Sorted by date Results 603 - 627 of 9585
The Wahkiakum County Coroner’s Office used DNA and genealogy to identify a Jane Doe whose body was discovered on the shore of Puget Island 26 years ago. Ramona Lorene Hughes, a Yakima woman born on July 6, 1956, had not been seen since late 1997 or early 1998. Last year, former Clark County death investigator Nikki Costa joined Wahkiakum County as a volunteer deputy coroner to investigate cases involving unidentified persons. Costa found an affordable lab that could perform whole genome s...
Lower Columbia College’s (LCC) automotive technology program has received Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) Training Program accreditation from the ASE Education Foundation. LCC’s automotive program is now accredited at the Master Automobile Service Technology level, the highest program accreditation recognized by the ASE. To achieve this recognition, the ASE Education Foundation rigorously evaluated the college’s automotive technology program. The evaluation used nationally accepted standards of excellence in areas such as instr...
Ballots for the August 2024 election have been submitted and Wahkiakum County’s voter turnout came in second in Washington State with 52.39 percent of voters turning in a ballot. Lee Tischer was elected County Commissioner #1, garnering 71 percent of the vote. Running unopposed, Dan Cothren was elected County Commissioner #2. Democrat Maria Cantwell won 43.17 percent of the Wahkiakum vote for Senator and 57.49 percent statewide over Dr. Raul Garcia. For Congressional District 3, 45.95 percent of Wahkiakum residents voted for Marie G...
The Town of Cathlamet is pleased to announce that the long-awaited skateboard park at Erickson Park has been completed and is ready for use. The original concrete slab for the Skateboard facility at Erickson Park was laid in 2004 as a result of a community fundraising and construction, led by now-County Commissioner Lee Tischer and many others. All construction on the slab, where the new skate park now sits, was completed entirely by volunteers. The site languished for many years, despite the...
Wahkiakum Animal Advocates Group (WAAG) would like to provide a heart warming update. The dogs and puppies rescued from a logging site in Skamokawa have found their forever homes after three months in foster care. In May, WAAG received an urgent call from a logger working miles off West Valley Road who reported puppies running around the logging site. WAAG quickly sprang into action and worked with the loggers and neighbors to corral the four husky puppies and two adult huskies. Two black lab...
On August 24, from 6-9 p.m., the Area Agency on Aging and Disabilities of Southwest Washington and the Cathlamet Woman’s Club will be sponsoring the second annual Cathlamet Senior Prom at the Hope Center. Attendees will be serenaded by the musical talents of Cedar Mora, whose melodies will fill the room as dancers sway to the euphony of his notes. Beverages and light refreshments will be served as guests mingle and connect over the cheerful atmosphere. In-house photographer Ken Jayne will be t...
In an age of information, community-based organizations are still often the bewildered keepers of best-kept secrets. Spend any amount of time around a passionate person working for a nonprofit, and you will inevitably hear a baffled “I can’t believe more people don’t know about this program.” It’s a problem that’s magnified in rural communities, where because of physical logistics, headquarter-directed focus, and lack of funding, assistance can sometimes reach rural folks much later, making them feel left out and forgotten. People like Teresa...
GRAY BEGINNINGS. While some folks are missing the morning sunshine and hot weather, I am enjoying the cloudy skies and cooler temperatures that have opted to show up. Far more comfortable when one is outside having to do all that yard work that is never-ending. However, that yard work is best done in the early mornings, as the sun often peeks out later on. It got quite warm and muggy despite the thermometer reading in the so-called moderate zone. Once that humidity kicks in, it’s miserable. The only spoiler alert I see is that we have a 35 p...
The Minntah Quartet with Special Guest Jimmy Herrod will perform at Jazz on the River, presented by Little Island Creamery and the Astoria Jazz Festival, on Sunday Sept. 1, from 2-4 p.m. Dinner will be prepared by Surf 2 Soul. Tickets are $95 and include the show, dinner and one drinkTickets are available through Eventbrite (search for Little Island Creamery) The Minntah Quartet, formed by the young, award-winning singer Minntah Haefker has been gathering steam on the local northwest music...
Some years ago, during efforts to maintain the Deep River cemetery and push back the encroaching forest flora, a small grave stone was discovered outside of the fenced burial ground at the edge of the woods. The top of the gravestone was adorned with a sculpture of a lamb laying down signifying the grave of a lamb of God. While years of exposure had dulled the once crisp engraved lettering, it could still be seen the grave stone was for a child named Ihannelma Maunula who was born in 1890 and...
The Town of Cathlamet and the Wahkiakum County Public Utility District are contemplating consolidating the town's sewer and water systems under the PUD, a proposal that has left people with questions and concerns about the rates they would pay-and what the loss of revenue could mean for Cathlamet. At a meeting on Tuesday, the two entities discussed a draft study that looked at a possible consolidation. Residents and town leaders expressed a range of emotions, from dread over the possibility of r...
On the evening of July 25, the Wahkiakum County Planning Commission held a public meeting to discuss a project that strives to reduce local communities’ vulnerability to flooding. The draft under consideration is an updated version of the 2005 Wahkiakum County Comprehensive Flood Hazard Management Plan. Roughly 8 percent of Wahkiakum County’s population lives in floodplains and during the flooding season of October to April, those community members and their homes are at risk. The flood management plan estimates that flooding “impacts residenti...
The Cathlamet Wooden & Classic Boat Show is set for this weekend at the Elochoman Marina in Cathlamet. This year’s festival is shaping up to be a great time with plenty of classic boats for all to enjoy. We are welcoming all classic craft including those of various construction materials. Also wanted are boats of all modes of propulsion and function, be it boats used for work, pleasure or recreation. Notable boats from past shows have included a vintage Columbia River sailing gillnetter, a 1...
