Home inventory up more than a third in the Evergreen State

MOSES LAKE — There are a lot more homes available in Washington state than there were a year ago, according to data released in July by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

Futsal courts coming to Moses Lake

MOSES LAKE — The Harrison K. Dano Park next to the Boys & Girls Club McGraw Clubhouse in Moses Lake is getting an addition, thanks to the city, the Seattle Sounders and a former Moses Lake resident.

CBCCA announces a varied concert season

MOSES LAKE — The Central Basin Community Concert Association is urging people who love music to get their season tickets early, according to an announcement from the association. “The best way to see all the shows is by purchasing a season membership,” the CBCCA wrote in the announcement. “We’ve announced our 2024-25 season and are excited for the music coming to the Basin.” The first performer for the season will be Kate Voss and the Hot Sauce. Voss got her start playing piano in clubs in Seattle with a variety of bands, according to her official biography. She studied jazz, but found her interests were more varied than that genre would allow, so she formed her own band to play a fusion of jazz, blues, pop, country, western swing, oldies, Americana and rockabilly. Besides piano, Voss sings with a voice reminiscent of Nancy Sinatra and Etta James, and also plays the ukulele bass and melodica. Her band, the Hot Sauce, can be anything from a duo to a sextet and backs her up with a danceable, nostalgic sound. On Oct. 17, Molly in the Mineshaft will take the stage with a mixture of traditional folk styles including Celtic, bluegrass and blues. The Utah-based septet wields an array of instruments including mandolin, banjo, guitar, cello, fiddle and bagpipes, backing up three vocalists’ harmonies. They’ve won numerous awards and championships for their instrumental work, according to their promotional materials.

Nothing like a good book

Children read to fuzzy friends at ACPR

OTHELLO — Adams County Pet Rescue’s first Kitty Litterature event July 13 worked out well all around, said ACPR Board Member Tammy Foley.

‘We are here to fight’

Purple Party gets community ready for Walk to End Alzheimer’s

MOSES LAKE — Alzheimer’s disease is a terrifying thing for many people: the fear that one day they will watch helplessly as they cease to remember their families and even who they are. The 150-200 people who came to the Purple Party at the Porterhouse Steakhouse in Moses Lake Thursday want to make that fear a thing of the past.

Pilot program

Civil Air Patrol trains young fliers in Ephrata

EPHRATA — This week, that plane buzzing overhead could be piloted by a teenager. The Civil Air Patrol in Ephrata is holding its Desert Eagle National Flight Academy, for CAP cadets between the ages of 16 and 19. They’ll get intensive flight instruction for 10 days, both in powered planes and on the ground, learning , said Lt. Col. Sid Wiggs, the public affairs officer for the academy.

Basin Summer Showdown coming Saturday

EPHRATA — The Basin Summer Showdown car show will take to the streets in Ephrata again Saturday.

‘I’ve always loved the ocean’

Seascapes and serenity at The Drip art gallery

MOSES LAKE — There’s a definite theme to Hannah Fountain’s artwork. “I always loved the ocean,” she said. “I love the water, and painting it has always been my favorite subject.”

Mae Valley housing going up

The Refuge development moves forward with home options

MOSES LAKE — The Mae Valley area is getting some more homes. Pro Made Homes, based in Kennewick, is building 52 homes at The Refuge at Mae Valley between Montana Street and the Moses Lake Golf & Country Club on the west end of Moses Lake.

FIRE REPORT: Wilson Creek fire crisps 180 acres

WILSON CREEK — A wildfire was reported at about 4 p.m. Thursday north of the town of Wilson Creek and west of Road 3 NE which had burned an estimated 180 acres by about 7 p.m. according to the Grant County Sheriff’s Office.

Basin Summer Showdown coming next Saturday

EPHRATA — The Basin Summer Showdown car show will take to the streets in Ephrata again Saturday, July 27.

Ephrata going chrome

Annual Car Show & Shine set for Saturday in downtown

EPHRATA — The cars – and trucks, and motorcycles, and whatever else – will gleam in the sun again Saturday at the Anything with Wheels Show and Shine car show.

FIRE REPORT: Sunbanks Fire mostly extinguished

ELECTRIC CITY — The Sunbanks Fire that flared up Tuesday afternoon in Electric City was mostly out Wednesday, according to a statement from the Grand Coulee Volunteer Fire Department. No flames were visible, but small flare-ups continued to appear. The fire burned 100 acres before it was extinguished, but no structures were reported lost.

