Goldendale Sentinel July 27, 2022

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HEADLINES & HISTORY SINCE 1879

Goldendale, Washington

WEDNESDAY, JULY 27, 2022

Vol. 143 No. 30

Bellamy calls it a career

Byers retires from City

LOU MARZELES EDITOR Know how many city administrators the City of Goldendale has had in its history? Correct answer: until this Friday, one. And that one has been Larry Bellamy, who steps down in retirement July 29 after 27 years on the job. Bellamy took the then-newly created post of city administrator in January of 1996, though he began work with the city on August 2, 1995. He was already employed as—well, let’s back up. First of all, Bellamy was born here in Goldendale, back when you could have babies at Klickitat Valley Health. His grandfather owned a home at Block House. But when he was three, the family whisked him off to a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. There they stayed until 1973, when, after he’d formed fast friendships in K.C., they whisked back to

GRACE BLAND FOR THE SENTINEL

LEFT: RODGER NICHOLS. RIGHT: GRACE BLAND.

DECADES OF SERVICE AT AN END: City Administrator Larry Bellamy and City Court-Treasurer Connie Byers are both retiring this week. Goldendale, where Bellamy spent his last two years in high school, graduating in ’75. Then it was off to Oral Roberts University (ORU), where he graduated in 1979. He went to work in San Diego, the perfect mix of Missouri, Oklahoma (where ORU is), and Goldendale. Or maybe not, since he didn’t stay in California long, returning to Goldendale the next year and landing a gig as deputy clerk treasurer. During that stretch, he got married and started a family. The travel itch hit him, and in 1985 the Bella-

mys moved to Alaska, where his parents were. They stayed in Anchorage for 10 and a half years, after which they heard the call of Goldendale again. Jodi Bellamy, Larry’s wife, asked him, “Well, if you had your dream job, what would it be if you were to move back to Goldendale?” He answered, “I’d like to be the clerk-treasurer.” Jodi, responded, “Well, you’ll never be the clerk-treasurer there because they only change clerk-treasurers once every 10 or 15 years.” Soon after that Bellamy picked up a

copy of The Goldendale Sentinel and saw a headline: “Goldendale clerk-treasurer resigns.” Talk about a sign. “I interviewed with the city council over the phone,” Bellamy recalls. “They hired me.” It didn’t hurt that he’d held a position with the city before. The family packed into their Mazda van and drove 52 hours straight, down the AlCan (Alaska-Canada) Highway, from Anchorage to Goldendale. Not long after landing in his new position with the city, the

See Bellamy page A8

New pastor balances two churches GRACE BLAND FOR THE SENTINEL

Pastor Joyce O’Connor McGee has retired from Goldendale’s United Methodist Church, leaving a new pastor in her place. Pastor Kendra Behn-Smith has taken up the role to continue the services provided by the church. Pastor Kendra is no stranger to travel, as her life began in Ohio, and she has since traveled to 47 states and even as far as Cornwall, England. She has been a pastor for the Methodist community for 26 years. Her work first began in Cornwall shortly after her marriage to her husband. “He and I talked and decided, let’s just go,” she recalls of the decision. They made the big move and worked for the British Methodist Church for the following four years. “It was a wonderful experience. I learned a lot about being a pastor,” she says. Such experience that will now help Goldendale’s spiritual community flourish. Nearly an hour away in White Salmon, Pastor Kendra leads another Methodist church while simultaneously balancing the church here in town. She lives in White Salmon but travels to Gol-

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dendale on Sundays, Mondays, and Wednesdays. Her bishop offered her the position here, and Pastor Kendra graciously agreed to balance both churches. She rotates what church she spends her Sundays at in sets of three: three Sundays are in White Salmon and three are here in Goldendale. Then for two Sundays, she will preach at 9 a.m. in Goldendale and 11 a.m. in White Salmon. Pastor Kendra also mentions trying a new method of having both churches meet in the middle for a Sunday of gathering and community amongst the various Methodist churches. Since COVID, the Goldendale United Methodist Church has struggled to uphold some of their usual services. The soup kitchen was maintained during the pandemic, but it was altered from a sit-down event to a food pick-up event. The church’s preschool was fully shut down and only recently has begun to get back to normal after the COVID restrictions. Many worshippers feel uneasy attending services on Sundays due to the fear of the spreading of the disease. Pastor Kendra has online services set up for the church in

See Pastor page A8

GRACE BLAND

NEW PASTOR: Kendra Behn-Smith has taken over ministerial duties at the Goldendale United Methodist Church.

