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The Squaxin Island Tribe's Little Creek Casino Resort has launched sports betting before one of the biggest betting weeks of the year. Little Creek Casino Resort CEO Ramon Nunez said the move complements the casino's position in the market and adds to the excitement of watching sports. "There's a sense of accomplishment knowing that it's done, and it's started," Nunez told the Shelton-Mason County Journal. "Relief in getting to this point and to be able to finally operate it. There's a lot of...
Voters approved replacement levies for the Hood Canal and Mary M. Knight school districts, while a Hood Canal building bond is falling short of a 60% super majority. In initial ballot results released at 8 p.m. Tuesday, the Mary M. Knight levy received 57.19% of the vote, and the Hood Canal levy 59.61%. Hood Canal's proposed bond to expand and renovate was at 56.16%. The Mason County Auditor's Office released the second count of ballots at 4 p.m. Wednesday, after the Journal went to press. Turno...
The Pioneer School Board on Friday placed Superintendent Jill Diehl on paid administrative leave and named former Southside Schools Superintendent Doris Bolender as the acting superintendent. The move came almost two months after the Pioneer Education Association presented a vote of "no confidence" on Diehl to the board. Four members of the five-member board voted for the actions, with Dwayne Kipple abstaining. "The board is pleased to have Ms. Bolender available to assume this important...
Myron "Rick" Hittinger, 76, passed away on January 24, 2022, of complications from COVID-19. Born in Whittier, CA in 1945, to parents Martha Shuman and William Hittinger, Rick truly lived a full and passionate life, surrounding himself with friends and his love of boating, music, travel, and vehicle maintenance and collection. A veteran, Rick served in Vietnam and played saxophone in the Army Band. Following his years of service, Rick obtained both a Bachelor’s and Masters’ Degree from West Texa... Full story
Bonnie McGoldrick, 78, passed on January 14, 2022, in Shelton, Washington. She was born in Bellingham, Washington, daughter of Bert and Ella. A confident, artistic, creative woman of diverse interests including collecting art, photography and gardening. The original generation of women entrepreneurs in Seattle in the 70's with a passion for creating documents, layouts and presentations and mailings. She was always one to put a smile on everyone's face and see the best in everyone. A veracious re... Full story
Myrna Bennett died after a short battle with cancer on Sunday, January 30, 2022, at home in Shelton, surrounded by family. She was 86 years old and had lived in Shelton on Little Skookum Inlet for most of her life. Myrna was born August 14, 1935, in Olympia to Robert and Ruth (Dana) Wallin. She attended Irene S. Reed High School in Shelton and graduated in 1953. After high school she attended the University of Washington and graduated in 1956 with a bachelor's degree. She married Richard Bennett... Full story
Ethel Iona (Lucas) Zachry, 83, passed from this life to glory, on January 30, 2022. Ethel was born on August 26, 1938, in Seattle, Washington, where she would reminisce about riding her bike across the Aurora Avenue Bridge between Seattle and Ballard. Growing up in a family in ministry, Ethel graduated from West Coast Bible and High School in Fresno, California, with the class of '56. Shortly thereafter in 1957, she met and married the man she would spend the next 51 years with, DeLoss Zachry,... Full story
Kenneth V. Foredyce, 64, a resident of Shelton, passed away January 22, 2022, at home. Arrangements are by McComb & Wagner Family Funeral Home and Crematory. Terry Howard White, 63, a resident of Shelton, passed away February 1, 2022, at Mason General Hospital. Arrangements are by McComb & Wagner Family Funeral Home and Crematory. Cloie Alberta Johnson, 84, a resident of Shelton, passed away February 3, 2022, at Wallapa Health & Rehab. Arrangements are by McComb & Wagner Family Funeral Home and Crematory. Jonelle Raye Garrick, 66, a resident... Full story
My brain summons images of people when I read or hear particular words. Maybe this happens to you too. The word “accommodate” conjures a millisecond image of Dan Shaw, former city editor for the Bellingham Herald, while he taught a journalism class I was in at Western Washington University. He taught us how to remember how to spell accommodate: “Two C’s, two M’s.” The word “primer,” in reference to a short piece of explanatory writing, summons Bettz Pitcher, a long-gone Olympian copy editor who...
Who’s entitled? Editor, the Journal, A Jan. 20 letter in the Journal titled “entitlements” made me think of other “entitlements.” I would rather my tax money (federal and state) go to help families with child care, college, medical bills and family leave, Social Security and Medicare. I’d rather help small businesses with my tax dollars than have my money going for “entitlements” (subsidies, tax breaks) for oil, gas and coal companies, and for Amazon, Tesla, Boeing, Walmart, Nissan, Archer-Daniels-Midland and the list goes onc as well as payi...
