CHERYL SCHWEIZER

Usage increasing at Moses Lake Food Bank

Donations sought to help with summer demand

MOSES LAKE — Even in the summer, the Moses Lake food bank is still busy. Moses Lake Food Bank Director Peny Archer said more people seem to be using the food bank in summer 2022. “Our numbers are starting to climb again,” Archer said...

Multi-Agency Communications Center: Emergency dispatch requires ‘a special kind of person’

It takes a special kind of person to be a 911 dispatcher, says Dispatch Supervisor Jennifer Pitt, who has worked at the Multi-Agency Communications Center for about 17 years.

Othello man dies from wounds sustained in June 26 shooting

OTHELLO — Charges are pending against two Othello boys in connection with the death of an Othello-area man following a shooting June 26...

Jazz Silva: Life experiences lead to career in law enforcement

Jazzlyn Silva had some bumpy times when she was young. The help she got to get through those times influenced her choice of career.

Quincy School District superintendent contract extended

QUINCY — Quincy School Board members have extended the contract of Superintendent Nic Bergman through June 2025. Board members approved the new contract unanimously at their regular meeting Tuesday. “Implementing the strategic plan is going to be my work,” he said Wednesday...

Rectenwald appointed as interim Grant County Sheriff

EPHRATA — Grant County Undersheriff Ryan Rectenwald has been appointed as the interim Grant County Sheriff. Grant County Commissioners approved the appointment Tuesday.

Quincy Valley Medical Center officials to meet with prospective architects

QUINCY — Quincy Valley Medical Center officials will meet July 6 with three architectural firms to select one to design a new Quincy hospital.

‘This is going to take some getting used to’

Migrant program initiative helps students see better

MOSES LAKE — Nallely Escobedo said she didn’t realize for a long time that her vision wasn’t really that good. “I thought everyone just saw how I saw,” she said.

‘Pieced Together’

Fairgrounds mural is completed

MOSES LAKE — The last piece of a project to add art at and around the Grant County Fairgrounds has been completed.

Gamble Sands Golf Resort

Columbia Basin links style golfing

BREWSTER — Gamble Sands Golf Resort is a direct descendant of golf courses of old - and a worth-the-trip destination for Columbia Basin golf enthusiasts. “It’s a true links-style design,” said Brian Benitz, director of sales and marketing for Gamble Sands. “It’s a throwback to the original design of golf courses.” The course is located at 200 Sands Trail Road near Brewster. It was designed by golf architect David McLay Kidd, also known for his design of the first course at the Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Bandon, Oregon. “(Kidd) is a genius. Everything he does is good,” Benitz said...

'It Feels Amazing’

Open Doors graduates receive diplomas

MOSES LAKE — Kekuni Robello-Dorsey expressed a common feeling of the students who earned a high school diploma or GED, or both, through the Open Doors Program sponsored by the Moses Lake School District. “It feels amazing,” Robello-Dorsey said. More than 40 students donned caps and gowns for the graduation ceremony at the Columbia Basin Technical Skills Center Thursday. Family and friends filled almost every seat. “I’m blown away right now at the number of people that have come to support these kids,” said Open Doors counselor Annie Hindman in her speech during the ceremony...

State laws force change in Samaritan financial assistance rules

MOSES LAKE — Samaritan Healthcare will change some of its patient financial assistance provisions July 1 in response to changes in Washington law. The changes will affect the number of patients receiving treatment at the hospital who qualify for full assistance, as well as patients who qualify for some assistance. Jen Charlo, director of patient financial services and patient access for Samaritan, said hospital officials were, and are, committed to helping patients find ways to pay the bills. “If there’s an avenue (for assistance), we will help them,” Charlo said. “It all comes down to people applying. We will help them if we can.” ...

Booked! Schedule full for 2022 Grant County Fair

MOSES LAKE — The 2022 Grant County Fair will have a lot of things for people to do. “The fair schedule is full. We are absolutely packed,” said Grant County Fairgrounds Director Jim McKiernan. McKiernan gave an update on fair preparations in a report to Grant County Commissioners Tuesday. The fair is scheduled for Aug. 16 through 20...

