Mary Poppins to host children’s tea party
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 year, 3 months AGO
Claire Crump will sip tea (or lemonade) with children in her role as the Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious nanny at Basin Community Theatre’s Tea Time with Mary Poppins March 28. Tickets go on sale Friday.
JOEL MARTIN/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
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. | February 4, 2025 1:20 AM
MOSES LAKE — She’s practically perfect in every way, and next month, some children will get to enjoy her magic in person.
As part of the leadup to its stage production of “Mary Poppins,” Basin Community Theatre will host Tea Time with Mary Poppins on March 28. Children can enjoy tea or lemonade with the star of the play, Claire Crump, in full costume. Crump will also lead a singalong and some crafts and take photos with the youngsters.
The idea was originally conceived as a mother-daughter tea, but BCT Producer Marion Wyman said dads, grandparents and sons are all welcome too. Children love seeing their favorite characters close up, Wyman said.
“I took my granddaughter to see ‘Beauty and the Beast’ (on stage),” Wyman said. “The next day was Sunday, and I took her to church with me and (the actress who played) Belle was at church. My granddaughter just stopped in her tracks, and she took a breath, and she gasped ‘Belle!’ ... Our hope is that (children) come to the show and go ‘I met her! She’s flying! I have a picture with her!’”
Other cast members will be there to serve in period costume, Wyman said, but probably won’t be recognizable as their characters.
The children will make bracelets and color kites, Crump said. They can also print off a picture from BCT’s website and color it, and those will be entered in a drawing. The winner will receive two tickets to the play.
Tickets go on sale Friday. Early bird tickets bought Friday and Saturday are $5 off; the regular price begins on Sunday. There’s room for 120 people, both children and adults, Wyman said.
Crump is no stranger to princesshood, she said. As a Moses Lake High School choir student, she participated in the choir’s Enchanted Evening events where students charmed children as Disney characters.
“I was always a princess,” she said. “It's so fun to get to connect on that level. As someone on stage, you hope that you're creating magic, but being able to do this kind of thing, you're kind of bringing the magic in and around people. It's going to be really fun.”
More information and tickets are available at www.basincommunitytheatre.com.
ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Mail carriers to collect food Saturday
MOSES LAKE — Mail carriers in Moses Lake will collect food for the Moses Lake Food Bank Saturday, part of the annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive. “(We’re asking) for a small donation of non-perishable food by your mailbox,” said carrier Michelle Schmidt, who’s coordinating the drive this year for Moses Lake. “And then on Saturday when we’re delivering, we’ll be picking up the food as we go along our route.” Schmidt suggested marking the food donation clearly, so carriers don’t pick up someone’s delivery order from a store. Anyone wanting more information can ask their mail carrier. The drive, put on by the National Association of Letter Carriers the second Saturday in May, has been going on since 1993, according to the NALC’s website.
NCWJLS kicks off livestock show season
MOSES LAKE — Young animal growers started the season March 19-21 at the North Central Washington Junior Livestock, held at the Grant County Fairgrounds in Moses Lake. “We are the first (show) of the year,” said Michelle Farrer, show manager for the NCWJLS. “So we’re the first opportunity for kids to get their animals in the show ring and work those jitters out and practice for larger shows around the area, including county shows.” The sale is a three-day affair, Farrer said. The exhibitors weigh in Thursday afternoon, show their animals all day Friday, and then they’re judged on Saturday morning. Also Saturday morning is a meat judging contest, Farrer said.
Vanderhoff named Apple Blossom Citizen of the Year
WENATCHEE — Delbert Vanderhoff of Wenatchee had no idea he’d been named the 2026 Apple Blossom Citizen of the Year. “I can’t believe they did that,” Vanderhoff said. “I’ve always told my kids, ‘This is a small town. I know everybody. You can probably do things, but you need to understand that I will find out.’ When Darci (Christopherson) came in and surprised me, I said, ‘I can’t believe you kept it a secret.’” Christopherson, the Apple Blossom Festival coordinator, said Vanderhoff was selected by a board made up of past winners, who look for things like community involvement, commitment to furthering the industry and mentoring the next generation of growers. “(Vanderhoff) has been in the business since he graduated high school,” Christopherson said. “He’s very passionate about it.