Moses Lake Roundup looks forward to the next 80 years

MOSES LAKE — The Columbia Basin Rodeo Association gathered with volunteers and sponsoring partners on Saturday at the Grant County Fairgrounds for its annual banquet. This year’s event introduced a new award, Demo Derby Man of the Year. This honor went to one of the new 2023 directors of the board, Aaron Schrodt. Schrodt’s initiative to build and raffle off an opportunity to drive the Moses Lake Roundup’s Demo Derby car, paired with his work with new Vice President Alex Alvarado, earned him the inaugural recognition. A bittersweet transition was recognized for the longtime efforts of Edie Longfellow, a veteran of the Roundup since starting as secretary in August 1969. Known as the “den mother of the Columbia River Circuit,” she was lauded for her support of previous rodeo presidents, queens, and contestants.

Soap Lake girls, boys defeat Wolverines on senior night

Stoyan scores 1,500th career point

SOAP LAKE — Both the Soap Lake boys and girls basketball teams picked up wins on their senior nights on Tuesday, with the girls winning 62-22 and the boys winning 81-30 over the visiting Cascade Christian Wolverines. Soap Lake Girls After opening the game with a 16-5 lead through the first quarter, the Eagles slowed down on the offensive end, putting up just six points in the second quarter with baskets by sophomores Brooke Dana and Liana Sushik, as well as free throws by sophomore Tanya Zubritskiy and Sushik. Soap Lake led 22-11 at the break.

Curtain to rise on Masquers production of ‘Harvey’ next week

SOAP LAKE — The tale of a nice but eccentric fellow, his boon companion – a six-foot, three-inch invisible pink rabbit – and his scheming relatives comes to Masquers Theater this February with the troupe’s production of “Harvey.” Director Pat Rosman said the 2023-24 season is one of classic plays, and “Harvey,” which premiered in 1944 and ran more than four years on Broadway, is a theater staple. Elwood P. Dowd (Dave Stearns in the Masquers production) is a very nice fellow who likes a drink or two – or more. And then there’s his friend Harvey, the invisible one, the tall pink rabbit. They go everywhere together.

Huskies win second straight CWAC title

OTHELLO — The Othello Huskies clinched their second straight Central Washington Athletic Conference title with last week’s win over Ephrata, defeating the Tigers 70-6 in the final dual meet of the season.

First Othello SkillSource hiring fair a success

OTHELLO — SkillSource put on its first job fair in Othello Friday at the organization’s Thieme Career Development Center. The event’s coordinator, SkillSource Adult Training Manager Emily Anderson, said the event went very well. “It was incredibly successful. It far surpassed our expectations. The community just responded really well,” she said. “We had 159 job seekers show up, and while a lot of them had never attended an event like that before, they still responded really well to our employers. They were interested, they were eager to be there, and most of them left with job leads in hand. They were just genuinely happy as they left, and those are really satisfying things for our staff.” The businesses involved gave positive feedback, Anderson said.

Knights win ninth straight game, improve to 15-5

ROYAL CITY — After starting the year with a 2-3 record and coming off an appearance at the Pro Image Sports Holiday Classic in Boise, Idaho, the Royal Knights have strung together wins in 12 of their last 14 games, including nine straight wins. “We were feeling really good, even though we started off 2-3,” Royal coach Greg Jenks said. “We played some pretty good teams, including a team that has the leading scorer in the nation, down in that Boise tournament. It was good to see something different and take a trip with basketball behind it. I think that helped the boys make that transition from fall sport to winter sport.” Royal’s last loss was a 79-55 home game against Zillah on Jan. 5, the state’s No. 1 team in 1A boys basketball according to the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association’s Rating Percentage Index. Since that loss, there’s been a strong emphasis on rebounding, according to Jenks.

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.

Funding research, educating public among jobs of potato commissions

KENNEWICK — Look at the pictures, and farming seems timeless: tractors and dramatic sunsets and all that. But like all other industries, farming is subject to change – and in the last half-century those changes have been big ones. Potato farmers, like farmers and growers in every other agriculture sector, have had to adapt and change with the times. There are visible signs of changing times. Rob Wagstaff’s family has operated a farm near Nyssa, Oregon for generations. Wagstaff, a member of the Oregon Potato Commission, keeps track of his acreage, and the map is dotted with the names of the people who used to farm that land. “We go to our acreage map, and we have about 53 that we have got from different people,” he said. “You’ve got 50 families that used to be there that aren’t there anymore.”

