Ephrata going chrome
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 years, 1 month AGO
Attendees check out vehicles at last year’s Anything with Wheels Show and Shine car show. This year’s show is Saturday.
JOEL MARTIN/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
Kelly Cash of Coulee Dam shines his 1956 Chevrolet half-ton pickup at the 2023 Anything with Wheels Show and Shine in Ephrata. This year’s show is Saturday.
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. | July 19, 2024 3:10 AM
EPHRATA — The cars — and trucks, and motorcycles, and whatever else — will gleam in the sun again Saturday at the Anything with Wheels Show and Shine car show.
This is the show’s 13th year, according to Rita Witte, director of the Ephrata Chamber of Commerce, which organizes the show.
“It's evolved,” Witte said. “We started with probably about 75 people, and the highest we've had is about 150.”
Witte wasn’t sure how many entries there were this year, because while some vehicle owners register online, others prefer to go old school and fill out registrations in person at the chamber office, she said.
The “anything with wheels” part is for real. Any kind of vehicle is welcome at the show, Witte said.
“We have rat rods, we have Bel Airs, motorcycles, just all kind of things.”
Vehicles can be registered online for $25 at the chamber’s website, www.ephratachamber.org.
C Street will be closed from First Avenue Northwest to First Avenue Southwest, Witte said, and Division Avenue from Basin Street to the alley behind D Street across from the courthouse, Witte said. Along with the vehicles, there will be food and craft vendors set up around the area, she added.
Judging will be from 10 a.m. to noon, Witte said. There’s also a Kids Choice prize, where children get to pick their favorite car, and a poker walk, where attendees stop at five stations to build up a winning poker hand.
Entrants will receive a goodie bag with gifts and coupons from local businesses, Witte said. Each entrant will also be entered in a raffle to win a washer and dryer valued at $1,500, donated by Moore Furniture. Attendees who aren’t showing a vehicle can also buy a raffle ticket for $1, Witte said.
Weather for the event is expected to be in the triple digits, but plenty of cold drinks and cool cars will be on-hand to offset the weather.
Joel Martin may be reached via email at [email protected].
Kelly Cash of Coulee Dam shines his 1956 Chevrolet half-ton pickup at the 2023 Anything with Wheels Show and Shine in Ephrata. This year’s show is Saturday.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.