Downtown businesses make the best of small spaces

MOSES LAKE — There’s a lot happening in the middle of Moses Lake, and it’s happening in smaller and smaller spaces. “Even with all the business closures that are happening around town, businesses that are still open are doing more initiatives to attract more people to their stores,” said Mallory Miller, director of the Downtown Moses Lake Association, which promotes the business community downtown. “We've got Artgarden, she's doing more classes. We've got Hello Nature which is bringing in things constantly. (Owner Magen Evans) is doing little sidewalk sales. So just bringing more people into downtown.” Moses Lake’s downtown business core has had its share of ups and downs over the years, as businesses come and go. Many of the businesses that were pillars of the downtown core 30 and more years ago – Pinky’s House of Fashion, Berry’s Department Store, Furniture West – are now the stuff of nostalgia. But in their place have come smaller concerns, many of them doubling and tripling up in the available spaces.

Twin artists on exhibit at Old Hotel

OTHELLO — The July Artist of the Month at the Old Hotel Art Gallery in Othello is actually two artists: twin brothers Aldemar and Valdemar Saavedra-Guerrero.

Royal City Summerfest delivers

ROYAL CITY — The Royal City Summerfest went off well over the weekend, said Jill Larsen, a member of the festival committee. “The heat was a little much, but it's always hot,” Larsen said. “So always we try to keep it in mind; that's why we tried to put all of our vendors in the shade.” The food vendors were arranged around the perimeter of Lions Park, with the craft vendors toward the front. The sunny part of the park was used for the Headlights and Summer Nights Car Show Friday evening. The vehicles arranged around the park ranged from antiques to low riders. There was even a perfect replica of the General Lee from the TV show “The Dukes of Hazzard,” right down to the horn that played “Dixie.” “We picked up this car about a year ago and it wasn't running,” said Jeff Cobb of Ephrata, who restored the General with his 13-year-old son Clayton. “So we updated the motor and the transmission … It’s a 383 motor with a 727 transmission, and we have a 440 at home in the shop that we’re rebuilding, getting ready to put it in.”

FIRE REPORT: Evacuation notices issued for Electric City

ELECTRIC CITY — The Grant County Sheriff’s Office issued evacuation warnings Tuesday afternoon in Electric City due to a wildfire that broke out near Sunbanks Resort. Level 2 warnings – be prepared to leave at a moment’s notice – were in place Tuesday afternoon for the area from Sunny Drive to Fifth Street North. Level 1 notices – get ready – were in place between SR 155 and Western Avenue.

Planting seeds of knowledge

WSU Master Gardeners looking for a few good volunteers

MOSES LAKE — Some people take playing in the dirt very seriously. “(The WSU Master Gardener program) is for gardeners who want to help other people garden,” said Barbara Guilland, “You have a real interest in gardening. It's not just a place to learn it, it's a place to learn how to tell other people about it.”

FIRE REPORT: Wetland fire burns 60 acres in Moses Lake

MOSES LAKE — A 60-acre fire broke out in the wee hours of Monday morning in an undeveloped wetland in Moses Lake, according to a statement released Monday afternoon by the Moses Lake Fire Department.

Masquers camp hits the high – and hilarious – seas

SOAP LAKE — Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of soda pop! The Soap Lake Masquers Summer Youth Theater Camp will put on “Captain Bree and her Lady Pirates” next week.

‘No sad tears today’

Boys & Girls Club funded for the rest of the year

MOSES LAKE — “It’s happy tears,” Boys & Girls Club Director Kim Pope told a little girl who asked why she was crying. “No sad tears today.” Pope had to fight back tears several times at North Elementary School Wednesday morning, as she accepted a donation from Group14 and other local businesses that would keep the club afloat through the year.

PREVIEW: A look at Soap Lake's Folk and Food Festival

SOAP LAKE – Soap Lake’s inaugural Folk and Food Festival had a decent showing despite the triple-digit temperatures on Saturday. While performers did their thing on stage, the audience found a shady spot and enjoyed cold drinks to fight the heat. Full coverage of the event will be in Wednesday’s edition of the Columbia Basin Herald.

