Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
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“I have always been patriotic,” said Cathlamet resident Cindy Fudge. “My Dad was in the air force, my brother was in the Navy… but now that my son is the one serving our country, I do the pledge of allegiance and I celebrate Independence Day knowing that my own child is willing to die for this. It makes me so proud. I get it now.” Cindy and her husband Brian were supportive when their middle child Joel, now 21, decided to join the United States Marine Corps straight out of high school. “It’s something that he always wanted to do,” his...
“I work with the best people and have a great manager!” exclaimed 19-year-old Caitlin Nicolazzi who is a lifeguard and swim instructor at the Julia Butler Hansen Municipal Swimming Pool in Cathlamet. “This is my second year here. I came back because I love the job and I love the people that I work with.” This year, Duncan Cruickshank joins the crew as the pool manager. The pool employs 12 people during the summer in addition to Cruickshank. With a new manager comes some new ideas including a fresh look to the pool with marine figures decorating...
Columbia View Care Center, Cathlamet’s sole nursing facility is just one of 10 nursing facilities (“SNFs”) in Washington State owned by Eagle Healthcare, Inc. The group operates additional facilities in Oregon and Idaho with a combined licensed capacity of 945 beds, plus one assisted living facility in Washington with 24 units. Founded by Jeff C. Marshall, Eagle’s current president and chief executive officer, the group boasts on their webpage that they “provide the comfort of knowing that the resident is well cared for in a secure and pleas...
On June 19 during a Wahkiakum School District board meeting, the directors authorized staff to implement a proposal for an organized time for teachers to confer and collaborate. The decision came on the heels of a meeting held June 11 when a group gathered at JA Wendt Elementary to further discuss the concept of organized teacher collaboration time. A committee led by Stephanie Leitz, current K-12 Title 1/Learning Assistance Program, English Language Learning, and Alternative Learning Experience programs instructor and incoming Wahkiakum High...
Naselle/Grays River Valley parents are excited at the prospect of their children beginning half-day courses in Mandarin Chinese. “The reality is, for a program like this to come to our area is something we cannot pass up. We need to instill that entrepreneurial attitude in our kids early so they don’t feel stuck in a rural community,” said Marijane Anderson whose son William will enter kindergarten in the fall. “This program is a gift and I’m excited that (husband) Wes and I can send our son to a school that hopefully will offer this. We...
“It would be devastating to lose the nursing home,” said Audrey Hedman, whose husband, Cleave, has been a patient at Columbia View Care Center for ten months now. “Before Cleave was strong enough to come to Cathlamet, he had to spend a couple of months at Northwest Continuum Care Center in Longview,” Hedman recalled. “That place felt like a hospital. Columbia View feels like home.” Last week, however, the director of the Columbia View Care Center — Cathlamet’s only nursing home and one of the town’s largest employers — told resident...
When Becky Erickson started at Clatsop Community College 18 years ago, her youngest son Alan was almost three. At that time, the mother of four boys was going to school for her own personal growth. “I’ve always loved teaching children and so I decided to pursue getting my Early Childhood Education certificate. In 2008, due to my years of experience, I was hired to teach at the Naselle-Grays River Valley School for the ECEAP (Early Childhood Educational and Assistanct Program) preschool, a state funded program for eligible families. At the sam...
There is something to be said for a lesson that makes subject matter meaningful to all students, especially in the final week of school when students are anxiously anticipating the beginning of their summer vacations. Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) Mike Wright did just that on Wednesday morning, June 13. With students gathered in the JA Wendt Elementary library, Wright and fellow EMT Camille Goldsmith gave students a tutorial on lifesaving procedures. “This is not a CPR class,” Wright told students. “You won’t be getting cards at the end...
The grand doorway of the historic Hotel Cathlamet opened to the public Friday afternoon illuminating the stately foyer. Family, friends and community members happily joined Kevin Prestegard, his wife Stephanie and her parents Kay and Wayne Cochran to celebrate the event. “It has been such a process getting the Hotel up and running,” recalled Stephanie. “There was an environmental inspection, asbestos removal, assessments. The list goes on and on.” “It is very important that we thank the Wirkkala family,” she continued. “They have been pivotal...
The Wahkiakum Community Network (WCN) has been working to improve the lives of youth and families in our area for some time. With Kellyn Pakenen Hazen, the new Public Relations Coordinator, on staff, the WCN prepares for the birth of a new idea. A year ago, the Network board of directors brainstormed an idea that they coined the Neighborhood Information and Community Exchange (NICE). “NICE will be my first big project,” said Pakenen Hazen who replaced Tammy Peterson, the new chairman of the board, in December. “We want to connect community memb...
The stretch of road that joins Wahkiakum and Pacific Counties was decorated on June 9 with blue and gold balloons and signs marking the places where graduation parties would be held later in the evening. Naselle-Grays River Valley Seniors were celebrating their high school graduation, and the community rose to the occasion. At the school, cars overflowed from the parking lot though the Class of 2012 was comprised of only 20 students; a symbol of local support. The ceremony began on a light note with Austin Smith offering a warm welcome to his...
Students and teachers at Wendt Elementary and Thomas Middle schools laced up their sneakers and hustled outside June 4 for a walk to cure diabetes. The event was a culmination of a weeklong fundraiser for JDRF, a global organization focused on type 1 diabetes (T1D) research. The goal of JDRF is to improve the lives of every person affected by T1D by accelerating progress on the most promising opportunities for curing, better treating, and preventing the disease. Students contributed to the cause by selling paper sneakers to their families and...
