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Cheney-area residents like Greg Houff who like to use the trails at Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge for a variety of outdoor activities may have been surprised to find a roadblock in their way last week. Houff said he drove out to the refuge last Tuesday, Jan. 26, to conduct his daily exercise walk only to find the refuge closed, its gate barring the front entrance. Houff, who likes not only nature’s presence for his daily walks but also the seclusion of trails such as the one at 30-Acre Lake, said he tried to access the r...
1 Years Ago Feb. 9, 2006 Silver Lake property owners were meeting to discuss the infestation of Eurasian milfoil that had recently spread throughout the lake. Medical Lake police were investigating the reported midnight sexual assault of a female walking on the trail on the west side of Medical Lake. Five Cheney wrestlers advanced to regional competition in Wapato, Wash., led by the group's only weight class champion, Brendan Parker-Risk at 130 pounds. 20 Years Ago Feb. 8, 19...
Lenora Kalous resident of Medical Lake, Wash., passed away on Jan. 21, 2016 from complications due to congestive heart failure. She was born the second day of August 1934 in Horton, Kan., to Anna and Lester Jerome. She graduated from Effingham High School in Effingham, Kan., in 1952. She married Robert Kalous March 15, 1953. Lenora traveled with Robert as a military spouse and worked several jobs. They finally settled in Medical Lake in June 1966. She started work at the bank... Full story
Feed Cheney will be holding our second annual fundraiser on Super Bowl Sunday — it’s called “The Souper Bowl of Caring.” Last year we met an ambitious goal of $6,000, thanks to collections taken at several Cheney churches and online donations. While the nation is spending enormous amounts of money on elaborate Super Bowl refreshments, clothing, decorations, etc. there are some among us who don’t have a bowl of soup to eat. Enter the The Souper Bowl of Caring. Feed Cheney works year round to meet hunger in Cheney, with a ho...
When casually asked to define an “honest person” the logical response is, “It’s someone who tells the truth.” But when honesty is revered as a character trait we need to go beyond a simple definition and ask: What attributes do we expect of someone who walks down an honest path during the days of his/her life? Fortunately, we have an excellent example to help us address this question — the 16th president of the United States. Yes, Honest Abe. Although it’s generally assumed that Lincoln received the moniker “Honest Abe...
“If a race has no history, it has no worthwhile tradition, it becomes a negligible factor in the thought of the world, and it stands in danger of being exterminated.” These are the words of historian Carter G. Woodson, as quoted in the article “Negro History Week” from the April 1926 edition of the Journal of Negro History. Woodson, along with members of the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, played key roles in the creation of a week celebrating the accomplishments and history of African-Americans beginni...
The following is reprinted from the Panama City (Florida) News Herald and may or may not reflect the views of the Cheney Free Press editorial board. Back in the 1970s, Dr. Pepper sought to lure us in by suggesting its consumers could be part of a soft drink clique. “I’m a Pepper; he’s a Pepper; she’s a Pepper — wouldn’t you like to be a Pepper, too?” the actor David Naughton sang in the jingle featured in TV commercials. Substitute the word “birther” for Pepper and you would have a contemporary political clique. The birth...
Cheney’s Gilbert receives STCU Credit 2 Kids award Cheney High School student Mariah Gilbert was selected as the recipient of STCU’s (Spokane Teachers Credit Union) Credit 2 Kids award. STCU and Krem 2 recognized Gilbert for doing great work in school and her community. In honor of Gilbert, and in recognition of the great education the high school provides students, STCU made a $500 donation to CHS in her name. West Plains residents make Gonzaga’s President’s List The following Cheney and Medical Lake residents earned...
The Cheney School Board unaminously approved a resolution that presents the district’s legislative objectives for the 2016 session at its Jan. 27 meeting. President Henry Browne was absent. The district’s legislative goals include asking the Legislature to fully implement the McCleary requirements, establish and fund a competitive market rate for certified and classified staff in order to attract and sustain employees, ensure a levy system that maintains local control and continue with Levy Equalization Assistance and allow s...
It’s time for the annual voting for “Best of the West,” the awards that recognize out businesses, organizations and people that contribute to the overall community. The competition is conducted by the West Plains Chamber of Commerce and is for members of the organization. Winners will be announced at the annual “Best of the West Awards Gala,” scheduled for Friday, April 8 at Northern Quest Resort and Casino. Individual tickets are available for $45 and corporate tables of eight, with special recognition, are available...
Cheney's Mason Jar has defied plenty of the odds when it comes to starting a new business. "Most businesses fail," owner Doug LaBar said. "Nineteen months is what they say." But after just surpassing the three-year birthday mark, the downtown eatery has expanded adding about 450 square feet to the east of the existing restaurant that belonged to AAA Labs, a water testing business. The project started in November and has recently just been completed. The original footprint of...
The long-standing old joke that used to resonate from those trying to fly somewhere from Spokane went like this: "You can't get there from here, but if you can it will cost you." That, however, is no longer the case it appears, with the most recent example being Spokane International Airport adding a direct flight to Anchorage, Alaska. While it is seasonal in nature - travel starts June 11 and ends Aug. 27, and is just one day a week, on Saturdays - the Alaska Airlines flight...
