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The people have spoken! Results are in from a Star poll on the topic of wearing masks in public during the COVID-19 pandemic, a controversial topic nationally. Last week The Star posted an online poll asking readers if they wore masks in public, and why or why not. The poll received 214 responses as of Tuesday, the most of any poll conducted by The Star in recent years. The majority, 118 (55.14%) said they do wear a mask when out in public near people; 74 (34.58%) responded that they don't; and... Full story
T-Mobile restored service to its text and voice plans across the country Monday night. CEO Mike Sievert posted the following on the company's website at 8:45 p.m., then announced at just after 10 p.m. that service was fully restored: "This is an IP traffic related issue that has created significant capacity issues in the network core throughout the day. Data services have been working throughout the day and customers have been using services like FaceTime, iMessage, Google Meet, Google Duo,... Full story
The Star has created a special digital issue of this week's special section saluting the Lake Roosevelt High graduates of 2020, one you can easily share online. Special sections are always viewable to subscribers of this site by clicking on the PDF icon on the home page toward the upper right (if you haven't tried that, you should). However, non-subscribers can't see that feature. We wanted to make this particular section viewable and shareable to all, since this year's graduates have missed... Full story
Potatoes, apples, and onions oh my! Anyone who’d like some free produce can get a box with a bag each of potatoes, apples, and onions at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Saturday, June 13, beginning at 9 a.m. The church is located at 806 Spruce Street in Coulee Dam. The giveaway was organized by the church in collaboration with Chelan Fresh, with the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce helping to get the word out over their Facebook page. Chelan Fresh takes part in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farmers to Fam... Full story
People who spend recreational time at Spring Canyon told the National Park Service their concerns over potential changes for the park. The NPS collected 83 comments on their Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area Draft Visitor Use Site Management Plan and Environmental Assessment before the comment period ended on May 30. The draft plan lists potential changes to nine sites along Lake Roosevelt, including Spring Canyon. A list of potential actions relevant to all sites along Lake Roosevelt,...
CORRECTION: This article has been amended to show the correct graduation date for Lake Roosevelt, which is June 13. Okanogan County enters Phase 2, meaning locally, among other things, that Lake Roosevelt’s modified graduation ceremony can go on as scheduled; however, reservation restrictions vary from the county’s. On June 5, Okanogan County entered Phase 2 of Washington State’s Safe Start plan for reopening businesses and activities in Washington. “While moving to Phase 2 is an important step, we still have work ahead of us to stay in Phas... Full story
Black Lives Matter demonstrations have been taking place across the nation, including in Omak, in response to the death of George Floyd, who died in Minneapolis, Minnesota May 25 from cardiopulmonary arrest resulting from an incident of police brutality. About 300 people took part in a peaceful demonstration June 4, the Okanogan County Sheriff’s Office said in a press release Monday. The demonstration started about 5 p.m. and ended about 7. Along Main Street, a “group of local business owners and other supporters, many of whom were arm...
The top federal prosecutor in Eastern Washington said June 4 that it was “great news” that Grant County was named a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) by the White House’s Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). William D. Hyslop, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington said the sheriff’s office had achieved the designation that will “bring greater information sharing and intelligence within the HIDTA network of law enforcement agencies to attack the ever-present drug problem. It will enable the County to be eli...
The Grand Coulee Dam School District board of directors on Monday: approved Superintendent Paul Turner’s new three-year contract at an annual salary of $128,392. Turner first became superintendent in 2016. decided not to allow sixth-graders to participate in sports alongside seventh- and eighth-graders. The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association recently voted to allow sixth-graders to participate in sports with seventh- and eighth-graders, but left it to individual districts to determine their own policies on the matter. decided t...
Beaches, like playgrounds, would be much safer without children. If children would not attend playground activities or beaches, no children would ever be hurt by them. Is that the kind of logic we’re dealing with here as the National Park Service seeks to “improve visitor on-water safety by removing potential hazards such as the swim docks”? Because the other course of action to improve safety at Spring Canyon would be to add staff, bring back lifeguards, upgrade (not tear out) playground equipment and, in more general terms, actually serve...
