Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
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North Mason's Isabella Oblizalo and Sarah Pruitt qualified for the state bowling tournament after competing at the district tournament Jan. 29 at Paradise Lanes in Parkland. The end of the season has been interesting for the Bulldogs after being unable to participate in the league tournament due to COVID-19. "We thought our season was going to be over as the league tournament determines who advances to districts," North Mason coach Rob Thomas said in an email to the Journal. "The Olympic League...
Shelton Boys basketball Shelton had a busy week with four games, defeating Rochester and Aberdeen before a last-second loss to Black Hills. The Highclimbers took down Rochester 73-38 on Jan. 25 at Terry Greg Court and hosted Aberdeen Jan. 27, earning a 73-28 win. Black Hills came to Shelton on Jan. 28, and lost on a last-second shot from Luke Ellison, 58-56. Shelton bounced back on Monday with a 61-53 win against the Tigers in Centralia. Shelton (8-6, 6-4) wraps up the regular season with two road games, facing Tumwater on Friday and Aberdeen...
The North Mason School District closed Hawkins Middle School, James A. Taylor and North Mason high schools on Tuesday due to a recommendation from the Mason County Sheriff’s Office. The Sheriff’s Office investigated threats of violence Monday and recommended closing the upper campus until the investigation was completed, according to a news release from the school district. On Tuesday afternoon, the Sheriff’s Office deemed the threats not credible after determining the threats could not be valid...
its monthly commissioners meeting Jan. 18 and responded to questions submitted by the community, which may have brought up more community questions than before. The Journal attempted to schedule an interview with the commissioners and chief Kelli Walsworth, but commissioner Albert Wilder said the commissioners or chief Walsworth would not do any interviews until after the accountability audit being conducted by the state Auditor’s Office is completed. During the meeting, it was announced the d...
Belfair sewer hearing Monday The Belfair Sewer Project public hearing is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Monday through Zoom. The link to join the Zoom call for public comment can be found at masoncountywa.gov. Questions and comments can be emailed ahead of time to [email protected], mailed to the commissioner’s office at 411 North 5th Street, Shelton, or call 360-427-9670, ext. 230. During the public comment portion of the Jan. 18 commissioners meeting, two people commented on the Belfair Sewer Project. Greg Sypnicki said he watched the March 2...
Rep. Dan Griffey, R-Allyn, sent out a newsletter Jan. 21 to update constituents about the 2022 legislative session. In his newsletter, Griffey wrote one of his biggest priorities is to address the governor’s emergency powers. House Bill 1772 would address legislative involvement in gubernatorial proclamations relating to a state of emergency. Senate Bill 5039 would subject gubernatorial emergency orders to legislative approval. Griffey also said House Republicans are trying to address public s...
Representative Drew MacEwen, R-Union, sent out a newsletter highlighting some of the bills House Republicans are working on. According to the newsletter, five bills are aimed at providing tax relief, including House Bills 1898 to reduce state property tax levies, House Bill 1594 to repeal the long-term care trust act and payroll tax, and House Bill 1913 repealing and replacing the long-term care trust and payroll tax. House Bill 2015 would expand the working families tax credit and House Bill...
Little Creek Casino hosting vaccine clinic Friday Little Creek Casino is hosting a vaccine clinic from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday. According to a Mason Health Facebook post, Moderna and Pfizer boosters and Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccine doses will be available. The clinic will be at the Skookum Creek Event Center, 91 W. state Route 108, Shelton. Anyone interested can register for the clinic by scanning a QR code on the flier. Work on North 13th Street Monday Shelton has hired a private contractor to work on North 13th Street...
Mason County’s health outcomes are ranked in the lower middle range of counties in the state and the health factors are ranked as one of the least healthy counties in the state, according to the 2021 community health assessment released by the board of health. The life expectancy in Mason County is 79.7 years old, compared to the state’s 80.4 years. The county’s life expectancy rate increased by 4.3 years from 1994 to 2019. The top cause of death in Mason County is cancer, which kills 167 people...
Rob Thomas is the new head football coach at North Mason High School. "I really can't put into words how excited I am to lead the Bulldogs," Thomas told the Journal in an email. "We have all the pieces to our puzzle, now it's time to put it together. I have dreamed about this day for a long time and for it to finally become a reality is one of the greatest feelings ever." Thomas Mosby resigned from the head coaching position after two seasons. In an email to the Journal, Mosby, who had a...
The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association has released a statement regarding discriminatory behavior after several of incidents this year involving racist taunts and actions at athletic contests. According to the statement, the WIAA said these kinds of behaviors have no place in schools or communities and encourages everyone to create a safe and fair environment for competition. WIAA staff is following leadership of schools and leagues involved to talk about prevention strategies to...
Two years after the first case of COVID-19 was identified in Washington, Mason General Hospital is the lone facility in the county handling the medical treatment of hospitalized COVID patients. With the omicron wave, Mason Health and Mason General Hospital is seeing more patients than ever. In August, Dr. Dean Gushee, Mason Health chief medical officer, said the hospital was bursting at the seams. He said little has changed since then. “Early in the pandemic, we were seeing very occasional C...
Chief Stephen Gonczi provided an update on the NJROTC program to the Shelton School Board at the Jan. 11 meeting. Gonczi, in his first year at Shelton High, said the program is doing well. He's in his fourth year as a naval science instructor and used to work in Spanaway. "I'm glad to be back home. I live six minutes from the school," Gonczi said. He has three sons, two whom graduated from Shelton and both participated in the NJROTC program. His ninth-grade son participates in the NJROTC...
