Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
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Days of fine weather seemed to ensure that the Wahkiakum High School Class of 2023 would enjoy graduation in the sun, but when the rain came the district scrambled to move the ceremony indoors. For the first time since the pandemic began, the gym was full to the rafters with friends and family on hand to celebrate 44 students participating in their final act as students at Wa-Ki-Hi. Malia Ana Silva, the class salutatorian, welcomed the crowd. In her speech, she remembered one teacher from their...
The saloon in downtown Cathlamet changed hands to Realtor Debi Trull and her husband Gary last week to the tune of $225,000. “We are the proud new owners of that catastrophe," Debi Trull said with a laugh, before turning more serious. “It’s getting more and more dilapidated and it’s such an iconic piece of the history of Cathlamet its not in its best interest to continue rotting way,” she said. It will take some time, but the couple have long range plans to restore the building to its former gl...
The Wahkiakum County Port 1 Board of Commissioners increased the manager’s salary, approved a free launch day, and heard about activity at the Elochoman Slough Marina at their meeting last Thursday, In their first order of business, the board adopted a resolution to give the port manager a seven percent raise, which brings Todd Souvenir’s salary to $71,508.53, effective June 1. They also approved a free launch day in support of the Wounded Warriors event on August 31. The launch will be fre...
This week's county commissioners meeting started with the approval of a letter of support for the PUD to the state Public Works Board. The commissioners endorsed funding proposals for four capital projects in the county. The projects include an alternate water source for Cathlamet, the extension of the Skamokawa mainline, the western Wahkiakum system Grays River and Hull Creek extension, and the replacement of 4,000 feet of mainline along State Route 4 in Grays River. Port #1 manager Todd Souvenir told the commissioners that he had applied for...
After a moment of silence for Rick Nelson, the editor and publisher of the Wahkiakum County Eagle who passed away on June 2, the Town of Cathlamet spent the greater part of the next four hours discussing a variety of subjects at length at their meeting on June 5. Sheriff Mark Howie talked about his department’s move to the back of the Wahkiakum County Courthouse, how they responded to the recent swatting incident at the school where a caller falsely reported an act of violence, the addition o...
The cause of two unrelated and recent fires in Wahkiakum County remain undetermined. According to Austin Burkhalter, assistant chief for the Grays River Fire Department, because a fire at a home on Altoona/Pillar Rock Road on May 28 did not appear suspicious, there was no request for a fire investigator. It is believed that the homeowner’s insurance company will likely conduct their own investigation. As for the fire at the home on South Welcome Slough on May 31, the cause is still being i...
In a story about the county commissioners meeting in last week’s paper regarding the landscaping projects that were approved by the county commission on June 6, the funding for this project is coming from the Capital Projects fund. This fund is supported by Real Estate Excise Tax. Real Estate Excise tax is collected on property sales. This project is not funded by individual property taxes. The only thing that may be funded with the Election Security fund is proper lighting around the election drop box and the main entrance....
To The Eagle: A previous letter was so full of contempt for the vast majority of people here in America I had to reply. In the letter the writer refers often to "We" laughed at gay kids, "we" verbally abused skinny kids, "we" made fun of girls that were overweight and so on. He adds "We" hate this and that today. I want to know who the heck the "We" is he is accusing? Allow me to set the record straight, first of all “We” sounds like you think we all did those unkind things to others, We did not, only a very small number of stupid people, bul...
A few students from the Wahkiakum High School Robotics team took their winning robot from the SeaPerch competition to the Elochoman River to see how well it would work in field studies. The goal was to find out if the SeaPerch robot would be a helpful tool in combination with live student snorkel divers for collecting Biological data in the Elochoman River. Their teacher said, "The answer was a resounding yes!" This is spawning grounds for the pikeminnow and they hoped to catch a glimpse of...
The KM Robotics Cup is held twice per year, once in mid-winter and once in the late spring, to showcase middle school and upper elementary robotics students and their robots, and to prepare them for future high school level competitions. This year, the KM Cup involved robots in pairs (called "alliances") competing with other alliances to see how many balls and cups could be collected, and an "endgame" tussle to see who would be king of the mountain. The lone entry from the Columbia River...
The Southwest Washington Independent Robotics League returned to action after a three-year hiatus last week with Naselle High School hosting. Each school in the league gets to make up their own competition and rules, publish them, and invite other schools from around the area to come compete. Naselle chose to host a "Demolition Derby" where each robot runs the figure-eight course attempting to avoid being knocked-out by the other robots. Definitely a crowd-pleaser. Only one robot was knocked...
A special filing period for three elected positions came and went quietly last week. According to Amanda Boehler, election coordinator for the Wahkiakum Auditor’s Office, no one filed for the Skamokawa Water/Sewer District position or the Cemetery District #1 position. Robert Torppa, however, filed for the Naselle Grays River Valley School District #155 Director 1 position. According to the RCW 29A.24.201, Boehler said, “If no candidate files for an office during the special filing period, an...
A BIT WET--If you weren’t paying attention, you may have missed the forecast for a chance of a shower or two this past week and if you were in the midst of putting up hay, you weren’t too thrilled to see it actually show up on Friday morning! However, considering things were really drying up around here, and the ground around my place was turning hard as a rock, I was glad to see some of that wet stuff. I know my plants and lawn seemed to perk up as well. The forecast seems to be drying up again, so for all you sun lovers, it looks like it...
