Decorated veteran Emerson Tolle takes a ride on a B-17
It had been 67 years since Wenatchee's Emerson Tolle had flown a B-17 bomber. This past week, with the help of retired firefighter Mike Hughes and Hughes' daughter Kristin, the ... READ MORE
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Fifty-four students honored for volunteerism by United Way
Can you imagine being a high school senior and having an inspirational award named in your honor in perpetuity? That's what happened to Keisha Engley of Eastmont High School at the Youth United awards ceremony last night at the Wenatchee Convention Center. She was moved to tears in accepting the ...
We can counteract the misrepresentation of women
Last week, more than 300 people showed up for a free showing of Miss Representation, a documentary that makes a compelling case about how entertainment and media outlets in this country are perpetuating views of women as objects rather than as thinking human beings. Sex sells, and in these times ...
What we can learn from Ryan and Steve Sutherland
I hope every person in North Central Washington had a chance to read the extraordinary and moving story in our Sunday edition about Ryan and Steve Sutherland of Cashmere. The triumph of Ryan's spirit despite having a rare form of muscular dystrophy that has taken away most of his motor ...
Habit for Humanity building its 45th home in the valley
Natalie Narby, the executive director of Habitat for Humanity of the Greater Wenatchee Area, stopped by the office Tuesday to talk about the impact that organization has had on low-income families. Since 1990 they've completed 44 homes in the valley for those who otherwise couldn't afford home ownership. Work is ...
Miss Representation a must-see film
A provocative and thought-provoking documentary film called Miss Representation will be shown free to the public at the Gateway Cinema in Olds Station next Tuesday. This film is well worth seeing because it forces viewers to come to grips with how women are portrayed by the entertainment industry and media. ...
Write on the River Conference a gift to North Central Washington
I had the privilege this week of learning more about the Write on the River Conference, a remarkable gathering of writers from all experience levels that takes place at Wenatchee Valley College on May 18-20. Susan Lagsdin, Write on the River's executive director, stopped by the office to give some ...
Leavenworth mayor has a passion for her community
I've been hearing favorable comments from community leaders in Leavenworth about the leadership of new Mayor Cheri Farivar, so I arranged to meet her last week at the Red Bird Coffee House to get better acquainted and learn a bit more about the challenges facing the Bavarian city. It didn't ...
A further look at the suicide epidemic
Last Sunday's front-page feature on suicides was an important piece of journalism for the communities of North Central Washington. As reporter K.C. Mehaffey noted in the compelling stories she wrote on the subject, the suicide rate in this area is disturbingly high. It is heartening to see that local organizations ...
Local paramedic sees trauma, grace in Haiti
Lifeline Ambulance paramedic Mike Carter stopped by my office Monday to talk about his recent experience helping with trauma services in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. "It was the most amazing experience of my life," said Carter, who moved to the valley two years ago from western Washington. He had been reading reports ...
Ruling on porn filtering in libraries makes common sense
This week, I had the opportunity to sit down with North Central Regional Library director Dean Marney to talk about the landmark federal court case that the library just won that allows them to continue filtering pornography. Marney, who has been director for 15 years, said the decision to filter ...
Foster parent shares her journey with Children's Home Society supporters
Supporters of Children's Home Society in Wenatchee were treated to an inspiring and riveting story from foster parent Angel Kirk during the annual Sweethearts for Kids benefit luncheon at the Wenatchee Convention Center on Wednesday. Kirk and her husband Travis, who have four children of their own, took on the ...
A PBS documentary explores the history of Grand Coulee Dam
Those interested in the history of North Central Washington will want to tune into KCTS Television next Tuesday at 8 p.m. to watch the PBS documentary on Grand Coulee Dam. The 90-minute segment is part of the acclaimed American Experience program and it does a nice job of exploring the ...
Cashmere confronts teen suicides
A sizable crowd turned out Monday night for a forum at Cashmere High School that was designed to help the community deal with the aftermath of the suicides of two students in the last six weeks. "We cannot heal alone," said moderator Gene Sharratt, the former superintendent of the North ...
Lewis and Clark's dual language program a success
Lewis and Clark Elementary fourth and fifth-grade students showed off their dual language skills Wednesday night for parents, teachers and members of the Wenatchee School Board. It was impressive to see Principal Alfonso Lopez pull students out of the crowd and interview them in their second language without the benefit ...
Another local connection to Haiti
It's fascinating how deeply North Central Washington is connected to the island of Haiti. It's widely known that our medical community has been sending teams of health care professionals to the city of Milot on a regular basis for more than a decade and Rotary clubs from the area have ...
Film festival may lead to school programs
It's exciting to see that North Central Washington residents are going to have a chance to see some first-rate documentary films next weekend at the Vox Docs Film Festival at Sleeping Lady Resort in Leavenworth. We seldom if ever get a chance to see films like Miss Representation, This Way ...
New classroom behavior approach being advocated by Wenatchee parents
There's going to be an interesting discussion Monday evening about a different approach to teaching and managing student behavior in the classroom. A group of Wenatchee parents have been studying the current system in use by the district, called Make Your Day, and have become enamored of a different approach ...
The secrets of a Girl Scout cookie sales ace
I got an education in how to sell Girl Scout cookies earlier this week from Samantha Windsor, an eighth grader at Pioneer Middle School. The soft-spoken young lady has an amazing track record of selling cookies for the Girl Scouts. Last year, her sales eclipsed the 1,000-box mark. She's been ...
Camp Fire honors Caryl Morrell for outstanding service
Caryl Morrell, the city of Wenatchee's recreation supervisor, was honored by North Central Washington Camp Fire on Wednesday with a trailblazer award outstanding service to the community. Since she arrived in the valley in 1991, Morrell has been the driving force behind building a vibrant parks and recreation program for ...
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