Grant, Adams well-represented on CWU Honor Roll
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 8 months, 2 weeks 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
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.”