News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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Summer is upon us, and I did some remembering. If this were a movie we would have the wavy, blurry, flashback screen now. It was a very hot summer and I, my brother Jamie (Jeremy), and stepbrothers Eric and Howard Wilson were swimming at Coulee Playland. There used to be a little cove of water right next to the highway. Now it is filled with rocks and there is a walking path built up there, but back then it was a little swimming area. We would lie on the little beach there and from time to time...
Once again our communities must say goodbye to positive role models. As Josh and Rayne Rabe and Mr. Wilson and family prepare to leave our area, we must ask ourselves a question. Why do we constantly lose great people from our community? I see a pattern, and I think it’s one that is detrimental to our growth as a community. But let’s back up a bit. Josh has been the driving force for getting disk golf in North Dam Park, including fund raising and installation. He and Rayne have only been her...
Welcome back to the epic event called the 30-year class reunion of the class of 2013. We are back stage now at this glamorous gala of quite possibly the best class ever to graduate from LRHS. The crowd is still recovering from the awesome illusion just pulled off by Magician Justus DeWinkler and we are now getting prepared for a special honor. World renowned security specialist and founder of the Men in Black Investigative Services, Abe Batten is going to demonstrate his sharp shooting skills....
Hello, my name is Emily Williams, host of Entertainment Tonight, and we are here today at the social event of the decade. It’s Lake Roosevelt High School’s class of 2013 30-year reunion, possibly the greatest class in the history of high school graduations. You will find out why because I am outside fighting the crowd that has gathered here at this red carpet event, and, oh my, here comes the first car now. It’s a long white limo and exiting the car is Abby and Libby Williams. Look at them,...
I decided that at least once a week I would dig up a gem of a person in the Grand Coulee area and write about him or her, someone who might do pretty cool things or have an amazing heart that might go unnoticed. So here is my first installment of Gems in the Coulee. Many people in the area know John Huston. He has been around a long, long time. I mean he is old. I’m kidding. (I had to do one old joke, John; it’s out of my system now.) Some might know him as Mrs. Huston’s husband and somet...
Well, I hope you enjoyed it. Here is a recap of how the weekend went for this homegrown Colorama combative. For me, like many of the chamber members, it started months ago, but I will spare you the boring setup and jump to the steak and potatoes. Heat was the story of the weekend. I would have to say this was the hottest festival I can remember and I think it brought out the masses. I think we should schedule Mr. Sunshine to perform every year for Mother’s Day weekend. Everywhere was full w...
Sometimes you are just so proud of someone. I was Saturday, when I saw all of a local girl’s hard work and dedication come to a conclusion. Or maybe it was just the beginning. A walk against domestic violence seems like a simple thing to throw together, but it’s not. Just ask Charli. She has been working on this for months in honor of her sister. Not to mention she got into UW (Go Dawgs) and was a Gates Scholarship winner. As much as I would like it to be, this column is not about Charli and how...
Many people have come up to me over the last two weeks telling me they agree with consolidation [that the four towns should be joined]. I suspect there are many more of you out there. So let’s rally the troops and talk more about this. As a matter of fact, let’s talk about all the issues in the area. It would be a chance for the citizens of the area to voice their concerns in a public setting. Not in a council meeting or in the grocery store. It would also be a chance for incumbent mayors and...
I had a dream. In this dream Coulee Country was one. One town, in four counties. One mayor, with one council, one police department with one chief. One water company, one power company. We were one. The time has come for this column, and it will not be popular with some, but it will be with others. For years there has been a murmur out there asking the question: Why don’t we consolidate? And many, many answers have been given as to why. None of those answers have quenched the thought. To start this we must remember to think as one, for the g...
Someone recently asked me, “Why should I volunteer?” After I answered the question and had more time to let the question really soak in, I wondered why some people give their time openly and easily while others drag their feet to help out. So I reflected back on why I volunteer. I remember my father was always volunteering at the Moose Lodge, helping with the Christmas traditions they had. The Christmas party for kids of the area at the Moose Lodge was a big deal back then. I also remember my mo...
I have always been aware of good service. Like in restaurants and with good business owners that put this quality first. My family and I always return again and again to those places that provide a “customer first” rule. Also, with most of my family having been in the restaurant or service fields, we know the importance of a happy customer. And so the saga goes… State wrestling, as you already know, had its big weekend not long ago and the family made the trip for the final time with immed...
