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Articles from the February 24, 2016 edition


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  • Cities meet on more cooperation

    Roger S Lucas|Feb 24, 2016

    A look at possible consolidation of services between Grand Coulee and Coulee Dam may end up as just finding ways to raise the level of cooperation. Mayors Paul Townsend of Grand Coulee, Greg Wilder of Coulee Dam, two councilmen from each municipality, and their fire chiefs and police chiefs met Monday in Coulee Dam to explore ways of combining services such as ambulance and fire departments. “We are really looking at raising the level of cooperation,” Grand Coulee Mayor Paul Townsend said Tuesday. “There’s too many counties involved to move fo...

  • Follow-up investigation leads to additional search warrant in Grand Coulee

    press release, Grant County Sheriffs Office|Feb 24, 2016

    Investigators following up on several leads into a set of Grand Coulee area crimes served a search warrant this morning (Feb. 25, 2016) at a Grand Coulee home. Grant County’s Interagency Narcotics Enforcement Team (INET), the U.S. Secret Service, Grand Coulee Police and Grant County sheriff’s deputies served a search warrant at 419 A Street in Grand Coulee. Investigators developed information that Melvin Toulou, age 43, had been storing stolen property at the home. Toulou was arrested Feb. 12 for possession of stolen property. Inv...

  • Work on gates will fix the leak on dam and allow spills

    Roger S Lucas|Feb 24, 2016

    Those who were disappointed in the Laser Light Show last season because the Bureau of Reclamation couldn't spill water as a backdrop for the lasers will be happy to hear that things will be fixed in time for the show this spring. The bureau has normally allowed a shallow spill across the face of the dam during the light show, adding a whitewater backdrop for the colored lasers. When a seal leak on one gate began leaking last year, it meant the lasers had only the dark concrete to dance on. Work...

  • Bowling alley broken into again

    Roger S Lucas|Feb 24, 2016

    When he arrived at work about noon last Friday, the new owner of Riverview Lanes interrupted someone who had broken into the bowling alley. Scott Elmore told police that when he entered the bowling alley he saw light coming from the bowling machine area and when he started to investigate he saw the shadow of a person making a run for the door. Elmore said he raced to the door but by the time he got there the person had vanished. It was the third time since Oct. 19, 2015, that the bowling alley had been burglarized. Missing were Elmore’s portabl...

  • Home burglarized three times

    Roger S Lucas|Feb 24, 2016

    It isn’t often that one home would be burglarized three times within a couple of weeks, but that just happened in Grand Coulee. Many items stolen from a burglary at the William “Moe” Evans home in Grand Coulee were recovered Feb. 12, when a county interagency task force and the U.S. Secret Service raided a house on Burdin Boulevard, police officials stated. Police Chief John Tufts said several items taken from the Evans home, which included a fireplace and dishes, were recovered Feb. 12, when officers raided the Melvin Toulou, Jr., home in Gran...

  • Rebuilding committee looking for donations

    Roger S Lucas|Feb 24, 2016

    The Nez Perce Longhouse Rebuilding Committee is asking for help in its efforts to rebuild their tribal longhouse that was lost to an electrical fire three years ago. Secretary Gloria Simpson said last week that an¥yone can h¥åelp with funding by sending a check or money order to the Chief Joseph Longhouse Building Fund, in care of Albert Andrews-Redstar, 1105 Tilmus Street, Coulee Dam, Wash., 99116. Simpson said the group is using a variety of methods to develop funding for the new longhouse, including grants and the soliciting of funds from th...

  • Pitching in for the park

    Feb 24, 2016

    Jason Jackson levels Electric City's new park area with his bulldozer, getting the space ready for the first stage of development. The park area, behind the fire department, was purchased last year from the Banks Lake Bible Church for $25,000. Jackson is doing the work as a contribution to the city. - Roger S. Lucas photo...

  • Newsbriefs

    Feb 24, 2016

    Treatment plant info meeting tonight A public meeting is scheduled tonight, Wednesday, Feb. 24, at Coulee Dam town hall at 5:30 p.m., to discuss funding for the proposed new wastewater treatment plant. The meeting will provide information on the funding process with USDA Rural Development. Ambulance runs reported The Grand Coulee volunteer ambulance crew made 43 calls during the month of January, a record, Fire Chief Rick Paris told council members last Tuesday night. Fifteen of the calls were in Coulee Dam, 35 percent of the total. The Grand...

