Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 27
Prospects of a study in 2016 on the possibility of consolidating the cities of Grand Coulee and Electric City are unlikely. Hopes dimmed last week when $10,000 towards the study became a victim of Grand Coulee’s budget crunching. The hope had been that Electric City would follow through with $15,000 toward the study and that Grand Coulee would come up with another $15,000. Electric City’s $15,000 didn’t make it into its 2016 budget, and the $15,000 for Grand Coulee, which had already been whittled down to $10,000, didn’t make it either.... Full story
Children of Lake Roosevelt Elementary school perform in concert at the high school gym Thursday afternoon. The gym was full of parents and relatives, listening and taking photos of their kids singing and playing. - Scott Hunter photo... Full story
Can tribal courts hear tort cases against non-Indians? This case worked its way up to the Supreme Court, which heard it this month. Here is an interesting "Amicus" podcast on the subject, with background and an interview with a lawyer on the yes side.... Full story
The future of the Coulee Dam Community Presbyterian Church will likely be decided sometime in 2016. The decision is up to a Presbytery Commission, made up of a handful of people that includes former Pastor Muriel Brown of Ellensburg, who chairs the group, and local elder Jerry Kennedy. Kennedy said Friday that the commission takes over responsibility for the church Jan. 1. The local congregation plans a Christmas Eve service and another service Dec. 27. After that, the local congregation will be disbanded. Kennedy said the heat will remain on... Full story
The Star started a tradition 29 years ago, publishing seasonal greeting cards drawn by local third graders. Readers are again in for a treat this week with Christmas cards drawn by three third-grade classes at Lake Roosevelt Elementary. This year, 63 third graders submitted their own kind of special greetings to the community through the hand-drawn cards. The special pages sometimes end up in family scrapbooks, bringing smiles to parents and family members as they sort through events that are... Full story
The trees owned by the town of Coulee Dam are worth an estimated $3 million dollars, a recent inventory report funded by the Washington Department of Natural Resources states. The study, produced by Community Forestry Consultants, was produced under DNR’s Urban and Community Forestry Program. Most, but not all, of the town’s trees were counted and mapped using special software and the Geographic Information System. The type of tree, its condition, size and estimated value were signed to each of 680 trees at 296 planting sites. Trees owned pri... Full story
A wildlife team from the Colville Tribes' Fish and Wildlife (CTFW) Department will head to Nevada this coming January to assist with capture efforts of up to 100 pronghorn antelope. The animals will be released near the Tumwater Basin and White Lakes Mitigation Areas, on the southwest corner of the Colville Indian Reservation. "Our staff will work with the Nevada Department of Wildlife," said Richard Whitney, wildlife manager. "We will utilize an aerial capture company from Nevada to round up... Full story
The Bureau of Reclamation has selected its site for a new fire station. Bureau of Reclamation officials announced Friday that it will build its 21,500-square-foot fire station near the intersection of B Street and Highway 155. The site, which was the bureau’s preferred site, is on land already owned by the federal government and is outside the west administration/industrial gate area. A second site considered, managed by the National Park Service, was in the Crescent Bay area. The announcement came after the bureau had completed its e... Full story
The Star office will be closed for the holiday at noon Dec. 24 and reopen on Monday, Dec. 28.... Full story
The run up to the holidays is always a time during which it is challenging to fit everything in the schedule. And at a weekly newspaper, the schedule is really messed up during the season when regular meetings are canceled or moved, new events pop up and a lot of issues and events deserve community attention. "Hectic" can describe it, but so can a sigh of wonder. The latter description comes to mind after many events involving children. If you have some, consider yourselves lucky, even if you... Full story
How come you do not follow the Coulee Dam council meetings anymore? When the mayor election was going on, you were reporting everything that Mr. Wilder was doing and saying and reporting on the “heated council meetings,” making Mayor Snow look bad, but now that Mr. Wilder is mayor we never hear about the meetings, which have been a little heated lately. I would hate to think that there is a bias here, Mr. Hunter. Stacy Mattson Editor’s response: As a general (but not strict) rule, we don’t write stories about meetings, but about the subject... Full story
Well before the final negotiations of the COP21 climate talks in Paris, business was already making a big difference on the ground. For the first time, superstar entrepreneurs showed up with plans to fund major initiatives. Giant companies sent CEOs to showcase their results in reducing carbon in their own operations. And entire industries, such as financial services, agriculture and manufacturing, made new commitments to address climate change. Attending the talks as a business leader, I could tell that positive pressure from the business... Full story
On Dec. 12, Montana Congressman Ryan Zinke patiently waited two hours in line with 70,000 volunteers at Arlington National Cemetery to collect wreaths and secure them to headstones. Thousands of others across our nation joined those at Arlington honoring soldiers, sailors, marines and airmen who died while serving America. In all, nearly one million wreaths were laid this year. Wreaths Across America is a privately funded charity that accepts no government money. As part of the project, truckers volunteer to haul the wreaths, and veterans and... Full story
