News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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New air-quality monitors are working in the Grand Coulee Dam area with results accessible by anyone online, thanks to an initiative of the Grand Coulee Dam Rotary Club. Using sensors purchased from PurpleAir, the club has so far put up one sensor, which complements another that member Bob Valen bought for his own home last winter. At least one more is planned for the area. Valen, who writes The Star's monthly weather column, found several years ago that the state's Dept. of Ecology air quality...
The evac levels for the Grass Valley Fire were set to level 1 Monday night, just as a community meeting at Lake Roosevelt High School was about to start (more on that in tomorrow's paper). Level 1 means we need to be aware of the possible danger, but there is no imminent threat. Weather today is predicted to be sunny and very hot, with very low humidity in the afternoon and winds up to 4-5 miles per hour. The National Weather Service has issued an air quality alert covering 13 counties in... Full story
GRAND COULEE 8-11-18 — A fire that started about noon near the Sims Corner Junction on highway 17 has closed highway 174 and all residents on both sides of 174 from Road P east to Grand Coulee are urged to leave immediately. Douglas County Sheriff Chief Criminal Deputy Steve Grossclose said at 6:10 p.m. that the fire is currently past Road Y NE and the Barker Canyon Road on both side of SR-174 and headed northeast driven by strong winds. Evacuations have been ordered along both side of 174 a... Full story
It's 9:30 Saturday morning, and if you don't absolutely have to go outside in the Grand Coulee area right now, you should wait. Smoke is currently making the air "very unhealthy" to breath. Local air quality monitors are reading in the 270-300 range, which is at the upper end of the "very unhealthy" range. Ad advisory issued by the Grant County Health District this week offered this advice about that kind of air: "Everyone should stay indoors, do only light activities, and keep windows closed... Full story
Charlie Joseph tags out Lee Williams as he reaches back for third base Wednesday night at North Dam Park as Joseph's Electric City Bar and Grill team plays the Living Legends in rec league play. - Scott Hunter photo...
Dawn Lovelace had none of the risk factors for breast cancer. She got it anyway. “I’m a woman … that’s my risk factor,” she said in a recent interview. The nurse and midwife, who basically founded the obstetrics program at Coulee Medical Center 23 years ago, took her own medical advice and went in to CMC for a screening mammogram in January of 2017. “Unreality,” she said of the news. “The sinking in was very hard.” By the following September, Lovelace had had four surgeries. “I’m fine. I’m cancer free,” she said in July. She decided to “emb...
Agencies that control most of the public lands in the region have issued restrictions on the use of fire. “Fire restrictions on lands administered by the Bureau of Reclamation have been modified to prohibit the building, maintaining, attending or using a fire of any type, including charcoal briquette fires,” a press release from the Bureau of Land Management states. The BLM has an agreement with the USBR to operate on their lands for fire management purposes. “An exemption is made for liquefied and bottled gas stoves and heaters, provi...
The Colville Confederated Tribes have proposed a release of salmon above Chief Joseph Dam and Grand Coulee Dam to return the once-native species to waters from which they’ve been absent since the construction of those giant barriers to their migration. The proposal is to release thousands of adult salmon and tens of thousands of juvenile salmon above the two dams in the Columbia River, as well as its tributaries. “There is a spiritual connection between salmon and Native Americans in the Pacific Northwest that is celebrated in many cer...
A capital improvements levy to support the Grand Coulee Dam School District appears to have passed in Tuesday’s election with more than 55 percent of the vote. The levy will enable safety, technology and facilities improvements in the district and then let it pay for some items that otherwise would have come from its general fund as the transition is made to the new system of financing basic education in the state. In other contested primary elections, 4th District incumbent Republican Congressman Dan Newhouse led Democrat Christine Brown 6...
Local Rotarian Roy Hamilton accepts a "Changemaker" award from Rotary District 5060 Governor Sherry Chamberlain Wednesday at the club's meeting at Siam Palace for his outstanding and continual contributions to Rotary efforts and causes, including a recent gift in the name of his late wife, Donna Hamilton, toward eliminating polio. Hamilton took the opportunity to remind the club that donations toward that cause right now at www.endpolio.org are matched twice by the Bill and Melinda Gates...
Grand Coulee Mayor Paul Townsend welcomes Nicolaus D. Johnson as the city's newest patrolman after swearing him in Tuesday. Coming from Yakima, Johnson was recruited laterally, meaning he's already fully qualified to serve without the city having to send him to state academy training. That's important, Townsend noted, because he can immediately take part in the city's contract supporting the Bureau of Reclamation. The city now has eight officers, Townsend said. - Scott Hunter...
Turn your eyes to the sky on Aug. 13, when the Perseid meteor shower will illuminate the darkness, all the darker due to a new moon, as the National Park Service Sky Rangers give guided tours of the heavens on August 10-11. On Aug. 10, from 8:30 to 11:30 p.m., rangers will be at the Crescent Bay area, where the public is welcome to join and look at planets, constellations, and more through their telescope. “We have everything you need to look up, but you are welcome to bring your own telescopes, spotting scopes, or binoculars plus bug spray, a...
Citizens for Quality Education would like to thank those who voted for the Grand Coulee School District Levy and also say a thank-you to those who put signs up in their yards. Thank you to the businesses that supported the levy and a “shout out” to the people who wrote letters in The Star. With your encouragement and involvement in our classrooms, the school and teachers can help our kids to succeed and become valuable citizens in the community. Yard signs can be taken to the Farmer’s Market at North Dam Park in Grand Coulee (Wednesdays 4-7p....
