Quincy prepares to celebrate Christmas season
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 years, 4 months AGO
Spectators listen to the Christmas story from a narrator at the 2020 Living Nativity event in Quincy.
File photo
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | November 30, 2021 1:03 AM
QUINCY — The holiday season will come to Quincy with a parade, a living nativity, an in-person choral concert and other activities this weekend.
The Quincy Valley Christmas Holiday Celebration begins at 5:30 p.m. Friday with a parade of lighted vehicles through town. Harriet Weber, one of the organizers, said any and all vehicles are welcome, from cars to farm machinery. The staging area will be on B Street Southeast, between Central Avenue South and First Avenue Southeast.
Weber said the Rotary Club of Quincy is scheduled to enter a couple of examples of the light displays club members traditionally set up along Interstate 90, such as Santa in a sleigh.
“Last year, they redid a whole bunch of them,” Weber said.
The displays were made possible by an online fundraising campaign that generated a robust response, Weber said.
“The community really came together,” she said.
Some private property owners also have Christmas light displays along state Route 281, she said.
Santa and Mrs. Santa will be featured in the parade, and will be available for photos and to hear Christmas wishes from kids afterward in the Quincy Community Center, 115 F St. SW.
Saturday starts with a “craft market” in the barn at the Quincy Valley Historical Society & Museum, 415 F St. SW. The market will be open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will feature handcrafted items and lunch, featuring homemade soups, catered by This & That Catering.
Santa and Mrs. Claus will make a return trip to town during the craft market for pictures in the Pioneer Church next to the barn. The Reiman-Simmons House, next to the church, will host the display of a Christmas village made entirely of Lego blocks.
“Over 30 structures. Some of them are lighted,” Weber said.
A living nativity is scheduled for 5:30 to 8 p.m. Saturday on the museum grounds. People will park at the former Quincy Valley Fruit parking lot next door to the museum. Groups will get a guided tour through four stations of the nativity story, where a narrator describes the scene. People will be invited to the QVHSM barn for hot chocolate after they go through the nativity.
Sunday will feature the Community Christmas Concert presented by Quincy Valley Allied Arts. Singers take the stage at 6 p.m. in the Quincy High School performing arts center, 403 Jackrabbit St. NE.
Admission to all events is free.
ARTICLES BY CHERYL SCHWEIZER
Road closures, roundabout, mean construction season underway
EPHRATA — The grass is starting to turn green, the trees are starting to leaf out, construction crews are starting to build roundabouts – hey, it’s spring. At least one roundabout project is in its final phase, held over from fall 2025. The intersection of State Route 282 and Nat Washington Way will be closed the week of April 6 to allow crews to install permanent lights. “This really is the final (closure),” wrote Grant County Administrator Tom Gaines in a media release. “The roundabout will close at 6 a.m. Monday, and we plan to reopen by Friday, possibly sooner if the work finishes early.”
Ybarra announces run for Washington Senate
QUINCY — State Representative Alex Ybarra, R-Quincy, has announced his candidacy for the Washington Senate. If he’s elected, he would replace Judy Warnick, R-Moses Lake, who announced her retirement in March.
Othello Community Museum to open April 25
OTHELLO — With a couple of new exhibits, a new heating-cooling system, rearranged displays and a thorough cleaning, the Othello Community Museum will open for the summer April 25. The goal, said Molly Popchock, museum board secretary, is to operate for a full season.