2021 One year ago
Fourteen downtown Moscow establishments extended their business footprints into Main Street sidewalks last year, and City Supervisor Gary Riedner said he assumes several businesses will do the same this year. “We got pretty positive feedback,” Riedner said. “There were a couple situations that you know, (we) ran into some complications but mostly we got pretty good feedback, that the businesses liked it and it added a vibrancy to downtown.” The Moscow City Council approved a resolution allowing businesses to expand into sidewalks and potentially other rights-of-way. ... Genesee Mayor Steve Odenborg always did what was best for his community and “truly led by his heart,” according to longtime friend and neighbor Art Lindquist. Odenborg died in a crash Tuesday morning north of the town he served. He was 66. “He’s the kind of person that you want to have as your mayor, and it’s really sad to see him leave,” Latah County Commissioner Tom Lamar said.
2017 Five years ago
Colton’s power couple of volunteer work never expected recognition for their hours on the road, monthly trainings and attending complex meetings about health care, so the letter they received came as a complete surprise. Dan and Joyce Leonard were first notified of their nomination for the Washington AARP Andrus Award, the highest award for volunteer service in the state, when they were named as finalists for volunteering with Statewide Health Insurance Benefits Advisors and helping people with Medicare and health care choices. On March 6, the finalists became the winners. Joyce and Dan first began volunteering as SHIBA in 2009 and 2011, respectively, after Joyce made the discovery that choosing health insurance — especially after age 65 — isn’t as simple as it should be. ... Pullman native Branden Harvey isn’t one to let the world get him down, so when the self-described “super-optimistic, happy person” began to feel the effects of what seemed like a downward spiraling world, he made the decision to do something about it. Enter the Goodnewspaper: a quarterly publication focused on sharing with its readers beautiful, hopeful and meaningful stories from around the world. “A year and a half ago, as the political tension was rising, it felt like there were police shootings happening every other week,” Harvey said. “It felt like there was this cloud of division and fear and injustice in the world and I just felt exhausted by it.”
2012 10 years ago
If someone is in trouble in the City of Colfax, Washington State Patrol trooper Jim Retzer is ready to help — no matter what time it is. “If we go to coffee in a restaurant, you can’t hardly sit there without groups of people coming up to talk to him,” Hudson said. “I’d describe him as ‘their’ state trooper. ... People in this community trust Jim.” Retzer, 45, said he measures his success as a trooper based upon the relationships he has developed in the Colfax community. The WSP motto is “Service With Humility,” and Hudson said the phrase represents a way of life for Retzer. “I just like helping people out,” Retzer said at the WSP office in Colfax. “That’s my job as a state trooper — community service.” ... Elementary school education is not only for adults and certified professionals — as most teachers will explain, young students are full of lessons they are eager teach to one another. The concept of kids teaching kids was put into practice this week at Sunnyside Elementary School, where student projects were on display as part of the annual Parent Teacher Organization Science Fair. Classes took turns touring the exhibits and reading about the experiments their peers conducted this year. “It’s a really good opportunity for people to express and share their knowledge,” fifth-grader Elijah Adrian said. “I really enjoy it.”
