The Year in Review

Our look back at 2019 continues...

July

In a project spearheaded by Lise Ott and JoEllen Wollman of Experience Quilts with the help of many Odessa quilters, red, white and blue “valor quilts” were distributed to elderly veterans at a July 4 quilt show at Any Occasion Banquet Hall.

The Firemen’s Barbecue on July 4 served close to 300 people on a nice warm summer day.

Odessa High School sent 29 of its FBLA chapter members to the FBLA National Leadership Conference held this year in San Antonio, Texas. Five teams made it into the final round of competition and brought home national trophies representing third through seventh place in various categories.

The graduating class of 1999 held a reunion picnic July 13 to enable more of their members to attend than had been able to be at the alumni reunion held each year in June.

The Boeing Tournament drew more than 40 golfers to the Odessa Golf & RV course on a clear and sunny Sunday afternoon.

American Legion Riders Post #28 of Ephrata stopped their motorcycles in Odessa on their way to a Legion convention in Spokane. At Reiman Park, they were greeted by Legion and VFW members from Odessa who also treated them to a lunch of barbecued hot dogs and German sausage.

August

Go! Odessa Recreation offered a cooking class for kids in the Community Commercial Kitchen in the community center, with instructor Laura Estes, supplier of the bi-weekly cooking column in The Odessa Record. The youngsters were divided into two groups by age, with the younger group using a cake mix base for cupcakes and the older group making cupcakes from scratch.

The back-to-school issue of The Record listed new and returning school employees, fees for various items and activities and the schedule for the 2019/2020 academic year. School begins August 26.

National Night Out was held in Odessa at Reiman Park on August 6 with participation by first responders from the town, county and state.

The annual picnic and softball event sponsored by the Odessa Ministerial Association was held at the Finney Field softball field Sunday, August 11. Dark clouds threatened but then moved away without dropping any rain on Odessa.

Odessa Town Marshal Brent Dell announced that Sasha, the police K9 to be trained as a drug-sniffing dog, will not be used for that purpose after all and will return to her previous owner. More comprehensive medical testing showed problems with her hips and spinal discs, as well as the beginnings of a tooth abscess. The donations collected from the community thus far for the dog’s upkeep will remain in a dedicated bank account owned by the Odessa Chamber of Commerce until such time as another dog can be obtained.

The Lincoln County Fair and Rodeo was held in Davenport August 22 - 24, drawing exhibitors from small towns throughout the county. FFA chapter and 4-H club members and independents had worked hard raising animals for show or preparing projects to be judged.

In Harrington news, the school’s band program benefited from donations offered for attendance at a guitar concert provided at the Harrington Opera House by the new band teacher Robert Vierschilling and three of his fellow guitarists.

Incumbent town council member Marlene Kramer and challenger for position #5 Bill Pichon were interviewed by The Record and provided background information on themselves, as well as their reasons for seeking public office.

Fest updates explain new food options, vendor locations and other efforts to perk up interest in Deutschesfest.

September

Odessa Town Council position #2 has two people on the ballot for the November 5 general election, incumbent Amy Hunt and challenger Joe Schlomer. Information on their backgrounds and views were included in The Record’s reporting.

The Deutschesfest supplement to The Odessa Record was published the week prior to the Fest, with stories on Biergarten chairman Trevor Smith and parade grand marshals Warren and Audrey Beck and honorary grand marshals Don and Mavis Smith.

Lincoln County Fair results and pictures dominated the September 12 issue of the paper.

Town Council position #1 was being contested in the Nov. 5 general election by incumbent Vickie Iverson and challenger Tami Smith.

Chris Sewall celebrated 40 years of attending the Odessa Deutschesfest. Though not an Odessa native himself, Sewall is related to the Jonah Heimbigner family and spent many summers helping out with the harvest.