  • Big subject presented

    Feb 24, 2016

    Members of the Medical Lake chapter of Future Farmers of America address the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce Thursday, presenting arguments on both sides of a controversial proposal to re-introduce salmon above Grand Coulee Dam. The team has honed their presentation to a required 15 minutes for an upcoming state competition, a challenge given the complexity of the topic. They asked for feedback from chamber members, who offered facts about the dam and advice on presentation skills. -...

  • Awards on agenda for chamber luncheon

    Roger S Lucas|Feb 24, 2016

    Chamber of commerce members will award the “Achiever of the Year” and the “Business of the Year” at a special noon luncheon March 10, scheduled at the Moose Lodge. The awards will be decided from a vote of Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce members. A special ballot went out to chamber membership earlier this week. Five people have been nominated for “Achiever of the Year.” They are Debbie Bigelow, Birdie Hensley, Kerry Higgins, Scott Hunter and Jerry Sands. Those nominated for “Business of the Year” are Coulee Dam Federal Credit...

  • Gun class to be offered

    Roger S Lucas|Feb 24, 2016

    The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, in conjunction with the North Central Washington Gun Club, will host a handgun safety course on Saturday, March 26, from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., at the NCW gun range in East Wenatchee. The class is open to those 21 and older who have no restrictions on gun ownership. Sheriff Harvey Gjesdal stated that there has been a spike in the number of people applying to purchase handguns and to obtain concealed pistol licenses. The goal, Gjesdal noted, is to reduce the likelihood of injury or death by improper h...

  • Be watchful for you and your neighbors

    Scott Hunter|Feb 24, 2016

    Not too long ago, a couple moving into the area told us they felt safe moving here after reading Coulee Cops in The Star for several weeks. They concluded that if that’s as bad as it gets, this must be a very safe community. And they’re still right to an extent. Coulee Dam was recently noted as “one of the safest cities in the U.S.” by Consumer Affairs, ranking number two in the state, right behind Odessa because some algorithm noticed a 100-percent drop in the burglary rate. That’s nice, but feels pretty far off the mark this week. With mult...

  • Re: Delay in court marshal of B. Bergdahl (deserter and traitor) in American Legion Magazine Feb. 2016

    Bill Miller|Feb 24, 2016

    I have read where this man left his post of duty (in combat) not once, but twice. To leave a duty post, you had to report to the duty officer who could only permit you to leave your post if qualified duty relief was available and for permitted time. Bergdahl followed no such procedure. Bergdahl should be court-martialed, given a dishonorable discharge with no benefits and sentenced to 30 years hard labor with no time shortened. He should be declared a “deserter/traitor” and jailed immediately. Not doing so dishonors all who have honorably ser...

  • Chicken overload and other things from the weekend

    Jesse Utz|Feb 24, 2016

    There comes a time in every man’s life when enough is enough. I reached my tipping point with chicken this weekend. Let me explain before you start telling me about “how good chicken is” for me. My lovely wife, (I know, many a husband’s sad stories begins this way) has a heart for kids. She enjoys cooking for people too. Plus, the position she holds in the school right now, on every early-out Monday they provide a meal in a café-type setting. You may have read about that on these very pages not long ago. So this Monday, chicken soup was on t...

  • It's not just Flint where kids are in danger

    Ronald White and Molly Rauch|Feb 24, 2016

    Brown, foul-smelling water spewing out of faucets. Children poisoned by lead and other toxic metals. Families with aching joints, brittle bones, and shocking hair loss. These troubling images and more have been flowing out of Flint, Michigan, since late last year as the scope and impact of the city’s austerity-driven water contamination crisis has become increasingly clear. But pollution, contamination, and toxic chemicals that harm children’s health aren’t confined to Flint. America’s children are being exposed to a host of toxic chemica...

  • Eighty-two years ago

    Feb 24, 2016

    Site of Grand Coulee Dam looking upstream. Excavation Contractor Ryan's camp in the foreground. – January 4, 1934...

  • Kathleen Skordas

    Feb 24, 2016

    On the morning of Wednesday, February 17, 2016, Kathy passed away after a courageous five-year battle with cancer. She spent her last days in the comfort and care of her son, Richard, and his wife, Meg, of Liberty Lake, Washington. She was 72 years old at the time of her passing. Kathy was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, on February 10, 1944. She was the only child of LaVerne C. Becker. Kathy met the love of her life, Tom, in the fall of 1960. They were married in Salt Lake City on December 5...

