Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Sorted by date Results 451 - 475 of 2376
On April 5, Allyn resident William Harris kicked off his campaign for Mason County Commission with a fundraiser at a home in LakeLand Village. Harris, a Republican, is running for the seat representing District 1, occupied by Randy Neatherlin, an independent. Neatherlin on Wednesday told the Journal he is "leaning toward" seeking a fourth term. This is the first campaign for public office for Harris, a LakeLand Village resident who last month announced his intention to appear on the November...
"He could be blustery. He could be rough and tough. He could be nice and kind and gentle. Whatever his moods - and most people judged him by either his faults or virtues - there was only one Rudy Werberger." This was the opening paragraph of a memorial article about Mason County grape grower, wine maker and Forest Festival promoter Rudy Werberger, written by Dave James in 1985. Rudy Werberger was born in Austria in 1881. At the age of 20 he emigrated to Roslyn, Washington, got a job in the...
A Shelton floral company will pay workers back wages and fines of $1.85 million after the U.S. Department of Labor sued on behalf of the workers March 21 in US District Court, Western Washington. Shelton business Continental Floral LLC, known as Continental Floral Greens, owner Jim Milgard, Jr. and Pacific Northwest General Manager Scott Schauer agreed to a consent judgment March 26 and will not contest claims they didn’t pay migrant workers overtime wages, failed to provide the workers safe transportation and safe housing, and did not d...
Three convicted in murder cases with Mason County ties After a five-month trial, a jury in Kitsap County on Friday convicted three men of murdering a Seabeck family, including the father whose body was discovered on a tree farm on Northeast Dewatto-Holly Road, south of Forest Springs Road, in Mason County. The family, John Careaga, 43, his wife Christale Careaga, 37, and her 16-year-old son Johnathon Higgins and 16-year-old stepson Hunter Schapp were all killed in January 2017. The mother and sons were found inside their burned-out home near...
During a physical exam in 2003, Shelton resident Karen Hilburn was diagnosed with breast cancer. "I was in shock in that I had no symptoms, nothing," she recalled in an interview with the Journal. The small tumor was removed, and Hilburn underwent six weeks of radiation. "It's still so amazing to me that if you find out early enough, it's very preventable," she said. Hilburn had medical insurance and didn't have to stay overnight at a hospital. But she was struck by the thought of women who...
Terry Mehl is this year's Shelton Yacht Club commodore. Mehl chose the theme for this year's cruise schedule: "Doing More in 24." He and his wife, Donna, cruise in a Bayliner 3688 motor yacht, named Weather Wizard in homage to Mehl's Marine Corps career. They travel with a Shih Tzu, Rocky, and an African grey, Merlin. After graduating from Redmond High School in 1972, Mehl joined the Marine Corps and married Donna after boot camp. The couple moved to Lakehurst, New Jersey, for Mehl's schooling....
Installation of Jersey barriers along U.S. Highway 101 from the intersection of Wallace Kneeland Boulevard to state Route 3 in Shelton is one step closer after $2 million in legislative funding was approved March 7 for engineering. Additional funding will be needed for construction, according to Doug Adamson with the state Department of Transportation. A WSDOT project document shows the design has been funded but work hasn’t started. “Barriers are not placed with the assumption that the system will restrain or redirect all vehicles in all con...
Bigfoot protection on agenda At a briefing April 8, Mason County commissioners unanimously agreed to put a resolution on the next meeting’s agenda “declaring Mason County a sasquatch protection and refuge area” after Grays Harbor County elementary school students wrote in asking for protection of the cryptid. “We are the students of Miss Andrews class in 5th grade at Lincoln Elementary school in Hoquiam, Washington. The reason we are writing this letter to you is because we believe that Mason County should have laws to protect Bigfoot...
Around 12:30 a.m. April 5, Central Mason Fire & EMS responded a house fire in the Shorecrest area. Crews arrived to find a fire in the attic. During firefighting efforts, a section of the home's ceiling collapsed striking firefighters and one firefighter was transported by ambulance to Mason General Hospital with nonlife-threatening injuries. The homeowner along with firefighters were able to rescue a mother cat and several kittens from the home. Crews remained on scene for several hours...
Vietnam-era vet discusses rejoining Army after 9/11 Author Bob Shano talks about his new book "Never Too Old for War" and signs copies from 1 to 4 p.m. April 27 at the Shelton Timberland Library, 710 W. Alder St. Shano - a U.S. Army Vietnam-era veteran and native of the Bronx - felt compelled by the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks to return to the ranks as an infantry soldier. Shano has served in the Army as an infantryman, left the service in 1986 and had been out of the Army for 16 years....
Yesteryear Car Club The Yesteryear Car Club is offering a scholarship to any Mason County high school senior graduating in 2024 who plans to pursue a vocational/technical school education in automotive trades. May 1 is the deadline to apply. Selection will not be based on grade point average. Applicants are required to write a statement about themselves, their choice of vocation or trade, activities in school and the community, volunteer work, hobbies, work experience and plans. They must also include two letters of recommendations, and the...
The state Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group is seeking public comment on the planned restoration of 7 acres of estuarine habitat in the Mary E. Theler Wetlands Nature Preserve in Belfair. The project focuses on estuary restoration to improve habitat for fish and wildlife species, including Hood Canal summer chum salmon, which are listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act. It also includes removing a 1,250-foot breached levee to...
