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DAYTON–What is as striking as the longevity of a 111-year-old local business operated by three generations of one family is the fact that Suffield Furniture endured not only the Great Depression and not one, but two devastating fires over its lifespan, and each time bounced back to continue serving the residents of Dayton and Columbia County with their furniture, household and appliance needs. Al and Carolyn Suffield locked the doors to Suffield Furniture for the last time in late July after c...
DAYTON–Jim Mayers and Tom Burke dipped the wheels of they road bikes in the Pacific Ocean at Astoria August 16, and then began a six-week cycling odyssey along the Lewis and Clark Trail. The two medical professionals from Anchorage, Alaska, stopped in Dayton to wait out a rain shower last week. Mayers, 70, is a semi-retired registered nurse in his forty-fourth year of his career, and Burke, a doctor, retired from a 40-year career about a month ago. Burke said adjusting to his new retirement r...
DAYTON–School is back in session and Dayton Bulldog athletics are getting ready for the Fall Sports schedules. This Friday, August 30, the Bulldog football squad will venture up the road to Pomeroy for a season-opening jamboree, and the Lady Dawgs Volleyball team will be hosting a jamboree in the Dayton Gym beginning at 3 p.m. on Thursday, September 5. Football teams participating in the Pomeroy Jamboree include DeSales, Liberty Christian, Garfield-Palouse, St. John/Endicott-LaCrosse, Mabton, W...
There are two economic systems at opposite ends of the spectrum, and, surprise! they also mirror political doctrines. There’s capitalism, where one’s ideas, luck and perseverance may be rewarded with money, fame and success. Capitalists should be, and oftentimes are, conservative. There’s totalitarianism, where a ruthless few, through exercise of fear, greed and disregard for human rights, sit atop the heap, kicking boulders down on Everyman. Capitalism is an equal opportunity game. Totalitarianism, not at all. The one thing they have in commo...
DAYTON–Navy veteran Bill Carter is home, escorted through Dayton's Main Street last Thursday on his way to his North Touchet Road residence where the ailing former plumber will be under palliative care at home instead of the Portland Veterans Administration hospital. Supportive Daytonites stepped out of stores and buildings along Main Street and gave Carter's ambulance a flag-waving, patriotic reception. Carter's entourage was led through town and out 4th Street by a Columbia County Sheriff's Of...
DAYTON–Attorneys handling the liquidation of assets of Columbia Pulp I, LLC, recently issued a notice to all concerned parties that the receivership has fulfilled its duties, the receivership is terminated and the actions pertaining to selling Columbia Pulp I, LLC's assets are complete and closed. The filing in King County Superior Court, the Honorable Leroy McCulough presiding, was filed June 6, 2024. On September 19, 2023, following the sale of all of Columbia Pulp I, LLC's assets, the r...
WALLA WALLA–The 16-and-Under Walla Walla Griz American Legion baseball team finished its 45-game summer season by winning the state championship in a classic fashion, and three Dayton hardballers were part of the team. The Griz included two Dayton Bulldog baseball players, Jordan McCowen and Denver Hutchens, and Hutchens's cousin Kellen. McCowen is the son of Jeff and Melissa McCowen; Denver is the son of Clay and Rachel Hutchens; and Kellen is the son of Will and Shayna Hutchens. Both Jordan Mc...
DAYTON–Columbia County voters had their say in the 2024 Primary Election, voting primarily for Republican candidates for the offices of Congressional Fifth District, State Senator, Governor and others, in preliminary election-night results. Most statewide totals were preliminary and unavailable as of press deadline. Michael Baumgartner, a Spokane Republican, received the most votes in Columbia County in his bid for the Fifth Congressional District seat. He received 321 votes and 31.97%. R...
DAYTON–A Monday morning thunder storm cell rumbled through Columbia County, snapping out a few bolts of lightning which were suspected of starting a fire about ten miles south of Dayton on a ridge above the North Touchet Road. The fire has been dubbed the Wolf Fork Fire and is about ten acres in size, according to Ryan Rodruck, Wildfire Communications Manager with the Department of Natural Resources. As of Tuesday afternoon, difficulties for firefighters of steep terrain and increasing wind r...
DAYTON–One of Dayton's long-time institutions, McQuary's Grocery, was a victim of the COVID-19 pandemic, closing in June of 2020 after 38 years under the watchful eyes of Wally and Marie McCauley. When the country was ordered to shut down and people flocked to stores to hoard toilet paper, supply-chain problems ensued and eviscerated small stores, especially stores like McQuary's. Wally left us recently, and with his passing, a flood of memories came rushing back. So many wonderful e...
DAYTON–Road Construction on Columbia County Public Works' Lower Hogeye Project, which will get underway on August 5, may briefly delay harvest truck traffic on Lower Hogeye and Payne Hollow roads, says Grant Morgan, Columbia County Engineer. When construction work resumes, contractors will strive to keep both Lower Hogeye and Payne open during construction. Lower Hogeye may be closed periodically although harvest truck traffic will be permitted to move through the construction zone, Morgan s...
There are things right in front of you, as you navigate life, that you don’t realize until time, growth and maturity brings them into focus. As a parent, you do your best to train up your kids and set them on the path to a productive and fulfilling life. Along the way, unbeknownst at the time, you temporarily hand them off to people who, as it turns out, go on to have a profound impact. Easily said about a number of people I’ve encountered in the numerous orbits I’ve made around the sun. One of them was Jerry Scott, a Dayton guy, though me an...
