First kindergarten class graduates at Groff Elementary
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 years, 2 months AGO
Kindergartners at Vicki Groff Elementary jam out to surfing music at their graduation Friday. The class is the first at Moses Lake’s newest elementary school. The $18.1 million elementary school opened last September and is about 57,000 square feet in overall space.
JOEL MARTIN/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
Counselor Jannette Serrano-Vasquez opens the ceremonies at Groff Elementary School's first-ever kindergarten graduation.
Scarlett McCollough gets into her performance at the Groff Elementary School kindergarten Friday.
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. | June 13, 2022 2:24 PM
MOSES LAKE — The Vicki Groff Elementary School gym was brimming with adorability as 65 kindergartners held a graduation program Friday, joined by an audience of about 150 family members.
“We are so proud of all the work our students did this year,” said Counselor Jannette Serrano-Vasquez in her introductory remarks, standing in for Principal Nikki Mackey. “They have fun learning together, doing math, reading, science and writing, art and so much more.”
The kids leaving kindergarten Friday are the first class to attend Groff, which opened in the fall. They’ll be the high school Class of 2034, Serrano-Vasquez pointed out.
The kids entered the gym and said the Pledge of Allegiance before a flag held by kindergartner Shaurya Singh. Then they picked up little cardboard surfboards and rocked out to “Surfin’ USA” and “Dynamite.”
Then it was time for diplomas. One by one, teachers Katrina Betes, Rebecca Dalton, Carina Cruz and Candace Pitts called their students to the microphone, gave them their printed certificates and asked them what they wanted to be when they grew up. There were plenty of prospective teachers, firefighters and police officers, as well as a smattering of gamers- and YouTubers-to-be.
Next came a slideshow depicting the kids’ activities throughout the year, and the attendees went outside to enjoy some snow cones. Each child received a “bucket of fun,” to take home, Betes said, which included chalk, bubbles, Play-Doh and a snack.
“The kids created the surfboards themselves,” Betes said. “The pictures in the slideshow are taken throughout the year during different celebrations. We do monthly celebrations for learning every color, from red to brown to all of them.”
“It was a big production,” she added. “We put a ton of time into it, to make sure that it was a blast, and one that's going to be remembered for the rest of the rest of their lives, hopefully, at least by their parents.”
Joel Martin may be reached via email at [email protected].
ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Quincy National Night Out scales down
QUINCY — Quincy’s National Night Out was more compact this year, which worked out well, said QPD Sgt. Joe Westby, who’s in charge of event planning for the Quincy Police Department. “National Night Out is a big event, and the fact that we’re able to shrink it up is like a breath of fresh air,” Westby said. “If you're always doing the same thing, it's kind of nice to switch things up and see how it works.” National Night Out took place Thursday on the block of C Street next to the police station, a shift from previous years when it was held at Lauzier Park. The smaller space meant fewer emergency vehicles for children to explore, but it also meant less walking for attendees. Grant County Fire District 5 brought a fire truck, and the Grant County Sheriff’s Office had a patrol boat. Renew, the Grant County behavioral health agency, had a booth and so did Quincy Partnership for Youth. Veterans Operation Creation sang the national anthem, and the Quincy Animal Shelter brought kittens that piled over each other making friends with passersby. As before, the QPD served grilled hot dogs.
Quincy Police retirements leave big shoes to fill
QUINCY — There are some big shoes to fill at the Quincy Police Department. “We’re losing 48 years of experience between them,” Quincy Police Chief Ryan Green said at the retirement party for Capt. Jorge Trujillo and Det. Damon Powell Thursday. Trujillo, who grew up in Sunnyside, has been with QPD for 19 years, he said, coming on as a patrol officer fresh out of the military. From there he served as a field training officer, a detective and finally captain. “I consider him my left-hand man,” Green said. “He runs the operations side of the house … He knows the agency very well, and he knows the community.” Trujillo has some projects around the house to tackle now that he’s retired, he said.
Big fun on a small scale
Wheat Land Communities’ Fair opens Thursday
RITZVILLE — The Wheat Land Communities’ Fair isn’t as big or as flashy as some of the county fairs around central Washington, but the folks who keep it going like it just the way it is. “It’s somewhere you can go and get an old-time traditional feeling, and you’re comfortable letting your kids roam the grounds and experience all that it has to offer,” said Board Member Lori Williams. “It’s more of a feeling than (one) specific thing,” The fair starts Thursday in Ritzville and runs through Sunday. Starting Friday, the 56th Ritzville Rodeo will take place alongside the fair at the rodeo grounds. This year the entertainment budget was expanded, Williams said, to be able to offer more fun that’s covered by the cost of admission. For the kids, there’s face painting, balloon art, Lego crafts, races, contests and games. Children can also ride on a little train towed around the fairgrounds behind a tractor.