Soon I’ll be completing my sixth year as the superintendent of the Wellpinit School District. When I arrived a priority in the District was to increase the number of Native American employees. At a consultation between the District and the Spokane Tribal Council we introduced eighteen Native American classified employees that have been hired over the last six years. We’ve also increased our number of teachers who are Native American in this time span. Recently, we introduced our new secondary principal, Laina Phillips, to the Council. Lai...
From a respectable distance, we all enjoy watching an active thunderstorm and the lightning show. When it’s close, hopefully we’re practicing common sense and sheltering ourselves from what could be a deadly lightning strike. It’s spectacular stuff; lightning flashes, then we hear the crackling and boom sound that accompanies lightning. I’m sure we have all seen some really awesome storms with lightning displays that are spell binding. Most folks generally know what lightning is, I think....
This is a year that will forever be remembered, and the graduating seniors of 2020 all over the country will always remember it as being not exactly how they’d pictured it. I usually get a few chances to talk to the seniors one last time at Baccalaureate or Senior Dinner, but it is a different year. So, I will put my words of wisdom right here for all of you, but mostly them. Be adaptable. You are already learning that on the fly. You have had multiple different teachers, principals and rule c...
The First Amendment and the right to peacefully protest is a bedrock of our nation’s founding. Empowering our neighbors to speak up for what is right, take action when injustice rears its ugly head in our communities, and create a society where we can live equally and peacefully is a goal we must all strive for. The death of George Floyd is a tragedy. Any unjust or inhumane action deserves a full investigation and a response. It deserves a response by communities who recognize the inequalities facing their friends and neighbors. It deserves a...
4 MRSC ROSTERS SMALL PUBLIC WORKS, CONSULTANT, and VENDOR ROSTERS FOR PARTICIPATING WASHINGTON STATE LOCAL GOVERNMENT AGENCIES LOCATED IN EASTERN WASHINGTON The Municipal Research and Services Center of Washington (MRSC) hereby advertises on behalf of the below listed local government agencies in Washington State (local governments) in Eastern Washington (Okanogan, Chelan, Douglas, Grant, Adams, Whitman, Garfield, Asotin, Spokane, Lincoln, Ferry Stevens, and Pend Oreille counties), including - but not limited to - cities (Title 35 RCW and... Full story
EPHRATA – Grant PUD, in conjunction with Columbia Basin Foundation, has contributed to eight food banks throughout Grant County this spring with Pay-It-Forward grants totaling $11,000. The services of these food banks are greatly needed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many in our communities are struggling to put food on the table for their family and these donations help to provide healthy meals. Food banks receiving assistance include: Coulee City, Grand Coulee, Ephrata, Mattawa, Moses Lake/Warden, Quincy, Royal City and Soap Lake. The P...
The Arbor Day Foundation has a book that helps people identify trees in a simple, step-by-step process. The book, What Tree Is That?, is available for a $5 donation to the nonprofit tree-planting organization. What Tree Is That? is a fun, easy-to-use tree identification guide that features hand-drawn botanical illustrations highlighting the distinctive characteristics of many tree species. Nature lovers and professional arborists alike have called this pocket field guide a must-have, user-friendly resource. Its beautiful, full-color... Full story
Grand Coulee Police 6/2 - An officer pulled over a Pontiac Grand Prix near Federal Avenue for having tabs that expired in 2018. The driver said he had been unable to renew the tabs because of COVID-19. The officer explained that wasn’t a problem in 2018. The man was cited for failure to renew the tabs and for driving without insurance. - A man was riding a motorcycle west on SR-174 heading towards the sunset when he turned right into the La Presa parking lot, hitting a curb, falling to the concrete, and sustaining a knee injury of some kind. T...
Grant Co. Mosquito District 2 Meeting Canceled The Grant County Mosquito District #2 regular monthly meeting set for Thursday, June 11, has been canceled due to the Coronavirus outbreak. Food Bank Hours Change The food bank will be open on the second and fourth Fridays of each month from 2 - 4 p.m. This will be in effect until the Stay Home order is lifted. This will be drive through style to maintain social distance. For those wanting to donate to the local food bank send checks to: Care & Share Food Bank, PO Box 671, Grand Coulee, WA 99133....