Just another week of attending functions and making decorations. Mary does like to socialize! Sunday, April 3, 1953 Today was a busy one. As soon as I ate, cleaned house and got ready to go to Havasu Club Installation. They served a nice lunch and I sat next to Ruby. She had some delicious shrimp and potato salad there. I left as soon as Ruby was installed as chaplain as I wanted to get my hair done. Wilma Westing's mother-in-law had passed away, so she said as the funeral was Tuesday, she had...
Editor’s note: The Journal does not identify minor victims of sexual crimes or their families. The parents of a 5-year-old kindergartner have sued North Mason School District after video footage showed the child being “sexually and physically abused” by a fifth grade student during a bus ride home, according to the complaint filed April 1 in Mason County Superior Court. The complaint states the child has developmental and speech delays and attended kindergarten in the North Mason School District. The district provided door-to-door trans...
Mason County Chief Public Defender Peter Jones told commissioners his office is about to be “hit by a train” thanks to updated Washington State Bar standards that “drastically” change attorney caseloads, which will affect how the county prosecutes and defends criminal cases. At a March 24 briefing, Jones requested commissioners immediately form a committee to study the problem and begin implementing changes to the county’s criminal justice system. “I think we need to start putting together a committee right now that figures out how to minimize...
Evergreen Elementary and Shelton High School students will soon have a safer path walking and biking to school. Crews on March 27 began construction on three Safe to School projects. The city is creating crosswalks and other improvements on Shelton Springs Road at Shelton High School and the Huff'n'Puff Trail; Seventh and Franklin streets, across the street from Evergreen Elementary School; and two blocks away near Safeway, at Ninth and Franklin streets. Construction is expected to continue...
Shelton Deputy Mayor Joe Schmit announced he is resigning from the Shelton City Council. His resignation was announced Tuesday evening at the council’s regular meeting. Schmit did not attend the meeting. Shelton Mayor Eric Onisko told the Journal the city has 90 days to pick a replacement for Schmit. Schmit did not give a reason for his resignation, Onikso said. The city is accepting applications for the position. Schmit’s term expires Dec. 31, 2025, so the seat will up for grabs in the November 2025 election. Schmit did not immediately res...
Better water pressure and storage in the Angleside area is on its way after the Shelton City Council on Tuesday accepted a $1.8 million grant from the state Department of Commerce. The council voted to give preliminary approval at its March 19 meeting. The money will be used to design and construct water infrastructure improvements in the Angleside pressure zone. According to the city report, the city last year became aware of some potential deficiencies in water pressure and storage issues...
Kids can venture aboard The Jolly Reader, a pirate ship in the downstairs children's area of the Shelton Timberland Library, to tie ropes, work the ship's wheel or curl up with a book inside a porthole. About 200 people attended the ship's debut March 9 that included live music, face painting, rope tying, a mermaid and a pirate. Timberland Regional Library's facilities staff build the ship, which measures 26 feet long and 17 feet wide. The features include a crow's nest with a parrot, floating j...
The new Marmo Caffé & Gallery at 217 W. Cota St. in downtown Shelton offers an eclectic mix of visual arts, books, coffee, jewelry, baked goods and performances. The business drew a large crowd for a ribbon-cutting ceremony March 28 hosted by the Shelton-Mason County Chamber of Commerce. The current exhibition, "New Seasons Fantasy," is on display through May 4. The group exhibition features works by Greg Bartol and Carol Orr, Carrie Brennan, Maria Bressler, Arrington Dionyso, Lauren Kim,...
Hood Canal Lions Club The Hood Canal Lions Club is offering two $1,000 scholarships to Shelton High School seniors, with a preference for students who attended Hood Canal Schools. The scholarships can be used for enrollment at any accredited college, university, or vocational-technical school, in or out of state. The recipient must enroll in the institution during the school year following graduation and be enrolled full time. The scholarship money will be paid to the educational institution registrar upon proof of registration. Application...
A Port Orchard man has been arrested for stealing a car in Mason County and leading deputies on a high-speed chase down state Route 106. Joseph Hubbard, 22, of Port Orchard, was arrested on felony charges of eluding police and possession of a stolen vehicle March 26. A Mason County Transit employee called MACECOM on March 11 to report a man trying to break into parked cars at Northeast Log Yard Road in Belfair, according to a Mason County Sheriff incident report. While the caller was on the phone, he said the suspect had entered a gray Nissan...
A Seattle attorney suing Mason County District Court and Judge George Steele for appointing him to defend a local man charged with DUI wants the suit to proceed even though he’s been removed as the man’s counsel. Jonathan Lewis, who has a legal practice in Seattle, filed a writ of mandamus in Mason County Superior Court on Feb. 27. The writ is used when government officials have allegedly taken a legally prohibited action. Lewis says Steele improperly appointed him to defend Martin Andres Alonzo, who is being charged with DUI for the third tim...
A Mason County resident who contacted the Journal about his uncounted March 12 presidential primary ballot says its now been tabulated. Scott Gordon said the delay was because he mistakenly signed his wife’s return envelope. “I appreciate everybody looking into it,” Gordon said in a voice message. Mason County Auditor Steve Duenkel’s investigation showed the ballot arrived at the elections department Feb. 21 and was counted in the results for the March 12 presidential primary. When Gordon checked the status of his ballot through the Mason C...