Eastern Washington University students and staff met the first of three finalists for the open provost and vice president of academic affairs position. Dr. Karen Schmaling, professor of psychology at Washington State University-Vancouver, appeared at two interview sessions, Jan. 28 at Showalter Hall at the Cheney campus and Jan. 29 at the Spokane Academic Center - formerly Riverpoint campus. Schmaling is a professor of psychology at the WSU-Vancouver and was the vice...
The Medical Lake High School Cardinal Players drama students finished their two-night run of "Student Sketch Night," Jan. 29-30. Both nights featured seven sketches performed, written and directed by students, one being, "Something's Wrong with Ringo." Written by Zach Close and directed by Skyler Watchel, this sketch is a satirical take on the Beatles. The scene included the band members trying to guess what was wrong with Ringo Starr, John Lennon announcing his marriage to...
Three Cheney High School band students will be performing in the Washington Music Educators Association (WMEA) Music festival in Yakima, Feb. 12-14, along with some of the best high school musicians in the state. James Marshall will play the viola in the chamber orchestra, tuba player Tim Bennett will perform in the wind ensemble and oboe player Claire Arensmeyer will play in the symphony orchestra. To perform in the festival, musicians must submit an application in the fall,...
Members of the Cheney High School band's color guard, who call themselves the "Winter Guard" for winter appearances, perform during halftime of last Thursday's boys basketball game with East Valley....
Cheney Mayor Tom Trulove autographs a replica sign for the rehabilitation of tracks for the Eastern Washington Gateway Railroad that runs through Cheney and west to Coulee City. The track upgrades are part of the Connecting Washington transportation funding bill approved by the Washington Legislature in their 2015 session. The ceremony that drew Gov. Jay Inslee to Spokane took place Jan. 29 at the McKinstry Innovation Center and brought attention to other transportation...
OLYMPIA—Lawmakers are looking to modify the Public Records Act in an effort to help agencies that claim they’re burdened by overly broad and massive public records requests. House Bill 2576 would give agencies the power to limit the time they spend each month responding to public records requests, and would allow them to charge for providing public records requested for commercial purposes. Rep. Joan McBride, D-Kirkland, the bill’s sponsor, said the bill isn’t meant to undermine transparency in local government, but instead h...
At its Jan. 26 meeting, the Medical Lake School Board passed two policies that focus on graduation requirements. The board passed the first and second readings of Policy 2410, which requires students graduating in 2017 and 2018 to pass the Biology EOC (End-of-Course) exam. The policy also allows the district to award students a seal of biliteracy on their high school diploma, if they have attained a high level of proficiency in speaking, reading and writing in two or more languages. The board also approved Policy 418, which...
Inslee names former Cheney prosecutor to court bench Washington Gov. Jay Inslee has appointed former Cheney Municipal Court contract prosecutor Julie McKay to the Spokane County Superior Court. McKay replaces retiring Judge Kathleen O’Connor, who has served on the Spokane County bench since 1979, making her the longest-serving justice in the state. A graduate of Eastern Washington University and Gonzaga University, McKay served as Cheney’s prosecutor from 1991 to 2014 when she was selected to serve as a Spokane County Sup...
The Medical Lake Fire Department recently presented their annual department awards. Recipients of the 2015 annual awards were left to right: Jonathan Suffield –Exemplary Service Award, Jole Chick – Chief's Award, Jacob Kirwin – Rookie of the Year and Firefighter of the Year and John Greene – Emergency Medical Services Award....
Medical Lake’s Planning Commission strolled through a light schedule, Jan. 28, in their first meeting in three months, now that they have a full complement of five members with the appointment of Judy “Mayu” Mayulianos. The benefits of a commission at full strength were readily present because even with the absence of commissioners Wayne Fugere and Wayne Ueda, the appointed body still had a quorum and ability to proceed. Consequently, commissioners Mayulianos, Tammy Roberson and chair Mark Hudson unanimously elected Fuger...
Cheney Fire Department resident Tyler Gustafson found his way into the firefighting profession through a rather unique way - baseball. A 2013 graduate of Cheney High School, Gustafson played for the Blackhawks all four years of his school career, and like many other enthusiasts of America's pastime, each summer for the American Legion Summerhawks. But it was his post-graduation experience with the American Legion Triple A Blue Devils that Gustafson got his first exposure to...
At its first meeting in February Monday night, Feb. 1, the Airway Heights City Council unanimously approved a pair of consultant agreements to begin design work on two transportation improvement projects in the city. The first is a $158,400 contract with Century West for reconstructing and widening of a portion of a transportation loop from State Route 2 along Garfield and Russell streets, terminating at the Russell/Sixth Avenue intersection. The city has received a $1.782 million Transportation Improvement Board grant for th...
The Cheney City Council approved a pair of resolutions at its Jan. 26 meeting that entered the city into a community trip reduction plan with Spokane County and a three-year agreement for banking services from Banner Bank. Like other qualifying jurisdictions in the county, the commute trip reduction plan is a two-year agreement between Cheney and Spokane County allowing the county to develop and implement a trip reduction program for city employees. In exchange for the county’s work, Cheney agrees to pay $7,267.36, money o...
