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SPOKANE VALLEY – McDonald’s restaurants in here and Geiger Heights were victims in a series of burglaries. Spokane County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded promptly to four separate incidents, all involving the theft of donation money intended for Ronald McDonald House charities. The method of entry was consistent across all four locations, with the perpetrator breaking window and door glass to gain access. The primary target in each case was the Ronald McDonald House donation boxes, from which the stolen money was subse...
SPOKANE VALLEY – University High School went into lockdown at 8 a.m. Thursday morning, Jan. 4, when law enforcement informed the school that a suspicious person was walking around near the campus. “Law enforcement informed us that there was a suspicious individual, and University High School was put on lockdown for 30 minutes," schools spokeswoman Marla Nunberg said. "And Horizon Middle School, Chester elementary, University Elementary, Opportunity Elementary, South Pines Ele...
SPOKANE VALLEY – Two local men are facing federal charges in connection with a drug-trafficking case. Timothy Gary Maddox, 43, and Nicholas Bryan Adams, 35, were indicted Jan. 2 by a grand jury indictment in connection to the seizure of commercial pill presses, firearms and narcotics, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington Vanessa R. Waldref said. The seized pill presses, one identified as the first commercial press linked to illegal fentanyl manufacturing in the region, have the potential to produce t...
SPOKANE VALLEY – An ongoing nationwide project got started as a simple family get together at a Father’s Day picnic in 2000. Representative Ron Kind (D-WI) overheard some old war stories being shared, and decided to get his camera out and record the conversation because he realized the fleeting nature of these tales. This experience set the stage for Congress to create a national, grassroots oral history initiative, which would allow participants to interview veterans in the...
CHENEY – Cheney Middle School has a new improvement plan focusing on academic skills, community and safety. “We want to increase the connection our families feel to our school community by continuing to strengthen and build our family partnerships,” Principal Rebecca “Becky” Parrill said, emphasizing that creating a positive and enriching school experience is important. One of the newest additions to the general curriculum “The Hawk’s Nest” class, an intervention cl...
AIRWAY HEIGHTS – On Christmas Eve, officer Bryant Baker went around several neighborhoods and knocked on the door of all the houses with a package outside. He made sure residents had their package by either giving it to them directly if they answered the door. If they didn’t answer, he would hide the package where a porch pirate couldn’t see it. Porch piracy is a major concern for the city, with five packages being reported stolen since Nov. 1, records show. “It looks like a l...
Airway Heights AIRWAY HEIGHTS — Police arrested the following individuals Dec. 30: Dec.30 Matthew R Dobson arrested on West 13th Avenue and South of West Street for first-degree driving while license suspendede. Henry Grisby arrested in the 11900 block of West Highway 2 for possession of a stolen motor vehicle Cheney CHENEY — Police responded to the following calls for service from Jan. 1-7:: Jan. 1 Marcus Twist, 41, arrested and booked into the Spokane County Jail for fourth-degreeassault-domestic violence in the 200 blo...
Two sworn into office in Airway council AIRWAY HEIGHTS – Two City Council members were sworn in Jan. 8 following re-election. Hank Bynaker, who was initially appointed to City Council Position No. 1 in July of 2022, brings 25 years of experience in maritime management, as well as management consulting. Kevin Richey, who has been serving on the council since 2008, was reappointed to City Council Position No. 2. He is a Major Crimes Domestic Violence Unit detective with the Spokane County Sherriff’s Office for the past 20 yea...
CHENEY – Police are hosting a clothing drive through Feb. 1 for survivors of domestic violence and their families. “This initiative was born from my personal experience as a survivor of domestic violence and as the sole person working in the Cheney Police Department’s DV Unit,” officer Cheyanne Walters said. “We aim to collect clothing donations until Feb. 1 to support survivors in need.” “Our collaboration primarily involves partnering with several DV shelters affiliated with...
Monday featured opening-day ceremonies in the Senate and House chambers, followed by a joint legislative session in the House chamber on Tuesday for Gov. (Jay) Inslee’s final state of the state address. Because this is considered a “short session,” fewer bills will be introduced and considered than in last year’s 105-day session. The main objectives for legislators this year will be to create and pass supplemental operating, capital and transportation budgets. For me and my 9th District seatmates – Reps. Joe Schmick a...
Breaching dams isn’t the answer Monumental Dam has a concrete fish ladder. Its lock works for barge. Rather than breach the dam – or others on the Lower Snake River – how about using a tunnel-boring machine to notch an on the side an additional zig-zag fish ladder? The answer is cooperation or compromise – not contempt or hard-headed, extremism on breaching. Sen. Murray, Gov. Jay Inslee and President Joe Biden need to step back and look at the whole picture. Errol Kramer Odessa/Ritzville Reintroduce bill to ban dwarf-t...