You know these words, but how often do you stop to think about them? “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity…” They belong, of course, to the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution. That remarkable document is not just the blueprint for our political system. Its Preamble is also a profoundly aspirational call to arms. Because when you read...
In past columns I’ve talked about the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO), or as some call it, the Southern Oscillation. Let me briefly review what this thing does. There are two ocean temperature and wind actions that occur down along the Tropical Pacific Equator that can, and do, affect global climate. These fluctuating ocean wind and temperature events also play a role in our winters here in the Pacific and Inland Northwest. One is referred to as El Niño (the child, Spanish) and the oth...
At a recent conference in Kennewick, Wash., two local stars from our school district were honored with high awards. I had the honor and privilege of being on hand when these two powerful superstars in education received their hardware from the elite in the Public School Employees Annual Conference. Our school was definitely well represented, and our school has been put on the map by these two outstanding classified employees. Aaron Derr received the President’s Award for his hard work and d...
Sometimes sports heroes come from unlikely places. Take the case of Vernon Law, right-handed pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Vernon came from Meridian, Idaho, a few clicks out of Boise, and midway between Boise and Nampa. Law won two games during the 1960 World Series as Pittsburgh turned away the New York Yankees in a seven-game series. A tall, lanky kid at the time, Law threw from the right, and distinguished himself over a long career, interrupted by three years in the military. That World Series year, Law ended with a 20-9 win-loss...
The Classes of 1958, 1959, and 1960 are celebrating their years together at Grand Coulee High School with a reunion dinner at the Senior Center, 203 Main Street in Grand Coulee, on Friday, August 10, 2018. The meal will be served promptly at 5:00 p.m., and the cost is $10 per person. Local alumni are asked to bring a pie to be served for dessert. Anyone in town early is encouraged to come spend the afternoon visiting at the Center with other early birds. The Senior Thrift Store will close at noon that day in order to allow the volunteers to...
No Chamber This Week The Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce will not meet for the rest of August. Meetings will resume in September. American Legion to Meet The American Legion Post 157 next meeting will be at 6:30 p.m., Tuesday, August 14 at the Lutheran Church in Grand Coulee. Wenatchee Valley Erratics Chapter of Ice Age Floods to Meet Wenatchee Valley Erratics Chapter of the Ice Age Floods Institute will meet at 7:00 p.m., Tuesday, August 14 at the Wenatchee Valley Museum, 127 South Mission, Wenatchee. The program is free and open to...
(Keller – 8/1/18) Keller Valley Highriders 4-H Club hosted a 4-H Small Animal Clinic Wednesday, August 1, 2018, at the Keller Community Center. Youth and families came together to learn how to care for chickens and rabbits and to prepare their small animal 4-H projects for exhibition at the Ferry County Fair. A variety of topics were covered during this educational workshop. Storey Jackson, 4-H Leader, and Linda McLean, Colville Reservation WSU Extension Director, taught about Educational P...
Tolanna and Billy Drywater, of Keller, Washington, are proud to announce the birth of their daughter, Jae Byrd Drywater, born Wednesday, July 25, 2018, at Coulee Medical Center in Grand Coulee, Washington. She weighed 8 lbs., 7 oz., and was 20 inches in length at birth. Siblings include James, Johnny, Sunnie, Cambria, Marshall and Wyatt. Maternal grandparents are Clarita Vargas, of Nespelem, Washington, and Robert Underwood, of Taholah, Washington. Paternal grandparents are Tina and Val Drywater and Anita Hulbutta, of Oklaho... Full story
Betty and Uriah Connors, of Coulee Dam, Washington, are proud to announce the birth of their son, Beauregard Benjamin Connors, born Tuesday, July 31, 2018, at Coulee Medical Center in Grand Coulee, Washington. He weighed 8 lbs., 6 oz., and was 21.25 inches in length at birth. Siblings include Katrina 10, Amy 7, Eva 5 and Donna 2. Maternal grandparents are Kori Thornton and Larry Thornton, both of Elmer City. Paternal grandparents are Edith Jacobs and Robert Connors.... Full story
Local Lake Roosevelt employees were honored this past weekend in Kennewick in a ceremony. Karrie Utz was honored as Public School Employees Education Support Professional of the Year, and Aaron Derr won the President's Leadership award. Chosen out of 30,000 statewide PSE employees, Utz found out about the award at a surprise assembly held on May 29 at Lake Roosevelt. A six-minute video about Utz winning the award is available on the Public School Employees of Washington's Facebook page, and...
Four Lake Roosevelt wrestlers competed on Team Washington, which finished second at the U.S. Marine Corps Cadet and Junior Nationals wrestling tournament held in Fargo, North Dakota, July 12-20. Colton Jackson wrestled in the 106-pound weight class, David Crowe wrestled at 132, Kaleb Horn wrestled at 138, and Tony Nichols at 160. Horn and Nichols were both state champions this past year in their respective weight classes, wrestling for LR. "Competing in statewide freestyle and Greco Roman...
KINDERGARTEN 3 boxes of crayons 1 good pair Fiskars scissors 12 glue sticks (no name) 1 bottle Elmer’s glue 1 package #2 Ticonderoga pencils 1 box facial tissue 4 boxes graham crackers or Ritz crackers 1 set headphones 1 package unscented baby wipes or Clorox wipes 1 backpack – with name, brought to school every day No pencil boxes Please label EVERYTHING (other than items specified) FIRST GRADE 48 #2 Ticonderoga pencils (sharpened) 2 erasers - Pink Pearl 4 boxes crayons – 24 or 48 count 6 glue sticks 1 pair scissors – Fiskars brand, blunt p... Full story
