Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
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Students in Don Cox’s AP English class discuss answers to the weekly vocabulary quiz February 13. Senior Valle Ledtke joked that she likes the way she said some of the words as opposed to how they are really pronounced. The class will learn 450 words over the course of the year. Cox said even if they need to look them up in a dictionary later, he hopes they will remember they once knew the word. The second Advanced Placement (AP) class at Wahkiakum High School doesn’t require students to get as dirty as Environmental Science, but non...
The Wahkiakum School Board heard concerns about handicapped parking at their latest meeting held February 19. Longtime Cathlamet resident Larry O’Neal asked the board to consider handicapped parking near the new baseball fields as he and his wife enjoy watching their grandson play. Currently, the handicapped parking is an estimated 100 yards away from the new fields, and O’Neal said that his wife would have a difficult time walking that distance. O’Neal said he was aware of the idea of a golf cart for transport of handicapped spectators but h...
Physical Education isn’t just about jumping jacks or running laps anymore. A two week unit at John C. Thomas Middle School prepared students for the third Annual Valentines Day Ball, held on Valentine’s Day in the Julius A. Wendt Elementary School Multi-purpose Room. P.E. teacher Mary Moonen taught students how to Cha-Cha, Fox Trot and Waltz, “But their favorite is Swing!” Moonen said as she watched over the 120 students dance to the music of Glenn Miller. Entrance to the ball requires boys to wear ties and the girls to wear either skirts or dr...
Attorney General Rob McKenna brought the anti-methamphetamine message to Wahkiakum High School in a special assembly February 20. He introduced Travis Talbot, the co-founder of Lead-On America, a grassroots organization for methamphetamine addiction education and a youth minister at a King County church. “Meth,” Talbot said, is one type of drug that will destroy your life.” He told the crowd that by the time they are out of high school, they or someone they know will be faced with the decision to take or avoid meth. “Everyone is a target,...
Alan Bennett, superintendent of the Naselle-Grays River School District, reported last week Naselle-Grays River K-8 Principal Karen Wirkkala has been elected Distinguished Principal of the Year by her peers. Nominated by fellow principals from Pacific League schools, Wirkkala is respected by students, colleagues, parents and the community, he said. She maintains an orderly and purposeful learning environment, and is a positive influence. Wirkkala thanked the board and said it it’s her job. “I enjoy working with the kids and the staff and wil...
School districts everywhere are feeling the economic pinch and Wahkiakum School District is no exception. Superintendent Bob Garrett on Tuesday spoke to board members and teachers about the possible cuts for the 2009-10 school year. What was once believed to be a statewide deficit of $6 billion is now $8 billion and could increase before the scheduled adjournment of legislature in late April. The deficit for WSD is an estimated $300,000, Garrett said. A federal stimulus package signed by President Obama last week is expected to bring money to...
High school hasn’t changed much in the past 15 years. Walk down the hallway and hear the same conversations about weekend plans and the same laughter echoing through the hallways. But take a deeper look and see these same people change from silly teenagers to serious students at the ringing of the school bell. Two Advanced Placement (AP) classes exist at Wahkiakum High School, thanks to a rural high school grant, said Principal Loren Davis. Adding rigorous courses to the curriculum will help college bound kids prepare for their future. “It rai...
The Wahkiakum PUD Board of Commissioners met Tuesday in a relatively low key session. Manager Dave Tramblie told the board that he and Commissioner Larry Reese attended the Public Power Council Meeting on February 7. Topics of discussion included regional dialogue, residential exchange and Bonneville Power Administration’s financial status. He told the board BPA appears to be in good standing, however if they wanted details, they should check out BPA’s website. Tramblie said he and Auditor Erin Wilson discussed the possibility of loaning the...
The White-tailed Deer that eat our flowers and romp through the fields have been on the Endangered Species List since 1967. At one time, they were in great abundance, but for the past 40 plus years have somewhat diminished. “They were one of the original federally listed endangered species,” said Al Clark, wildlife biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The exploring team of Lewis and Clark spoke of the White-tailed Deer in their diaries, but a lot of the information has been lost in history. They eventually began to only speak of...
Local commuters may need to purchase aspirin to defuse headaches as construction season is about to rear its ugly head. The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) held an open house February 6 at the Cowlitz PUD building to offer information about a project on State Route 4 that is scheduled to begin this summer. A sparse crowd attended the event, which was some cause for concern to Devin Reck, Chief Design Inspector for the WSDOT. “People drive through daily, people are interested. I expected people would come out," he said. T...
The Charlotte House in Cathlamet, Wahkiakum County’s only domestic violence (DV) shelter, is over a decade old and continues to address local needs. The DV advocacy program began in 1996 in association with the St. James Family Center. In 2000 the center took over the Charlotte House from the county. The Charlotte House provides shelter for women and children who are victims of domestic violence. If a man is in need of help, he is provided with a hotel voucher so he is safe as well. “We provide services to women whether they need shelter or...
The Wahkiakum PUD board of commissioners meeting was busy Tuesday with project discussion and other items. County Commissioner Blair Brady was present and told the board that he was in Olympia recently looking into funding for help with a new substation among other projects. He said he hoped that it would go through. Janna Kehrli, account supervisor and lead customer service representative for the PUD, gave a brief presentation of her recent trip to Sea-Tac for a customer service seminar. She said she did a lot of networking and found...
They are the people that catch us when we speed, help us when we need help and watch out for the best interest of the community. They are the men and women of the Wahkiakum County Sheriff’s Department, and their priority is to keep the members of the community safe. In a typical day, Deputy Josh Grasseth may have lots of contact with violators. “Sometimes, I can spend a whole shift stopping cars,” he said. Grasseth, a 1997 graduate of Wahkiakum High School, said he didn’t intend to become a cop. “Undersheriff Jon Dearmore got me involved,” he s...
