Moses Lake YMCA project takes step forward
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 7 months, 2 weeks AGO
The effort to create a Moses Lake branch of the Wenatchee YMCA, shown here, took a step forward last week with the commissioning of a study to determine its feasibility.
FILE PHOTO
One of the advantages of having a YMCA in Moses Lake would be its facilities for underserved children, which is why the Port of Moses Lake contributed to the cost of the initial study.
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. | January 22, 2026 3:10 AM
MOSES LAKE — The dream of a YMCA in Moses Lake is a little closer to reality.
“The YMCA ... report has been funded,” said Teresa Fields, who’s been spearheading the effort to bring a Y to town. “Now we wait 90 days and see from there whether an actual YMCA building is sustainable.”
The push for a YMCA began last spring, when Fields and some other community members met with Dorry Foster, CEO of Wenatchee Valley YMCA, to explore the possibility of a branch location in the Moses Lake area. The first step was to fund a study by an outside company to determine whether the community could support a YMCA. That study was going to cost about $20,000, Fields said. But another company could do the same study for about $10,000, she said. As of last week, that money had been collected and the study commissioned.
The first $5,000 came from a construction company in Wenatchee that had local connections, Fields said, and some local residents chipped in several hundred more. The Port of Moses Lake contributed the remaining balance, she said.
“From our perspective, there’s a major group of people in our community that are underserved, and the Y is able to bring in a lot of things that will help with that,” said Port of Moses Lake Business Development Director Richard Hanover.
A YMCA could bring to the area a swimming pool, a gymnasium and meeting areas, but also childcare and an after-school hangout for teens, Foster told the Columbia Basin Herald last year. The Wenatchee facility has all those things, as well as summer camps. Financial aid is available for families who can’t afford the YMCA’s fees.
The Larson Community near the Port would be one possible location, Foster told the Columbia Basin Herald last year. One thing the study will determine is whether there’s enough population within a particular driving distance to make use of the facility, and the Larson Community is accessible not only to Moses Lake but to Ephrata and Soap Lake as well.
Regardless of where a potential facility is located, the Port believes it will benefit the community, Hanover said.
“When they do the study, they determine the best location for the whiteboard, which doesn’t necessarily mean it would be anywhere (the port),” Hanover said. “But we felt like this was something that was needed … having a place for childcare or a swimming pool available for kids that are underserved. There’s just a bunch of stuff that they have available that I don’t feel like our community does a very good job (at providing). And that’s what this study is going to do, is look at our community, where the population sits, what’s the best location if it’s feasible for a Y to be here. And they’ll look at existing services in the community as well.”
One of the advantages of having a YMCA in Moses Lake would be its facilities for underserved children, which is why the Port of Moses Lake contributed to the cost of the initial study.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.