Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
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These reports are from the previous four issues of the Daily Bulletin in Colfax. They are reprinted here for the benefit of Gazette readers who reside outside of Colfax. Some accounts have been updated. VOTE TOTALS INCREASE Another 140 votes were added to the April 23 special election returns for the Colfax and Colton school districts. The vote return is now at 48.84 percent for the two election districts. Colfax added another 102 votes with the approval dropping slightly from 53.22 percent on election night to 52.3 percent. The Colfax count...
After splitting a non-league pair at Moscow Monday night, Colfax baseball players face a two-week shutdown as the top finisher in the NE league. The two games on the cold and windy turf at Moscow put Colfax at the 20-game limit for regular season play. Colfax isn’t booked to play again until May 13 when they will match up with number-two Northwest Christian as part of the league finals at Medical Lake. The round will send three of the NE teams to the regional round of 16 in the state playoffs. The top spot in the league race guarantees the B...
Fifty runners finished the St. John Hog Jog race Saturday morning. Runners battled strong winds while climbing the Lancaster Road hill in the traditional route. Steven Ulrich, running in the age 50-59 class, won the overall race at 35:13, and Christine McGraw was the first female finisher at 36.41. Tommy Christianson was the first under-13 winner at 57.21. ORDER OF FINISH: 1. Steve Ulrich, 2. Christine McGraw, 3. Kaleb Kolb, 4. Seth Hartman, 5. Thomas Newton, 6. Mike Olin, 7. Shane Jorgensen,...
After doubleheader wins over Liberty Christian Saturday, the Colton girls softball team solidified their second-place spot in the Southeast 1B league. Colton (14-5) hosted Saturday in the whipping wind, opening with an 11-1 win followed by a 7-4 win. In the first game, Jenna Moser went 3 for 3 to lead the team while Kaitlin Druffel, Winnie Schultheis, Zoe Moser and Carrie Hennigar all had one hit. Freshman Zoe Moser pitched all six innings for the Wildcats, allowing one run on no hits, two...
In a key doubleheader to potentially keep their season alive Saturday, the Gar-Pal baseball team went down twice to Pomeroy. Then, on Tuesday, they traveled to their field and got two redeeming wins. Nonetheless, their season will end May 4 in a non-league game against St. Michael’s of Spokane. “We did get some revenge on Pomeroy. Unfortunately we lost the ones that counted,” said Gar-Pal coach Jeremy Kimble. “We needed at least one on Saturday to stay alive.” In the doubleheader’s first game,...
Colfax girls rolled out 143.5 points Tuesday night on their home turf to top 10 guests for the lone home track show of the season. They posted a margin over 44 points above number-two Northwest Christian. On the boys side of the meet Waitsburg/ Prescott rolled up 151 points to take the team honors with host Colfax placing second with 92. Reardan, which has edged Colfax in NE meets earlier this year, placed third with 87. Bailey Mackleit and Olivia Mellor placed one-two in the 100 hurdles and...
The Colfax High School boys golf team finished undefeated in league with a win in at Stone Ridge Golf Course in Blanchard, Idaho, Tuesday night. The Bulldogs finished first with a total of 454 while Lind-Ritzville-Sprague was second with 484. Odessa-Harrington finished third (499). Colfax’s Casey Johnson took the individual prize with a 77 while the Bulldogs’ Hunter Weitz had an 83 for third and Cody Gronning took sixth with an 88. For the girls, the Colfax one-member team of Paige Mackleit tied for first with Sadie Gardner of Northwest Chr...
The Gar-Pal softball team picked up two wins Saturday in a home doubleheader against Pomeroy, 12-2 and 10-0. In the first game, a fourth inning three-RBI double by Sammi Johnson broke open a Gar-Pal lead. “That was the big blow,” said Vikings coach Steve Witthuhn. Additional hitters in the first game for Gar-Pal included Lexi Rodriguez, McKenzie McClanahan and Sarah Wilson, who each had two hits. Chandler Pfaff pitched, going five innings to allow four hits with two walks and nine strikeouts. “She did really well on the day,” Witthuhn said. I...
