THE FLAG COLORS OF UKRAINE
Goldendale, Washington
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23, 2022
Vol. 143 No. 12
$1.00
Council approves transitional role of deputy city administrator RODGER NICHOLS FOR THE SENTINEL A truncated Goldendale City Council, minus Loren Meagher and Fil Ontoveros, met Monday night and rolled through a busy agenda. Councilors granted approval of the recently formed Goldendale Community Sports organization to stage a fundraising festival at Ekone Park on May 28, Memorial Day weekend. The organization, which began as a loose group playing pickup ball games and flowered into a Facebook group, is now a formal nonprofit organization. The group reported it has staged a number of family-friendly activities, including street hockey, dodgeball, board game nights, ping-pong,
radio-controlled model racing, disc golf, and more. They also came to the park after the Fourth of July to clean up the fireworks debris and will be volunteering at the Home and Garden show and Community Days. As the organization’s fundraising chair, Austin Berard, put it, “Everything that we’ve done has been out of our pocket. Basically, we just want to do a fundraising event so we can raise money for sports equipment.” Councilors thoroughly approved of the group’s civic responsibility and had no problem with a request to waive the fee the city usually charges for events at the park. The council also noted major changes in administration, ap-
proving the mayor’s appointment of Sandy Wells as city clerk/treasurer, retroactive to March 17. They also supported a resolution setting up a termporary position of deputy city administrator and appointing Patrick Munyan to that post. In essence, it creates a job-shadowing situation for Munyan, who will step into Larry Bellamy’s city administrator role when Bellamy retires in June. Mayor Mike Canon said Munyon will also be appointed as director of public works “He’s very strong in both fields, and we’re excited—very excited— to have him in Goldendale,” Canon said. In other business, councilors approved replacing two copy ma-
See City page B1
RODGER NICHOLS
WELCOME TO THE JOB: Patrick Munyan, left, shakes hands with the man he will replace as city administrator of the City of Goldendale. He starts now with a temporary position of deputy city administrator.
KVH to charge for Covid services Due to expiring federal funding, COVID-19 testing and vaccination administration fees will soon be charged to patients of Klickitat Valley Health. Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has issued relief funds to hospitals and other healthcare providers providing coronavirus response. Small rural hospitals—those with fewer than 50 beds and Critical Access Hospitals— were identified as key health care access points and trusted community resources. As a recipient of these federal funds, Klickitat Valley Health has used the support to maintain COVID-19 testing, expand access to testing, and
tailor mitigation efforts to reflect the needs of the greater Goldendale region. “KVH has been a regional leader in providing equitable access to testing and vaccination for our community,” said Leslie Hiebert, CEO of Klickitat Valley Health. “The federal support was crucial to our testing and vaccination efforts over the course of the pandemic. “At the beginning of the pandemic, KVH secured enough testing supplies to meet any mandated testing—up to and including community-wide testing. With the help of federal support monies, KVH has administered 8,000 COVID tests and given out 2,700 take-home tests. Since the arrival of COVID-19 vaccines, KVH has
administered over 8,100 doses and transferred 4,200 doses to county partners.” The Department of Health and Human Services has issued the following end dates for its uninsured program: • On March 22, at 11:59 pm ET, the HRSA COVID-19 Uninsured Program will stop accepting claims for testing and treatment due to a lack of sufficient funds. • On April 5, at 11:59 pm ET, the HRSA COVID-19 Uninsured Program will also stop accepting vaccination claims due to a lack of sufficient funds. Home COVID-19 test kits are available through Klickitat County Public Health Department. For more information, call KCPHD at (509) 773-4565.
Scammers charging small businesses for free materials The Washington Attorney General’s Office is alerting people to scammers targeting new business owners, sending hundreds of thousands of deceptive letters into the state. The letters deceptively appear to originate from the government and demand payment for documents that should be free, or are available for a much lower price from the legitimate agency. About 15,000 Washington businesses have already fallen victim, paying more than $1.2 million. Any Washingtonians who received letters from WA Certificate Service or Labor Poster Compliance asking them to pay for either a Certificate of Status, Certificate of Existence, or “labor law poster” should contact the Attorney General’s Office immediately. You can file a complaint online at atg.wa.gov/file-complaint or call the office toll-free at (800) 551-4636. The Attorney General’s Office already received more than 90 complaints about the letters. One business owner wrote: “When I got back from vacation for Christmas, I had a letter in my mailbox from this organization, stating that I needed to submit payment for a certificate by 1/3/2020. I (stupidly) filled out the form and sent the payment without checking its validity. Only after the fact did I look on
CHURCH OF THE NAZARENE FACEBOOK PAGE
NEW JOB: Pastor Ernie Winn is the new full-time senior paster at the Goldendale Church of the Nazarene.