THURSDAY Walking Group, Community Center, Cathlamet, 9 a.m. Senior Citizen Luncheon, Hope Center, Noon. Senior Citizen Luncheon, Rosburg Hall, Noon. Fire Protection District No. 1 Commissioners, Fire Hall, 5:30 p.m. Fire District No. 4, 7 p.m. Puget Island Fire Department, 7 p.m. Cathlamet First Aid Division, Fire Hall, 7 p.m. Skamokawa Fire Department, First Aid Division, 7 p.m. Grays River Fire Department, ambulance training, 7 p.m. Free Senior Fitness and Balance Class, Hope Center, 3rd & Maple, enter via door on 3rd, 12:45-1:45 p.m. Food...
Greetings from the fair office! The Cruzin to the fair Car Show was a big hit with 100 cars on the grounds; it was awesome. The Best of Show Car was Susan Jessee's 1966 Chevy Nova SS it was beautiful. The Kids Choice award went to Mike Tarabochia and the People's Choice went to Ed Stevens. Other winners were Louis A McGill Jr., Dennis Bahneman, Brian Wilson, Mark Mcgill, Mike Tarabochia, Rich Newman, Jason Smith, Perry McClung, Paul Siminis, George Paradis, Larry Bostain, Glenn & Vicki Wiest, Fred Barth, Leon D. Trafelet, Dale Heiner, Kele...
Dear Readers, if ever we should be proud to live in this small community, it was last Saturday at the Naselle GRV Graduation Ceremony. Those seniors are a fine example of why a small school can be an asset to a community. They are exemplary in their work, their friendships and their achievements. One relationship I truly appreciate is working with Principal, Justin Laine. He did all he could to help me meet with seniors for interviews and he also sent me his own thoughts about them. Here is an...
By Karen Bertroch At last Saturday's graduation ceremony, Naselle/GRV seniors celebrated their high school years with information on scholarships given in support of their pursuits in higher education. Principal Justin Laine's scholarship presentation reported as follows: "There is great leadership, strong character, and outstanding citizenship in this class. I am proud of every single one of them. Collectively, they have shown tremendous kindness, grace, humility, and respect. "Local scholarshi...
Eric (Rick) Robert Nelson, Jr., was born Jan. 16, 1951, in Shelby, Mont., and died June 2, 2023, surrounded by his family. His parents were Eric (Bob) Nelson and Lois Pride Nelson. The family lived in Idaho until moving to Castle Rock just in time for the 1962 Columbus Day Storm. They moved to Cathlamet a year later, with his father managing and, in 1966, buying The Wahkiakum County Eagle. Rick worked as a printer's devil and pressman. He graduated from Wahkiakum High School in 1969, having participated in football, baseball and debate. He...
Frances Marie Penttila passed away at home just before dawn on May 24, 2023. Francy was born in Astoria, Oregon on December 11, 1926 to Eva (Alanen) Nelson and Gunnar Nelson. She came to Deep River by river, aboard “The General Washington” to the “Deep River Hotel” with her parents until their journey the next day to the logging camp at Toonerville. Francy is perhaps the last former resident to have lived there. The family later moved to their family farm in Salmon Creek and she was joined by a brother Roy and a sister Betty. Francy attende...
The Town of Cathlamet will sponsor a Pickleball Clinic on Saturday, June 24. Interested parties will be welcomed at the Erickson Park Tennis Courts at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Participants will need to supply their own Pickleball paddles, both for the clinic and the tournament. In addition, there will be sign-ups for the Town of Cathlamet’s Pickleball and Corn Hole double-elimination tournaments. Registration, limited to 32, two-person teams, will be from 9:30 a.m. through 4:30 p.m. during the clinic at Erickson Park. There is a $20 per team r...
On Saturday, June 24, the Finnish American Folk Festival will host a salmon dinner. Live music will be performed by Emily Randolph & the Sunnyside. Dinner will include salmon with scalloped potatoes, cucumber dill salad, with strawberry shortcake for dessert. There will also be the option of a hot dog bar. Dinner will be served from 5-7 p.m., with music from 6-8 p.m. Beer and wine will be for sale from 5-7:30 p.m. Prepaid Tickets are $20/person (includes one salmon dinner); $25 at the door. Hot dog bar for the kids will be available on the day...
The second annual Cup of Sunshine Food Donation Challenge began June 1. The event, designed to support local food banks and the people who use them, is the brainchild of Jabber Shack owner, Sue Zabel. She’s challenging all the businesses in Wahkiakum County, west of KM and east, to participate in the food drive. This year, she said, even the employees at the Wahkiakum County Courthouse want to join in on the fun. “We live in the best community,” Zabel said. With children out of school, and some...
The River of Life Assembly of God Church held a ceremony honoring the Mecha Mules Robotics Team on May 28. Photo by Ian Brandon....
The last two Fish Preservation Classes provided by a grant through the Wahkiakum Marine Resource Committee will be held June 26 & 27 at the Grays River Grange Hall. Each class will begin at 10 a.m., with no charge to participants. To register call the Wahkiakum County Extension Office at 360-795-3278 or email shari.parker@wsu.edu....
Wahkiakum County law enforcement officers and emergency response personnel handled a variety of reports during the past week, including: June 4 — 10:45 p.m. A caller reported a possible vehicle accident in the Elochoman Valley near Foster Road. A second caller said someone who sounded inebriated was yelling and walking away from the scene. A deputy responded and found an unoccupied vehicle off the roadway. 11:52 p.m. A driver was detained following a vehicle stop in Cathlamet and cited for driving with a suspended license. June 5 — 12:52 a.m...
