News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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There should be plenty to do around town with 10 events planned for 2022 in the Coulee area, including a monthly market with beer and music, but the biggest event faces multiple challenges this year. The Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce has a slew of events scheduled for the year. The Triple Fish Challenge is scheduled for April 9-10; Colorama from May 6-8; the Culpepper & Merriweather Circus on June 2; Koulee Kids Fest on June 18; the First Friday Night Market will run from June to October, the Festival of America on July 4; the Run...
A lot can be accomplished in a lifetime. The Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce is starting a new award for lifetime achievement in honor of Colleen Manley who died unexpectedly earlier this year at the age of 63. “If you have been a part of this community, then you knew Colleen,” Chamber Executive Director Rachelle Baughman said at their March 8 meeting. “She was a huge aspect of this community. Colleen did a lot. She was a part of the chamber, she was a part of the Rotary, she was a part of the Lions. I’m not even sure of everything sh...
The Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce announced officers and board members at their annual membership meeting March 8. Hollie Reed is taking on the secretary position, which is the only change in officers. Natalie Nachtigal-Dennis will remain as president, Patty Oliver as vice president, Scott Hunter as past president, Alicia Adamson as treasurer, and Morgan Tillman, Nic Alexander, Solveig Chaffee, Sarah Holt and Matthew Pleasants serving as board members at large. Rachelle Baughman, formerly Rachelle Haven, is executive...
The town of Coulee Dam is short one person on the city crew, and the city council is debating whether to keep it that way to shift money to maintenance projects. Two council members, Keith St. Jeor and Dale Rey have argued in two meetings in the last month that the city should contract for some work done, including park maintenance, not re-hire for the position left open by the death of an employee. St. Jeor and Rey argued heavily in favor of contracting out for the work last month but wanted to wait on further discussion until Mayor Bob Poch,...
There have been four more COVID-19 deaths in Grant County reported in the past week, and just two new cases in local towns as infection rates remain low. The deaths, reported on March 10 by the Grant County Health District, occurred in February among two men and two women, all unvaccinated, three with underlying health conditions. They were residents of Moses Lake, Ephrata, and Quincy, and were in their 70s, 80s, and 90s. According to data from Coulee Medical Center, from March 8-14, 75 covid tests were performed, with only six, 8%, testing...
There has been one more COVID-19 death in Grant County in the past week, and six new cases in local towns as incident rates decline. According to data from Coulee Medical Center, from March 1-7, 51 covid tests were performed, with only three, 6%, testing positive for the coronavirus. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Grant and Lincoln counties, as well as Ferry and Spokane counties, are shown as being at medium risk for overwhelming hospitals with covid cases, but Okanogan and Douglas are still listed as high risk....
The Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce is hosting a Colorama Commitee Meeting at their office on Midway Avenue in Grand Coulee at 5:30 p.m. tonight, March 15. The meeting is open to anyone "that can come help us network and share ideas of ways to make this Colorama a success!" Chamber Director Rachelle Haven said....
Coulee Medical Center employees walked into local businesses last Friday to spread awareness about colon cancer. The walk was a new local twist on a longstanding emphasis in medicine - prevention. Eighteen CMC employees walked from the hospital to more than 25 local businesses in Grand Coulee, where they gave gift bags that included pamphlets about colon cancer and CMC's services, stickers, bracelets, and fiber bars. Chief Medical Officer Doctor Sam Hsieh told The Star a bit about colon cancer...
It’s the year 2022, and racism is still an issue that children face at school. Following a report of racist behavior at a basketball game in Okanogan, the school district there has been investigating the matter, and a report is anticipated to be done later this week. Lady Raiders Assistant Coach Matthew Pleasants reported that while he was reviewing video of a Feb. 18 game in Okanogan, he noticed that some fans at the game had made monkey noises while a Lady Raider who is African American and a tribal member was shooting free throws. P...
"What a year to start a business," Morgan Tillman said last night about starting her Elmer City salon in 2020 in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Tillman's Apothecary Salon was awarded Business of the Year by the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce. "It was quite a wild ride," Tillman said. "I'm thankful to be a part of the chamber and the community that's been so welcoming." "There's a lot of excitement around this business, which I think is fabulous," Patty Oliver of PK's Culinary...
A Ford F350 pickup drove into a maple tree in west Coulee Dam'sd main thoroughfare Thursday afternoon, injuring at least one person. The Washington State Patrol reported that a 44-year-old driver, Robert John Day had been taken to Coulee Medical Center by the time a trooper arrived on the scene on SR-155 near the Columbia River Bridge. Trooper John Bryant, a WSP public information officer, said the Patrol was called out about 1:44 p.m. He said Day was cited for having wheels of the roadway and...
Grand Coulee Police 2/28 - Police responded to A Street where a man and woman reported seeing a woman throw items out of a pickup, including a dog, and drive off. The officer took the small chihuahua-type dog to the vet to scan for a chip, but there wasn’t one. The officer found a couple options for places that would take care of the dog, but the owner came in looking for it. The owner described the dog and explained that he had let the dog outside and when he came back for it, it had run off. The man lived close to where the dog was found, a...
