Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
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In an article for the website Only in Your State, Seattle cartoonist and writer Nikki Cleveland selected what she considered to be the “Most beautiful, charming small towns in Washington.” Cathlamet ranked 13th on the list, sharing the honor with places like LaConner, Hoodsport, Twisp and Winthrop. “It was actually really tough coming up with a limited list,” Cleveland said. “There are so many small towns around our state and what qualifies as a ‘small town’ is kind of subjective. I grew up in...
Participants of the 17th Annual Ride Around Washington cycled into Skamokawa Vista Park on Sunday after a 54-mile ride from Ilwaco to finish the first leg of the seven-day event. The event got a late start on Sunday, and riders were rolling in until 7 p.m. Tents lined the field in rows, a temporary city. At 8:30 p.m., riders and their organizers were finishing up a meeting. A large catering trailer was in the background and a few people could be seen picking up a late dinner. Set up next to it w...
Jennifer Oxley is learning to make metaphorical lemonade with a crochet hook and a lot of yarn. Oxley, 48, the daughter of George and Barb Silva and the mother of two girls, knows a bit about how an unexpected loss can derail a life along with all the hopes and dreams one gathers along the way. A little over 10 years ago her immune system started shutting down. She had just finished her prerequisites and was in her second semester of the nursing program at LCC. "I was getting bronchitis a lot,"...
A budget hearing was held for the 2015-2016 budget at July’s Wahkiakum School District Board of Director’s meeting on Tuesday. The board also considered a request for right of way in the Farm Forest and heard a proposal from a representative of the Town of Cathlamet to instate a school zone on South 2nd and South 3rd Streets from Alder Street to Spring Street. After the budget hearing the school board approved the 2015-2016 budget. Projected revenue for the fiscal year is $5,723,906. The dis...
Firefighters from the District 4 Fire Department have been working around the state on wild land fires, including the recent PC Complex fire in Woodland and another fire in Spokane. They're home now, and they're on standby, awaiting another call out. "We go as part of Cowlitz 2 Fire and Rescue strike team," Keith Leavitt said. Leavitt, a college student from Utah, is spending his third summer here with extended family. A strike team is made up of six trucks, with two or three people per truck....
The Edeburn-Jennings family has been coming to Vista Park in Skamokawa for 25 years. Or is that 24 years? Cousins shout good-naturedly at each other in an attempt to sort out the details as Tammy Bielman recounts the history of their reunion. "It started with a family of five brothers and sisters," Bielman said. "My mom died when we were very young, but it was her siblings that arranged this reunion. Most of that generation is gone now and the generations have moved up." The reunions actually...
There was one thing most everyone could agree about on Bald Eagle Day 2015. "It was hot," Chamber of Commerce Director Shannon Gildea said on Tuesday. Just 10 days earlier she had been worried about a forecast for rain. No chance. There wasn't even a cloud in the sky. Groups of people were punctuated by sunlight as they sought shade under trees that lined the parade route. One family had the foresight to set up a canopy in front of their home. The more resilient set out chairs in the sun. Kids...
Commissioner Bob Jungers voiced his frustration at the ongoing negotiation with the Town of Cathlamet regarding their water contract at Tuesday's Wahkiakum County PUD Board of Commissioners meeting. "The town and the PUD have been involved in a contract to essentially share water resources since 1947. Two years ago, the town resolved that at the end of the term of their contract in 2038, they will no longer sell water to the PUD," Jungers said. "This contract states that during its practice...
Two men were charged Monday in Wahkiakum Superior Court in connection with an attempted burglary in the Elochoman Valley on July 6. Longview residents John Thomas Nash and Calvin A. Nguyen were charged with burglary in the second degree, theft of a motor vehicle, and possession of a controlled substance—methamphetamine. According to the affidavit of probable cause for arrest, the two were confronted in the early morning hours of July 6 by William Byers on his property in the Elochoman Valley w...
Kayrene Gilbertsen couldn't be more proud of her community. As it turns out, plenty of people in her community are just as proud of her and proved it when they voted to name her the 2015 Bald Eagle Day Parade Grand Marshal. Kayrene was raised here, but spent three years in New Zealand teaching elementary education when her family relocated there for a time. Eventually she returned to the area, married Gary Gilbertsen and had two kids, Karlin and Gabrielle. "My father was a real viking, so my...
In the early hours of September 3, more than 30 Wounded Warriors and Widows will embark with several local volunteer fishermen from the Elochoman Slough Marina and spend a few hours fishing on the Columbia River. Event organizer Bud Mickelsen also wants to take the opportunity to honor our local firefighters, state patrol and sheriff’s office and the invitation has been extended to these hardworking people who serve our community. No fishing event is complete without some competition, and so the...
Last Wednesday, Judge Michael Sullivan ruled on a final count and sentenced Christian C.J. Lorenzo, 17, to 195 weeks in a juvenile detention facility for his role in the theft of chickens on Puget Island and other miscellaneous offenses. Lorenzo was convicted on five out of six counts. Count one was burglary in the second degree; count two was the trafficking of stolen property in the first degree; count four was the unlawful possession of a firearm in the second degree; count five was the...
At a special meeting of the Wahkiakum School District Board of Directors on Monday, school board members Tina Schubert, Shawn Merz, Sue O’Connor and Paula Culbertson voted on three items that will enable the school district to move forward with some security measures. With advice from Rod Roduin, a consultant with Construction Services Group (CSG), a partner with ESD, the board was able to narrow down a selection after receiving seven bids for a new phone system. The board approved a bid of $...
