Enjoy these snapshots of articles written in past issues of the Nisqually Valley News from 45, 35, 25 and 15 years ago, respectively.
A Look Back at This Week,
45 Years Ago
- A new firetruck for the Bald Hill Fire Protection District 17 arrived Nov. 17, 1979. The fully equipped truck could pump 1,000 gallons per minute and had a load of 1,000 gallons of water in the booster tank.
- Ronnie Mauck, 18, of Yelm, was involved in an accident in Olympia, Nov. 25, 1979, with Haske Pippin, 35, of Olympia. The two cars collided on Black Lake Boulevard between Cooper Point Road and Highway 101. Mauck received a citation for failure to use due care and caution.
- The preliminary budget for Thurston County in 1980 topped the $31 million mark at a meeting with the county commissioners. Charlie Earl, chief administrative officer, recommended reduction of county staff by 25 ⅓ positions out of current expense and 3.5 positions out of non-current expense departments.
- A large cedar sign was raised in front of McKenna Elementary School. The laminated design was done by Dennis Facklam of Lawrence Lake, and the sign was presented to the school by the McKenna PTA.
A Look Back at This Week,
35 Years Ago
- What started as a response to a domestic quarrel in the parking lot of Dick’s ShopRite in Yelm led to the arrest of two individuals by Yelm police Nov. 27, 1989. Garcia Delgado, 25, of Gladstone, was arrested on a domestic violence charge while a 15-year-old female juvenile, also of Gladstone, was also arrested. Both were charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute.
- Keith Skogsberg and the select choir from Yelm High School was set to bring a medley of carols, old and new, to a meeting of the Yelm Christian Women’s Club Dec. 5, 1989, at the Nisqually Valley Inn.
- Using strong defense and 27 Tornados turnovers to their advantage, the Tumwater T-Birds boys basketball team coasted to an 83-48 victory over Yelm Nov. 28, 1989.
- To celebrate both the state centennial and Veterans Day, the Yelm Prairie Historical Society sponsored an exhibit of military insignia patches at the Yelm Library from Nov. 6, 1989, to Nov. 12. Historical Society member Geraldine Baldwin loaned the patches to the library as her son Ted Acosta collected military patches.
A Look Back at This Week,
25 Years Ago
- Two multi-screen cinemas were proposed by separate developers on property on opposite sides of Yelm. Yelm Prairie Development continued with its decade-long plan to erect a six-screen cinema near the Prairie Hotel. An Olympia development firm, however, also threw its hat into the ring, unveiling its plan to build an eight-screen movie and retail complex on Yelm Avenue at the Burnett Road intersection.
- With a city-spanning four-lane bypass and two possible cineplexes on the way, some citizens questioned whether Yelm needed to grow. Dan Kavanaugh, a 10-year resident of Yelm, was the spokesperson for an informal group of citizens who believed that Yelm was getting too big. For the past year, he nursed concerns that new developments would hurt the city.
- The City of Yelm sponsored a meeting Dec. 1, 1999, to help answer questions about how people could prepare for the possibility of problems when the dreaded Y2K bug hit. Like most government entities, Yelm cautioned citizens to prepare for at least 72 hours of self-sufficiency come Jan. 1, 2000.
- Several Pierce County residents were injured in a three-car accident on Thanksgiving day at the intersection of state Route 7 and state Route 507 near Roy. Spanaway resident John Paul Jones, 50, was traveling south on a wet Highway 7 when his Ford pickup truck left the road, hitting a Pontiac that was parked along the side.
A Look Back at This Week,
15 Years Ago
- A couple was arrested Nov. 22, 2009, after allegedly robbing the Yelm KFC/Taco Bell, stealing more than $3,500. Dion Cooper, 22, of Puyallup, and his girlfriend, a 17-year-old transient living with Cooper, were arrested on suspicion of second-degree robbery.
- A solution was on its way in the odor mystery at Rainier Middle School. The odor was traced to a section of the school’s ventilation system. The new building was first used in 2008, and all was well until the rain came. After the humidity rose, an odor started wafting into seven different rooms in the school.
- A 14-year-old Yelm boy was hospitalized after he was hit by a truck Nov. 20, 2009. The boy was traveling by bicycle on the eastbound shoulder of state Highway 702 near McKenna when he switched sides of the road. He was struck by Owen Kortright, 38, of Spanaway, who was traveling westbound in a 2005 Dodge Dakota. The boy was not wearing a helmet.
- Evelyn Cissna donated her substantial video library, in its entirety, to the City of Rainier. Cissna’s collection included 2,000 VHS tapes. She donated the videos because she wanted them to be available for the community to use.