FIRE REPORT: GCFD 7 knocks down fireworks fire

SOAP LAKE — Fireworks sparked a wildfire late Wednesday night, according to a statement from Grant County Fire District 7. At about 11:10 p.m., firefighters were called to a vegetation fire at Road 19 and Division Road, according to the statement. There they found a fire spreading at a moderate rate through light, flashy fuels. The first arriving brush engine made an aggressive attack and the fire was contained to 3.12 acres. Crews remained on the scene until 3:30 a.m. mopping up.

Disappearing America

Exhibit at Moses Lake Museum brings rural relics to life

MOSES LAKE — Artist Deon Matzen will make an appearance at the Moses Lake Museum & Art Center Friday to open her new exhibit. “My theme for this show … is “Vanishing Rural America,” Matzen said from her home on Whidbey Island. “I work on old barns that are falling down – the old-style barns, not the contemporary metal loafing shed-style barn – Trucks, barns, any kind of old detritus. Most of what you’ll see is that, although there are a number of wildlife paintings too. I call them ‘varmint paintings.’” The exhibit will kick off with a reception at 4 p.m. Friday where patrons can meet Matzen and nibble on refreshments while checking out the artwork.

FIRE REPORT: More than 100 human-caused fires in the Northwest so far this summer

PORTLAND, Ore. — Since June, there have been 100 human-caused wildfires on national forests and grasslands in Oregon and Washington, according to a statement from the U.S. Forest Service. While firefighters have been largely successful in putting out these preventable fires, the extremely hot and dry conditions are significantly ramping up fire danger across the region. “We’re entering a very dangerous time period in the Pacific Northwest wildfire season,” Ed Hiatt, Pacific Northwest assistant fire director for operations, wrote in the statement. “Mother Nature turned on the oven for a week in local forests and now we’re preparing for the potential of dry lightning and gusty winds.” Local responders are closely tracking these deteriorating conditions where any new wildfire will have the potential to spread rapidly and burn intensely right from the start. And as firefighters respond to lightning-sparked fires a preventable, human-caused wildfire can limit the availability of needed engines, dozers, helicopters and other resources.

Folk festival to debut in Soap Lake

SOAP LAKE — Soap Lake will spread its cultural wings this weekend with the first-ever Soap Lake Food and Folk Festival. The festival, which goes all day Saturday at Smokiam Park, will feature musicians from a variety of traditions, as well as food and craft vendors and periodic raffle drawings throughout the day. It’s put on by the Friends of the Lower Grand Coulee. “We've got Mexican music, we've got country music, we've got contemporary folk music, we've got southern folk music, we've got Delta blues,” said Kim Anderson, a lifelong Soap Lake resident who came up with the idea for the festival. “So we're all over the place.” Musicians include conjunto band Tejano Skyz, singer-songwriters Carl Tosten and Billy Stoops, country singer Myra Pearce, blues musicians The Delta G Band and Leif Totusek, whose compositions blend jazz, blues and soukous, a dance music style from central Africa. Many of the musicians have ties to the area, Anderson said; Pearce and Tejano Skyz are based in Moses Lake, and several members of the Delta G Band graduated from Soap Lake High School. Tosten also grew up in eastern Washington, according to his online biography.

Red Cross offers movie tickets to blood donors

OTHELLO — The American Red Cross will hold a blood drive in Othello on July 23, where donors can have a chance to save a life and get a free movie ticket to boot. According to Red Cross spokesperson Betsy Robertson, anyone who donates blood or platelets to the Red Cross during the month of July will be emailed a free movie ticket from Fandango, usable at the AMC Classic Theater in Kennewick, among others. The ticket giveaway is in partnership with Universal Pictures to promote their new film “Twisters,” but the ticket is valid for any movie if used before the end of the year, Robertson said. Additionally, each donor in July will be automatically entered in a drawing to win a 2025 Ram 1500 Bighorn pickup, Robertson said.

FIRE REPORT: Moses Lake sends crews to Lake Chelan fire

MOSES LAKE — The Pioneer Fire burning along the eastern shore of Lake Chelan is still growing, and was at 12,265 acres Wednesday, according to the Washington State Department of Natural Resources. Containment remained at 14%. The fire, which has been burning since June 8, is being fought by 818 personnel, including six firefighters from the Moses Lake Fire Department, according to MLFD spokesperson Heather Kok.