This sculpture of an Indian on a horse. Assisted by Joe Kiehn, the sculpture was begun at 10:30 a.m., Dec. 8 and finished by 11 p.m. It was near Kiehn's Pawn Shop parking lot on Highway 174. – December 11, 1985.... Full story
Gina Jolene Vordahl, 68, died Monday morning, December 14, 2015, in her Grand Coulee, Washington home, with her husband Ross, beside her. The Grand Coulee Dam Senior Center had become an important part of Gina's life, and our family thanks them for all of their love and support. Gina was born in Spokane, Washington, on Tuesday, April 22, 1947, to Glenna Erhardt-Davis, becoming the daughter of Harold and Glenna Warfield. In October of 1962, during her sophomore year at Spokane Valley's... Full story
St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church will have a Christmas Eve service at 4 p.m., Thursday, December 24. Everyone is welcome. The church is located across the highway from Strate Funeral Home in Grand Coulee.... Full story
The Coulee Dam Community Church will be having their final worship service on Sunday, December 27, at 3:00 p.m. Everyone is welcome to join in this special event. There will be a reception immediately following the service. Please bring your memories and pictures to share.... Full story
A Coulee Dam High School (CDHS) all-class reunion will be held the weekend of Aug. 5-7, 2016, in Coulee Dam. All classmates and teachers who attended CDHS from 1935 to 1974 are invited. The last class to graduate from CDHS was the class of 1971, but the transitional Lake Roosevelt classes from 1972 to 1974 who also attended when it was CDHS are also invited, as are those classmates who attended at some point but moved away prior to graduation. The event will be held mostly at the Coulee Dam Town Hall, which has been rented for that weekend. A... Full story
Tues., Dec. 22 2-4 p.m., Care and Share Food Bank open Thurs., Dec. 24 4 p.m., Christmas Eve service, St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church 5 p.m., Service, Bethel Lutheran, Coulee City 7 p.m., Candlelight Service, Zion Lutheran 7 p.m., Candlelight Service, Coulee Dam Community Church 8 p.m., Mass, St. Henry’s Catholic Church Fri., Dec. 25 9 a.m., Christmas Mass, St. Henry’s Catholic Church Sun., Dec 27 3 p.m., final worship at Coulee Dam Community Church... Full story
The Ridge Riders are gearing up for another run at "Rodeo of the Year" honors. The Delano organization has won the award three of the past four years and has another busy schedule for 2016, President George Kohout said this week. Any honors the club receives are due to the outstanding team the organization has put together, he said. Kohout will continue in 2016 for his fifth year as president. Other officers will be Wayne Fowler, vice president; Bonnie Brakebill, treasurer; Danielle Florenzen,... Full story
Grand Coulee Police 12/15 - Someone had tried to pry the gas cap off a van parked at the Electric City Fire Hall. Police stated the damage was about $50. 12/16 - A man who has a house on Mead Avenue reported that someone had entered his house and moved things around. He said the person responsible had moved things into the house. An officer found the back door slightly opened but couldn’t find anyone inside. - A man was stopped near Pole Park because of faulty taillights. The officer ended up writing a ticket for having no insurance, and for b... Full story
Raider Basketball jumped out early and controlled the game all the way through to the end. The Bridgeport Mustangs were never in the game. Lake Roosevelt jumped out in the first quarter to a 16-4 lead. The Raiders’ offense exploded in the second quarter, scoring 27 points while holding the Mustangs to just seven. At halftime, the score was LR 43, Bridgeport 11. In the third quarter, the game slowed down, and each team scored fewer than 10 points. The score at the end of the third was LR 51, Bridgeport 13. In the fourth quarter, the Mustangs and... Full story
The Lady Raiders won with a big margin over the Bridgeport Fillies in a Dec. 16 basketball game, improving their overall win-loss record to 3-1. Lake Roosevelt took control of the game early and never let go of the lead. The final score was LR 60, Bridgeport 20. On Friday, the Lady Raiders were at home to take on the Manson Trojans, who were looking to rebound from their big loss to the Okanogan Bulldogs. The Trojans have won two games by a margin of less than five points. The Star will report details of that game, which occurred after an... Full story
The Star is accepting nominations for the annual Volunteer of the Year award. Each year, the community picks from several worthy people nominated for the honor. One person is honored. Groups are not eligible. Nominations can be made until Jan. 4, 2016. Letters of nomination should be as specific as possible about why the candidate should be honored, including contact information for the nominator and for anyone who could speak about the nomination. Send nominations either: by email to star@grandcoulee.com or by mail to Volunteer, PO Box 150,... Full story
Nespelem Elementary School got a Christmas present Thursday night when electric utility representatives presented a big check at the school's annual Christmas Program. Nespelem Valley Electric Cooperative President Ralph Rise and Manager Dan Simpson attended the event and surprised the crowd with the announcement just before children started singing. They presented a check to Superintendent Rich Stewart for $56,895.83. Rise said the funds, from the Bonneville Power Administration, were for... Full story