Man injured in Washtucna park shooting

WASHTUCNA — A Washtucna man was booked into the Adams County Jail on suspicion of first-degree attempted murder after he allegedly shot a man in the Washtucna park early Monday morning.

Mattawa council rejects annexation moratorium

MATTAWA — Mattawa City Council members decided not to impose a moratorium on annexation proposals. The vote was 4-2 at the regular council meeting June 16.

Just part of the family

Practice pays off with first in state for local musician

MOSES LAKE — Eli Legault said music is just part of the family. Legault, a freshman in the Moses Lake High School music program, took first in his division in the guitar category at the State Solo and Ensemble Competition in Ellensburg earlier this spring. Legault said his interest in music and in guitar started at home...

Royal SD to get first school officer

ROYAL CITY — The Royal School District will get its first school resource officer in early 2023. An agreement from January 2023 through August 2025 was approved by the Royal City City Council at its June 7 meeting; Royal School Board members approved it May 23. “The expectation would be that the SRO is on campus every day,” Royal SD Superintendent Roger Trail said via email. “They will also be involved in safety training. While the SRO’s office will be at the high school, it is a district-wide position.” ...

“It’s lovely”

Senior picnic draws big crowd

MOSES LAKE — After two years of drive-thru events, the annual Senior Picnic returned in person to the Grant County Fairgrounds Wednesday. “I don’t cut loose very often,” saaid Betty Schafer, a resident of McKay Healthcare and REhab Center in Soap Lake between dances. Betty Schafer danced and sang along with the band. Schafer said she came to the picnic to have fun - maybe a lot of fun...

Grant Co. commissioners set to select interim sheriff

EPHRATA — Grant County Republican party leaders will submit a list of three applicants Aug. 3 to fill the position of Grant County Sheriff. Grant County Commissioner Danny Stone said commissioners will appoint an interim to the position for July and early August. “(The announcement of the interim appointee) definitely has to be done within the next two weeks,” Stone said...

NCW Libraries system announces summer hours

WENATCHEE — Officials of the NCW Libraries system, which includes libraries in Grant County, have announced summer hours. All public libraries in Grant County are closed on Sundays during the summer, with the exception of the Quincy branch...

Othello School Board discusses security

OTHELLO — Othello School District officials and Othello Police Department officers detailed some of the measures they’re taking to enhance school security following several recent mass shootings across the country. Board member Lindsy Prows said the Uvalde, Texas shooting affected her differently than earlier incidents. “I know I’m not the only parent,” she said. “It’s been a topic of conversations at the baseball field and after graduation, and any time parents are together with their kids. They’re concerned. This last event hit a little bit different. It looked like our community, and maybe that’s why it felt different.”

Grant PUD crews fix Cascade Valley outages

MOSES LAKE — Grant County PUD crews appear to have found the underlying problem that caused multiple outages in Cascade Valley from June 3 to last weekend. Christine Pratt, PUD public affairs officer, said in a statement that the culprit tentatively has been identified as a jumper wire on one of the power poles in the area...

MLSD sells land back to Grant Co.

MOSES LAKE — Grant County officials will be buying back a piece of property from the Moses Lake School District. Moses Lake School Board members approved the sale during the regular meeting Thursday. Grant County Commissioners had already approved the agreement. The votes by both the school board and the commissioners were unanimous...

Keeping them safe: ACPR works to help the four-legged residents of Adams County

OTHELLO — While there’s usually a full house at Adams County Pet Rescue, some days are fuller than others. May 12 turned out to be a very busy day. “We got in 15 animals this morning,” ACPR employee Anita Plancarte said. The intake included dogs reported running loose just outside Othello, out by the canal. “We got a call about seven pups, and it ended up being a mom and six puppies. So we went out and caught them,” Plancarte said...

‘We didn’t think it would come this soon’

Excitement, reflection at Quincy High School graduation

QUINCY — As they waited to walk into the Quincy High School stadium Saturday, QHS class of 2022 graduates Sergio Cordova and Rafael Ruiz were asked how it felt to get to this day . .

Construction continues on local highway projects

MOSES LAKE — Most of the work on a paving project in the westbound lanes of Interstate 90 is expected to be completed by the end of this week. Drivers can expect lane closures and speeds reduced to 55 miles per hour in the construction zone, which is east of Moses Lake to the Adams County line. Construction crews are working from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m., according to a press release from the Washington State Department of Transportation.

