Harrington news

The members of the Harrington Chamber of Commerce have been busy preparing for a successful Harrington Fall Festival and have endeavored to work in conjunction with other organizations toward that goal. Their officers are: president, Timothy Tipton of the Harrington RV Park; vice president, Pastor Cade Clarke, Church of the Nazarene, and manager of the Harrington Food Bank; secretary, Paula Pike, Paula’s Remote Office; and treasurer, Cindy Haase, Ott Insurance. Utilizing the EDDM Retail of the U.S. Post Office, “every-door direct mail” allowed the Chamber to reach all of Harrington with their “packet” to “celebrate the Fall Festival.” Chamber meetings are held the first Wednesday of each month at noon. An evening meeting is offered quarterly. The Chamber invites community participation in their meetings and activities. The news today is an abbreviated version of what is included in their packet.

The Harrington Fall Festival is a Lions Club event. Activities begin with the parade in the Harrington historic district at 11 a.m. The Lions Club BBQ and events in the City Park start at noon and include games, bingo, raffles, and vendors. The Chamber sponsors a beer garden, and Saturday’s evening event is the Alumni Banquet at the Harrington School multipurpose room at 5 p.m.

Harrington Golf and Country Club is the meeting place for the 50-year alumni reunion on Friday, September 22. Golf specials are offered on Saturday and their annual Glow Ball Tournament is Saturday evening. The men’s 27-hole shoot-out will be on Sunday. The Chamber’s packet carries a reminder that the golf course will close for the winter on September 30.

Harrington’s FFA is sponsoring a pancake feed from 8 to 10 a.m. Saturday, September 23, at the Memorial Hall. Sausage, eggs and pancakes will sell for $5 per plate.

FBLA is again sponsoring the Huff ‘n’ Puff Fall Festival race. This is an opportunity for everyone. Those who brag about their fast feet have the chance to prove the feat. For those who want the challenge of the exercise and have nothing to prove, two runs are available, a one-mile and a 5K run. Those who have money and little energy have the opportunity to write a check and support a worthy cause – $30 will boost the FBLA and get your name as a sponsor put on the fun-run T-shirts. The deadline is here now, so do it today. As in previous years, the race begins and ends at the corner of Third and Glover. The proceeds support the students attending the state FBLA conference which will be held in Spokane again this year. “Participation in these events provides a great leadership opportunity for students to gain experience and compete in a wide variety of business-related tests, projects and presentations.” Entry fees for the Huff ‘n’ Puff run is $20 if received by September 7. Late fee is $25. Check-in time is 8:15 to 8:45, with the race start time at 9 a.m. Categories for the races are: pre-teen, teen and adult (13-39), and masters (40+).

The Needhams (Bluegrass/Gospel) will perform Friday evening at 7 p.m. at the Harrington Opera House, sponsored by the Harrington Church of the Nazarene. Opera House tours will be available on Saturday just prior to and following the parade. HOHS fundraiser fall rummage event will be Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. with many treasures, all for a reasonable donation. HOHS is also advertising its 25th anniversary celebration to be held October 15, 2017 at 2:30 p.m. with a “Celebration of the Piano” by Dr. Jody Graves.

A “customer appreciation BBQ” will be from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Friday, Sept 22, 2017 on the lawn at US Bank. This event is sponsored by US Bank, Ott Insurance, Harrington Food Mart, The Post & Office, Harrington Hide-A-Way RV Park, Paula Pike and the Harrington Nazarene Church.

“We’re back,” says Harrington Panther Athletics. The sport programs are lining up nicely for the beginning of the school year with middle school football, middle school/high school cross-country, and high school volleyball. For the winter they offer middle school boys basketball, high school girls basketball, high school boys basketball and high school cheer. The spring season will offer middle school/high school track, high school tennis and high school golf.

A most modern concept is being developed in one of the historic buildings in Harrington under the management of the Justin Slack family. “The Post & Office” at 2 S. Third Street on the corner of Main, is located in the old post office building (1917-1961) in the structure originally built in 1902 to house Charlton & Fisk. The Post & Office has a coffee bar, offers office space and Wi-Fi, will be a gathering place with food available and will host retail pop-up shops. Saturday, September 23, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., there will be an open house.

The Harrington Historic Preservation Commission’s page of the packet highlighted a few of the historic buildings that are undergoing renovation: The Post & Office and the Insurance Storefront now have matching windows. The Post & Office has been totally restored, the hardwood floors were being nailed down as Labor Day weekend began. The Harrington Haus has had its roof removed and the owner, Jay Gossett, has kept the town guessing as to his actual plans for the location. He’s hired an artist with keen talent to paint the front windows; people think the lights were left on. The Hotel Lincoln continues to be restored on the corner of 3rd and Sherlock; their current project is a fundraiser for window replacement. The hotel originally opened in 1902. Tours will be available from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. The Harrington Opera House was constructed in 1904, was closed about 1950 and was in a serious state of disrepair when the Harrington Opera House Society was founded in 1992 and began its restoration efforts. Tours will be available from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday. The Studebaker Garage was built in 1916 as McInnis Bros. Garage, later taken over as the Harrington Ford Garage. In 2010 the late Allen Barth purchased the garage as a Studebaker Museum and Garage. Currently under the management of his daughter, Jill Plaskon, the Barth dream continues. She is currently combining her “Wild Hair Salon” in one office room while continuing the Studebaker Museum in the remainder of the building.