The Spartans of Tekoa-Oakesdale-Rosalia lined up two doubleheaders this week and came out with two solid wins and two solid losses. At home Tuesday night, the Spartans beat Dayton 5-2 and 13-1 after traveling to DeSales on Saturday. In Walla Walla, the Spartans went down 18-1 and 10-0. “We got hammered,” said Spartans coach Kevin Young. “In defense of my players, DeSales is that good.” In the first game at Walla Walla, Jason Brown and Ty Mundt had the only hits while T.O.R. had eight strikeo...
Colfax softball players stormed past Moscow Monday night on the Bears’ home field to take two games, both of them shortened under the 10-run margin rule. Bulldog wins included a 13-0 shutout over six frames in the opener and 18-8 over five innings in the second game. The double win at Moscow will be followed by another non-league double with Waitsburg/Prescott Friday at McDonald Park. The Bulldogs, who finished 9-3 in league play, will host the first playoff round next Tuesday at McDonald w...
State lead auditor Karen Wilson told Whitman County commissioners Monday morning that the county had a clean audit. “The county’s results were adequate and did comply with state regulations,” Wilson said. Wilson said she visited almost all county departments during the audit which checked financial records from Jan. 1, 2011 to Dec. 31, 2012. The report said auditors evaluated internal controls and performed audit procedures on the activities of the county. They also determined whether the county complied with state laws and regulations as we...
The old-fashioned way of milling flour is about to become the new way. WSU engineering students made design changes in the Unifine milling system to increase the mill’s flour production and capacity. The students, and the mill’s financial backer, Steve Fulton, showed off the new version Friday morning in the Compton Union Building on the WSU campus. The mill is painted to show off WSU’s colors of crimson and gray. Pancakes made from the product, now labeled Cougar Pride, were served. Fulto...
The Palouse Conservation District has named Jennifer Boie as the new District Manager. In her new position, announced last week, Boie will provide administrative leadership to assist the Board of Supervisors with the coordination, management and administration of conservation programs throughout the Palouse Conservation District. Boie has worked as the District’s Education and Outreach Coordinator since 2010 and will now combine her project management experience with her hands-on knowledge of natural resources conservation in the new role w...
Whitman County Commissioner Dean Kinzer told the board of commissioners Monday that Whitcom, the emergency 911 dispatch services agency, agreed to the county’s terms in the agreement to assist in paying for new equipment for 11 operator positions. Kinzer said Whitcom has reserve funds to pay for the equipment and will put money back in the reserves as it receives payments from the different entities served by the agency. Whitcom estimates the cost to replace the equipment will be in the range of $400,000. The county has agreed to reimburse W...
The Palouse Area Robotics Team put it all together in Cheney April 4-6 for a top four finish at the Spokane regional. The team of 19 high school students from Gar-Pal, Colton, Pullman and Colfax finished fourth in qualifying rounds to advance to the finals with the top eight teams. The last group competed in three-on-three play where their robots shot frisbees into elevated goals and climbed monkey-bar like pyramids. “It was more of getting ourselves put together in Ellensburg,” said Glenn Woodhouse, the P.A.R.T. lead mentor. The regionals in...
A total of 31 rail cars rolled through the western part of the county over the weekend. Members of the North American Rail Car Operators Association came from all over the northwest and from California, Colorado and Arizona. At top, members line up the car brought by Jerry and Lori Hixon from Carlton Friday at Colfax. Below, the line of cars waits at the switch in Winona Saturday before going north through St. John to Thornton. Sunday they made the round trip to Hooper for a total of 220 rail...
Hanging baskets and row after row of brightly colored flowers fill the greenhouse next to the Colfax High School shop, and FFA students hope the greenhouse next to the ag shop on Morton Street is empty by Saturday afternoon. The students hope to sell 1,000 plants as a fundraiser this Friday and Saturday. The sale on Friday is from 3:30 to 6 p.m., and on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. “This is a major fundraiser for us,” said FFA member Skylar Simonson, a CHS senior. “The money we raise will...