FIRE REPORT: Pioneer Fire still growing in North Cascades

MOSES LAKE — The Pioneer Fire burning along the eastern shore of Lake Chelan continued to grow Tuesday, reaching 10,677 acres, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. Containment remained at 14%. Eleven crews, 13 helicopters, five engines, 14 water tenders and 13 heavy equipment units were devoted to fighting the blaze, which has been burning since June 8.

Historic celebration

George’s Patriotic Observance combines solemnity with festivity

GEORGE — The flag raised at George’s Patriotic Observance on Independence Day has only 48 stars. “The flag we’re flying is a World War I vet’s casket flag,” said Mark Owens, who is the quartermaster for Grant County’s Veterans of Foreign Wars chapter.

FIRE REPORT: Wildfire near Coulee City closes highway

COULEE CITY — A fire near Coulee City closed down state Route 17 briefly Sunday. The Haynes Canyon Fire was reported about 6 p.m. alongside SR 17, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. The Grant County Sheriff’s Office initially estimated the fire at 6 acres, but it ended up being 3.2 acres, according to Grant County Fire District 7 Chief Chris Baker.

Soap Lake celebrates summer at Suds ‘N Sun

SOAP LAKE — Soap Lake’s Suds ‘N Sun festival began at 9 a.m. Saturday and already it was around 80 degrees. But that didn’t stop locals from finding shady spots to sit, talk and enjoy the goings-on downtown. Main Avenue East was blocked off at the highway for the Soap Box Derby and a car show, which boasted about 15 vehicles, hoods open, gleaming in the morning sun.

Moses Lake celebrates America with music, fireworks

MOSES LAKE — Moses Lake’s Red, White and Boom! Celebration Wednesday drew out a respectable crowd, said Moses Lake Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Director Doug Coutts.

Firefighters enjoy calm Fourth

COLUMBIA BASIN — This year, the Fourth of July wasn’t too bad for local firefighters. “We had a couple of brush fires, but in comparison with years past, not bad,” said Moses Lake Fire Chief Brett Bastian.

Royal City celebrates Summerfest this weekend

ROYAL CITY — Royal City’s annual celebration will take place this week. Summerfest, traditionally held the second weekend in July, will take place this Friday and Saturday, and it promises to be fun.

Derby turns Soap Lake street into a raceway

SOAP LAKE — Most of the time, the police take a dim view of young people racing cars through the middle of town. But in Soap Lake Saturday, the cops were helping them do it. “We've had really great turnout, supporters and kids doing it every year,” said Soap Lake Police Chief Ryan Cox, who was supervising the Soap Box Derby from the finish line. “Every year, we try to add a couple of cars and get more kids involved.”

FIRE REPORT: Fires spring up in Wenatchee, Mansfield areas

MANSFIELD — The Road 11 Fire burning about 12 miles southwest of Mansfield was 50% contained Saturday, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. The brush fire, which was ignited Thursday afternoon and grew to 800 acres, was one of the sources of smoke noticeable in the air earlier in the week in Grant and Adams counties, according to the Grant County Sheriff’s Office.

3-on-3 tournament highlights the hazards of vaping

SOAP LAKE — The Soap Lake Suds ‘N Sun festival Saturday had a new element this year: a 3-on-3 basketball tournament sponsored by the Soap Lake Prevention Coalition.

FIRE REPORT: Ephrata area fire shuts down SR 17

EPHRATA — The Marksman Road fire, which blazed up quickly east of Ephrata Tuesday and closed SR 17 for a time, was contained quickly thanks to a lot of interagency cooperation, according to Grant County Fire District 13 Chief Jim Stucky.

FIRE REPORT: Wildfire closes SR 17 near Ephrata

EPHRATA — A fire broke out Tuesday in the northern portion of the Y formed by State Route 17 and SR 282, according to first responder alerts. The fire, a few minutes southeast of Ephrata was reported a little before 6 p.m. and had burned an estimated 500 acres. The fire resulted in a closure of SR 17 between SR 282 and SR 28 to ensure public safety. A cause was unknown but initial reports indicated it began at the Ephrata Gun Range. The fire was named the Marksman Street Fire. Further information was not available by press time. The Dearinger fire, which has been burning in the North Cascades about 40 miles northeast of Everett since June 22, is 80% contained at 48 acres, according to the Western Washington Incident Management Team.

