DMLA seeks out Adopt a Pot participants
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 3 years, 11 months AGO
Moses Lake High School students plant flowers in downtown flower pots in May 2021. People can donate to the Adopt a Pot program by contacting the Downtown Moses Lake Association.
CHERYL SCHWEIZER/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
The Downtown Moses Lake Association is soliciting participants for Adopt a Pot, its fundraiser and downtown beautification project. Above, Moses Lake High School students plant flowers downtown in May 2021.
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. | April 18, 2022 1:20 AM
MOSES LAKE — The Downtown Moses Lake Association is soliciting business owners and volunteers for its Adopt a Pot program for summer 2022.
Association director Lexi Smith estimated there are about 200 flower pots downtown, and some are still orphans.
“There are plenty left,” Smith said.
The Adopt a Pot program serves a dual purpose.
“It’s a fundraiser for the Downtown Moses Lake Association,” she said.
It’s also a downtown beautification project. Flower pots can be adopted for $100 each, and donors are recognized with a plaque on the pot.
“This year we have a new design (for the plaques),” Smith said.
The DMLA also will list donors on its website, which is in the process of being updated, as well as on the organization’s social media channels.
Flower pots need flowers, of course, and those are supplied by students from Moses Lake High School.
“The FFA students from the high school grow and plant the flowers,” Smith said.
Moses Lake FFA members and students in MLHS horticulture classes grow flowers each winter and spring for the annual FFA plant sale prior to Mother’s Day. The students also grow flowers for downtown, ordered by DMLA, and plant them in early May. The DMLA provides maintenance throughout the summer and fall.
People can sign up for the program at the DMLA website, www.mlbacares.org, by calling 509-770-1700 or by mail to PO Box 1201, Moses Lake WA 98837. Order forms can be downloaded from the DMLA website.
Cheryl Schweizer may be reached at [email protected].
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.