County building permits Bob Goldsworthy, Rosalia, pole building, $18,000, April 23. Dan Henning, Rosalia, re-roof, $11,025, April 25. Dave and Pam Johnson, Colfax, wood stove, $3,900, April 29. Rob Shindler, Diamond, wood stove, $1,500, April 29. Marriage applications Jacob Clarence Robert Jensema, 25, Endicott, and Jessica Jae Holling-Degan, 23, Endicott, April 25. Christopher Smith Danaher, 31, Alamosa, Colo., and Aaron Lynn Chasteen, 37, Pueblo, Colo., April 26. Francisco Benjamin Aguilar, 28, Colfax, and Whitney Alison Mueller, 26, Colfax,...
Whitman County Fire District No. 7, which includes the Rosalia area, received a regional grant through the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The $135,826 grant is for enhancement of radio communication, according to Fire Chief Bill Tensfeld. The grant will allow the district to purchase equipment for a simulcast system. “Now, the dispatcher must switch between repeaters to see which repeater will allow the best communication with responders,” Tensfeld explained. “This new equipment will tie all the repeaters together and the dispa...
Whitman County deputies arrested 32-year-old Jacob P. Forster on charges of attempted first degree murder Tuesday. Authorities allege that during the early morning hours of March 27, Forster attempted to administer a poisonous substance to his wife while she slept in the couple’s Uniontown home. After the victim reported the incident to the Whitman County Sheriff’s Office late last week, investigators were able to develop enough information to take Forster into custody on charges of attempted murder. Forster and his wife have been married for...
Whitman County commissioners Monday approved a new half-time position at the county jail even though there was a snag about the number of hours that will be offered for the position. When Sheriff Brett Myers approached the commissioners last week, he indicated the job would entail 69 hours a month without benefits. If an employee works more than 69 hours, the county pay must allow for retirement benefits. However, commissioners this Monday were asked to approve the position for 79 hours plus benefits. “We were told 69 hours with no b...
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn and State Board of Education Chairman Jeff Vincent recognized schools receiving the Washington Achievement Award at an awards ceremony in Covington, Wash., April 30. A total of 381 schools received awards. There were several local winners. Gar-Pal High School, Rosalia High School and St. John-Endicott High School were recognized for Overall Excellence as was Jennings Elementary in Colfax, LaCrosse Elementary and Rosalia Elementary. In math, Garfield earned recognition as did LaCrosse High...
Colfax School District aims to issue a call for bids on the school security projects in June with the intent of getting the work done this summer or possibly during the weekends after school resumes. Supt. Michael Morgan said plans for the project are in the process of being prepared for bid specifications. Colfax district voters approved the $250,000 levy proposal Tuesday by more than 53 percent. Supt. Morgan said the district plans to pay for the project by tapping reserves or negotiating a short term loan from a county reserve fund to cover...
A 2005 Dodge Ram pickup, driven by Travis A. Hightower of Uniontown, collided with a Jeep Cherokee driven by Vicktor W. Bungart of Covington, Wash., last Friday morning at the intersection of Schlee Road and Highway 195 near Uniontown. Washington State Patrol troopers who investigated the accident determined that Hightower was driving while intoxicated and arrested him for vehicular assault. He was booked into Whitman County Jail. Bungart was taken to St. Joseph Regional Hospital in Lewiston...
With a $5.6 millon school bond passed last week at 72 percent approval, school officials in Colton will now move ahead to make it all a reality. While groundbreaking won’t take place until the summer of 2014, Supt. Nate Smith said the preliminary background work is soon to start. The first step is for Smith and school board members to meet with their bond consultant, Jon Gores of D.A. Davidson, to set the timeline for the $5.6 million, 30-year bond sale. Greg Costellaw and Larry Kom of C...
