News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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I’d like to publicly thank all the individuals, businesses, and organizations who participate in making Koulee Kids Fest happen. This is the second year I’ve attended with three of my grandchildren, and they have had fun all day long! So, thank you, Grand Coulee Dam area, for “Kids Fest.” My grandkids and I will be back again! Sara Rice Wilbur... Full story
In the presidential campaign leading up to the November elections, hopefully we will hear about ways to “Make America Great Again!” One of the most effective strategies is to entice U.S. companies with foreign factories to relocate back home. Another is to encourage those who remained in America to reinvest here. Discussions about bolstering domestic production of goods and services did not start this year. They are largely rooted in our nation’s anemic job creation over the last decade. A “Reshoring Institute” launched in 2014 at the Unive... Full story
County commissioners told those attending the sixth public meeting on the Okanogan County’s Juvenile Department last week that they would commit to continue housing juveniles in the county facility in Okanogan, rather than outsource the job to a far-away place. The latter possibility had brought 100 or more citizens, including two opposed superior court judges, out to a series of meetings in which commissioners explored various aspects of the question. Their announcement June 21 followed the filing of a lawsuit against them a day earlier by t... Full story
New interpretations of old regulations forced a last-minute change to plans for a water park, a new feature of the chamber of commerce's Festival of America. The Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce, which is putting on the festival and an associated feature for kids meant to be more about water features, is less so than planned. The changed followed an 11th-hour phone call from the Grant County Health District, which said it wouldn't allow the features that had been planned. There are...
Jim Boyd, leader of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation and renowned musician and recording artist, died unexpectedly last week at the age of 60. "This is a very, very sad day for the Colville Tribes," said Vice Chairman of the Colville Business Council Michael Marchand. "One of our most respected leaders and talented tribal members is no longer among us. The sheer enormity of our loss has not set in yet, and I doubt that it will for quite some time." Boyd, who won seven Native... Full story
You just bought a bag of fireworks and are wondering where you can set them off. Here’s your answer: Fireworks are banned from the Colville Tribes’ reservation this year. Likewise in Elmer City and Coulee Dam. Fireworks are also banned in the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area. You can let fireworks off in Electric City if you adhere to the state law covering fireworks. In Grand Coulee, North Dam is still open to fireworks, subject to fire department approval; anywhere else in the city is off limits. The Colville Tribes on June 17 issued a... Full story
There are not enough superlatives to accurately describe Bob and Bev Bruno's rural log home. You could take the view. Or the careful detail of their home. Or even the house for their five banties. Nothing by itself will do! Bob, a log-house builder now semi-retired, has put all the things he has learned about log- house construction into one. The view is so outstanding that one room is designed for two cushioned chairs, providing comfort, and a place to stare at the view. The view is not only of... Full story
There will be some changes on the Colville Business Council as a result of the general election tally over the past week. During the tally, it was announced that Chairman Jim Boyd had died. Boyd was running against Georgia Simpson in the Inchelium District Position 1 race, and lost the count 268-184. In other races, William “Billy” Nicholson II, lost his Nespelem Position 1 council seat to Willie Womer 409-346. Sheilah Cleveland captured the Nespelem Position 2 seat over former councilman Brian Nissen 416-333. In the Inchelium Position 2 rac... Full story
Lake Roosevelt High School could field a girls’ soccer team this year. The Grand Coulee Dam School District board is dealing with the cost and plans to review the soccer request at its July 11 meeting. Six schools in the North Central Washington 2-B League already have girls’ soccer teams — Brewster, Bridgeport, Liberty Bell, Manson, Oroville and Tonasket. Making the presentation before the board Monday was Casey Moore. She explained that the current youth soccer program had 120 kids involved and has become highly successful. The distr... Full story
I didn’t know Jim Boyd well, just enough to like him and admire his talent. So it came as a complete surprise when the sudden news of his death overwhelmed me last week. That reaction likely has something to do with being nearly the same age, but it was more than that. Boyd was an artist who was a leader, someone who could articulate for those of us on the outside of his culture, his tribe, the importance of the commonplace and of the sacred. Because he had that ability, politics somehow seemed less about self-interest than about grappling w... Full story
Over the past three years, the current county commissioners have outsourced jobs to contractors in other counties. I assume they want to reduce the size of government and lower expenditures. But this has very negative outcomes on all of us. Okanogan County has the lowest annual income average of its citizens, the smallest population and largest land mass of any of Washington’s counties. Does it make sense that decent middle-class salaries of county workers are sent to and spent in other counties? We don’t like this type of action when big bus... Full story
Five of six administration positions in the Grand Coulee Dam school system will change for the new school year. Superintendent Dr. Dennis Carlson concludes his six years here June 30, and is being replaced by Paul Turner. Turner was hired by the board to follow Carlson this spring, after it was learned Carlson planned to retire. This year Turner was assistant principal at the junior/senior high school and prior to that principal at Tonasket. Things moved fast at the school board meeting Monday night. The board accepted the resignation of... Full story
