By GEORGE A. KUNKE
Exciting interesting exhibits, diversified entertainment and nationally-known music, an increase in animals of all breeds, especially the cuddly type, bigger livestock, kids art, professional art, big vegetables, beautiful flowers, …There’s also a new stage, paid for by the Great Northwest Federal Credit Union. A vintage carriage from the Northwest Carriage Museum will be on display. Greek food, that could only mean gyros. And, oysters, yes, oysters, fried, and on the shell, are back. Yes! This year’s fair is something to get excited about!!
Since taking over as Pacific County fair manager several months ago, Scott McDougall has put into motion the Quilts and Roses, Tails and Noses theme that has generated a positive buzz throughout the fairgrounds.
“It’s going to be a fun place to be with a lot of stuff going on,” McDougall said. “There’s going to be great livestock auctions. This is a good place to be. We’ll definitely have more animals this year. We have good numbers in the cow barn. There are lots of pigs and more rabbits than we’ve had in years. The Olson Timberline Ranch is bringing in a prize steer.”
McDougall said he’s proud of all the volunteer work people have donated to making this year’s fair something the community can look forward to.
“The support we’ve gotten from volunteers has been absolutely phenomenal,” McDougall said. “We couldn’t do it without the volunteers. I’m really proud of the volunteers. We have just a huge group of people that are really proud of their community and want to make it shine.’
“Things have gone really well. We’ve accomplished a lot over the past eight months. We have a new stage – thanks to the generosity of the Great Northwest Federal Credit Union. The fair will carry their name on the stage for the next 10 years.” The credit has purchased the name rights for the stage. The new stage has a 16’ by 20’ platform and it cost $10,000.
McDougall said the fair staff (primarily about 350 volunteers and is shooting for a seating capacity of about 1,500.
Fairgoers have reason to get psyched about this year’s entertainment. “I’m really excited about the acts we have coming,” McDougall said. “We will have good entertainment every day.”
“I’m really pleased and really happy that our commercial building is full,” McDougall said. “We will have some new attractions. There’s some great craft stuff, some great new products. We have really interesting and diverse things.”
Kids will love Karen Quest, who performs a unique Western Comedy Act featuring trick roping, whip cracking, and comedy. Quest also performs on stilts as "Lucky Starr" – an eight-foot tall cowgirl. Quest will perform three shows on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. “She’ll be wandering the fairgrounds on stilts and will be on stage,” McDougall said. “She has a lot of audience participation. It’s a new unique thing for us.”
At The Wild West Arts Convention in Las Vegas, Quest won the Comedy Award for "The All Cowbell Orchestra" routine.
Stoddard & Cole, who have performed with The Beach Boys, Pat Boone, and The Oakridge Boys, to name a few, have been performing their unique brand of comedy and musicianship for over three decades. They performed at the Puyallup Fair in 2011.
“Stoddard and Cole is a very funny music comedy group,” McDougall said. “People are going to like them.”
Another highlight at the fair will be The Coats. “The Coats are the premier cappella band in the Northwest. They’ve performed for the president (Bush) and they’ve performed all over the United States.” The Coats have also been on Jay Leno and have shared the spotlight with Trisha Yearwood, The Beach Boys and Eddie Money. The foursome intensely blends comedy and music with syncopated arrangements.
Local Elvis artist, Jason Whited, will perform his excellent classic renditions of Elvis on Thursday and Friday.
Also performing will be Scott Krippayne, a Christian singer/songwriter, who has been featured on Extreme Home Makeover. Local hard rock back Anitize will also perform.
Two men will be building flutes and selling flute Mayan culture music. “It’s spectacular music,” McDougall said.
Nisbit Oysters and the Willapa Harbor Growers Shellfish Association will be serving oysters. The Chinooks will smoke salmon and many of the food vendors from years past will be serve quality food, including the Kiwanis Club, New Life Fellowship, and the Willapa Valley Booster Club to name a few.
McDougall said the carnival would be the same that it has been for the past several years. “It’s a good company and they take care of us. I’m happy with them.”
The Raymond Fire Department and Pacific County Sheriff’s Office will be conduct public safety displays.
The Pacific County Fair opens today at 9 a.m. and closes Saturday night at 11.
Editor’s Note: For the complete Fair Schedule please go online at hometowndebate.com and click on front page.
