his leg. As a child, he mainly lived in Ontario and Madras, Oregon, as well as Eltopia and Blythe, Washington.

MLPD responding proactively to violent crime, chief says

MOSES LAKE — Moses Lake has its share of issues with violent crime, but it’s dealing with those issues surprisingly well, Moses Lake Police Chief Dave Sands told the Moses Lake City Council last week in a special study session before the council’s regular meeting.

Warden School Board discusses ‘22-23 finances, end of federal relief funding

WARDEN — Thursday’s Warden School Board meeting at Warden High School featured a review and discussion of the 2022-23 school year’s finances and the upcoming end to Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funding.

A home in Hatton

Former mayor's century-old house for sale in Hatton looking for the right buyer

HATTON – A two-story house located at 50 Front St. in Hatton that was owned by two former Hatton mayors is still on the market. According to Real Estate Broker Brian Gentry, the house is more than 100 years old.

Rooted in community

Ephrata Grocery Outlet owners enjoy being a part of a small town and connecting with people.

EPHRATA – Steve and Heather Brown bought the Ephrata Grocery Outlet location in late 2022, and now, just over a year later, they appear to be happy with the decision to buy in a smaller community.

Wahluke school bus involved in collision near Mattawa

MATTAWA — Thirteen students and one Mattawa resident were injured Monday around 3:30 p.m. in a collision between a Wahluke school bus and a pickup truck on Road O Southwest near Mattawa, according to a Grant County Sheriff’s Office statement. None of the injuries were life-threatening. GCSO Public Information Officer Kyle Foreman said the driver of the 2001 Dodge Dakota pickup, 48-year-old Jose Ramirez of Mattawa, was taken to Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland, but the injuries are not believed to be life-threatening. “The students that were transported were divided up between two hospitals, Foreman said. “Their injuries were bumps, bruises, cuts, nothing life-threatening and nothing terribly serious.”

David Watkins Cooper Sr.

July 21, 1940 — Jan. 9, 2024

Our beloved David Watkins Cooper Sr., 83, of Kennewick, Washington, went to be with the Lord on January 9, 2024, surrounded by his loving family. He was born on July 21, 1940, in Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania, to the late Dorothy and Dorsey Cooper.

Columbia Basin cautioned to prepare for possible freezing rain

MOSES LAKE — Getting out and about on Friday might be a challenge throughout the Columbia Basin, with the arrival of yet more precipitation, but this time with the chance of it falling as freezing rain.

GC Fire District 8 residents to vote on EMS levy Feb. 13

MATTAWA — Voters in Grant County Fire District 8 will be asked to accept or reject a six-year emergency medical services levy request in a special election Feb. 13. If it’s approved, the levy would replace the district’s existing levy, approved in 2018. The levy rate would continue at 50 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value. Fire District 8 is about 248 square miles, encompassing the city of Mattawa, Desert Aire and surrounding orchards, farms and wildlands. Chief Matt Hyndman said in an earlier interview that more than half the district is owned by the federal or state governments.

Othello Matters open house to help community members in need

OTHELLO — Adams County Integrated Healthcare Services is partnering with several other local and regional agencies to hold an open house event called Othello Matters from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Jan. 25 at the Othello Church of the Nazarene, meant to help community members in need. The event’s coordinator, Integrated Healthcare Services Mental Health Counselor Charlotte Hillman, said the event is open to the public. “We are reaching out to the homeless community in our area and we're going to provide a warm meal to them. Classic Grill’n is going to be donating the meal,” she said. “Then we're holding it at the Othello Nazarene Church, and they are a Narcan distributor, so they will be distributing Narcan to anybody who wants it or needs it. I'll also have (Opportunities Industrialization Center) there and they are a resource for people for funding and that sort of thing and other supports in the Adams and Grant County area.”

Adams Co. Health Officer discusses 2024 legislation

RITZVILLE – Adams County Health Officer Alex Brzezny attended the Jan. 10 Adams County Commissioners and Board of Health meeting to update the commissioners on certain initiatives in the ongoing Washington legislative session that may impact the county. “There's probably 40 bills that have to do something with public health, but public health is everywhere,” Brzezny said. “These are the key ones that would affect our work the most.” One of the subjects Brzezny discussed at length was an initiative to require that all sizes of Washington high schools stock the opioid overdose reversal medicine naloxone, after increasing numbers of opioid overdoses.

Tech tune-up: MACC upgrades designed to make emergency response easier all around

MOSES LAKE — Emergencies are no respecters of time, place, or circumstances. With that in mind, operators of the Multi-Agency Communications Center are working on upgrading technology to make it easier for people to report an emergency, and for dispatchers to get the information emergency responders need to know.

Severe winter weather incoming

Columbia Basin to see more cold with added factors of snow, wind and possible freezing rain

SPOKANE — It being January and being winter, there’s some good weather news and some bad weather news. The good news is that temperatures are forecast to rise above freezing, at least a little. The bad news is the forecast is for nasty, messy, slippery weather.

Service honored: South Grant Co. Chamber hosts law enforcement appreciation luncheon

MATTAWA – The South Grant County Chamber of Commerce hosted its fourth annual National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day Luncheon Tuesday at the Wanapum Heritage Center south of Desert Aire, with a keynote address from Wahluke School District Superintendent Andrew Harlow.

Leading ladies: Moses Lake Museum exhibit celebrates the Washington women who led the way

MOSES LAKE — Washington, and the women who blazed its trails, will go on display Friday at the Moses Lake Museum & Art Center.

Precautions will prevent plumbing headaches caused by winter weather

MOSES LAKE — It’s going to be cold outside for the next few days - like, single-digit cold - and that can mean bad things for water pipes. And bad things for water pipes mean bad things for homeowners and tenants.

Five decades of muscle

Moses Lake Classic Car Club kicks off 50th anniversary year

MOSES LAKE — The first car for Dave Robins was a 1947 Frazer. Robins and his twin brother were about 14 years old, he said, and were mowing lawns that summer. One of their clients was an older man, a veteran with limited mobility and limited means. He gave the brothers the old Frazer as payment for their work.

Sweetheart deal

Columbia Basin Cancer Foundation auction is Feb. 3

MOSES LAKE — The Columbia Basin Cancer Foundation’s Country Sweethearts dinner and auction has leveled up this year. In years past the benefit was held in the Commercial Building at the Grant County Fairgrounds, but this year it will occupy both that building and the 4-H Building next door, said CBCF Executive Director Angel Ledesma. Last year’s event drew 520 guests, which made things a little tight with all the auction items as well. “I take this as a compliment,” Ledesma said. “(Some guests have said) ‘Could you please make more room for the tables?’ So this year, we added the 4-H Building. All the raffle items will be in the 4-H Building, so that leaves us room for all tables and all guests in the main room.”