Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
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The Washtucna Pioneer Cemetery commissioners would like to again thank community members and volunteers for your continued support. In October 2017, our cemetery was honored at the America in Bloom Symposium in Boston for Outstanding Cemetery. This summer maintenance is again going smoothly with contracted services from Mike Phelps, Sr. We have our regular bills for water, electricity, fuel, and equipment maintenance. This year we were able to replace our lawn mower. To keep up with maintenance costs we are asking for a Levy...
People tell others about what they don’t like about people or a situation. I want to tell you about someone I like. Three years ago, I had trouble breathing and my voice was changing. I want to say a very big thank you and kudos to Dr. Timothy Bryant who took extra time to check thoroughly what the problem was. He sent me to an Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) doctor who discovered I had a tumor wrapped around my vocal chords. I had so little air left that I was rushed to surgery for a tracheotomy at 79 years old. I am now 81 and h...
At the last EARH Board meeting, Gary Bostrom, CEO/CFO, stated that he didn’t oversee day to day operations and that a former employee had been responsible for the Swingbed residents and Pharmacy resulting in a $500,000 write off. Definition: CEO is solely responsible for a firms success or failure. The definition goes on, but that is the basic duty. The definition also explains that in larger firms, the CEO delegates duties. In smaller firms, such as EARH, they often have more “hands on” and act as CFO and COO due to costs...
Rural communities have a rich history of agriculture celebration and we don’t have to look any further than our own Wheat Land Communities’ Fair. While a local fair dates back considerably in time, the current site of the fair began in 1981. It has been built upon since, with donated funds, income generated from ag production, and volunteer labor. My family has had the opportunity to visit fairgrounds throughout the Northwest and I can tell you this for certain; for its size we have one of the most functional, accessible and...
The St. Agnes Catholic Church has been distributing free diapers through the “PREPARES” pregnancy and parenting support in Ritzville on the second Saturday of every month. We are now offering the same service in Lind on the third Tuesday of each month at the Lind Community Church. They will be available at the same time as the Second Harvest distribution. We are extremely proud and excited to offer service to our young families and hope to increase the services as time goes on. For more information, feel free to contact any...
How do we educate people to the fact that flowers put on graves at the cemetery are not put there for their taking? I like to put flowers out and leave them to make the cemetery look nice for the full week until the day before the posted date that the caretakers need them removed. Last week when I went to pick them up after watering and caring for them all week, three large pots were gone. Sadly, this is not the first time this has happened. I hope it won’t happen again. Della Kiesz, Ritzville...
Weeds, illegal fences and storage pods. Ritzville used to take pride in well-maintained yards and clean streets. Now cheat grass and dandelions abound in yards and alleys everywhere, even the downtown district. I thought fences had setback and height limitations and pods were supposed to be temporary. What happened? Linda Kubik, Ritzville...
Thank you so much to The Journal for featuring the AAUW’s scholar recognition dinner. We had four amazing young women who deserved to be honored for their academic work in the STEM subjects during their high school careers. We were happy to celebrate their achievements along with members of their families. The article in the paper suggested that the recipients of the awards were given scholarships, which means money toward further education. Unfortunately, we are not able to award monies, only certificates that recognize t...
We are saying our farewells to Ritzville this month, but it’s not goodbye. Our lives have been so impacted by Ritzville that it will always be “home”. We came here as newlyweds in 1962 because of teaching opportunities, our three sons were born at the Ritzville Hospital in the 1960s, and we have lived most of our married years in this town. The benefits of a small town are so many: the lifelong and new friendships, a close church family, golfing with the guys or the Monday morning ladies’ group, volunteer opportu...
I would like to begin this letter by expressing my extreme gratitude to the residents and community members of Ritzville and Lind who voted in the Feb. 13 election. Your decision to approve the levy measures in our respective districts is indicative of the fact that our communities hold our children in the highest regard. These funds will greatly benefit the work that we do in service of our students. On behalf of the Lind and Ritzville School Boards, thank you for believing in our students and having confidence in our...
The H.E. Gritman Senior Center is beginning a new year filled with possibilities to grow and move forward with our community. The board is working hard to expand the offerings at the senior center, such as hosting card games and bingo nights. They are also working on partnering with People For People for transportation to special events such as theatre events, symphony events, and the casino. We have a great board and coordinator working for our senior center but they need our support. The annual membership fee is only $15...
Changes, amendments, appeals, initiatives … in politics, the culture, media, society, our state/county/country/world. Voting is just the first step. Now we need to communicate directly (phone, town hall meetings, lobbying) or indirectly, with a letter, telegram or electronic means. Perhaps, your editorial letters or your group (Lions Club, Grange, Eagles, School Board, etc.) will make a difference. Get the media behind you. Sometimes changes can be bad or not so good. It wasn’t until 1920-1921 that women’s suffr...