  • Ruth Margaret Loe

    Feb 24, 2016

    Ruth Margaret (Rise) Loe, daughter of Olaf and Eva (Anderson) Rise, was born August 13, 1935, on the family farm near Molson, Washington. She was the third daughter of four. Ruth died unexpectedly on Friday, February 12, 2016 in Post Falls, Idaho. Ruth attended school in Molson for 12 years and was very involved in school activities, which included sports, plays, cheerleading, and class offices. Ruth was the Okanogan County Badminton Champ and Valedictorian of the class of 1953. After graduation...

  • Connie Jean Harris

    Feb 24, 2016

    Connie Jean Bauer was born on February 14, 1950, in Spokane, Washington, to Winnie Mae Anderson and Dale Horace Bauer ,both of Wilbur, Washington. She entered into heaven on Thursday, February 18, 2016, at the age of 66. As a young child, she grew up on the Rettkowski ranch where her father was a ranch hand. This is where she acquired her love for all kinds of animals. Around the age of six, she and her family moved into town, where she attended Wilbur School from kindergarten to 12th grade....

  • Elroy Gene Novotney

    Feb 24, 2016

    A memorial will be held for Elroy Gene Novotney on Saturday, February 27, 2016, at 1 p.m., at the Republic Elementary School. Mr. Novotney passed away Thursday, February 4, 2016. A complete obituary was in last week’s Star....

  • Signs of spring

    Feb 24, 2016

    Dakota Green, 8, shows the buttercup confirming the coming of spring. He and his father, Kerry Green Jr., found the buttercups near Keller Ferry on Feb. 14. - Submitted photo...

  • "Messiah in the Passover" dinner March 5 at Banks Lake Bible Church

    Feb 24, 2016

    Throughout the Bible, God has established certain days and events to remind His people of His faithfulness. For Christians today, those include communion and water baptism. Now we know that these observances do not save us, but they remind us of God’s grace and also in some way provide an illustration of the salvation that God offers through His Son, our Savior, Jesus. To the believers of the Old Testament there was no more significant observation than the Passover; and though we are not specifically instructed to observe the Passover in this a...

  • What's cookin' at the Seniors

    Feb 24, 2016

    Wed., Feb. 24 – Dinner Baked Chicken, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Green Beans, Mixed Fruit, Parfait Thurs., Feb. 25 – Dinner Tuna Casserole, Green Vegetable, Mixed Salad, Sliced Fruit, Cook’s Choice Dessert Fri., Feb. 26 – Breakfast Biscuit and Sausage Gravy, Eggs, Fruit Bowl, Orange Juice Mon., Feb. 29 – Breakfast Scrambled Mess (Meat, Eggs, Onions), Hashbrowns, Fruit Bowl, Orange Juice Tues., March 1 – Dinner Pork Steaks with Stuffing, Potatoes and Gravy, Corn, Applesauce, Cake/Cupcakes...

  • Meetings and Notices

    Feb 24, 2016

    Chamber to Meet The Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce will meet at noon this Thursday, February 25, at the Siam Palace in Grand Coulee. Okanogan County School Retirees Assoc. to Meet The Okanogan County School Retirees Association will meet at 11 a.m., Friday, Feb. 26, for a no-host luncheon meeting at Koala Street Grill in Omak. Michael Billings, Mid Valley Hospital Administrator, will speak. For more information, call Jeie Hedington 509-422-2954. Grant County Fire Dist. 14 to Meet Grant County Fire District 14 will hold its regular mo...

  • Jacob Smith is a state wrestling champion

    John R McNeil II|Feb 24, 2016

    Lake Roosevelt senior Jacob Smith led his three Raider wrestling teammates at the state tournament last weekend, coming home with the gold medal at 113 pounds and a place in the books as a state champion. And freshman Tony Nichols took the bronze in the 132-pound bracket. It was Smith's second medal from the big Mat Classic in Tacoma; last year he placed fourth at 113. En route to the championship, Smith pinned Joe Thompson of Illwaco and Gerardo Rios-Lopez of Kittitas. Then in the finals match...

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