STILL SUNNY. Well, if you're a sun and heat lover, I guess you love this weather. The forecast looks warm and sunny too, so I hope you're getting out and enjoying it. I’m one of the people who hide from the sun so I love the morning clouds and the cooler weather after the sun goes down behind our hill. With all the dryness comes extreme fire danger, which is such an easy tragedy to avoid. So please don't be one of "those people" who think they can light campfires and wind up causing massive wildfires in our parks. Please be extremely c...
The summer reading program concluded last week with an 80th Birthday party for Smokey Bear attended by more than forty community members. The Collaborative Summer Reading program was supported by the generous donation of time by several short-term volunteers including community elders, teens, and parents. The library is so grateful for the time and talents our many volunteer staff members, past and present, bring to our community as they serve. The library could not function without you. The lib...
The Cathlamet Pioneer Center invites you to enjoy a Live Themed Music Show followed by Open Mic on Saturdays from August 10 to October 19th at 4 p.m. Donations are encouraged to support our historic church. Leah and Mel will perform a new theme every Saturday, including music from the ‘60s and ‘70s, Broadway hits, movie themes, and more. Leah and Mel are a professional music duo. Their sound is always the crowd-pleasing melodies of Leah Stonum, pianist and vocalist, and Mel Drybread, bas...
Westend residents headed to the Wahkiakum County Fair next Thursday might consider stopping by Johnson Park for a resource fair sponsored by Wahkiakum County Health and Human Services (WCHHS). The Cowlitz Family Health Center’s new mobile unit will be there, and visitors are welcome to hop on for a blood pressure check or get triaged for more concerning issues. Want to learn how to save money while improving the energy efficiency around your home? Come in to speak to someone from the Wahkiakum PUD about rebates. Representatives from WCHHS a...
Local nonprofit Wahkiakum Animal Advocates Group (WAAG) has a lot to celebrate, or wag about right now. Five years ago, the group recognized a desperate need for animal advocacy in Wahkiakum County. Founded in 2019, three ladies with big service hearts and lovers of fur babies came together to answer the call for helping four legged Wahkiakum residents. It began as a dire need to maintain the feral cat population, which was out of control with no hope in sight in meeting the needs of stray,...
A new wave of infection among wild birds and commercial poultry is spreading across the U.S. Known as “Avian Influenza A” or “bird flu H5N1” or “bird flu,” the virus began infecting wild birds in the 1990s and has made its way around the world. According to Yale Medicine, sporadic outbreaks of the bird flu have been seen worldwide over the decades and have primarily been exclusive to birds and poultry. The virus that is currently affecting the U.S. and other countries is a variant of H5N1 and is referred to as Highly Pathogenic Avian Influ...
Are you a chili connoisseur? Is your chili the "talk of the town" at gatherings? The Wahkiakum County Fair's 2nd annual Chili Cookoff requires two Chili Judges and currently has one Judge position unfilled. We are looking to the community to provide that chili expert. Although the position does not pay, you will be tasting the best chili Wahkiakum has to offer, either with heat or no heat, wild game, sweet, or any type of chili folks bring forth. To be a Wahkiakum Chili Judge, please forward your contact info to willson.rosalinde@gmail.com. If...
Calling all kindergartners starting school in August 2024. As a sign that the school year is quickly approaching, school supply sales and back to school events are already showing up in local media. As Julius A. Wendt Elementary prepares for a new school year, parents are asked to please come in as soon as possible if they have a potential kindergartener that has not yet been registered. A student is eligible to start kindergarten if they are five by August 31, 2024. Currently, the school district has 18 kindergartners enrolled. That means...
Greetings from the fair office! Wow, it's hard to believe August is already here. With that said, the animal entry due date has come and gone and it looks like we will have a lot of animals for the fair this year. If anyone wants to be a vendor this year, there are still a few vendor spots left; just call the office and I will get back to you ASAP. If you have called for a spot and have not returned the contracts, please let me know that you are planning on coming as I am going to start setting up spots by the end of next week. Entries to the f...
On the evening of Monday July 22, Wahkiakum West Communications held their premiere of Columbia Coast TV (CCTV) at the Neptune Theater in Long Beach. It was dubbed an “Orange Carpet” event as a tongue-in-cheek comparison to the “Red Carpet” premieres of Hollywood fame. Attendees were treated to an entertaining and informative ninety minutes of videos produced over the past two years highlighting numerous Pacific County businesses. Three individuals, actor and model Mark Justice, profess...
The Minnesota based Finnish brass septet "Ameriikan Poijat" (Boys of America) celebrates its 35th anniversary and has planned to continue to observe this landmark with a concert tour to the West Coast. They have been presenting music in concerts, at ethnic festivals, in regional tours, and at music conferences, and recreating authentic social dance music, along with concert repertoire, from a bygone era. “Poijat” was formed in Northfield, Minnesota, and made its first concert tour to a Fin...
DAMP BEGINNING. Well, as this week began on Sunday, July 28, it was a tadbit wet out here in West Valley. It was a bit surprising as we hadn't expected rain until Monday. I understand things were drier to the east of us and so some didn't get as much wetness as we did and some didn't get any. Go figure. Anyway, it was nice to have a little moisture due to the fire danger and keeping the springs flowing. Every little bit helps, but it's not so great if you are trying to still get your hay in. Hopefully, you weren't dealing with that situation....