Research indicates that students who read eight to 10 books over summer break achieve similar progression to students who participate in a structured summer school program. Continuing its efforts to promote student literacy and encourage reading over the summer months, Wendt administrators have decided to participate in the 2012 Summer Reading Olympics. Sponsored by Capstone Digital, the national reading initiative uses myON reader through which students will have access to a virtual backpack of more than 2,500 enhanced digital books customized...
Heading to the marina from downtown Cathlamet, one might stroll down Butler Street and come across Jim Kolberg’s home and the little free library that adorns his front yard. It all started for Kolberg one night in early March. “I was watching the NBC nightly news and a story came on about a Wisconsin man. He wanted to honor his mother, a former teacher and book lover, who had passed away. He built a miniature model of a library, filled it with books for anyone to take, and placed it outside his home. “People really liked the idea and so this gu...
When students arrived at Skamokawa United Methodist Church Friday morning, Ronn “Long Claw” Wilson had transformed the banquet room into a museum of displays representing northwest plants, animal skins, and Native American culture. Long Claw’s presentation “Of Cedar and Salmon” was part of the outdoor school program that staff and volunteers put on for fifth grade students at JA Wendt Elementary. With financial support from the Wahkiakum Community Network, the program consisted of two days of team building and life skills activities. “If you c...
Alana Darcher Naselle High School’s Valedictorian, Alana Darcher, will graduate this week and add a high school diploma as well as a college degree to her resumé. Darcher has attended Clatsop Community College for the last two years and will graduate from there with a general studies transfer degree focusing on science and math. “I am going to Emory University in late August to study neuroscience,” said 18 year-old Darcher. “I’m really excited!” Emory ranks among the top national universities in U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best...
The mission statement reads, “We believe that education is a partnership with responsibility shared by all: school, family, students, and community. All individuals shall be provided a safe, positive environment where they may reach their full potential as responsible citizens.” So, with that in mind prospective candidates for the 2012-2013 class officer positions began looking over descriptions of the duties of each position, the calendar of school events, candidate forms, and staff approvals. Then, a busy week of elections ensued at Wah...
Residents of small communities are often willing to make sacrifices for the solace and greenery that rural life has to offer. While we, in Wahkiakum County, do not have immediate access to big-box giants or department stores when it comes to mortgage rates, it seems that we can do just as well locally as those in the urban centers of the state. The average rate for the 30-year fixed mortgage recently fell to a record low for a fourth straight week. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said last Thursday that the rate on the 30-year loan dipped to 3.78...
When you’re growing up, playing organized sports, spending weekends with friends and having fun, high school graduation seems a long way off. As one grows older, one realizes how quickly those years actually pass. For middle school students, adulthood is really just around the corner. This fall, the Wahkiakum School District announced the award of a $36,000 grant meant to help the district prepare young students for college and careers. GEAR UP stands for Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs. The grant program is a...
At the May 15 meeting of the Board of Commissioners of Wahkiakum PUD, Manager Dave Tramblie reported that the PUD is working with the County Emergency Services and Public Works to install new antennas for the radio system on Radar Ridge, KM Mountain and the JA Wendt Elementary School. “The PUD pays for the electricity consumed at the KM site even though the county, sheriff’s office, and Public Works use that location as well,” explained Tramblie. “The county takes care of all of the maintenance and equipment though. "I think that it’s a...
Every parent knows that choosing a baby name can be a daunting and difficult task. Couples peruse the internet and baby name books; they take suggestions from family and friends and create lists which they systematically eliminate names from until only one remains. “Picking out a name is very difficult" says Casey Barber Johnson of Naselle. Johnson anticipates the birth of her fourth son very soon. "As we are thinking of names we play rhyming games to see what words rhyme (therefore how he could get made fun of). We also are trying to pick a s...
Mule fans are known to those from neighboring towns as being loud, passionate and full of school pride. Brieanna Olsen, Wahkiakum High School senior, may have just fueled those well-known boasts by signing a letter of intent to play college basketball next year. Olsen, 18, the older daughter of Bill and Shelley Olsen of Cathlamet, recently committed to playing in "the Swamp” with the ladies of Green River Community College in Auburn. Under the guidance of Head Coach Tim Riles, Olsen will join the NW Athletic Association of Community Colleges (...
It is a Tuesday morning and Lisa Frink is setting up video equipment in a JA Wendt Elementary school classroom. “Where did you get all of that stuff?” a student asks of her camera and tripod. “It belongs to 4-H,” replies Frink who serves as the 4-H Youth Mobilization and Leadership Coordinator for Wahkiakum County. “I thought 4-H was all about raising animals,” says the girl in the front of the class. “Not anymore,” Frink answers. Today 4-H is everywhere and it is the largest youth development organization in the nation. The United States h...
With hay prices rising recently, it is no surprise that local farmers jumped on their tractors this week to take advantage of the dry weather. For the best results, farmers look for a three or four day window of dry weather. Rain may not completely ruin cut hay, but it will decrease the yield, which is not ideal. Traditionally, farmers prefer to wait an extra couple of weeks to cut hay than to cut their hay and have it hit by rain. “Last year’s weather was so hit and miss,” recalled one Grays River resident, “They only got one cut.” This year...
The biggest and brightest full moon of the year arrived Saturday night and illuminated Wahkiakum County. Though students have studied the phases of the moon in the classroom, Saturday’s “super moon” offered an up close and personal lesson on the lunar phenomena. “The moon was out but it felt like it was still light outside,” said Thomas Middle School seventh grade science student Sydney Hansen of the event. “It was a glorious masterpiece.” Hansen’s classmate Haley Kerstetter was also sure to witness the largest moon of the year. “The moon...
