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Quincy Valley Historical Society raises a ruckus – and a barn

JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 7 years, 7 months AGO
by JOEL MARTIN
Joel Martin has been with the Columbia Basin Herald for more than 25 years in a variety of roles and is the most-tenured employee in the building. Martin is a married father of eight and enjoys spending time with his children and his wife, Christina. He is passionate about the paper’s mission of informing the people of the Columbia Basin because he knows it is important to record the history of the communities the publication serves. | April 25, 2018 1:00 AM

QUINCY — Webster defines “ruckus” as a row or disturbance, which doesn’t capture the level of fun generated at the Quincy Valley Historical Society’s “Raise a Ruckus” fundraiser Saturday night. The event raised about $3,700 toward the society’s Heritage Barn, which broke ground last August and is now nearing completion.

“People said it was one of the best events we’ve ever had, and it was a lot of fun,” said volunteer Harriet Weber, who is spearheading the barn project.

About 100 people packed the Pioneer Church for the event, according to Weber. The main entertainment was an Americana-themed concert by the Wenatchee-based group All Strings Considered playing hammer dulcimer, fiddle and guitar and joined by George resident Elliot Kooy on the banjo. The church’s superior acoustics owing to its unique barrel vault ceiling made the music especially beautiful, Weber said.

Kylie Youngren, the new choir teacher at Quincy High School, brought in select members of her choir for an a capella rendition of “Will the Circle be Unbroken,” followed by a duet performance by Youngren and her husband Riley of “Oh, Shenandoah.”

“We had a singalong time, and I taught them the Virginia reel in the barn,” Weber said. It was really, really fun.”

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