Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 42
Virginia "Ginny" L. Baldwin, 84, of Lewiston, Idaho, and formerly of Pullman and Colfax, Wash., passed away Jan. 27, 2022, at Whitman Hospital and Medical Center in Colfax, Wash. Ginny was born March 19, 1937, in Colfax, Wash., to Eden "Pete" and Helen (Miller) Baldwin, the oldest of four siblings. She grew up in Colfax attending St. John's Academy, Martha Washington Grade School and Colfax High School, graduating in 1956. She was a true Bulldog forever, even becoming a Gonzaga Bulldog fan.... Full story
Eugene A. "Scooter" Brannan, longtime Colfax resident, passed away Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022, at Whitman Hospital in Colfax. He was 95. Scooter was born Dec. 31, 1926, in Pullman, Wash., to Fred and Vera (Shaw) Brannan. He was raised on the farm near Onecho and attended elementary school near Union Center. He graduated from Colfax High School in 1945. Shortly after high school he enlisted in the United States Army where he was stationed in Missoula, Mont. He served for three years as a clerk typist.... Full story
Spokane Valley--The basketball postseason has arrived in the Northeast 2B League, with all 11 boys and girls teams earning their spots in the double-elimination tournament beginning Monday, Feb. 7 and running 12 days until the final round Saturday, Feb. 19. Locally, the Davenport boys finished third in the regular season and earned a first-round bye, while the Reardan girls finished fifth and also received a de facto bye after Chesterton Academy forfeited the tournament. The Davenport girls and...
Clifford "Jack" DeYoung, longtime Steptoe area resident, passed away Jan. 15, 2022, at his home in Steptoe. He was 81. Memorial Services will be planned at a later date. Jack was born Nov. 19, 1940, at his family's home in Thornton, to William and Edith Foust DeYoung. He grew up in the Thornton area along with two sisters and a brother where his dad worked for Virgil Klaveano. Jack attended school in Rosalia and graduated from high school there in 1959. At an early age, he enlisted in the... Full story
Hetty Fairchild Fowler was born Feb. 6, 1927, to Virgil and Lyla Stilson in Colfax. After a brief illness she passed away suddenly on Jan. 31, 2022. She grew up on a farm near Steptoe and Married Ralph Fowler in 1944. They had three children and lived in Spokane, Colfax, Winona, on the farm near Steptoe and St. John, and spent winters in the Hemet, Calif., area for 45 years. She enjoyed playing golf, playing bridge and enjoyed some wonderful friends. For the past 15 years, she had enjoyed the... Full story
Lucile A. Miller, 94, rejoiced as she joined her Savior face to face on January 31, 2022. Lucile was born Feb. 8, 1927, to Milton and Merle (Arrasmith) Ensley in Colfax, joining three older brothers, Melvin, Milton, and Allen. Her childhood home was built in 1890 by her grandfather, Henry Ensley. As a young girl, she attended the Onecho Country School two miles away from her home. Her daily commute would vary between riding her horse, her bicycle, or walking. Her first year in high school, a... Full story
DeWayne Leroy Normington, resident of Hay, Wash., passed away early Sunday morning, Jan. 30, 2022, at Whitman Hospital. He was 89. DeWayne was born Oct. 15, 1932, in Moscow, Idaho, to Ernest and Laura Dahlberg Normington. He grew up in Moscow and graduated from high school there. DeWayne was enlisted in the United States Army National Guard and served during the Korean Conflict from 1951 to 1955. He worked in the Artillery and motor pool while stationed in Germany. After honorable discharge he... Full story
Edward Richard Smith Jr. passed away Feb. 3, 2022, at home peacefully surrounded by family. A celebration of life service will be held Monday, Feb. 14, 2022, at 1:00 p.m. at the First Baptist Church in Colfax. Ed was born in Newark, New Jersey to Edward Richard Smith and Anna Marie Creel on Feb. 9, 1957 along with his twin sister Christine. He is the second of five children. At the age of 10 years old his family moved to California before ending up in Longview Wash., at the age of 12 where he at... Full story
Mavis Lust Jensen, born on Sept. 19, 1936, at St. Ignatius Hospital, Colfax, Wash., to Frank and Zella (Bell) Miller, has passed away Feb. 3, 2022, of her long-time battle with cancer. Mavis lived in Hay, Wash., until her family moved to a farm in the Wilcox area. The family then moved a short time to Moultrie, Georgia and Walla Walla, Wash., before residing in Colfax. After graduating from Colfax High School in 1954, Mavis attended the University of Washington. She married the love of her... Full story
COLFAX - Colfax High School staff voted for students to be named Top Dog for January. The Top Dog program honors Colfax High School students excelling in each department for effort, attitude, hard work, and helping others. Teachers in each department nominate students and vote to determine the winners. For the character award, any staff member may nominate a student, and the whole staff votes. The Colfax Top Dogs are: Art – Jade McGlothin Character – Kayden Butler CTE – Abigail Stilson Histo...
COLFAX — It’s natural to mumble nasty things about the cold weather. We all do it from time to time. But even the cold has its merits. One big plus is that it makes fireplaces a reasonable addition to our lives. In cold weather, we can build a fire in our home with a clear conscience. This is something that doesn’t translate well to summer heat, but when it’s cold, here comes the fire. Strange, isn’t it, our love affair with a fireplace? Makes absolutely no sense. Today, we can make houses so impervious to cold that every time we light a c...