The Pacific County Commissioner’s meeting last Tuesday (Aug. 13) was sparsely attended. Those in attendance included Commissioners Lisa Ayers, Frank Wolfe, and Steve Rogers, County Sheriff Scott Johnson, Commissioner Secretary Natasha Nisbet, and South Bend resident Patricia Neve.
9 am – 4-H Poultry Show followed by Open Class Show (Poultry Barn)
10 am – 4-H Horse Events (Horse Arena)
10 am – 4-H & FFA Goat Show followed by Open Class (Livestock Arena)
10 am ~ Noon – 4-H Public Presentations (4-H Stage or Mini Stage)
Noon – Opening ceremonies (GNWFCU Stage)
You've been hearing about Pacific County PUD bringing power and fiber optic cable to this end of the county.
A small earthquake on Monday, the 19th shook the ground of Grays Harbor County residents at 10:01 a.m.
By KAITLYNN HAGER
From building 230-plus unit apartments to building ingenious space saving bags and accessories, BagButton owner and inventor South Bend’s Larry Storey’s story would impress most.
After a serious motorcycle accident involving a drunk driver left him in a coma for three days and paralyzed most of his left side, it was clear that he could not return to his former construction career.
The new regional wastewater treatment facility in Riverdale that has been under construction for two years is projected to be finished before the end of the year. The approximate $37 million joint project between the cities of Raymond and South Bend was approved in December of 2009 after extensive planning with the Department of Ecology (DOE) and the local Regional Wastewater Coordinating Committee. The project is funded jointly by the two cities, with Raymond providing $22,577,177 and South Bend $14,798,650.
It's time for the Eighth Annual Come and Play on Labor Day Poker Paddle in South Bend.
The Willapa Heritage Foundation would like to invite you to participate in the 2013 People’s Choice Photo Show. This year the show will be held
Heave ho and gather ye lads, lassies and old salts weigh anchor and hoist the mizzen for a great adventure!
The Cowlitz Prairie Grange will be hosting the 49th Annual Threshing & Gas Show this Saturday and Sunday on Buckley Road, just off Jackson Hwy.
Many special events have been planned, including an antique car show, dozens of craft vendors, and more than 150 entries competing in a tractor pull. But the highlight of the weekend is the real, live threshing, which takes place every hour, on the hour.
After five years of Variety Shows featuring great hometown talent–which raised funds for Community Hall Auditorium improvements–this year’s Show will have a new wrinkle:
"Wrinkles Of Washington" (WOW!) will put on the entire Show with dancers, singers, musicians and comedians – they do it all! This troupe of Senior Citizens from the South Sound area has successfully raised funds for Senior Services for South Sound for the past 15 years. Ryderwood is fortunate to book one of their side "gigs"! Check them out at wrinklesofwashington.com and on YouTube!
A group of local young men are planning to set out on a cross-country biking trip Thursday, hoping to spend the next three months learning about and raising awareness of the issue of human trafficking.
Initiated and conceived by 27-year-old Boise, Idaho, resident Andrew Wallace, he will be biking from Neah Bay, Wash., to Virginia Beach, Va., with brother Matthew Wallace, 20, of Winlock, and friend Jesse Cummins, 21, of Chehalis. Their journey is expected to take three months and their plan is to live off of what they can carry on their bicycles, and what can be offered by kind strangers.
The Castle Rock Race Park will be one of the stops along the King of the West Dwarf Car Series, with a car show and races taking place Friday and Saturday.
Modeled to look like classic cars from the 1930s, these mini racers are powered by motorcycle engines and are known to attain speeds upwards of 80 miles per hour. Those looking for a speed fix can watch the cars warm up starting at 5:30 p.m. Saturday with the race taking place starting at 7 p.m. and ending around 11 p.m.
More than 20 enthusiastic supporters showed up to form a Friends of the Library meeting the evening of Aug. 13 at the Morgan Arts Center in Toledo.
Bill and Pat Caldwell, owners of the Downtown Toledo building supporters hope will be approved as a site by the Timberland Regional Library (TRL), asked for and received encouragement as volunteers stepped forward to promote use of the facility.
"Yesterday we took a record 51 cats to Lynnwood for spay and neuter!" noted Twila Collins of The Cat's Meow SNAP! Thursday, Aug. 1. "That puts our 23-month total at 1,213 surgeries."
Of the many pets sterilized this way, no small number have been rounded up through the efforts of Toledo residents Elise and Don Brenner, who donated their time and love by humanely capturing feral cats to help reduce their numbers.
