Finland leader speaks to State

Renee Diaz

Washington State Journal

For the fi rst time in history, a foreign head of state has addressed a joint session in the Washington State Legislature.

President Sauli Niinistö of the Republic of Finland met with Washington lawmakers March 6 to discuss climate change and their partnership in supporting Ukraine. The visit comes as Finland intends to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

“The current critical geopolitical situation has brought us closer together than ever before. We are now strengthening our ties in sectors such as defense, trade, technology, and energy security.

And soon we will be able to call each other allies.” Niinistö said.

Both Washington State and Finland have made major efforts to welcome Ukrainian refugees since the war began one year ago. Ukrainian refugees are the largest refugee group in the state. Over

RENEE DIAZ

FINLAND MEETS OLYMPIA: Sauli Niinistö, the President of the Republic of Finland, and Washington Gov. Jay Inslee and wife Trudi listen as both national anthems are played inside the state Capitol. Niinistö, began his five-day U.S. tour in Washington State, attended a joint session of the Legislature, and met with Inslee.

16,000 refugees have come to the state in the last year, more than any other state in the country.

“Washington State stands with the people of Ukraine, and Washington State stands with the people of Finland who have been so courageous and so dedicated to this joint civilized effort to stand for democracy in Ukraine,” Inslee said.

BANKING ON BOOKS: The Friends of the Goldendale Library held a successful used book sale Saturday.

First Library book sale of the year draws appreciative readers

ZACHARY VILLAR FOR THE SENTINEL

There was a large turnout for the Friends of Goldendale Community Library’s first book sale of 2023. Held in the Camplan Community Room of the Goldendale Community Library, the theme of the March 11 event was “Book Sale for the Body, Mind, and Spirit.” The sale consisted primarily of non-fiction books and was the second in a series of themed book sales the Friends have organized that includes last November’s Holiday book sale.

“I’m impressed with the neatness and organization,” said Robert, one of the patrons of the event. “I always look forward to these things. It’s a chance to say hi to people as well as acquire books.” Goldendale resident Conor Holbrook found out about the book sale while getting his library card a couple of weeks prior. When asked what he thought of the sale, Holbrook said, “I love it. It’s got a huge collection of all different sorts. I got a book about herbs which I didn’t think I would enjoy but, I don’t know, it looked pretty interesting.”

Book sales like this raise funds to sponsor programs that the library provides free to the community. The Friends of Goldendale Community Library (FOGL) is an independent fundraising organization under the umbrella of the Fort Vancouver Regional Library Foundation, a registered nonprofit organization working to support Fort Vancouver Regional Libraries through funding, advocacy, and volunteer support. The day before the book sale they were working hard to get the event ready for the public.

The last few years have been difficult for FOGL. “We’ve been kind of at sixes and sevens since the whole Covid thing, so we’ve just kind of been regrouping,” said Kathleen McKinney, the president of FOGL. She explained the importance of the Library “Friends” organizations.

“We raise money for the library events. Fort Vancouver has their own things that they are able to provide. We buy food for events or in the past we bought craft supplies. Friends of the Library groups also help advocate for the libraries.” FOGL has also previously helped pay for guest speakers to come to the library.

“We would hope that we would get up to the point where we could start doing some things like that,” said McKinney.

Members of FOGL Betty LongSchlief and Marsha Anderson were among the group of volunteers busily organizing the large amount of books that were available at the sale, and their hard work did not go unnoticed.

“They’ve done so much work,” said McKinney. “We wouldn’t have this without the help that she’s providing,” referring to Betty, “and Marsha as well. They’re here a couple of times a week.” Asked if Anderson had anything to highlight about FOGL, she stated, “We need more members.”

FOGL member Becky Bare shared the general enthusiasm and hope for the organization’s future. “We really are trying to give back to the community,” said Bare. “We’re kind of getting regrouped and re-familiar with each other. It’s really been nice to have new people coming in, too. It’s a good chance for us to kind of do a restart. What does the world look like in 2023,” Bare asked, “and how will libraries support that?”