Commissioners approve Homeland Security Program contract amendment Mason County commissioners approved a contract amendment with a state Homeland Security Program from the Washington State Military Department through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. According to the information packet, Mason County Emergency Management Division is part of Homeland Security Region 3 with Lewis, Thurston, Grays Harbor and Pacific counties. The contract pertains to an annual grant through the Homeland Security region. The grant money is distributed...
Griffey introduces bills on crime, transportation The 2022 legislative session began Jan. 10, and state Rep. Dan Griffey, R-Allyn, has introduced bills to address crime and transportation in the state. According to a news release, Griffey introduced five bills. House Bill 1656 would include concealment under the definition of theft in retail stores. House Bill 1292 would criminalize the act of knowingly providing pornographic and other harmful materials to a minor by anyone 18 or older. If passed, a person who provides harmful material to a...
Mason Health’s Pam Schlauderaff recognized by national organization Mason Health’s Director of Quality, Patient Safety and Regulatory Compliance Pam Schlauderaff was recognized as the community star for the state by the National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health. According to a news release, the NOSORH honors people throughout the country who make contributions to improve rural health in the U.S. Schlauderaff was nominated by the Office of Rural Health within the state Department of Health. “To me, to even be nominated by the staff...
The Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group has purchased 50 acres of the Big Beef Creek property. HCSEG now has 302 acres of habitat at Big Beef Creek, located near Seabeck in Kitsap County, across Hood Canal from Brinnon. A creek nearby is called Little Beef Creek. The name comes from cows pastured in the nearby upland areas. It was not easy to acquire the land, according to HCSEG Executive Director Mendy Harlow. The property was previously owned by the University of Washington with a research...
Shelton Boys basketball Shelton played its first game in almost a month, losing to Tumwater before defeating W.F. West at home. The Highclimbers fell 68-49 on Jan. 11 at Terry Gregg Court in Shelton before earning a 58-38 win against W.F. West on Jan. 13. Chuckie Thompson led Shelton with 20 points against the Bearcats and Mason Goos added 12 points. Shelton (5-5, 3-3) hosted Black Hills on Wednesday before traveling to Centralia on Friday to take on the Tigers in Evergreen Conference games. Girls basketball Shelton lost 76-18 on the road...
Mason County commissioners declared a state of emergency due to the snowstorm and low temperatures at an emergency meeting Jan. 5. According to the declaration of emergency, designated departments are authorized to enter into contracts and agreements to combat the emergency for the health and safety of people and property and to provide emergency assistance to the victims. It allows the departments to meet the demands without procedures or formalities prescribed by law. It lasts until Jan. 19....
County responds to tribe’s letter on water rights Mason County commissioners approved a letter in response to the Squaxin Island Tribe’s letter about a Memorandum of Agreement on water rights between the county and tribe signed in February 2019. The Squaxin Island Tribe wrote a letter to the commissioners Dec. 8 addressing the MOA. The tribe summarizes its letter by saying “the county has failed to complete many tasks under the MOA in a timely manner and appears likely to miss upcoming deadlines. Please understand that the tribe may need to in...
Mason County recordwed 657 COVID-19 cases in the past week, according to the Division of Emergency Management. There were 362 cases recorded from Jan. 7 to 9. The county recorded five died last week, including a woman in her 60s, two women in their 70s, a man in his 70s and a man in his 80s. The county’s pandemic death toll is 89. The seven-day case rate per 100,000 people is at 798.2 and the 14-day case rate is at 1,352.6. Nine people were hospitalized with COVID as of Tuesday and the county i...
The Shelton School Board had a first reading on a proposed change to the out-of-state field trip rules at its meeting Tuesday. According to the information packet, the most notable change regards out-of-state travel. The current policy is the Shelton School Board approves out-of-district overnight trips, regardless of costs to the district. If there is a cost to the district, the trip must be submitted in advance to the board and all trips without a cost to the district must still be submitted t...
State representatives Drew MacEwen and Dan Griffey and state senator Tim Sheldon were given a Mason County sendoff at the Shelton Yacht Club last Friday before the 2022 legislative session. The event was put on by the Shelton-Mason County Chamber of Commerce, North Mason Chamber of Commerce and the Economic Development Council of Mason County. Sen. Sheldon, D-Potlatch, spoke first at the event and said there weren’t a lot of highlights to report from the 2021 legislative session. He said the b...
The 2022 legislative session kicked off Monday, and it is another virtual session due to COVID-19. The Journal sent questionnaires to Sen. Tim Sheldon and Reps. Drew MacEwen and Dan Griffey, with only Sheldon responding before the Journal’s print deadline. Q: What are some of the goals you would like to accomplish during the 2022 legislative session? Any legislation you are planning on introducing? Sheldon: The 2022 legislative session will be a short 60-day session in an election year, and I d...
The NFL regular season ended Sunday and the Seahawks are getting ready for another postseason run. Just kidding! Seattle didn’t have a good season, finishing 7-10, last in the NFC West, and the only team in the division to not make the playoffs. It has been a weird year for the Seahawks. They started slow, and then Russell Wilson got hurt, and things went downhill from there. Let’s look at why the Seahawks weren’t good this season and what the offseason could look like. Let’s start with why the...