MLSD board approves Chief Mo mascot and name change

MOSES LAKE — Chief Moses Middle School will become Columbia Middle School at the beginning of the 2022-23 school year, and the mascot will be changed from the Braves to the Red Hawks. Moses Lake School Board members unanimously approved the recommendation of a district committee at the regular meeting Thursday. Jeremy O'Neil, the district’s chief operating officer, said the process of renaming CMMS took a little longer than choosing new mascots for Moses Lake High School and Frontier Middle School. “There’s been an ongoing process many months in the making,” O’Neil said. “The impetus being, our partners at the (Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation) said that we needed to make some changes, and we’ve done that with the high school and Frontier. The wrinkle with Chief Moses Middle School is that the school name also needed to be addressed.” ...

Serve Quincy Valley

Helping others help themselves

QUINCY — The goal at Serve Quincy Valley is not only to help people with their immediate crisis, or their immediate need

Sun in the Basin

Sage-N-Sun Festival returns to Ephrata this weekend

EPHRATA — Live music, the Wenatchee Youth Circus, an early-morning run and the annual parade are among the attractions at the annual Sage-N-Sun Festival tonight and Saturday. “I just think we need to get out there and start living again. And what a great way to do it, with a parade and a festival,” she said...

Construction crews begin repaving Valley Road

MOSES LAKE — Traffic has been reduced from four lanes down to two on a section of Valley Road as construction crews begin grinding up the existing surface.

Quincy downtown plan public hearing rescheduled for June 21

QUINCY — Quincy residents will be asked for their opinions of the proposed downtown revitalization plan at a public hearing during the regular Quincy City Council meeting June 21. The meeting begins at 7 p.m.

Othello council approves school resource officer contract

OTHELLO — The Othello Police Department will continue to provide two school resource officers to the Othello School District.

Roundabout at SR 17 and Grape Drive starts to take shape

MOSES LAKE — The traffic signal at Grape Drive and state Route 17 has been removed, and some of the roadbed already has been torn out and repaved.

Social media threat causes modified lockdowns at four Othello schools Monday morning

OTHELLO — Four Othello schools were placed on a modified lockdown Monday morning after a social media message allegedly threatened McFarland Middle School. Othello School District officials instituted a modified lockdown at McFarland, Othello High School, Desert Oasis High School and Lutacaga Elementary. In a modified lockdown students and teachers stay in the classroom while classes keep going, and all doors are locked and monitored. “A high school kid made a social media threat,” said Othello Police Chief Phil Schenck...

Masquers Theater presents thriller-comedy

SOAP LAKE — The curtain goes up Friday on a classic thriller rebooted to a comedy at the Masquers Theater, 322 Main Ave. E. in Soap Lake.

Wahluke elementary students release salmon into the wild

MATTAWA — One after another the children picked up a cup, each with its own salmon fry swimming around, and one after another they poured the contents into the Columbia River.

Mind and heart on Othello

OHS graduates 241 seniors

OTHELLO — As he left Huskie Stadium, brand-new Othello High School graduate Miguel Diaz said he thought the class of 2022 could look back on a job well done. “I feel like, after all the hard times and the hard work, we all accomplished the one thing our parents wanted us to accomplish,” Miguel said. “We all did it. We did it as a class.” ...

CB Tech students place in state competitions

MOSES LAKE — Clair Reed said competition baking requires precision. Noah Bingham and Eli Legault had to go forward on a completely unfamiliar project after a project partner moved away. The three Columbia Basin Technical Skills Center students finished in the top 10 at recent state competitions. Reed was third in the state SkillsUSA baking competition. Legualt and Bingham finished seventh in the state Future Business Leaders of America competition to build a video game, their first year in FBLA. “I’m mildly disappointed I didn’t get first,” Reed said. “Just me being competitive.” ...