DAYTON–The Missoula Children's Theater (MCT), the nation's largest touring children's theatre, will once again be at Dayton's Liberty Theater August 5-9, performing the literary classic, "Treasure Island." Budding area thespians audition for the cast, and the show is rehearsed throughout the week, concluding with two public performances, Friday, August 9 at 7 p.m. and a matinee Saturday, August 10 at 3 p.m. Tickets are $5 apiece. Pre-registration is available on the Liberty Theater's website lib...
POMEROY––Wildfire season is here. A fire dubbed the Cougar Creek Fire, located about a mile west of Highway 129 and the Grand Ronde River intersection has grown to 10,766 acres and is 23% contained, according to the Washington Department of Natural Resources Southeast Region. There's another small fire across the state line in Idaho, the Billy Creek Fire, which was first reported July 3 along the banks of the Snake River. Containment advanced to 74% by July 10. There is a big one-the Battle Mou...
DAYTON–Four generations of the Eslick family have been farming in Columbia County–this year Eslick Farms, Inc. is marking its fiftieth year in business–and each of the preceding generations have witnessed major shifts of one form or another, be it farming practices or other aspects of life in southeastern Washington. According to family lore, Eslick forbears (the earliest being England-born Samuel Eslick nine generations back) rushed with other Oklahoma Sooners in the Oklahoma Land Rush in th...
DAYTON–This is Bulldog Territory and graduates of Pietrzycki High School from hither and yon will converge on town for Alumni Weekend, which is packed full of float-making parties, the Saturday parade and Annual Meeting and numerous class get-togethers Friday and Saturday. Individual class banquets are set at various locations around Dayton. The Alumni Association reports classes of 1959, 1969, 1974, 1979, 1984, 1989, 1994, 2004, 2014 and 2019 are planning float-making and Saturday evening g...
DAYTON–Fairgrounds users and folks going to the 2024 edition of the Columbia County Fair in September will be greeted by a clean and smooth expanse of concrete that will brighten the entryway for decades to come. The pavement work was the result of the Friends of the Fairgrounds'2024 goal of updating the fairgrounds' main entryway, says Julia Mead, president of the Friends of the Fairgrounds (FOTF). "We recently received grant monies from the Warren Family Action Fund and the Columbia C...
DAYTON–Former King County Sheriff and Eighth Congressional District Congressman Dave Reichert made a campaign stop here June 25, outlining what he'll do for Washington state if elected to some three dozen local people. Reichert is one of seven Republican candidates for the governorship and he stated he's polling well on the west side against Democrat Bob Ferguson. There are 28 candidates on the Primary Election ballot. Prior to serving in Congress for 14 years, Reichert was sheriff of King C...
DAYTON–Two socio-economic issues challenge young families in this day and age–affordable daycare and affordable housing. Thanks to a local partnership that received assistance from Washington Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), families in Columbia County and the surrounding region are getting some support with their daycare issues. That's what Sen. Cantwell and YWCA Executive Director Anne-Marie Schwerin discussed when Cantwell paid a visit to RoseMary's Place June 26, the YWCA-operated daycare situ...
TOPPENISH–Retired well expert Jim Hickam and his wife Amy were returning from medical appointments on the West Side last week when they encountered a dire situation that led to Hickam giving an unconscious man life-saving cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Hickam is a Walla Walla-Columbia County Fire District No. 2 commissioner who has been involved with emergency medical services in Columbia County since 1987. The couple were on their way home and decided to get off I-82 at Toppenish for a...
DAYTON–The Friday of All Wheels Weekend's 30th Anniversary celebration started out cool and with gusty winds, which died down for the Friday evening festivities–Drag the Gut, registration and live music on the Columbia County Courthouse Lawn, courtesy of The Frog Hollow Band–giving the weekend's activities a wonderful launch. Saturday morning opened with a freshet to give Show N Shine judges a wax 'n' polish-bead up test (just kidding) so that most of the vintage automobiles and pick ups who w...
DAYTON–In 1938, the roof of Emma Rowley's home at 306 West Madison Street in Elizabeth, Illinois, caused several hundred dollars in damage. But thanks to the Elizabeth Fire Department's brand new truck, the firemen of the day were able to notch a "save." It was the first house fire to be tackled by the department since the truck's arrival in September, 1937. According to an article about that first fire, members of the department were "well pleased with the manner in which it performed." The 1...
DAYTON–With summery weather in the forecast, the 30th All Wheels Weekend 2024 Car Show will again roll along Main Street with that activity time-honored by teenagers of all ages–dragging the gut. One of the Dayton Chamber of Commerce's signature events, the car show highlights Father's Day weekend with upwards of 150 entries-machines of all makes and models, according to Chamber Manager Belinda Larson and the All Wheels Weekend Committee. There's activities planned for Friday, Saturday and Sun...
DAYTON–A full house of family and friends gathered at the Dayton Gym for the 138th commencement of Pietrzycki High School, also known as Dayton High, and heard inspirational addresses by honor graduates, marveled at the scholarships awarded and witnessed one graduate flip over receiving his diploma among the 27 who received high school diplomas here on Saturday, June 8, 2024. Co-Valedictorian Kameryn Tupling congratulated her classmates on their accomplishments, thanked all who gave support, r...
By Loyal Baker DAYTON–Local philanthropically minded individuals and organizations presented scholarship awards exceeding $115,000 to graduating Dayton High School Class of 2024 members and D.H.S. alumni at Scholarship Night at the Fairgrounds Pavilion Thursday, June 6. When university or college scholarships were added, students received a grand total of $870,391 to further their education. Receiving scholarships were: Kameryn Tupling: John Israel, Archer Ranch, Guy and Nyda Prater, Elk D...