After 30 years of work in public service, Connie Byers is set to retire from her current position as Clerk- Treasurer for the city. Connie has done a tremendous amount for Goldendale throughout her career, and her deep dedication to the community will be missed. Her work experience reaches back to when she was just 16, giving her 46 years of work in various areas. After completing school in Granger, her hometown, Connie moved to Goldendale with her husband and soon after got a job at the county in licensing. Later, she moved to the voter registration sector and totaled nine years at the county. After that, she moved over to the city in 2001, where she has stayed for the past 21 years. For the city, she first worked in the utility billing courts before being promoted to clerk-treasurer, a position she has occupied for the past 13 years. Due to her 30 years of work and spritely 62 years of age, Connie can retire before the typical retirement age of 65. The official end of her work life will be at the closing of this month, and she is beyond excited. Connie is looking forward to spending time with her great-grandchild, expected in February, and being at home with her husband. She has also been prepping for the vacation of a lifetime with her husband in Hawaii. The time she has dedicated to the city is truly commendable, and she has made an impressionable impact on those around her. Earning her position as clerk-treasurer was the highlight of her career, as she teased that, “It was a lot more fun than doing the utility billing.” Aside from just the work itself, Connie has made many beloved memories over the years. “It’s just been awesome,” she said when asked about her experience. After she has officially taken her leave, the position of clerk-treasurer will fall to Sandy Wells. Connie and Sandy have worked together for several years, and Connie expressed the amazing quality of work Sandy has done thus far in her position. Despite the melancholy her retirement brings to the city, the community will remember her work while Connie will remember her many years of special moments. “I just love the people I work with, and I’m going to miss them,”

See Byers page A8

Ecology says drought has ended throughout entire state precipitation,” Marti said. “The outlook is much better than forecast back in May.” This year’s conditions are in stark contrast with last year’s. Spring 2021 was the second driest on record, and then an unprecedented late-June heatwave

smashed temperature records across the state. In response, Ecology issued an emergency drought declaration in July 2021 covering 96 percent of the state. Only Seattle, Everett, and Tacoma—cities with ample water storage—escaped the

drought designation. By May of this year, wetter conditions brought relief to much of the state, but some portions of eastern Washington had yet to fully recover from 2021’s severe conditions. This led Ecology to

See Drought page A8

Submit photos for 2023 Calendar Unanticipated cool, wet weather in May and June prompted the Washington Department of Ecology to cancel the drought declaration for central and eastern Washington. Water supply conditions have been much better than expected. As a result, no part of Washington is experiencing drought conditions. The decision to end the drought declaration came after the second-wettest May through June in Washington since 1895. According to state law, a drought can be declared when the water supply in an area is below 75 percent of normal and there is an expectation of undue hardship.

The lowest streamflow forecast in the state—the Colville River at 86 percent of normal—is now well above that threshold. Some streamflow forecasts are much higher. Unseasonably cool weather over the spring and early summer has preserved snowpack, causing it to last longer into the summer, which will support late-summer water supply needs according to Jeff Marti, Ecology’s statewide drought coordinator. “Conditions have improved. All areas of the state, including the five watersheds specified in the drought declaration, have received significantly above-normal

The Sentinel is gearing up for its annual calendar. As we did last year, in keeping with our broader distribution througout the county, we’re welcoming submissions from photographers everywhere in Klickitat County, and we now call the calendar “Klickitat County.” The photographer whose picture is chosen for the cover will win a free Amazon Fire tablet. Here are the guidelines: - Photographs must be of scenery, which can include wildlife. No photos of people. - They must be horizontal

(landscape mode)—no vertical shots will be considered. - All photos chosen must be in high resoltion, 300 dpi or

higher. Submit your photos to: 2023Calendar@goldendalesentinel.com.


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