Chamber of commerce members Thursday heard details on a proposed project that could put huge conduits for water under the community to produce more power and create jobs. The proposed Banks Lake hydroelectric pumped storage project could be operational by the year 2025. Tim Culbertson, and a team from Columbia Basin Hydropower, outlined a project that could require some 2,600 workers during construction and as many as 100 permanent employees. Culbertson spoke at the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce’s weekly luncheon at The Siam Palace.... Full story
The Colville Tribes announced this morning (6-22-16) that Chairman Jim Boyd has died at the age of 60. What follows is the tribal press release: Chairman Boyd walks on NESPELEM, WA - The Colville Business Council has announced today that the Chairman of the Colville Tribes, James L. Boyd, has passed on. He was 60. Boyd, a prolific songwriter and entertainer, was well known throughout Indian Country. He travelled throughout the United States, was known for his love ofHarleyDavidson Motorcycles,... Full story
It takes a lot of coordination and planning to put on the fireworks display over Grand Coulee Dam on July 4, according to Rocketman Pyros owner Dan Verheul. It all begins with the firm’s broker in China, and the selection of some 40 cases of carefully selected fireworks. Then when it’s time to set up, it takes 6-8 people to lay out the fireworks, starting at about 9 a.m. and getting done about 12 hours later. “We will lay out the displays from one end of the spillway to the other,” Verheul said last week. The fireworks display “will last about... Full story
The Almira Community Church will soon occupy the former Presbyterian Community Church in Coulee Dam. The Almira congregation voted overwhelmingly June 12 to acquire the historic stone church and develop a second campus. Almira pastor Paul McArthur said Tuesday that the congregational vote was 49-0 in favor, with one undecided. “We plan to have our opening in Coulee Dam on Oct. 2,” McArthur stated. The church plans later to address a roof problem, and plans some work days. “We are very happy to add the new campus, and look forward to servi... Full story
Hospital officials met last week with Washington State University officials working to make that institution's new medical school a reality. Kenneth Roberts, the vice dean for academic and community partnerships for the WSU College of Medicine, along with Jeffrey Bell, a partner at Gallatin Public Affairs, stopped at CMC to give officials there an update on WSU's progress in launching the new medical school. They've also been touring rural hospitals to undertand the needs and capabilities they h... Full story
A major art show, drawn in cloth and stitches, and honoring the National Park Service in its 100th year, will arrive in Coulee Dam just in time for the Fourth of July. The "Inspired by the National Parks" Quilt Show will be on display in the Lake Roosevelt Elementary School gym July 1-4, with more than 180 art quilts. Don't think about those warm blankets sewn from scraps that may first spring to mind. These quilts depict something inspirational from the nation's most beautiful places. Detailed... Full story
Most races were close, and all incumbents but two appeared to be headed for re-election in the Colville Business Council general poll election Saturday. Absentee ballots could change most races, but the unofficial tally Monday showed that incumbents in Inchelium District, Position 1, and Nespelem District, Position 1, were both in doubt. In the Inchelium District 1 race, incumbent Chairman Jim Boyd trailed challenger George Simpson, 95-49. In the Nespelem District 1 race, incumbent William “Billy” Nicholson II trailed Willie Womer, 113-94. In... Full story
The three top winners in the Fifth Annual Cleatis Lacy Memorial Bull Riding event last Friday picked up nearly $3,200 in prize money. The Friday night event at the Ridge Rider Rodeo Grounds was a memorial to the Grand Coulee cowboy whose friendliness and rodeo fame touched a lot of people during his 86 years. The Ridge Riders had added $2,500 to the prize money for the event. Placing first was Ryan Prophet, of Rigby, Idaho, who picked up $1,596.76, in prize money. Second was Wyatt Wilks, of... Full story
On June 14, I was part of a group of interested people who met with the Okanogan County Commissioners and staff members of the Juvenile Justice Center to listen to a presentation of their work with our troubled kids. The presentation included statistics, but most interesting was a description of how the group worked with our kids. Two statistics did stand out to me. The Center, over the past four years, has served an average of 16 kids daily. Over the past month there were 73 visits to the kids by family members. This, to me, indicates that a... Full story
It was an honor to accept the award for POWER as Organization of the Year, but the real honor goes to all the volunteers over the years who have made the projects possible. A special thank you to Pat Holbert, Dick Berry, Ray Burge and Doug Patrick for all the years they spent feeding the fish; without their dedication to take control of the feeding for years, POWER could not have accomplished that. Also, thanks to the Bureau of Reclamation here in Grand Coulee & Ephrata for all their help and cooperation — very much appreciated. A special n... Full story
Once again, I would like to applaud the Ridge Riders for a very successful Memorial Bull Riding tribute event for my dad. A thank you also to the community for the support and attendance. It is very time-consuming to manage an event like this, and they did an excellent job with not a lot of members. Also, a clarification: I presented the belt buckle to the winner, but it was donated by my mother, Betty Lacy. Keep up the good work, the community needs you. Clea Pryor... Full story
Ask someone to recite our national motto, and you might just get a couple different responses. Such has been the confusion about our national motto that in a speech President Obama delivered in 2010, the President even said, “In the United States, our motto is ‘E pluribus unum’ — out of many, one.” Actually, “E pluribus unum” is the phrase on the official Seal of the United States. In fact, our official national motto has been “In God We Trust” for decades. This July will mark the 60th anniversary of its official adoption, but sadly the mot... Full story
Two major resignations within the athletic department at Lake Roosevelt High School were received last week. Resigning was Athletic Director Richard Black, who has held that position for the past five years. The second resignation was from Mario West, Lake Roosevelt’s head boys’ basketball coach, who coached here a single season. Both resignations will go before the school board when it meets Monday, June 27. Black, a retired Navy captain, was dean of students and associated with the district’s 21st Century after-school program for two years... Full story