New homes, new lives
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 9 months, 3 weeks AGO
Odie, a poodle mix, was adopted in May from Grant County Animal Outreach.
COURTESY PHOTO/GRANT COUNTY ANIMAL OUTREACH
Chihuahua Daisy was found wandering around the streets of Ephrata on a rainy night and brought to Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry by a delivery driver in November. She found a forever home about a month later.
Chomps was adopted from Adams County Pet Rescue in June.
Chica found her humans in April at Grant County Animal Outreach.
Phil, a senior kitty, was adopted from Rock Bottom Rocket Pet Pantry in September.
Brakeman was found by the railroad tracks near Othello and adopted in July from Adams County Pet Rescue.
Camelia, shown here getting ready for Halloween, found her forever home from Adams County pet Rescue.
Gracie found a home in September from Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry.
The Floats – Coke and Orange – were adopted from Adams County Pet Rescue in June.
It took more than two years, but Burt found a home through Grant County Animal Outreach in January.
Friday Flirt found her new favorite human at Adams County Pet Rescue in December.
Bailey found her family at Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry in August.
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. | December 26, 2025 1:05 AM
MOSES LAKE — 2025 turned out to be a good year for some pets, and some humans as well. Here are a few of the critters that found forever homes at local shelters this year.
Chihuahua Daisy was found wandering around the streets of Ephrata on a rainy night and brought to Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry by a delivery driver in November. She found a forever home about a month later.
Chomps was adopted from Adams County Pet Rescue in June.
Chica found her humans in April at Grant County Animal Outreach.
Phil, a senior kitty, was adopted from Rock Bottom Rocket Pet Pantry in September.
Brakeman was found by the railroad tracks near Othello and adopted in July from Adams County Pet Rescue.
Camelia, shown here getting ready for Halloween, found her forever home from Adams County pet Rescue.
Gracie found a home in September from Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry.
The Floats – Coke and Orange – were adopted from Adams County Pet Rescue in June.
It took more than two years, but Burt found a home through Grant County Animal Outreach in January.
Friday Flirt found her new favorite human at Adams County Pet Rescue in December.
Bailey found her family at Rock Bottom Rocker Pet Pantry in August.
ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Endless battle
Noxious Weed Control Board works to keep invasive plants under control
MOSES LAKE — Some of the nastiest plants in Grant County were the topic of a class led by Jay Johnson, a consultant with the Grant County Noxious Weed Control Board, Tuesday. The Noxious Weed Control Board, as its name would suggest, is tasked with keeping weeds under control in Grant County. That’s not a small job; the board’s website lists 129 species of noxious weeds that are found around Grant County. A noxious weed is defined as an invasive, non-native plant that threatens agricultural crops, local ecosystems or fish and wildlife habitat, according to the Noxious Weed Control Board. Washington state law requires that these weeds be identified and their spread kept to a minimum, if not completely eradicated. “We’re one of those agencies a lot of people don’t really understand,” Johnson said. “We’re a county office and … our funding is tax-based assessment. When you get your tax bill and you look down at all the expenses that you pay for, there we are.”
BASIN EVENTS: Oct. 16-24
COLUMBIA BASIN — Whether you feel like shopping, crafting, learning or seeing a show, there’s something happening for you this week in the Basin. Oct. 16 ‘My Family (Mi Familia)’ screening Spanning three generations, “My Family (Mi Familia)” is a heartfelt drama that follows the Sánchez family as they build their lives in East Los Angeles. Through love, hardship, triumph, and sacrifice, the film explores the immigrant experience, the strength of family bonds, and the traditions that connect one generation to the next. Lowrider show and taco truck before the screening. Sponsored by Columbia Basin Allied Arts, EDUBS C/S and the Moses Lake Creative District. $12 per person. Doors open at 6 p.m., film begins at 7 p.m. at the Moses Lake Civic Center Auditorium, 401 S. Balsam St. Tickets and info: www.cba-arts.org.
Moses Lake author encourages women to look beyond church culture norms
MOSES LAKE — A Moses Lake author’s book, “A Christian Woman Striving to Live Her Faith in a Man-Controlled World,” takes aim at the role to which many churches relegate the female half of their congregations. “It’s to encourage women in the faith,” Linda Curran said. “A lot of churches say, ‘Teach Sunday school, do this, do that, but don’t (evangelize.)’" In her book, Curran recounts a time when she moved to a new community and joined a church there. She was surprised to learn that, as a new female member, she had been automatically assigned church cleaning duties. When she questioned it, she wrote, she was met with condescension and her objections were brushed aside. In other churches, she said, women who were capable of teaching were relegated to “women’s ministry.”