COLFAX — The public is invited to the Jennings Elementary Art and STEAM Exhibit showing through Feb. 25 at the Libey Gallery. The exhibit is sponsored by the Colfax Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) and features artwork and STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math) projects from kindergarten through sixth-grade students. “There was no specific theme for the exhibition, we at the PTO wanted to provide an open forum, to give the students the opportunity to share what talents they have, and perhaps introduce them to artistic med...
8 Years Ago Colfax Gazette Friday, February 5, 1897 THE BREWERY BURNED Fire Supposed to be Caused by Overheating Shafting Shortly after seven o’clock Tuesday evening the Colfax Brewery, in the north end of the city, was discovered on fire and an alarm given. The fire department responded promptly, a line of hose stretched, and a stream of water was soon in use. The fire had gained such headway, however, that but little could be done, except to confine the fire to the brewery proper. The whole upper part of the brewery was destroyed, t...
It was heartbreaking when the Nooksack River submerged Whatcom County farming communities, swept livestock away and decimated dairies, farmland and homes. Equally sad was when heavy rains overflowed the Chehalis River and nearby tributaries, sending water through homes and property. Gov. Jay Inslee opened his Dec. 13 climate policy press conference by voicing concerns about the flooding, wildfires that have destroyed forests and filled the skies with smoke, drought that has caused reduction of...
Last year, Gov. Jay Inslee attempted an end run around the legislature by banning natural gas in new homes and commercial buildings via the state’s building codes. It was a bad idea. Now, some fellow Democrats who control the legislature are working on legislation trying to do the same — also a bad idea. Inslee’s proposed regulations forbid the use of fossil fuels for heating and hot water in new structures. Prohibiting natural gas is expensive for home and building owners many of whom insta...
Palouse Falls has long been one of my favorite places to hike. Over the years, I’ve hiked the mile or so trek to the top of the main falls on numerous occasions. I’ve hiked it by myself, with friends and even my daughter when she was very young. I’ve meandered along the Palouse River to the upper falls and descended the basalt rim to the pool at the base of the falls about 189 feet below. For those of us who grew up in Eastern Washington, hiking Palouse Falls trails has long been a rite of passa...
PULLMAN – The city has received $54,000 to expand summer outdoor education programs for school-aged kids. The funds help with the Summer Experiences and Enrichment for Kids program, which serves school-aged youth....
OLYMPIA – Those suffering mental health issues and juveniles could be restrained by law enforcement responding to crises. That is the thrust of House Bill 1735, which passed the state House with a 90-5 vote and is now under consideration in the Senate. The bill is intended to end confusion stemming from last year’s House Bill 1310, which prevented responders from receiving police assistance in detaining or transporting people. “We’re talking about hands-on… whether law enforcement can physically interact with people, not to hurt them but to he...
PALOUSE – The Washington State Department of Agriculture and Palouse Conservation District offers a Palouse Pesticide credit course on Feb. 22. Two credits are available. Presentations will include: • Herbicide Resistance: Implications for PNW Wheat Production System • Pesticide Stewardship and Proper Unused Pesticide Disposal and Pesticides • Water Quality in Washington State and the Palouse River Watershed Pesticide license numbers must be provided during registration to receive credit. Individuals must be present to receive credit. Registe...
CLARKSTON – The Lower Granite South Shore Visitor Center is closed Feb. 7-9 for maintenance work at the facility. The public will not have access to visitor services, including restrooms and access to drinking water. Tours are not being conducted, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Access to the Lower Granite Esplanade is not affected. Normal operations and access to the visitor center continues....
PALOUSE – Palouse could pay $2,000-$3,000 for a new well chlorine pump. Public works Superintendent Mike Wolf told the city council the chlorine pump for well three broke and need replacing. It adds liquid sodium chlorine to the water to make it safe. Palouse has backups for all of the well pumps, but Wolf said the city should replace the broken one. Wolf reported public works repaired a flood gate after it was found to be stuck due to a broken switch. Crews repaired the switch to avoid it from happening again. Another repair is planned for p...
ENDICOTT – A Northwest Grain Growers pickup crashed with two people in it, rolling sideways off of Kackman Road near Endicott on Feb. 2. The driver, of the Ford F-150, looked down to pick something up and lost control, said Whitman County Undersheriff Chris Chapman. One person reported to their boss their head hurt and he was taken to Whitman Hospital and Medical Clinic in Colfax for examination. No charges or tickets are anticipated for the driver....
PALOUSE – Palouse city employees are getting a 3% raise for 2022. Resolution 2022-01 was approved by the council on Jan. 25. A budget committee suggested the increase for all city staff and a $2,500 increase in the public works superintendent’s salary. The resolution included increase for the swimming pool staff and entry-level public works assistant for the increased minimum-wage mandate by state law. Councilwoman Ann Barrington motioned to approve Resolution 2022-01. It was by councilmember Travis Deerkop. The motion passed, according to the...
OLYMPIA — The state House of Representatives approved a bill Tuesday by Rep. Mary Dye that would allow a temporary judicial officer to be designated to step into the courtroom of a single-court judge if the presiding judge becomes unavailable, incapacitated, ill, or dies. “There are more than 112 single judge courts in Washington state. If a vacancy arises, it could take weeks or months to fill that position, delaying court cases. Justice delayed is justice denied,” Dye, R-Pomeroy, said. “This bill ensures that gap is filled so cases can be...