Repaving on Moses Lake’s Valley Road begins Monday

MOSES LAKE — Traffic revisions will be in place on Valley Road beginning Monday as the road is resurfaced from Stratford Road to Paxson Drive. Construction crews will be working on the project from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, with the first phase scheduled for completion Aug. 5, according to information from the city of Moses Lake. The project will include removing the existing pavement and underlying roadbed, rebuilding the roadbed and repaving. Curbs and gutters will replace the existing gutters on the south side of the road, and stormwater improvements are planned as well....

Two Quincy streets to be rebuilt, another gets repaved

QUINCY — Asphalt removal should begin sometime within the next couple of weeks on three blocks of B Street Northeast in Quincy. “A complete new road,” said Shawn Pierce, project supervisor for Hurst Construction LLC...

Priorities set for MLSD construction projects

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake School Board will vote, possibly at its June 9 meeting, on whether to adopt a report that includes a priority list for capital projects that could be funded through the construction bond approved by voters in 2017. If the report is accepted, the first priority would be finding property to build the district’s 12th elementary school. Another priority would be fixing up Moses Lake High School. “Any reasonable observer of the condition of our high school would be able to tell you that that structure is failing,” MLSD COO Jeremy O’Neil said. “It’s definitely throughout the facility, and it’s more acutely in about two or three wings, where whole classrooms are missing ceiling tiles.”...

WA Fire Marshal’s Office tips for protecting homes from wildfires

OLYMPIA — The warmer spring and summer weather bring with them an increased risk of wildfires, and the Washington Fire Marshal’s office is recommending homeowners take precautions to reduce that risk. According to a press release from WFMO, the National Interagency Fire Center and the National Weather Service are forecasting a normal amount of precipitation for summer 2022. But summer east of the Cascade Mountains means dry weather...

Moses Lake man arrested after brief standoff

MOSES LAKE — A Moses Lake man was arrested Thursday after a brief standoff with law enforcement on suspicion of second-degree robbery and felony eluding . Isaiah Martinez, 29, was arrested at about 2 p.m. after surrendering to Grant County Sheriff’s deputies and Moses Lake Police Department officers, wrote GCSO public information officer Kyle Foreman in a GCSO announcement...

Othello fastpitch softball top seed in state tournament

OTHELLO — Othello High School fastpitch softball coach Rudy Ochoa said he was optimistic about the 2022 season, but it turned out even better than he expected.

Quincy’s B Street Market adds more Saturdays

QUINCY — Quincy’s B Street Market is expanding its days of operation for summer 2022. The market will be open from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday – with one exception – from June 4 through Sept. 24.

Quincy hospital district puts bond request out to voters

Funding could provide new hospital

QUINCY — Voters in the Quincy hospital district will be asked to accept or reject a bond proposal, up to $55 million, in the Aug. 2 primary. If the proposal is approved, the money would be used to build a new Quincy Valley Medical Center. If the bond is approved, property owners would pay an estimated 46 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value. That means the owner of property assessed at $200,000 would pay $92 per year, and a property owner with land assessed at $300,000 would pay $138 per year...

How to build a pump track

New East Park feature expected to draw visitors to Quincy.

QUINCY — Building a pump track starts with studying the lay of the land. Shawn Lorenz of the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance, North Bend, designed the pump track currently under construction in Quincy’s East Park and said the design started with a picture of the park. “The design for the Quincy track was an overhead image set precisely to a 20-foot per inch scale. And then (the design process) is using an engineering ruler to measure off feature spacing and see what fits on the land,” Lorenz said. “The design kind of forms itself - I guess organically would be a good word to use.” ...

Candidate filing period produces challengers for some state, county offices

GRANT/ADAMS COUNTIES — The filing deadline to run for office in Washington at the county and state level was Friday. Several officials that represent Grant and Adams counties at the local and state level are running for reelection.

Groff Elementary BBQ held Friday

MOSES LAKE - Brian King (left) and Tonya Landon (center, in red) serve hot dogs and hamburgers to students and families at the annual spring barbecue at Groff Elementary in Moses Lake Friday...

Bomb threat causes temporary evacuation at MLHS

MOSES LAKE — Moses Lake High School was evacuated briefly Tuesday afternoon after a bomb threat was phoned into the school. No one was injured. A message from MLHS principal Triscia Hochstatter said an investigation by the Moses Lake Police Department determined the threat was not credible.