NEWS BRIEFS
Liberty Theater Buys Adjacent Building
On December 7, the Touchet Valley Arts Council (TVAC) completed the purchase of the Dayton Chiropractic building, which adjoins the theater on the east side. Funding to cover the $150,000 purchase of the building, plus closing costs, was provided by a grant from the Sherwood Trust Foundation of Walla Walla.
According to TVAC board treasurer Marcene Hendrickson, the group has a number of uses planned for the building. "There is lots of space in the basement and it will provide much-needed storage for costumes and props," she says. "And we will have dressing rooms in the basement for cast members during live performances." On the main floor, the offices in the front of the building will continue to be rented, with rent income covering insurance, taxes and some maintenance. In the back, a large open room will be used for rehearsal and meeting space, and a kitchenette will be installed. "And now we'll have much better parking in the back," says Hendrickson. Of course one of the most important features of the new building will be a door entering directly into the backstage area of the theater. "Cast members will no longer have to go outside and walk to a neighboring church during performances, as they do now," says Hendrickson.
Besides the grant to purchase the building, the Sherwood Trust has offered TVAC an additional $30,000 challenge grant for long term maintenance. To qualify for the grant, TVAC must raise $75,000 in the next two years for renovation of the building. In honor of the new door between the buildings that is to be installed, the group is launching their "Open the Door" campaign to raise the challenge funds.
Planned improvements to the building include replacing windows, updating wiring and heating/air conditioning, constructing the dressing rooms and rehearsal space, installing the kitchenette and remodeling bathrooms to make them ADA accessible.
Variety Show Auditions
"Divas and Dudes" are coming to the Liberty Theater in March. Performances of the sixth annual Variety Show at the Liberty Theater will be March 7, 8 and 9. Here's your chance to be on stage!
Auditions for the show are being held in early January. Singers and dancers of all ages are needed. Vocalists are needed for solos, duets and chorus. 50 dancers, ages six and up, are also needed. Following are dates and times for the auditions:
Saturday, January 5:
9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Monday, January 7:
5:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Wednesday, January 9:
5:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
Rehearsals for the Variety Show will be Monday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings, beginning January 21. To sign up for an audition for "Divas and Dudes", call Bev Startin at Paitit Valley Products at 382-1998. The sixth annual Variety Show is supported by TVAC Productions and the Touchet Valley Arts Council.
Australian B-ball Teams to Play in Dayton
The Adelaide Sharks, a group of national high school basketball teams from Australia will play a series of games in Dayton on Sunday, December 30th. The boys' and girls' teams arrived in Seattle on November 28th and have been touring the northwest since. The group includes 15 girls, eight boys, four coaches and four parent chaperones.
According to Dayton girls' basketball coach Scott Hudson, there will be a dinner after the Sunday afternoon and evening games for participants, parents, coaches and administration. The visitors will stay in the homes of Dayton team members during their visit. There will also be a gift exchange.
The first game will be girls' JV at 3:00, followed by girls' varsity at 4:30 and boys' varsity at 6:00. Tickets are $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for students. The Autralian teams will play in Waitsburg on Monday, New Year's Eve.
"Our players are really excited to make some friends and play some basketball with them," says Hudson. "I am sure they will be very talented players."
It's Hip to Knit
Jacci's Yarn Basket is offering the perfect opportunity to limber up your finger joints, exercise your mental faculties and learn a skill that even Hollywood types are gushing about— knitting.
Free knitting classes are planned for January and February. You can sign up to learn the bare basics or, if you already know how to knit (or used to know), the knit Hat class would be perfect. If you've always wanted to tackle knitting with 4 needles and learn how to "turn a heel," the Boot Sock class will show you how.
Two identical Hat classes are being offered in January—Thursday the 10th and Saturday the 12th both at 1:00 p.m. The Boot Sock class will be offered in February-- Thursday the 7th and Saturday the 9th also at 1:00 p.m.
Stop in at the shop at 242 E Main or call Jacci at 382-2526 for more information. Invite a friend or two to join you. It's hip to knit.
Wind Turbine Lighting to be Reduced
The flashing white lights at the Hopkins Ridge Wind Project will soon be history. Puget Sound Energy (PSE), the wind project owner, has received permission from the FAA to eliminate the white daytime lights on the turbines and reduce the number of red nighttime lights./p>
"As long as the turbines are painted white, the FAA has determined that lights are not needed during the day," says Anne Walsh, PSE's Environmental and Communications Manager in Dayton. According to Walsh, PSE has purchased new lights and controls to be installed on the Turbines in the Hopkins Ridge project. She says the installation and change in the light scheme should be completed by mid-2008./p>
Besides eliminating daytime lighting, the number of turbines at the project with lights will be reduced from the current 41 down to 19. The remaining red lights on the turbines will now be synchronized, rather than flashing randomly. And they will operate only after dark. At the two Marengo wind projects, both owned by Pacific Power, a similar reduced lighting scheme is already in place. The change in requirements is the result of continued testing by the FAA to determine the best way to assure aircraft safety while minimizing the impact of the lights to neighbors on the ground./p>
"We're committed to minimizing the impact of the wind turbines on the surrounding environment," says PSE's Walsh, "but the lights are a big safety issue. The turbines have to be visible from the air."