By proclamation of the governor, January is School Board Recognition Month. It’s a great time to recognize our elected community members who selflessly give their time and energy in support of high-quality public schooling for our youth. Our communities entrust school board members in the Lind and Ritzville School Districts with responsibility for our students, employees, buildings and annual budgets. School boards are charged with making decisions that can sometimes be quite difficult, or require sifting through a great d...
At our last Ritzville Ministerial Association meeting, a concern was voiced about who we are, what we do, and who is involved in the ministry of this group. First and foremost, we are an outreach source for our community and for folks in need who are traveling through Ritzville. Monies to help families and individuals needing our help are made available depending on the need. Secondly, we are a part of the Ritzville Food Pantry. In December, we will be helping to distribute Christmas food baskets. Last year this effort...
I have been teaching at the high school level for over 30 years. Today, however, I am going to take off my “Teacher Hat” and leave on my “Mom Hat”. I am so impressed with and proud of our Ritzville Grade School staff. What goes on inside this building is something not many parents get to see on a regular basis. Those of you who volunteer in our schools or are fortunate to be married to one of our staff members may have a front row seat that gives you a better glimpse. As parents, Paul and I did not teach our two boys, n...
I don’t know about the rest of you, but I am so tired of having to drive out of town, to Moses Lake or Spokane, to get my dog groomed; I could spit! However, I have spoken to a five-star mobile groomer who is willing to come here to Ritzville, if he has enough appointments. If he can get enough customers here, he will make it a monthly trip. Since we can’t seem to find anyone to open a shop here in town, I figured this is the next best thing. And if you too, are tired of driving somewhere to get your pet groomed, esp...
I wish to commend the management of The Ritz Theater for showing the movie “All Saints” this last weekend. Not only was this movie captivating and moving, but the movie was wholesome, and had an excellent message, as well as lessons for all of us. I would like to thank all those who showed their support, and attended a showing of the movie. And I urge everyone in our community to show their support for their local theater by attending the good films when they are shown here. Our support will encourage more good films to be...
Response to Paula Bell from Oct. 4 Meet the Candidates Night: 1. Future for the town of Lind. Her response to the question for the future of the Town of Lind was I do not have a crystal ball to see into the future. Wrong answer. This is supposed to be your vision and ideas for the town. 2. Your platform as you have stated is to make sure we are not overspending. This is fine if you are verifying every reimbursement for meals and lodging, but you do not question the thousands of dollars billed for outside services to check...
What an unbelievable, impressive experience awaits you when you visit the Living Legacy Wildlife Museum near the freeway. It is an incredible display of hundreds of animals from around the world that this community has the privilege of hosting. These animals are posed in a variety of positions to showcase their nature. Wait until word gets out to nearby communities; I’m certain lines will be forming. Marsha Smith, Ritzville...
I would like to make a formal acknowledgement of our Mayor of Lind, Jamie Schmunk, and thank her for all the wonderful things she has accomplished for our little town! I also fully support her in this election and ask all in our town to show their support by voting for her too! Jamie brought many grants to our town and worked hard to make the matching funds we have sometimes had to come up with the least amount of impact as possible. The wastewater funding was truly amazing to get such a high grant – rates never before s...
When I was a young boy, small business was the backbone of America. It was necessary to have because of gas rationing. Soon after the war was over, the business world decided bigger was better. Supermarkets soon followed and Ike completed his highway program. Smaller businesses soon disappeared and super stores like Toys“R”Us appeared and they were considered too large to fail. However, the evil monster “debt” overtook Toys“R”Us and they became the 19th super large retailer this year to seek Chapter 11 protection....
Please check out the newest ghost sign in downtown Ritzville at the corner of Division and Main Streets! These are old advertisements that were on the buildings in the early 1900s. I think that it is the best one yet and a big thank you to John Rankin and the Ritzville Downtown Development Association! Mary Chamberlain, Ritzville...
After the twin towers fell, Bin Laden said that his goal was to bankrupt America. I would assume that he would be proud as would his followers. Our debt that we recognize is $20 trillion and climbing because we keep making mistakes that would please his followers. We keep foolishly allowing immigrants into our country that don’t speak English. This gives us the added expense of having five million school-age children who must be taught English in our classrooms. That takes valuable teacher time! We must print materials in m...
As I sit here in the wee hours of the morning before fair starts contemplating life and how lucky I am to have a family, I can’t help but think about how we as Americans come together in tragedy to help each other in the lowest of times. I want to personally thank Rod, Jani and Alexis Melcher for their determination in keeping Cole alive in each of us through their unwavering love of kids and their kind-hearted souls. How many of us would show up to one of the largest community events days after tragedy struck and pour t...
Five years ago I built the Lind Community Garden. I have made it a free resource for the community. I have devoted countless hours and a considerable amount of my own money as well as several thousand dollars of grants. There has been very little support and a lot of opposition. This week, I was subjected to obscene verbal abuse by someone who has imagined an affront. That is enough. Lind is in desperate need of something, anything, good. I tried to make my community a better place to live. If anyone wants to take over the...