Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
Sorted by date Results 26 - 50 of 2578
Did you know that Washington Sate was one of the first in the country to adopt weed laws to help farmers address Canada Thistle? While it’s true that Canadian Thistle is still present today, the Washington State Noxious Weed Board still considers it a class C noxious weed along with others for control. The state Noxious Weed Board performs the administrative work for the entire state while we locally attempt to carry out their mission “To serve as responsible stewards of Washington by aiding in the protection and preservation of the land, wat...
Andrew Carnegie said “a library outranks any other one thing a community can do to benefit its people”. Beginning in 1899, Carnegie, founder of Carnegie Steel, funded a dramatic increase in the number of public libraries in the U.S. This coincided with the rise of women’s clubs in the post-Civil War period. Women’s clubs led the establishment of 75–80 percent of the libraries across the country. They took the lead in long-term fundraising and lobbying within their communities. The Cathlamet Blanche Bradley Public Library began as a project o...
Cathlamet’s premium asset is a section of timberland located on a ridge above town. Over the decades, harvests have delivered recurring income to a municipality that operates on a shoestring. Should Cathlamet sell this land? Never. Cathlamet’s second renewable resource is a water right to the Elochoman River. It feeds the water plant, serves town customers and supplies everyone on Puget Island. Recurring water revenue is vital to sustaining local services. Should the town sell this water right to the PUD? The answer is obvious. The PUD has cov...
Someone in my community thought it appropriate to shoot a coyote from their car at 10 p.m. on a Saturday night. I had been having some "conversations" with that coyote. The coyote had become used to running through my yard when the house was vacant, and there were some animal bones in the yard when I first arrived last year, from California. I threw the bones into the brush and, shortly thereafter, got into an accident that broke my arm. It was a cold, cold winter last year, my first year in Washington State. During that time I did a lot of...
I was an attorney in state government for over 37 years. Because of my experience I am closely watching the campaign for Washington State Attorney General. There is no question in my mind that Nick Brown is by far the best candidate. In addition to his experience as an attorney in the JAG Corps, and as the U.S. Attorney for Western Washington, where he was the administrator of that prestigious office, he also served as legal advisor to Governor Inslee. This broad experience provides the best possible background for leading an Attorney...
I am writing this letter in response to last week’s presumptive letter about Senator Jeff Wilson by Garrett Radcliffe. I have never met Mr. Radcliffe, and it didn’t sound like he’s met Senator Wilson either. But I have had the pleasure of meeting Senator Wilson twice, right here in Cathlamet, in the last three months. Jeff Wilson is helping Wahkiakum County at the State level to attain forest land in the Grays River Watershed for a Community Forest via grants and State funding. Senator Wilson sees the importance of the Community Forest that wil...
To the Eagle, I found our latest rendition of Bald Eagle Days to be a resounding success. However, there was one exception: our very own State Senator Jeff Wilson. A week after a political assassination attempt, with wars raging in Gaza and Ukraine, and in the middle of a contentious political climate to say the least, Senator Wilson thought it would be a great idea to drive a mock war machine tank and take “shots” at the crowd. This, the same individual who couldn’t keep track of his own firearm and took it on an international flight. I sure...
To The Eagle, Cathlamet has arrived! We are highlighted in the 2024-25 edition of the Washington State Visitors Guide! On page 73 under Local Culture, I read "CATHLAMET. A scenic stop on Highway 4, which skirts the Columbia River between Longview and the coast, this tiny town is home to Julia Butler Hansen National Wildlife Refuge, where you might spy Columbian white-tailed deer. Stop by one of the appealing eateries in town, such as The Spar for chicken-fried steak or biscuits with homemade gravy, or River Mile 38 Brewing, where you can sip a...
Think you couldn't possibly volunteer for one of the county's five fire districts? Think again, says Randy Hoven, fire chief for Wahkiakum County Fire District 4. When Fire District 4's M.D. Johnson asked if I would be interested in volunteering, I said "I'm too old and decrepit." He said, "Do you think you could drive that tender over there?" I said, "Well, yeah. I could do that." His response was "If you could do that and watch over the crew while they're fighting a fire, then we could use...
I wish to submit a correction and comment to your summary of the impacts of PUD/Town utility consolidation study in the “PUD Report” published in the July 11, 2024 edition of the Eagle. Your report states “Consolidation of these utilities could mean lower prices for consumers and greater efficiencies for utility operators.” This may be true for customers outside the Town of Cathlamet but is definitely NOT accurate for utility customers within the Town of Cathlamet. The PUD study states “the water bill for a residential customer inside the Town...
Lots of laughter and applause filled the historic Cathlamet Pioneer Center on Friday night, July 12. After participating in Cathlamet's first week-long "Summer Musical Theater Camp", ten young local thespians entertained family and friends with an original production, "Shel Silverstein: Poems & A Song". It was by any measure, a smashing success! Under the enthusiastic direction of Joe Baker, Delee Baker and Lorene VanderWalker, the talented Cast Members shared witty poems and delighted the...
Was Maureen the inspiration for the Eveready Bunnie? Attending the life celebration of Maureen Zacher Bockius at the Norse Hall a week ago, I had previously read the very replete discussion of her vast public service in The Eagle and was amazed at how much I didn’t know about her That got me thinking: didn’t Maureen’s career peak at about the same time that Eveready batteries came out with that iconic character the Eveready Bunny, the one that just goes and goes thanks to an amazing energy source? I’m wondering if some bright adverti...