Imagine this. You come home from work late at night; you go out to the garage to feed the cats like you always do. Cats are acting kind of skittish as you move to the garage. Then you find out why, a juvenile cougar with a mouthful of porcupine quills is waiting for his meal too. That’s what local hot rodder Steve Knighten found a few weeks ago. His cats are still afraid to go to the garage. I have also heard from other locals of seeing large coyotes, packs of dogs, and cougars all in town. Hunt...
Sports has been a major part of my life as long as I can remember. My first memory of sports is playing Little League Baseball. My first team was Birds’ Auto Body. Back then, instead of a tee, your coach pitched underhand to you. Bob Riley was our coach then, and we had an undefeated season. I remember Rob Williams, Shawn Garvin, John Kelly, and Willie Moore being on the team. The hook was set and I played many more years of baseball after that. Basketball, football, volleyball and softball w...
Last week in Connecticut, our country had another major tragedy. This time a sick young man walked into an elementary school and killed kindergartners and some staff. Pure, unblemished faces of the young meeting the violence of our new society head on, in an act that is incomprehensible by most. We have not learned a lot (by the time I started writing this) about the details, but we do know that it is obvious. The staff there gave their lives protecting kids. If this had not happened, more...
Saturday morning Karrie, Nicollette and I got up and went to the Christmas Bazaar at Center School. It was a great time. We visited with friends we had not seen in months. We also purchased a few goodies and treasures we found there. I was also reminded of years ago, going to this same event. It seemed bigger then or maybe it was because I was smaller. The painted walnut tree ornaments are still there. I remember as a kid we always got one or two of those to hang on the tree. As a matter of fact...
In 1621 the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag Indians celebrated a successful first harvest. The meal consisted of deer, corn, shellfish, and roasted meats. They played games, sang and danced. In 1846 a columnist campaigned for a national holiday; she incorrectly labeled the first feast of 1621 as a Thanksgiving meal. It wasn’t till 1863 that Abraham Lincoln declared that there be two national Thanksgivings, one in August and one in November. We were to give thanks for general blessings in our l...
OK, I know some of you don’t want to hear this but Christmas is right around the corner. So time to start on the Christmas Lists and pull out the decorations. Start checking the lights now, replace the bulbs early this year. Make your holiday plans: Are we staying home or are we loading up and headed to Grandma’s house in (insert town here)? Is this the year to get the cards out on time, or do we wait and send them Christmas Eve? House cleaning, and more house cleaning, rearrange the rooms so th...
Well, yesterday our boy became a man. His 18th birthday and an adult by society standards. Although he has acted and been pretty responsible during the last few years, I can remember when I came into his life. He wasn’t quite a year old yet, and he was chubby cheeked and had more hair than I. Happy is the word I would use; he was a happy baby, even though he was sick a lot. Severe asthma when your a lil’ guy and trying to see the world isn’t fun. I think the first time I knew I loved this kid w...
Fall is here! It is my favorite time of year. Football, hunting, cool weather, fishing, and green turning to amber and orange. But there are some changes this year other than the leaves. Local hunting will be a little different this year with all the freshly charred ground. The bow hunters have already said that finding the deer is a little more challenging. Everyone has their favorite piece of local ground and about everyone said that it is a black mess out there. So making plans for opening...
This last weekend I got to go to Airways Heights and watch my nephew Zack score two touchdowns running like Russel Wilson and throw another TD through the air. So proud. He looked calm, cool and collected as he performed like a superstar; not only on offense but on defense as well. It made me think of the fundamentals that we teach our kids at an early age. Not just the art of winning and doing it with style (no touchdown dances here,) just a flick of the football to the ref and high fives on...
Two years ago, we hosted an exchange student from China. His name was Charles and we loved him dearly as did many of you that got to know him. How we got him into our home was a very quick and life changing moment. It was in the middle of my sickness in January, and Karrie called me from the high school. She filled me in that this student was about to head home because he no longer had a place to live here in the Coulee. In fact, he was checking out from school and was saying his goodbyes....
The closing ceremonies of the London Olympics were Sunday night, and I can hardly imagine that we have to wait four more years to watch again. I love the Olympics, both winter and summer. First off, I like just about all sports. Second, there is just something so patriotic about watching an athlete with a gold medal around his or her neck, mouthing the words to our national anthem as it plays, watching Old Glory climb the flag pole above two other flags — and we watched that a lot this year. T...