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Few people would argue there are individuals more influential when it comes to creating good Cheney cross country and track and field athletes and programs than Lawson and Ruth Van Kuren. In fact, few would dispute that the long-time Cheney couple’s influence in the two sports extends beyond the school district boundaries to other cities and districts in the region. The Cheney School Board decided at its Dec. 17 meeting to honor the couple by unanimously approving to name the new Cheney Middle School track complex in their ho...
1 Years Ago Dec. 30, 2004 Medical Lake's gambling tax, first imposed in 2003 as a 2 percent tax on gross receipts from pull-tabs and punch cards, would remain in effect in the New Year after a vote of the City Council. The tax brought in over $77,000 yearly. The Medical Lake girl's basketball team saw its perfect season, a 4-0 start, come to an end with a 59-58 defeat at the hands of Liberty Bell who rallied from a large deficit. Desirea Goddard led the Cardinals with a...
City of Cheney • Dec. 26, Baby Play and Learn Storytime (ages 0 – 18 months), community library, 10:30 – 11:30 a.m. • Dec. 29, Dance Class, Wren Pierson Community Center, 7:15 – 8:15 p.m. • Dec. 30, Senior Light Fitness, Wren Pierson Community Center, 9 – 10 a.m. • June 27, “The Every Day Scientist,” community library, 2 – 3 p.m. • Dec. 31, Toddler Play and Learn Storytime (ages 1 1/2 – 3), community library, 10:30 – 11:30 a.m. City of Airway Heights • Dec. 26, Friends of the Airway Heights Library Book Sale, Hicks Open Mar...
It was a plain house where Jack Anderson and his mother, Rachel, lived. The walls needed paint and the front steps were rough. Their elderly friend, Harry, who lived across the street, sometimes tripped on those steps. While every morning when Jack woke up, he always noticed the flapping shingles on Harry’s roof. Jack wished he could fix them, but he couldn’t do it alone. He wished that the young boys who lived so close by would pitch in and help him fix the roof for Harry. Jack would soon graduate from high school and fin...
Tis the season to think about our blessings. With all that is going on in the world, let us remember to be thankful for and pray for our policemen. They have a difficult job in so many ways that we cannot even begin to comprehend. Thank you. Let us be thankful for and pray for the firemen who put their lives on the line, as do the policemen and our military troops. Thank you. Let us be thankful for our medics, the veterans who have served, our working public servants, volunteers and churches, those in the medical field and...
Gov. Jay Inslee’s carbon tax proposal isn’t “filled with holes,” as the opinion piece in the Thursday, Dec. 4, 2014, charges, but the piece itself is. Its most egregious flaw is the oft-repeated contention by “deniers” that, “... the science behind (climate change), and how man plays into it is hardly settled.” Yes it is! The science is unequivocal in pointing to human caused greenhouse gas emissions as the primary driver of global warming. The overwhelming majority of scientists and virtually every scientific organization, d...
Recently I ventured into what we officially call the “Fourth Bedroom,” in our house. Years ago it served as a bedroom for one or more of our kids. It’s been a home-office, perhaps twice over. Later it was the place where boxes of items from my parent’s house had their temporary resting place, not long after Mom and Dad found their permanent ones. Now the closet is the place where dusty shoeboxes, tattered manila envelops and old-fashioned photo albums contain special family...
As 2015 approaches fast, Tis the season for New Year’s resolutions and predictions. This editorial is about none of those. Rather, we’d like to present a short list of things we’d like to see or begin to see take place in the coming year. For starters, we’d like to see Cheney School District’s Fisher Building sold. Sold to somebody with the money to remodel it, who has a positive vision for it and the community. Someone who respects the role the 80-plus year old structure has played in the development of Cheney. Two such...
VFW accepting members The Cheney Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 11326 is always looking for new members. Membership requirements are you must be a U.S. citizen or national, must have served in the U.S. armed forces and be currently serving or honorably discharged and must have served in a war, campaign or expedition on foreign soil or in hostile waters. Above requirements must be verified by Department of Defense DD-214 papers. For more information contact Tom Strongin, Commander, VFW Post 11326 in Cheney. Feed Cheney Dec. 29...
Cheney High School DECA students took part in the annual Area 11 competition Dec. 8 at Spokane Falls Community College. DECA advisor Jeff Pike said the 22 students in the two photos competed against 18 other local high schools in 35 different business and marketing written and role-playing events. Blackhawks students qualifying for state competition in Bellevue, Wash., March 5-7, 2015 are Jerika Adams, Jordan Bobzien, Kameron Galm, Dillon Grewell, Joseph Reitan, John Moore,...
The Airway Heights Parks and Recreation Department held an informational meeting Dec. 19 for the city’s Youth Advisory Committee (YAC). Department staff, along with several youth discussed goals and programs they would like to implement once the officers are appointed to the committee. The proposal for the YAC came last year after discussions involving Parks Recreation and Community Director J.C. Kennedy, Mayor Patrick Rushing and Councilman Dave Malet. According to Kennedy, the city does not offer many activities or p...
Third-grade teacher Shannon Vickrey and her class during Michael Anderson's November/December awards. They won the golden music stand for the month of November....