To The Eagle, The public is invited to a Memorial Day Ceremony next Monday, May 27, 2024, at 9 a.m. at Greenwood Cemetery. The event, hosted by the Veterans of Foreign Wars Wahkiakum Post #5297, will pay tribute to those men and women that made the ultimate sacrifice for this great country. For those that have difficulty standing, please bring a chair. The ceremony should last about 30 minutes. There will be no refreshments. Bill Tawater Commander Wahkiakum Post 5297...
To The Eagle, The Cathlamet Public Library Wishes to thank the following library staff and volunteers for helping to make the recent Blanche Bradley Memorial Library Foundation book sale a collaborative community success: The members of The Blanche Bradley Memorial Foundation, and their spouses who committed much time and labor to the event. Wahkiakum High School Principal Stephanie Leitz for providing the following students to help with setup before and dissemination after the sale-Aimon Lee, Jacob Johnson, Mary Sealy, Harley Popp, Danny...
To The Eagle, April 21st – 27th National Volunteer Week GFWC-Cathlamet Woman’s Club recognizes and celebrates the service of the many volunteers in Wahkiakum County that give their time, talent, resources, energy, and dedication to serving our community. We thank the Bloom volunteers that keep our town beautiful with seasonal flowers/displays in the big blue planters. We thank the many volunteers that maintain the PioneerCenter and the Wahkiakum Museum. We thank the volunteers that help out at the Library and at our schools. We thank the car...
To The Eagle, I am writing to express my sincere gratitude to the sponsors and organizers of the All Day Disc Golf Presents: Lucky Sky Challenge held April 13 and 14, 2024 in Skamokawa and Cathlamet. The event featured Lucky Mud Resort and Skyline Golf Course and brought together 128 disc golfers, both professional and amateur, from across the Pacific Northwest. The turnout was a true testament to the hard work and dedication of everyone involved. Special thanks go to Debi Trull of Realty West for her generous sponsorship, which played a key...
To The Eagle, I was born and raised in Cathlamet, moved to Portland after graduation and worked in Portland and and Vancouver. I moved to Long Beach Washington in 1995 and worked there for 25 years. In 2020 I retired and moved back to my hometown of Cathlamet. I like to remember how things were 60 years ago. They were good times. But things do change, and we have to respect those changes. We also must respect those who have lived in this town all their lives. There are certain things that are not going to change and one of them is the...
To The Eagle, I just watched the video of the last council meeting held on April 15th. I was appalled by the total lack of respect from one specific council member. Robert Stowe was both disreputable and childish. He interrupted the sheriff and the mayor. It started by talking about the no parking space and what was needed to make it legal. In a past meeting, information was given that was incorrect. The information given was in reference to Big Bend College parking. It was how they enforced parking on this college campus. The sheriff was tryin...
Our learning process at The Eagle continues. Last week, we published a letter to the editor signed by “Eric Arthur Blair.” Many astute readers pointed out that the name was the real name of author George Orwell. We slipped up in publishing this letter: our policy is to print the author’s name and town of residence, and not to print anonymous letters. We will do our best to validate letter writers in the future, and will not publish them if we can’t reach the author and have concerns. Unfortunately, letters submitted over the website frequen...
To The Eagle, I’ve been very outspoken for a long time about the need for the town to change its governance to allow the hiring of a professional town manager. A town manager would work closely with our competent Clerk Treasurer to oversee the daily town functions that the mayor currently does. He would report to the council and could be replaced if found not adequately performing as required. Moreover, among many other aspects, the professional town manager hired would need to have an understanding (that’s currently lacking) of: basic financia...
To The Eagle, Mayor Olson’s list of accomplishments is growing. He is experienced, organized, and deft at two related issues key to the TOC’s success: networking, and fundraising. That he finds himself under attack from members of the city council is sad, but not surprising. I served one term as mayor (2010-13). After my election, I was invited to join the “real meeting,” a periodic gathering of elected leaders held then on Puget Island, at which local officials from various agencies would discuss and coordinate activities. I declined due to...
To The Eagle, I would like to know why the county can’t afford to pay a full-time paramedic. We need one. We have a few older people that live in town, Skamokawa, and the island that would benefit from having one. My nephew might have lived if there had been a paramedic who could administer medicine right away. We have a wonderful team of EMS workers, but they can only do so much. I would like the county to look into it. We need a paramedic. Susan Brown Puget Island...
To The Eagle, As Sheriff of this County, I stay away from publicly commenting on Town of Cathlamet politics as much as possible, but on certain occasions and in the name of truth and correcting misconceptions, I must speak. I believe the attack on the current mayor with censorship on his "behaviour" (a Canadian spelling of the word), is misleading at best, and bullying at worst. I have witnessed or have been present on several occasions where the rude, disrespectful, aggressive, and hostile behavior from a councilman was almost too much to...
To The Eagle, I am writing to express my deep concern and frustration regarding the behavior exhibited by certain members of our town council during meetings. As a concerned citizen who attends council meetings, I was appalled by the lack of professionalism and decorum displayed by some individuals entrusted with the responsibility of governing our community. One council member, in particular, conducted themselves in a manner unbefitting of their position. Throughout the proceedings, this individual appeared more preoccupied with their...
To The Eagle, I have periodically been involved with our current mayor working on town-related issues for several years. After reading the censure letter and his rebuttal comments, a couple of things stood out to me. Firstly, I am embarrassed on his behalf for his conclusion on the status of his relationship with the Town Council in his State of the Town pamphlet. Our Council is very competent and committed. Rather than blaming the Council for his poor relationship with them, perhaps he should be accountable and look in a mirror. Rather than “g...
