National Night Out comes to Moses Lake
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 years AGO
Ten-year-old Yemaya Castaneda aims a stream of water at a pretend burning building at National Night Out in Moses Lake Tuesday.
JOEL MARTIN/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
Moses Lake Police Ofc. Jose Ramirez takes a plunge into the dunk tank at National Night Out in Moses Lake.
The 95-degree weather made the snow cone booth a popular stop at National Night Out in Moses Lake Tuesday.
Grant County Health District Health Educator Jana Rackham was at National Night Out Tuesday to show the proper use of car seats for children.
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. | August 9, 2024 3:00 AM
MOSES LAKE — The bells, lights, sirens and hoses were all on display Tuesday at Moses Lake’s National Night Out at McCosh Park, and about 2,500 people were there to see them, according to Moses Lake Police Captain Jeff Sursely.
“The crowd was probably a little bit light, probably due to the heat, but lighter than usual,” Sursely said. “But we had a lot of good interaction with the public. A lot of great information was distributed.”
National Night Out is an annual event where the general public can come out and meet their emergency professionals — police, fire, medical and more — in a context that’s not an emergency. The MLPD was there, of course, as were the Grant County Sheriff’s Office, the Washington State Patrol, the Moses Lake Fire Department, the Moses Lake Tactical Response Team and Grant County District 5. Besides first responders, there were booths and displays from various community agencies, both government and nonprofit. There were games for the children including a dunk tank, whose occupant, MLPD Officer Jose Ramirez, was perhaps the happiest person under the 95-degree sun. He was dunked about 20 times in the first 20 minutes, he said. MLPD also served up free hot dogs and snow cones for the crowd.
“We've been having fun with the kids ... we have little prizes and stuff,” said WSP Trooper Jeremy Weber. “I ask them, ‘When you’re in trouble and you need help, who do you call?' and they kind of think about it and they say, ‘Call the police.’ ‘OK, what number is that?’ ‘It’s 911!’”
Interactions like that are important, Weber said, because police often seem intimidating to children.
“You know, sometimes I see parents like, ‘Oh, I’m going to have them arrest you.’ They're joking, of course, but don't ever tell your kids that. We want to be there to help them.”
Several other agencies have quizzes for the children as well, some with wheels the kids could spin for a prize.
“What do you do if you find lighters and matches?” MLFD Fire Inspector Tasiya Deering asked 5-year-old Hannah Sullivan. “Should we give it to Mom, do you think?”
Hannah nodded wordlessly, then spun a wheel to win a prize.
“This always a great event,” Deering said. “I think this is my eighth year doing it.”
Sursely said that this year’s event had a couple of new additions.
“The face painting lady was new this year, and she was a great hit,” Sursely said. “And then having the DJ (Rick Rodriguez) with some music turned out to be a real big positive, and that'll be happening again next year. … (He) got the kids out dancing and made that center area a lot of fun for the kids.”
Moses Lake Police Ofc. Jose Ramirez takes a plunge into the dunk tank at National Night Out in Moses Lake.
The 95-degree weather made the snow cone booth a popular stop at National Night Out in Moses Lake Tuesday.
Grant County Health District Health Educator Jana Rackham was at National Night Out Tuesday to show the proper use of car seats for children.
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.