Grant PUD rates to go up 3%

EPHRATA — Grant County PUD customers will see an increase in their electrical rates beginning April 1. Utility district commissioners approved an overall 3% rate increase, averaged across all rate classes, on a 3-1-1 vote Jan. 23.

Moses Lake bests Eisenhower 59-23

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Mavericks defeated Eisenhower on Saturday 59-23, improving their overall record to 9-10. Head Coach Matt Strophy said he was very pleased with their performance throughout the game. The Mavericks held complete control of the first half, ending the second quarter with a score of 33-3. “We talked about setting the tone early and we did that,” Strophy said. “I think defensively we really were dialed in.”

Framing starts new Samaritan Hospital

MOSES LAKE — The walls are rising at the site of the new Samaritan Hospital. The steel framing started going up about Jan. 19.

Pamela Marie McDonald

July 13, 1952 — Jan. 17, 2024

On January 17, 2024, Pamela Marie McDonald went home to her Lord and Savior. Pam was born on July 13, 1952, in Colville, Washington to Robert and Eunice Ball, joining her brothers, Michael and Robbin. Pam attended K-12 school in Soap Lake, WA where Robert and Eunice both taught, graduating in 1970. Pam was very involved in school activities, such as band, sports, pep club and cheerleading.

Mandatory voting proposed by WA Dems

OLYMPIA – A proposal to make voting mandatory drew criticisms from two thousand people in a Legislative hearing Jan. 25. “We are already in a moment of extreme distrust in elections, so you should not be doing anything to further that perception,” said Sharon Damoff.

Jacks defeat Cashmere 70-49, win third straight CTL title

Ibarra scores 1,000th career point as Bierlink gets athlete of the week nod

QUINCY – The accomplishments just kept coming for the Quincy Jackrabbits during Thursday’s senior night 70-49 win over Cashmere. While the win improved the Jacks to 9-2 in the Caribou Trail League, Quincy clinched its third-straight CTL title with the win over the Bulldogs. In the third quarter, senior Julian Ibarra became the second Jackrabbit to cross the 1,000 career point threshold this season.

Letter: Shoebox gifts bring joy in Washington and around the world

Generosity throughout Moses Lake contributed to a successful shoebox gift collection season at drop-off locations for the Samaritan’s Purse project Operation Christmas Child. Across the U.S., the project collected 10 million shoebox gifts in 2023. Combined with those collected from partnering countries in 2023, the ministry is now sending over 11.3 million shoebox gifts to children worldwide, including many who are suffering from war, poverty, disease and disaster. Through shoeboxes – packed with fun toys, school supplies, and personal care items – Moses Lake-area volunteers brought joy to children in need around the world. Each gift-filled shoebox is a tangible expression of God’s love, and it is often the first gift these children have ever received. Through the continued generosity of donors since 1993, Operation Christmas Child has collected and delivered more than 220 million gift-filled shoeboxes to children in more than 170 countries and territories.

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.

Basin students make EWU Dean's List

CHENEY – According to a Tuesday announcement from Eastern Washington University, the college’s 2023 Fall Dean’s list has been released. An undergraduate student who earns 12 quality hours and receives a grade-point average of 3.5 or better is placed on the Dean's List, according to EWU’s website.

Eight locals arrested: Joint investigations with city, federal, state agencies land Moses Lake residents in jail

MOSES LAKE – According to the office of U.S. Attorney Vanessa Waldref, based in Spokane, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Marshals Service, Moses Lake Police Department, Border Patrol and the Washington Department of Corrections have arrested eight people in the Moses Lake area. Those arrested are facing charges related to narcotics and illegal firearms.

New QVMC framing starting soon

QUINCY — Construction of the new Quincy Valley Medical Center should reach an important milestone early next week. “Steel starts going up a week from today,” said Joe Kunkel, the project manager, during the QVMC commission meeting Jan. 22.

Maverick boys win, girls fall to Davis

MOSES LAKE – Both the Moses Lake boys and girls wrestling teams wrapped up their dual meets for the 2023-24 season Wednesday night against Davis, with the girls falling 54-24 and the boys winning 32-30.