Ryderwood will be hosting a town-wide garage sale Friday and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Many residents will be participating, as well as the Women’s Club with a Super Sale at Pioneer Hall. Maps will be available outside the Community Hall as well as the Café and Library.
The Vader Park Board could like to thank the many businesses and individuals who helped them raise more than $920 Aug. 3 during a hotdog fundraiser coinciding with the city-wide yard sale.
Judi Costello was lauded for organizing the yard sale, with Apple Electric, Spin City Laundromat, Curves of Castle Rock, the Little Crane Café, and the Vader Citizens’ League noted for contributing supplies and facilities for the sale. The many individuals who donated during the day were also thanked as well as residents who participated in the yard sale.
Winlock Miller Elementary School will be hosting a free BBQ Thursday, Aug. 29, for students and parents to meet teachers and staff.
Sponsored by the PTSA, the BBQ will begin at 5 p.m. on the lawn of the school, followed by introductions at 5:45 p.m. and an open house between 6 and 7 p.m. Those who attend will have a chance to win prizes, as well as be able to attend the District Board meeting starting at 7 p.m. in the District Office. For more information, contact the District Office at (360) 785-3582.
In keeping with his past practice of staying on top of the technological curve, Winlock optometrist Dr. Chuen Wong has received the American Optometric Association’s (AOA) 2013 Continuing Optometric Recognition Award for completing 50 credit hours of continuing education within the last year.
Dr. Wong was one of 109 individuals, out of more than 36,000 individuals represented nation-wide by AOA, to receive the award during the Association’s 116th Annual Congress in San Diego.
Don’t miss out on this weekend’s Town-Wide Garage Sales – that’s Friday & Saturday from 8 a.m. – 4 p.m. Along with the Women’s Club Super Sale at Pioneer Hall, neighborhood sales will be set up all over town. Maps of known sales will be available inside Community Hall and on the porches of the Café and Library.
Coffee and snacks will be available at the Café in the morning along with the VFW’s finest jumbo dogs and "fixin’s" at Community Hall from 10 a.m. 2 p.m. Meanwhile, don’t miss out on the fine arts, crafts and gift items available at "The Nest", located in the southwest corner of "the Hall".
Bricks purchased now will be installed by Veterans Day on Toledo’s Wall of Honor. PU a form at The Wall, Timberland Bank or from Bob Schmid, dearoldbob@toledotel.com or (360) 864-8335.
Toledo Lioness Club now has tickets for Afternoon Tea 2 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 20, at the Senior Center, $10. Contact any member or stop by Phillipps Insurance Group. Contact Rachel, rachel@phillippsins.com or (360) 864-8844.
Winlock schools are asking for your help in gathering supplies! From Monday, Aug. 26, to Friday, Aug. 30, there will be a bus parked in front of their district office (which is located between the elementary school and the preschool). Their goal is to stuff the bus full of school supplies. If you’re interested in donating, you can drop items off in the bus between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Every little bit helps! The new school year is just around the corner, guys!
Zumba, the dance classes that are taking this town by storm, are still taking place at the Olequa Senior Center on Mondays and Wednesdays at 6 p.m. For the over-50 crowd, the cost for 20 sessions is $30, and $40 for the under-50 crowd. The center is currently searching for instructors for other exercise classes as well. If interested in Zumba or in teaching similar classes, please contact the library at (360) 785-4325.
Environmental activists claim they want to reduce production of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide. If so, they’re going about it in a very strange way.
It’s that time of year when many gardeners are eagerly awaiting their first ripe tomato fresh off the vine. Unfortunately,
Helen (Gurr) Wolfenbarger passed away on August 18, 2013 at the age of 87.
John Edward Rosentangle
John Edward Rosentangle died peacefully at Swedish Hospital in Seattle on August 12, 2013. He was born on January 26, 1950, in Aberdeen, Wash., to
Kenneth Verl Mullin, 81, passed away June 27, 2013 from congestive heart failure. He was born January 20, 1932 in Miller, Oregon to
To the Editor:
This is a very ill conceived project that can cause large rate increases without any benefit. What exactly is the project; it started in 2000, to provide service to those Pacific County residents who live in the Tokeland-South Beach area, who are already being served by Grays Harbor Public Utility to improve their reliability.
Air Force Airman Tanner S. Weidner graduated from basic military training at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, San Antonio, Texas.