The Grays River Work Group sponsored by the Lower Columbia Fish Recovery Board met January 23 to hear proposals from five different environmental firms regarding projects in the Grays River Basin. Those firms included Inter-fluve, Tetra Tech, FHerrera, Anchor and R2 Resource Consultants. Property owners, including the Gorley family, Department of Fish and Wildlife employees and others were present to listen and react. The firms proposed their plan for two projects on the Grays River. The project for the Gorley Springs would design and...
The Wahkiakum School Board met January 24 in a quieter meeting than past months. Wrestling Coach John Hannah was present to ask the board for assistance in the cost of refurbishing the wrestling mats. The board agreed to pay a portion of the cost of the reconditioning. Seniors Brandi Seaberg and Michael Weiler presented plans for the senior trip. Seniors have decided they would like to go to Kahneeta Resort in Oregon on June 10. They would depart Cathlamet at 5:30 a.m. and leave the resort at 9 p.m. Superintendent Bob Garrett said that the dist...
Chris Goodwin of Long Beach has taken over as the new associate director of the Wahkiakum Community Foundation. Goodwin has worked with many non-profit organizations for the last eight years, the biggest being the Humane Society of Southwest Washington. For the past two and a half years, she said she worked with 24 out of 30 non-profit organizations in the Long Beach area. Certified in non-profit management through Grays Harbor Community College, she hopes to bring fun to the foundation. “My job is to build events for all five of the locations...
David Goodroe has replaced Richard Erickson as the executive director of the Lower Columbia Economic Development Council (LCEDC). Goodroe said he will have a different approach to the job than his predecessor. “I’m going to do a lot more outreach,” he said last Thursday. Goodroe, who retired here in 2006 after a long business career, has kept busy. He joined the town council shortly after moving here and won re-election last fall after a closely contested race. He is the town’s representative to the EDC board, the Council of Governments and the...
Dressed in a lamb suit to highlight the story "Duck on a Bike", Reading Is Fundamental coordinator Mary Thomas read to a preschool class from St. James Family Center on Monday. Photo by Sunny Manary. Three times during the school year, students from Julius A. Wendt Elementary and St. James Family Center's Cathlamet and Rosburg pre-school programs participate in Reading is Fundamental, or RIF. In RIF, students hear a story and are allowed to chose a free book. Between Cowlitz County and Wahkiakum County, 30 schools participate. “All the money c...
Students filed into the gym at Wahkiakum High School last Thursday morning talking to each other about the assembly they were about to see. “I don’t want to watch this,” one student said to a friend as they walked up the bleachers together. “This is going to be depressing,” his friend said, nodding in agreement. As the last of the people came into the gym, Principal Loren Davis asked the students to please try to fill the center section of the bleachers. Doing as they were told, the crowd grew silent and Davis introduced the day’s guest speak...
The Wahkiakum PUD met Tuesday to discuss computer and other issues. Westend resident Pam Anderson was present to question the board what is needed for a water connection on the Westend. She said she had signatures of residents interested in the project. Manager Dave Tramblie told her the project is very large in scale. He said it was the opinion of the board that the PUD had their hands full with other projects at this time. He told Anderson that if residents on the Westend are interested in pursuing a project to obtain water, they would need t...
The Wahkiakum PUD met for the first time in the new year to discuss future issues and projects. PUD water department supervisor Bill Chamberlain was present to give updates on the Western Wahkiakum Water System (WWWS) and the Puget Island Water System (PIWS). He explained to the board about the new leak detection equipment and how it is placed. He told the board a minor problem is locating on long distances. He said that he would like some late night leak detection done because home use will sometimes act as a leak and workers are unable to tel...
The Wahkiakum Chamber of Commerce has a new director. Tanja Winebrenner took over for Jennifer Johnson who resigned last fall to take a position in Wilsonville, Oregon. One of the many things Winebrenner hopes to accomplish is the promotion of Wahkiakum County as a tourist destination. “I want to help facilitate growth in the county through the retention and promotion of our members while increasing tourism,” she said. “The Lower Columbia region is one of the nicest places not only to visit but to live,” she said, pointing out that tourism...
Matt Reichert, a 2003 graduate of Wahkiakum High School, has returned home after spending a year in Iraq. Stationed outside Tikrit, he spent one tour at Cobspeicher as a member of the 1041st unit Engineer Company of the Army/National Guard. On August 5, 2007, Reichert was traveling with members of his unit escorting a convoy back to base. On Main Supply Route (MSR) Tampa, which is like an interstate, the Armored Security Vehicle (ASV) they were riding in struck a roadside bomb with the rear passenger tire. The vehicle rolled and caught fire....
The number of fall Chinook salmon returning to the Elochoman Fish Hatchery this fall was one of the lowest in recent years. Aaron Roberts, regional hatchery complex manager, reported the hatchery took 849 fall Chinook and allowed about another 85 to spawn naturally. Last year, the hatchery crew spawned 1,023 and released 185. The number has been decreasing over the past seven years; in 2001, the hatchery spawned 3,791 fish and released 1,860. “That was a really big run,” Roberts said. "This year's run was predicted to be low." The quantity of...
The last meeting of the year of the Wahkiakum County Commissioners brought thanks and reports. County permit coordinator Chuck Beyer told the board that the building and permit fees for 2008 shoreline permits would be raised to $800. Shoreline exemptions would be raised from $75 to $100, short flats will be raised from $100 to $200, subdivision would be raised from $500 to $800, and the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) review to $150. Commissioner Blair Brady reported he recently attended the Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Council of Governments (COG)...