Ardell Patrick Victor, 59, passed away unexpectedly Dec. 27, 2023, in Cheney, Wash. He was the widower of Xandra L. Victor who left us on Jan. 1, 2021. They shared 12 years of marriage together before Xanny’s passing. Ardell was born in Colfax, Wash., on July 2, 1964, to Gerry Victor and Donna Lux. He graduated in 1982 from Garfield High School in Garfield, Wash. Ardell married Shirley Ackerman in 1985 and they had two children, Christina Baber of Spokane Wash., and Jared V... Full story
Leland E. Graese passed away peacefully during the early morning hours of Nov. 17, 2023, in Tacoma, Wash., at the age of 91. "Lee," the baby of eight children, was born Jan. 27, 1932, at the Cheyenne River Agency, S.D., to Emil and Anna (Wesenberg) Graese. He lived in South Dakota and Idaho when the US Army requested his presence because of the Korean War. Due to his incredibly high IQ and the fact he could type, he never left the Pacific Northwest. It was then that Leland... Full story
CHENEY – The Cheney High School Future Business Leaders of America club is headed to the state competition in April with Santa's Trailer. Senior and club president Emme Murray has been in FBLA four years. Murray served as the project manager for Santa's Trailer. "I helped co-organize it last year," Murray said. "And we all wanted to keep the project going this year, so I accepted a higher leadership position and added responsibility with this year's project." Bringing the p...
If you simply can’t wait to nudge spring back into your landscape there are things you can do besides making an appointment with a therapist. You can combat this condition, known as cabin fever, by seeding plants that require longer germination time. This just might be the remedy to wile away the dark hours of daytime winter. Materials for this project are minimal: 3 and half inch pots, seed-starting soil, small bowl for soaking seeds, paper towels or coffee filters, mister, and a light source either natural or artificial. I...
CHENEY – Three area wrestlers took home silver medals from the Blackhawk Invite on Jan. 6. For Medical Lake, Carsen Buenzli was the runner-up at 150 pounds. For Cheney, Cameron Bogle won silver at 132 and Shadrach Mason was second at 144. Buenzli lost in the final round to Shadle Park's Tyrese Guzman who improved to 22-2 on the season after a fall in 2 minutes, 44 seconds. The Cardinals other notable finisher was Hudson Raulston who claimed third place at 126 in a sudden v...
CHENEY - In the third quarter of their Greater Spokane League opener against Ferris on Jan. 4, the Cheney girls quickly turned a 30-25 Saxon halftime lead into an early fourth-quarter tie. Then twice in the final quarter Cheney had leads of four points. But in the final 149 seconds Ferris broke from a 44-44 tie with a 9-0 run that sunk Cheney with a disappointing 53-44 loss. "Unfortunately, we let down a little defensively and fell back into bad habits with not taking care of...
CHENEY — The Cheney boys have been playing some pretty good basketball lately with five wins in their last six games and five points away from being undefeated in that stretch. But the Blackhawks arguably played their best game in the Jan. 4 Greater Spokane League opener, a 72-50 victory over Ferris at home — leading from tipoff to final buzzer, never much faltering. “We executed our game plan and really focused on having zero lapses in effort all four quarters,” head coach Tr...
SPANGLE — The Liberty Lancers boys routed Jenkins and Okanogan last week. The Lancers topped Jenkins (Chewelah), 78-44, on Jan. 6. And they bested Okanogan, 59-44, on Jan. 5. The local girls also topped Jenkins, 59-28, on Jan. 6, but fell to Okanogan, 33-27, on Jan. 5. Liberty was scheduled to host Davenport on Tuesday night, Jan. 9....
MEDICAL LAKE – The Cardinals boys basketball returned to Northeast A League play last week after the holiday break and left with a pair of road losses. The Cardinals lost 64-31 to Riverside, Jan. 3. and Colville 82-75 in overtime, Jan. 12. Colville (1-2 NEA, 1-9 overall) first rallied to tie in regulation — knotting it with just three seconds to play — and then outscored Medical Lake 13-6 in the extra period to win their first game of the season. The Cardinals’ failing...
SPOKANE VALLEY – As part of a nationwide project that helps record and archive the stories of Veterans and gold star families, Jeremy Mullin with the Spokane County Library District was presented with a Certificate of Appreciation by Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers at the new Spokane Valley Library on Jan. 5. "Today I'm here because we wanted to acknowledge the commitment and the leadership of Jeremy Mullin," McMorris Rodgers said. "He is the ultimate professional e...
LIBERTY LAKE – With the new year here, the city of Liberty Lake has begun looking into some of the changes that will be happening throughout 2024. According to Finance Director, Kyle Dixon, there are a few big items on the agenda. Dixon said with city council accepting the Transportation Benefit District (TBD), there will be some changes to taxes coming soon. The TBD will essentially allow the city to use sales tax revenues to fund road projects. There had been ongoing d...
SPOKANE VALLEY – An ongoing discussion regarding city council members use of social media was moved to be discussed under the city governance manual with five votes for the action. City Manager John Hohman brought a discussion about social media use, how it ties to city government, and effective ways for council members to utilize it. “There’s been a lot of information, emails and discussion this last week on this particular item,” Hohman said. “I wanted to note that to m...
LIBERTY LAKE – The Liberty Lake Police Department is the city department that was allocated the biggest chunk of the 2024 budget, with 33% being allocated for public safety. According to Police Chief Damon Simmons, this is helping the department bring in some additional officers and resources. He said the department is bringing on two additional lateral officers to join the police force, but that is just the beginning of their expansion. Simmons also said they will be updating...
Aesop’s fable warns against killing the goose laying golden eggs. The tale’s origins date to 600 B.C. and tells of the greedy farmer who foolishly killed the prized goose to get to the gold’s source and ended up with nothing. Skeptics in our nation’s capital today quip that politicians are greedy, self-serving and tone deaf and are cooking their own geese and all of us too. Those controlling the “other Washington” have us drowning in debt. According to the U.S. Treasury, w...