Seated next to his tidy flower garden at an umbrella-shaded picnic table Sunday morning, Kemp Olson Park groundskeeper Ric Kindle detailed the Friday night altercation that left him bleeding and shaken when an assailant pursued him back to his dwelling
Around 11:30 p.m., Kindle's newly-adopted dog Yodie Coyote, a small mixed-breed stray, alerted him to a noise outside the window. Kindle got up and surveilled the grounds from his dining nook, and spotted a silhouette near the bathrooms.
Toledo's Park Board met Aug. 14 at City Hall, with Ron Layton acting as Chair pro tem, Ester Borte as second and City Clerk Jill Davis providing the agenda, taking minutes and reporting ongoing 6-year Park Plan progress.
Davis reported cameras approved for purchase and installation at the boat launch have been mounted to discourage vandalism, and gazebo plans are now under review at Lewis County. The Cheese Days Bazaar staged at the park this year included $160.00 profit despite scant attendance, and a suggestion to locate next years' Bazaar nearer the Skate Board Park sign instead of across the drive from the Veteran's Wall of Honor.
The Aug. 12 Winlock City Council meeting adjourned seven minutes after it began, a record by all accounts.
Winlock Lions Club President Bob Giardina requested reservation of the basement, kitchen and large room in the Community Building for July 12-13, 2014, for a fund-raising event aimed at providing hospitality and refreshments to the Seattle To Portland Bicycle Classic (STP) participants. Annual entries number around 10,000 with Lewis County the commonly recognized halfway point for overnighters on the 150+ mile trek.
A Winlock resident was involved in a collision near Ethel Sunday, according to the Washington State Patrol.
The 62-year-old female had been driving a 2000 F350 eastbound on US Hwy. 12 when she slowed to make a left-hand turn and was struck on the right side by a 2003 Ford Crown Victoria driven by an 84-year-old Mossyrock man attempting to pass the F350.
Lewis/Cowlitz Fire District 20 has regained its transportation ambulance license after more than two months of negotiating with state officials.
The district’s license had been downgraded from transportation to only medical aid June 1 after the Department of Health (DOH) determined the district was not in compliance with a state law passed in 2011 requiring at least two medics to be present during ambulance transportation. At the time, District 20 had only one EMT, Ruth Crear, volunteering and were told they would need additional medics to regain their license.
Residents in Vader were awakened early Thursday morning to a structure fire that destroyed one home and threatened another.
Lewis/Cowlitz Fire District 20 reported they responded to a home on the 700 block of C. St. "fully involved, with flames showing from all sides." A home directly north of the initial house had also caught fire, as well as nearby fir trees bordering the two properties.
In an attempt to reduce the number of fatigued commercial vehicle drivers on our roads, the Washington State Patrol’s (WSP) Commercial Vehicle Division (CVD) is partnering with Oregon, Idaho and British Columbia authorities to improve highway safety. WSP troopers and commercial vehicle enforcement officers are in the midst of an enforcement emphasis focused on commercial vehicle driver’s hours of service.
Officers will stop and cite drivers who exceed their maximum allowable time behind the wheel. "This emphasis is designed to send a clear message to truck drivers that fatigue driving is a serious threat to highway safety and will not be tolerated," said Washington State Patrol Assistant Chief Mike DePalma, Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Bureau.
Commissioners Community Forum in BC
SOUTH BEND – The Board of Pacific County Commissioners will be holding a Community Forum on Tuesday, September 10 from 6-7 p.m. at the Bay Center
The Willapa Harbor Herald proudly salutes Tombstone Shirts as our Good Sports of the Week for their
When the summer can do a number on our vehicles and sometimes a fresh paint job can help clean up years of dings and scrapes and rust, as well as help prevent new damage. It can only cost a few hundred dollars if you're not looking for fancy colors like Midnight Blue and Candy Apple Red, but any amount of money can be wasted if you do not care for you car properly after it is painted.
It is recommended that your freshly painted vehicle be garage kept to prevent damage from tree sap and bird droppings. These substances contain acids that can damage the finish. If contact occurs, wash immediately with soap and water. This is especially important for the first few days.
Just when you think the final blooms of the summer have faded away, one more flower puts on a late season show in the local area.
Anaphalis margaritacea, or Pearly Everlasting, is a relative of many similar plants world-wide, but locally, there are only a few wild samples available for viewing. The most notable are just north of Winlock on the SR 603 roadside.
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