Church welcomes new pastor TAYLER BRADLEY FOR THE SENTINEL
WASHINGTON OFFICE OF ATTORNEY GENERAL
DON’T FALL FOR IT: A scam aimed at Washington new small businesses tries to charge for materials that are available for free. the [Secretary of State] corporations site to find out this is a fullfledged SCAM.” “My office is seeking to put a stop to these scammers and get Washington business owners their money back—with interest,” Attorney General Bob Ferguson said. “If you received these letters, and especially if you paid for documents as a result, we want to hear from you. You can help us end this scam and hold those responsible accountable.” Ferguson filed consumer protection lawsuits against the companies on March 17. Ferguson’s lawsuits, filed in King County Superior Court, assert CA Certificate Service, which also does business as WA Certificate Service, and Labor Poster Compliance violated the state Consumer Protection Act hundreds of thousands of times. Ferguson also filed motions for preliminary injunction to shut down the companies’ operations in Washington and prevent further mailings of their deceptive letters while the cases are ongoing. The lawsuits name the four co-owners of CA Certificate Service—James L. Beard, Dean G. Marshlack, Chad M. Davis, and Joshua T. Strawn—and two co-owners of Labor Poster Compliance, James L. Beard, and Chad M. Davis. The four owners are located in the St. Petersburg,
Florida area, and their companies operate nationwide. The scammers have targeted Washingtonians who recently registered a new business to pay $82.50 for a certificate that actually costs $20 through the Washington Secretary of State or $79.25 for a poster that is free from state and federal governments. The two companies sent at least 210,784 letters into Washington state since March 2019. Ferguson asserts these companies unlawfully duped owners into making unnecessary payments. At least 14,743 Washington business owners paid $82.50 to CA Certificate Service—a total of about $1.2 million. The Attorney General’s Office estimates over 318 Washingtonians paid Labor Poster Compliance $79.25—a total of more than $25,000. These scammers mainly target people who recently registered a new business by mailing them letters within days of the registration. This confused many Washingtonians to think the letters, which mimic official government forms, came from or on behalf of a state agency. Washingtonians should contact that agency to make sure any company is acting on behalf of the agency if they ask for payments. Before paying for paperwork or posters, research the company.
The Church of the Nazarene has been a part of the Goldendale community for many years, and they have recently brought in a new pastor to bring the Word of God to those who attend. His name is Earnie Winn. He has been a pastor since 1989 but just began his journey here in Goldendale within the last couple of months. He has been an invaluable addition to the church, located at 124 W. Allyn Street in Goldendale and is excited for his new journey. Earnie chose to be a pastor because he was really enjoying the freedom he found in Christ and “God impressed on me the desire to share that freedom with others,” he says. He began sharing the Word with the church as an interim pastor for about eight weeks. Earnie and his wife Kathy drove down every weekend from Spokane, and then the church voted to have him become the full-time senior pastor. They are now a part of the church and our community. The Word and message he shares is different each week, and what he chooses to speak on depends on a couple of things. He prays and reads Scripture to see what will speak to him that week so he can share with others, hoping it will reach them as well. “My favorite part of my job
is seeing the joy on people’s faces as God works in their lives,” Earnie says. But sharing the word of God is not his only job. He also teaches, prays with the community, plans what each week will be, visits with those who come into the church, feeds those in need, counsels, and does administrative work. Earnie does stay busy throughout the week, and he has a strong support system helping him out. His wife is his biggest helper, along with Gretta Sines, the associate pastor, and a few other church employees and volunteers. They are a great team that keeps everything running smoothly. The church offers a Sunday service along with a Sunday School each week. Tuesdays and Thursdays are lady’s Bible study; there is a Wednesday prayer meeting; and once a month Saturday men’s breakfast happens. Earnie will also be holding an Easter service in the coming weeks. The church has a Back to School Bash in August and plans for some new Bible studies. The church recently bought some property, and they are praying on just how to move forward with it. “We are sure God has many exciting things in store for us,” Earnie says. The community is very welcoming of the new pastor and his family and is excited to see all the great things to come.
PEGGY WOODARD
MAKING A STATEMENT: A home in Goldendale shares a sentiment.