Royal Intermediate welcomes new principal

ROYAL CITY — For Royal Intermediate School’s new principal, it’s sort of a homecoming. “I grew up around Royal, my whole life,” said Karl Edie, who officially became the principal at RHS at the beginning of July. “My mother worked for the Royal Review (newspaper), a long time ago. So I’m excited to be back among the great people in Royal City.”

Exchange students to head to Yonezawa, Japan

MOSES LAKE — The exchange is on again. The Moses Lake-Yonezawa Sister City Student Exchange, which has been on hiatus since 2020, will resume this month as three Moses Lake students visit Yonezawa, Japan. Ambassadors Keziah Roman Panlaqui, Emmanuel Zepeda Lopez and Ethan Ramsey will leave on July 25, accompanied by chaperone Amador Castro, to spend 10 days in Moses Lake’s sister city. While in Japan, they’ll stay with three Yonezawa students and their families, and on Aug. 7, those Japanese students will return the visit and spend 10 days in Moses Lake. Moses Lake and Yonezawa have been sister cities since 1981, according to the program’s website, and the student exchange was organized shortly thereafter. The program was originally suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic, said Terry Moore, treasurer for the Moses Lake-Yonezawa Exchange Program, but the publisher of the Yonezawa Shimbun newspaper, which handled the exchange from the Japanese end, passed away soon after, and the exchange was mothballed indefinitely. Until April, when a group called the Yonezawa International Relations Association reached out through a translator who had assisted the newspaper in the past.

STRENGTH: Tony Leibelt

On the front lines of his hometown

QUINCY – After 36 years as a firefighter, Tony Leibelt has seen it all. He’s stood on the front lines of wildfires, he’s rescued rock climbers on the cliffs above the Columbia River and once he even delivered a baby on a bathroom floor. Some of the calls are routine, some are tragic, and some are just plain weird.

STRENGTH: Don Nutt

Coulee City artist lives out his dream supporting other artists

COULEE CITY – Don Nutt has been an artist all his life. “Every 5-year-old likes to draw and color,” he said. “I just never really stopped. Family members gave me how-to-draw books, (which was) the 1960s YouTube.”

Moses Lake Airshow showcases all things airborne

MOSES LAKE — The weather on Saturday, the first day of the Moses Lake Airshow, gave a whole new meaning to the word “barnstorming.” “We almost didn't get the planes off the ground because it was a side wind,” said the show’s organizer, Terry Quick. “On the big runway, it was strong enough that if they were trying to lift off it would have blown them off the runway. As it worked out, we were able to open up a different runway and they could take off into the wind. One guy got airborne in less than 100 yards, so it was pretty strong winds, to say the least.”

FIRE REPORT: Ephrata volunteers put out brush fire

EPHRATA — Wednesday afternoon a brush fire, possibly sparked by a passing train, broke out in the area of Road F Northwest and Road 11.7 southwest of Ephrata, according to a statement from Grant County Fire District 13, which is based in Ephrata. With the help of Grant County Fire District 3, out of Quincy, the fire was caught at about two acres.

‘My journey has come full circle’

Big Bend graduates 613 Friday

MOSES LAKE — Big Bend Community College graduated a wide spectrum of students at Lions Field in Moses Lake Friday, President Sara Thompson Tweedy said.

FIRE REPORT: Local firefighters train for the busy season

SOAP LAKE — Grant County Fire District 7 volunteers and staff have been training for wildland-urban interface structure defense in preparation for wildfire season, according to an announcement from GCFD 7. Training Monday night was available remotely, but next week will include hands-on training in evaluating structures and determining escape routes, safety zones and temporary refuge areas.

FIRE REPORT: Yakima Valley fire threatens town, Pioneer Fire swells again

MOSES LAKE — Evacuation notices for the Yakima Valley town of Zillah were downgraded Monday to level 1 as crews fight the Beam Road Fire, which flared up Saturday afternoon.

MLSD board continues close examination of funding

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake School Board heard about some measures being taken to cut costs at its meeting Thursday, scrutinizing some items that were brought to it for approval and discussing with Acting Superintendent Carol Lewis some ways of making up the roughly $13 million shortfall.