Grant, Adams well-represented on CWU Honor Roll
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 7 months AGO
Central Washington University has released its Honor Roll for fall 2025, with 104 Basin students honored.
FILE PHOTO
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 3, 2026 12:00 AM
ELLENSBURG — More than 100 students from Grant and Adams counties were named to Central Washington University’s Honor Roll for fall quarter 2025, according to an announcement from the university. To be eligible, a student must complete a minimum of 12 graded credits in the quarter earned with a grade point average of 3.5 or higher.
These Basin students were named to the Honor Roll:
Almira: Prairie Parrish
Beverly: Heidy Araujo, Jackie Barbosa, Aylar Elias, Georgina Hernandez, David Ruiz
Ephrata: Katlyn Anderson, Lucas Brewer, Baylie Broesch, Hannah Downer, Jordan Granger, Kelsi Griesbauer, Mya Hagy, Esmeralda Santos, Bekah Schmuck, Griselda Torres, Yanely Valdovinos, Erika Vargas Sanchez, Fabiola Vargas-Sanchez
Mattawa: Giareniz Avila Sanchez, Erik Godinez, Yaneli Guerrero, Brian Guillen, Alexis Hidalgo, Maria Lazo, Elias Martinez, Emely Miranda, Sandra Miranda, Jose Quintero, Diego Rodriguez, Kyle Yorgesen
Moses Lake: Savannah Betz, Trenton Busching, Daisy Castaneda, Jasper Conley, Ingrid De La Rosa, Ivan Delgado-Maciel, Elizabeth Diaz, Bree Edwards, Gissele Estrada-Leon, Addie Francis, Sean Gallaway, Dacian Garza, Veronica Gonzales, Cosmo Griffith-Steele, Isabela Hernandez, Camryn Holterhoff, Van Nu Long Huynh, Hannah Ingalls, Heidi Leon-Vega, Guadelupe Marquez-Diaz, Kenisha Martinez, Katie Mcadoo, Emily Mendoza, Luz Aurora Mendoza Chavez, Kora Preston, Kelli Ritter, Melanie Santana, Sydney Serrano, Natalie Shuler, Florcoin Silva Tafoya, Grace Thompson, Lauren Verrall, Esfir Yaroshchuk
Othello: Emily Alvarez-Salmeron, Ailyn Calderon, Annalee Coronado, Andre Garza, Benji Garza, Alexsandra Gonzalez-Bojorge, Maylyn Leal, Kameron Mace, Christian Rodriguez, Eva Salgado-Valdovinos, Derek Wagner
Quincy: Fernando Bautista Hernandez, Abby Duran, Jasmine Garcia-Carrillo, Lydia Gutierrez, Aldo Iniguez Zamora, Emmerson Miller, Steven Potts, Deisy Quintero, Evelyn Ramirez-Juarez, Stephanie Sanchez, Yareli Guadalupe Sanchez Cazarez, Victor Spindola Ramirez, Dave Sulistio Sulistio
Royal City: Rubi Aguirre Zuniga, Leslie Alcala Gomez, Alma Ponce, Sandra Sanchez-Garcia, Grecia Santillan
Soap Lake: Zoe Alberti, Destiny Hansen, Ethne Horrace, Aracely Mata, Tawney Nash, Judah Tadema, Emily Williams
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.