This week, as I raked two hogsheads of dead leaves into pens for composting and producing leaf mold, it was nice to discover that a mainstream agronomist recommended this wintertime activity over a century ago. George Washington Carver was a lot more than the "peanut man" to which he's been boiled down. Sure, he found over 300 uses for peanuts. In 1921, he testified before Congress so capably that, initially granted 10 minutes, he was given "unlimited time" to expound a the properties of and...
The pandemic prevented the staging of a student play last year in Shelton High School's Performing Arts Center. But after class these days, the theater is abuzz with students adjusting lights, moving props and preparing to launch into rehearsals for the romantic comedy "Almost, Maine," which debuts at 7 p.m. Friday. "Project!" acting teacher and director Wendy Burr calls to the 17 masked actors on stage warming up their voices. "To be or not to be!" "To be or not to be!!" they bellow back....
Mason County recorded 643 cases and 15 deaths from COVID-19 from Jan. 31 to Feb. 6. According to Mason County Division of Emergency Management, the deaths included three men in their 50s, one man in his 60s, four men and a woman in their 70s, two men and two women in their 80s and two women in their 90s. The seven-day case rate per 100,000 people is at 1,144 and the 14-day case rate is 2,627.6. There were three people hospitalized as of Sunday and the county is 57.2% vaccinated. People can...
Annas Bay Closure Response Plan amended An amendment to the closure plan for Annas Bay Shellfish Protection District was approved at the Mason County commissioners Feb. 1 meeting. According to the information packet, the original plan was completed in August 2018 and was amended in November 2018 before this amendment. The money for this plan is provided by the Hood Canal Coordinating Council. In September 2017, the state Department of Health changed the classification of approximately 1,220 acres of Annas Bay Commercial Shellfish Growing Area t...
Hoodsport native exceling at Gonzaga Jasmine Dang of Hoodsport earned a spot on the president’s list for the fall semester at Gonzaga University in Spokane. To be eligible, a student must earn a GPA of 3.85 or better....
The Mason County Sheriff’s Office and the Mason County Coroner are asking for the public’s help to identify a dead man’s body that was found on Harstine Island on Jan. 16. The Mason County Coroner posted pictures of the John Doe on Facebook and asked for the public’s help Jan. 21. The post has been shared 541 times but hasn’t produced any leads, according to Mason County Coroner Jaime Taylor. The body was found on the beach near East Camden Way on Harstine Island. The deceased man is about 6 f...
Donate cans to help youths The Kristmas Town Kiwanis Club is collecting donations of aluminum cans to benefit programs and scholarships for Mason County youths from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Feb. 19 in the parking lot at Bob’s Tavern on First Street in downtown Shelton. Polar Bear Plunge benefits emergency services The Hood Canal Lions Club hosts the 12th annual Polar Bear Plunge fundraiser from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the Alderbrook Resort and Spa. Proceeds benefit Mason County Emergency Services. The plunge is open to anyone who raises at l...
Hood Canal Communications receives $5.3 million in grant money Hood Canal Communications announced the award of a $5.3 million broadband grant received from the Washington State Broadband Office in partnership with the Washington Independent Telecommunications Association. According to a news release, the grant is to extend broadband to residents and businesses in several unserved, low-density pockets of Mason County. HCC will contribute about $600,000 in matching money to bring the total...
If you've lived in Mason County most of your life, and most of your life constitutes 60 or 70 years, then get ready to hear the following statement and have it clash with what you know to be true. "Live music, dancing, outdoor dining with fresh local seafood buffet at the Shelton Waterfront Bistro next to Shelton's beautiful Waterfront Park." Really? Beautiful park ... waterfront ... outdoor music and dining ... Shelton? OK, it will be a while. But in less than 10 years, I predict the term...
Rep. Dan Griffey, R-Allyn, saw a bill pass out of the House Finance Committee and two bills pass out of the House Transportation Committee. According to a news release, House Bill 1657 passed out of the House Finance Committee on Feb. 4 and would help reduce emissions and safety risks caused by inadequate commercial truck parking through tax incentives. “We need more safe and secure overnight truck parking options in Washington,” Griffey said in a news release. “By law, truckers must take manda...
Sen. Tim Sheldon’s, D-Potlatch, bill about finance processes for large fire districts cleared the Senate on Feb. 2 with a unanimous vote. According to a news release, Senate Bill 5565 allows larger fire districts with revenues in excess of $10 million to use its own treasurer rather than using the local county or city treasurer. The bill applies to regional fire district authorities in which two or more fire districts share governance. “This is what we mean when we talk about goo...
Rep. Drew MacEwen, R-Union, said House Bill 1788 was the only bill that made it out of committee after Republicans proposed bills about law enforcement. According to the news release, HB 1788 was part of Republicans Safe Washington Plan, which is a set of bills focused on stopping crime, supporting law enforcement and putting victims first. Of five proposed bills, one made it out of committee. MacEwen provided an update about the long-term care and payroll tax, citing a vote to delay the...