There have been 12 additional COVID-19 deaths announced in Grant County since The Star’s last update on Feb. 16, and 121 new cases in local towns, despite a dropping incidence rate. Grant County Health District announced 392 new cases and 10 deaths on Feb. 17, and 233 new cases and two deaths on Feb. 24, with their weekly announcements coming on Thursdays. Coulee Medical Center CEO Ramona Hicks told hospital district commissioners Monday night that Covid positivity numbers at CMC had “dramatically dropped.” But she cautioned it’s hard to evalua...
The Grand Coulee Dam School District Board of Directors will be holding a Executive board meeting tonight Tuesday March 8th @ 5:30 p.m. At this meeting the board will be discussing personnel items....
STCU will sponsor a major aspect of the Colorama Rodeo that provides national television coverage of its events, the Ridge Riders said last week. The Spokane-based credit union that merged with Coulee Dam Credit Union last September noted in a statement that rodeo sponsorship isn't an everyday event, but "we have a long history of supporting cultural events, like Colorama, that reflect the values of the credit union, and the heritage of the community." Area Branch Manager Beverly Rodriguez said...
Lady Raiders Assistant Coach Matthew Pleasants came across something shocking while reviewing video from their Feb. 18 game against the Okanogan Lady Bulldogs. While a Lady Raider, who is of African-American descent as well as a tribal member, was shooting free throws, Okanogan fans jeered at her by making monkey noises. Pleasants and his father, Head Coach Wallace “Peewee” Pleasants, are also African-American, and Matthew Pleasants, said that he found the jeering “disheartening” but added that he wasn’t “one bit surprised.” That type of behav...
With mask mandates changing around the country and in the state of Washington, people expressed mixed feelings in a Star poll this week. Readers who took the poll on state mask mandates ending in March are split over the topic, with 56.5% being comfortable with the idea, and 43.5% being uncomfortable with it. Gov. Jay Inslee announced Feb. 17 that Covid-19 mask restrictions will be loosening on March 21 for the state, the date "we project we will be in a position to be able to reduce some of...
If you’re still venturing out onto the ice of Banks Lake, be careful, as it may not be as sturdy as it looks, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation warns as they begin pumping fresh water into the lake. The USBR begins operating outlet works at Banks Lake/Dry Falls Dam on March 3 in preparation for the 2022 irrigation season, a Feb. 23 press release states. Reclamation started operating Potholes Reservoir/O’Sullivan Dam outlet works on Monday. To prepare Banks Lake for the March 3 operation startup, Reclamation began pumping water from the John W....
There'll be a new superintendent in the Grand Coulee Dam School District for the 2024-25 school year. Current Superintendent Paul Turner told the district's board of directors Monday that he intends to retire after working part time for two more school years. Turner noted the past two years being hard both physically and mentally caused him to look at his personal situation and his future, leading to his decision. A full-time assistant superintendent will be hired to potentially, but not definit...
Grand Coulee Police 2/22 - Police responded to a report of suspicious vehicles on Goodfellow Avenue but found nothing amiss. A loud banging noise heard by the reporting party may have been one of the vehicles getting attached to a trailer. - A vehicle was towed from Dill Avenue for parking in a no-parking zone and for having expired registration. - A woman told police she would move her vehicle on Young Street that was blocking the roadway. 2/23 - A “suspicious” person was reported as knocking on a door on Roosevelt Drive, then leaving in a c...
A man who was unconscious in his burning car gets to continue to live with his family thanks to local heroism. Three Jess Ford employees saved the Ephrata man's life in December. Joshua Bessette, 46, of Ephrata, was on his way to work at the Grand Coulee Dam on Dec. 3 at about 7 a.m. He was driving north on SR-155 at about milepost eight between Coulee City and Grand Coulee near the Million Dollar Mile, when, according to a report from Washington State Patrol Trooper John Bryant, he left the...
With mask mandates set to lift in late March, half of school district personnel are skeptical about the idea, and our readers can voice their own opinions in a brief online poll. Governor Jay Inslee announced on Feb. 17 that Covid-19 mask restrictions will be loosening in March for the state. As of March 21, masks will still be required at medical facilities, long term care settings, public transit, correctional facilities, and at whatever private businesses that choose to require them. They will no longer be required at schools, libraries,...
Free passes on public transportation for young people and upgrades to major bridges are all part of a 16-year transportation funding plan approved by the Washington State Senate. The Senate approved the proposed revenue sources for the $17 billion “Move Ahead Washington” transportation investment package on a 29-20 vote Feb. 15. The bill sponsored by Transportation Committee Chair Sen. Marko Liias, D-Everett, now goes to the House for consideration. The plan includes funding for transit programs, replacement of fish passageways and electrificat...
Small business owners and schoolchildren hurt by the pandemic would see some financial relief with approval of state supplemental budget proposals now under consideration. “We’re looking at the basics, food, shelter, health and cash assistance,” House Appropriations Committee Chair Rep. Timm Ormsby, D-Spokane, said. “Those are things in this pandemic economy that are going to make a difference in people’s lives, and that is our focus.” The Washington State House and Senate each released their proposals Feb. 21, just hours before public hear...
Scouts Sonjarai Heldman and A. J. Cannon, of Grand Coulee, and Halley Craddock, right, of Okanogan, work together on lashing together poles in an attempt to build a "Chippawah kitchen" like the one at left during last weekend's Polar Bear Camp at Summit Lake. The event brought together five Scout troops from the region. Scouts, both boys and girls, worked at earning a variety of scout badges at stations set up around the camp. Those included tasks for using a compass, first aid, building a...