Commissioner Larry Bonds announced that he would be giving up his position at the end of the Port 1 Board of Commissioners meeting on Thursday last week. “I just want to let everyone know that I’m resigning,” Bonds said. “I’ve got other things I want to do. When I’m down south I feel completely out of touch and I think it’s important that someone keeps a hand in it. I think there is a lot more responsibility than there was five, six years ago. I’ve put in my time though I’ll kind of miss it i...
An Elochoman Valley resident fired shots Monday to fend off an attempted burglary. According to Sheriff Mark Howie, two men were seen putting items into a truck at a large storage barn in the 500 block of Elochoman Valley Road in the early morning hours of July 6. There had been a recent burglary at the address, and the owner and some of his neighbors were on alert. The burglary had not been reported to the sheriff’s office, but the individuals had set up surveillance cameras. One of the men w...
On Monday at a preliminary hearing in Wahkiakum Superior Court, Judge Gary Bashor set bail at $10 million for Altoona-Pillar Rock Road resident Sam Valdez. Last Friday, Valdez was arrested by the Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Narcotics Task Force (CWNTF), the Wahkiakum County Sheriff’s Office and the Longview Street Crimes Unit on charges of solicitation to commit murder in the first degree, delivery of a controlled substance, and possession of a controlled substance with intent to manufacture or d...
Christian “CJ” Lorenzo, 17, was arrested on March 20, 2015 for his involvement in the theft of chickens from a Puget Island residence and the subsequent sale of the chickens at a Woodland auction house. Lorenzo was also being held for the theft of a firearm, for a stolen laptop found in his home, and for possession of a controlled substance. Lorenzo was in court for a bench trial with Judge Michael Sullivan on June 24 and June 29. According to court documents, Lorenzo was found guilty on fou...
Janna Doumit, surrounded by all her co-workers, was recognized for 30 years at the Wahkiakum County PUD at Tuesday morning’s board of commissioner’s meeting. “It went fast,” Doumit said. “I appreciate my job. I know how lucky I’ve been to work so close to home, have such a great place to work and have a great living wage in this town.” “We appreciate you,” General Manager Dave Tramblie said. Tramblie gave an update on the water contract negotiation with the Town of Cathlamet. “Our latest offer...
A new event to check out during this year’s Bald Eagle Days is Trivia Night on Friday, July 17. The event is sponsored by the parents of this year's cheer team at Wahkiakum High School. All money raised will be donated to the cheer program to help pay for uniforms and camp. Participants are encouraged to form teams of four or five. The entry fee for each team will be $30. There will be four rounds of trivia. Each round will have 10 questions on a variety of topics. There will be prizes for t...
On Friday morning, the Town of Cathlamet again requested that all residents of Cathlamet and Puget Island conserve water. Dry weather has reduced levels in the Elochoman River which is the source of water for the town and Puget Island systems. “We are very low,” Mayor Dale Jacobsen said. “Storage is full, but if we had a fire it would be hard to recover.” He suggests that residents carry on with water use that is considered vital, like bathing, laundry, cooking, or watering a vegetable garden....
Like any event, Bald Eagle Days will not run smoothly without a lot of support behind the scenes, and this year, the new Chamber of Commerce Director Shannon Gildea is short on volunteers. “Since I’m so new,” Gildea said, “I have this burden of not having connections. I think that is where I’m struggling, calling people I haven’t met and asking for help.” Little of the work that needs to be done is strenuous and Gildea is hoping to fill several one or two hour slots throughout the day. She is l...
The warm weather didn't keep faithful bargain hunters from visiting Puget Island last weekend for the annual Puget Island Garage and Yard Sale. Howard Brawn kept his usual post on Little Island, handing out maps and talking to visitors. At noon on Friday, he was excited to report that he had already handed out more maps that morning than he had in the same amount of time last year. All the advertising that organizer Sandie York had done must have paid off. The tables were full at the Kiwanis...
Nearly five years ago, Chris Wuestefeld came to Cathlamet to work in the Cathlamet Pharmacy as the Pharmacy Manager. The business was one in a chain of Hi-School Pharmacies. "Steve Oliva, the CEO of Hi-School Pharmacy suggested that I move to town and become part of the community," Wuestefeld said. "Oliva is very pro small town; he's from a small town. He's a very interesting man, a self made multi millionaire who made an empire." Last year, Wuestefeld, his wife Amity and their two sons, Eric...
Marilyn Strange retired last week from the Naselle Grays River Valley School District after more than three decades of service. She's not sure what she's going to do with her time, but she's certain she will no longer be the oldest person working at the school. It's someone else's turn to be that. Not that she's very old, but 35 years feels like a long time. "I've been here so long it's time for somebody else to pick up the duties, Strange said. "I remember when I was the youngest and now I'm...
Children have already started swimming lessons at the pool, which opened quietly last week, just in time for the summer heat. Because of the high temperatures expected this weekend, Pool Manager Duncan Cruickshank has decided to open the Julia Butler Hansen Municipal Swimming Pool this Sunday. Lessons, lap swim and water aerobics are available five days a week. The pool will be available for open swim from 11:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 7:30-9:30 p.m. Monday through...