The West Plains Fire Academy held the graduation of its second 2014 class on Thursday Dec. 18 at Medical Lake High School. The academy consists of firefighter recruits from Airway Heights Fire, Medical Lake Fire and Spokane County Fire District 10. The graduating class had a total of 23 recruits - eight from Airway Heights, two from Medical Lake and 13 from Fire District 10 - and nine crew leaders. The academy requires a large time commitment by the new recruits as they spend...
The Medical Lake School board of directors wrapped up another year Dec. 16 with a short meeting. In action items, the board approved the first reading of the updated policy P2161 — Special Education and Related Services for Eligible Students. The update includes new language that pertains to how a student is eligible for special education services. The board also approved policy P2162 — Education of Students with Disabilities Under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 — which states that restraint or the isola...
The Cheney police have apprehended a 16-year-old male who allegedly robbed the Maverick gasoline and convenience story early last Tuesday morning, Dec. 16. According to a Police Department press release, at approximately 12:45 a.m., the suspect entered the store located in the 2800 block of First Street at the intersection of Betz Road, displayed a gun and made off with an undisclosed amount of cash. No one was injured during the robbery and the suspect fled the convenience store on foot. Cheney police, along with officers fr...
Cheney Police Officer Chris Oakes has been named the department's 2014 Officer of the Year. Oakes was one of five Police Department officers nominated, and selected by a committee based upon a criteria of taking care of the community, serving the public first, productivity and how well nominees do their job. "I feel honored," Oakes said. "It's an award from my peers. I never expected that." A native of the Tacoma area, Oakes joined the Army after graduating from Gig Harbor...
The Medical Lake middle and high school jazz bands performed a concert at Lakeland Village, Dec. 12, to kick off the institution's winter festival....
If you choose to drive while impaired this holiday season, there are 120 police agencies around Washington committed to making sure you are arrested and successfully prosecuted. That's the message from a coalition of agencies and organizations active in the field of traffic and auto safety. The Washington Traffic Safety Commission is funding a significant number of local emphasis patrols, in which officers will work overtime to provide extra coverage at the hours when most...
The Medical Lake Physical Therapy's motto is "keep it movin," and it's been doing that for the last nine years. Owner Dr. Nola Petrucelly opened the clinic in 2005 on Lake Street. One year later, the clinic moved to 725 N. Stanley St., above what used to be the urgent care ran by Dr. Jane Akpamgbo but is now Rockwood Clinic. Petrucelly, a University of Washington alumna, has lived in eastern Washington since the '80s. Growing up, she remembered a physical therapy clinic being...
After receiving their candy canes from Cheney firefighters, a number of children along the Fire Department's Candy Cane Ride route near Salnave Elementary stayed around to wish firefighters and others in the ride a "Merry Christmas."...
With all the food and festivities, keeping pets safe during the holidays can be a challenge. But furry family members will be just fine with some simple precautions. KC Theisen, director of pet care issues at the Humane Society of the United States, says poinsettias, mistletoe and holly all can be poisonous to pets, or at least cause stomach upset. Bowls of candy or snacks left sitting out also can cause health issues. “Chocolate is a well-known toxin to dogs and cats,” Theisen says. “Some nuts are also not healthy for pets...
The Children's Organ Transplant Association (COTA), along with Papa Murphy's Pizza, held a fundraiser Dec. 17 in honor of Maddy Harris, 6, of Airway Heights, and her family. The fundraiser, which was held at the stores on 1503 E. Francis Ave. and 2418 W. Northwest Blvd. in Spokane, raised a total of $1,174.94. All proceeds from the sales went to COTA to help Harris and her family. Prior to the fundraiser, COTA had raised $20,537.73 towards the $50,000 goal. Harris 6, the...
The Cheney Free Press will be closed Jan. 1, 2015, in observance of New Years. Therefore, printing is taking place Tuesday, Dec. 30 for the Jan. 1 issue. Deadlines for submissions have also changed. The deadline for legal notices is Friday, Dec. 26 by 5 p.m. The classified ad deadline is Monday, Dec. 29 at 11 a.m. The deadline for letters to the editor and public service announcements for the West Plains briefs is Friday at noon. The Cheney Free Press will reopen Friday, Jan. 2, 2015 at 8 a.m....
The Cheney Post Office’s annual Christmas coloring contest always draws out the best of Cheney’s young artists, with the winners receiving a stocking-full of wonderful goodies. This year’s winners pictured above are back row Grace Clark, age 10, and sister Joy Clark, age 8, and in the front row Masen Braesch, age 4. Also winning but not pictured are Hunter A. Smith, age 12, and Josiah Sims, age 6. Thirty-two young artists entered this year’s contest....
The Medical Lake City Council finished its budget season at its Dec. 16 meeting. The council voted, 5-0 on the second reading of ordinances that adopted the 2015 final budget and set salaries for appointive officers and city employees. Councilman A.J. Burton was absent from the meeting. The council also approved an amendment to the budget that included purchases the city made in the middle of the year. Those purchases include contracts for the Ball and Dodd funeral home demolition, the Brooks Road overlay project and the...