Port to Manage Seneca Property
In December the Port of Columbia entered into agreement with Seneca Foods Corporation to provide property management services for the portion of the Seneca Plant in Dayton not currently being used by Seneca. According to Port Manager Jennie Dickinson, the Port will seek one or more tenants to occupy and lease buildings 1 through 5 at the facility. Building 1 is the office building on East Main Street, and buildings 2 through 5 are mostly warehouse and receiving areas near Commercial Street. Seneca will continue to operate their seed production facility in buildings 6 through 9.
Dickinson says the Port's management role will involve seeking a tenant or tenants and negotiating leases. The tenants will lease the property from Seneca and the Port will collect a management fee. If the Port is unable to find a single tenant for all of the available space, they will seek multiple tenants. Dickinson is also considering creating an office suite in building 1 and offering several individual offices, with some shared facilities, such as conference rooms and lobby. The Port and Seneca will spend the next two or three months preparing the property for occupancy, and Dickinson expects to start marketing for tenants in the spring of 2008.
In other Port business, Dickinson says the Port Commissioners have approved an expansion project for the Vestas Building on Cameron Street. Because of increased employment due to additional wind turbine construction, Vestas will expand their space at the Port by about 30%. Outside secured storage will be expanded as well. Dickinson also says that the Port is considering construction of a new building on Port property along Cameron Street. This building would be available for expansion of existing businesses, or new tenants that may be found.
CCHS Helps Us Get Healthy
The "We can do iT!: Get Fit, Get Well, Get Educated" program enters its second year of sponsorship by the Columbia county Health System (CCHS). "The program focuses on children and adults, by coming together as a community to become the healthiest in the state," says Mira Kvame, CCHS's Quality Director. There are three elements to the program:
Education – teaching health in the schools and providing lectures and information for the community.
Getting Fit – promoting healthy eating, stress reduction and family activities, as well as providing motivation and support. Also, providing tools, such as pedometers, to measure activity.
Wellness – sponsoring programs to encourage cholesterol and blood pressure testing and weight loss. CCHS is promoting "We can do iT!" along with other sponsors, including the Washington Health Foundation, Kiwanis, Day Escape Spa and Dayton Fitness Center. Also included is a program to encourage businesses to become advocates for the health of their employees. Other elements of the program include:
"Biggest Loser" Program – This weight loss accountability program gives participant support with a monthly lecture series, along with a $500 cash prize for the "biggest loser". Interested participants can sign up at the CCHS office at 1012 S. Third St. in Dayton. Times are 7:00 a.m. through 4:00 p.m. through January 24th.
Free Lectures - Thursday, January 24, 6:30 – 7:30 at Dayton's Liberty Theater. Fred Crowell, founder of Northwest basketball Camp, speaking on family fitness. Thursday, February 21st – 6:30 – 7:30. Dr. Jencina Butler of CCHS will speak about how to understand health indicators, such as cholesterol and blood pressure measurements.
For more information about "We can do iT!", contact Jody Martin or Mira Kvame at 382-2531.
Breast Cancer Fund Drive a Success
Dayton postal customers contributed nearly $2,500 to breast cancer research by purchasing special breast cancer stamps during October and November. According to Post Office Clerk Patty Garcia, 16,460 of the special stamps were sold through the Dayton Post Office during the two-month fund drive. Customers paid 55 cents for each stamp – the extra 14 cents, above the standard 41 cents postage, going to the fund drive. Stamps will be available for purchase at least through the end of December.
The U.S. Postal Service first began issuing stamps to benefit breast cancer research in 1998. Prior to 2007 more than $50 million had been raised through the sale of the stamps. Seventy percent of the net proceeds, above the cost of postage from the sales of the stamps, is donated to the National Institutes of Health, and the other 30 percent goes to the Medical Research Program of the Department of Defense.
On January 8, 2008, the Dayton Post Office is planning a "customer appreciation day" to thank those who have purchased and used the special stamps. Food and refreshments will be served. Garcia says that all of the Post Office employees have been very pleased with the local response to the fund drive. "Sixteen-thousand is a lot of stamps for a little town like Dayton," she says.
Century-Old Columbia County Novel Published
"Her Divine Inheritance", by Marguerite Harold, is a novel set in Columbia County in the late 1800s. It tells the Civil War-era story of a young woman who is suddenly thrown into caring for her siblings upon the deaths of their parents.
Marguerite Harold was the penname for Gertrude Wright, whose family homesteaded on the Hopkins Ranch, where the Hopkins Ridge wind project is now located. In the early 1900's, she taught at the Russell Creek School and in the Mill Creek and Walla Walla School Districts.
The manuscript for "Her Divine Inheritance" was discovered a few years ago by Gertrude's granddaughter, Sharon (Donohue) Smith. Smith, and her daughter, Casi Smith, recently had the manuscript published, and they released it in December. "The 25- chapter manuscript was old, yellow and tattered," says Casi Smith. "It was held together with what must have been the first-ever made paperclips and was completely typed by my greatgrandmother." The newly published novel is available for sale at several local retailers, including Ms. Mc's, The Village Shoppes, Patit Valley Products and Skye Book and Brew. For more information, call Casi Smith at (949) 307-4321.
Copyright (c) 2008, Blue Mountain News