The Dalles Police Department is working toward achieving accreditation.  Department chief Tom Worthy says they are going through the Oregon Accreditation Alliance, and he says while accreditation is fairly new for law enforcement agencies, but it is growing.  Worthy explains the designation would means they can attest to adhering to best practices and have been examined by an outside entity.  The Oregon Accrediation Alliance is an independent group that is designated by the U.S. Department of Justice as the accreditation management point for the state.  All of the department’s work processes, standards, training, equipment, the way they approach the job, strategic mission, policies, and goals and objectives for the agency are all being examined.

The official portrait of former Oregon Second District Congressman Greg Walden was unveiled to the public in a ceremony on Capitol Hill this week. The artwork, painted by Jon Friedman, will be on display in the Energy and Commerce Committee’s hearing room in Washington, D.C., where he served as chair of that panel during part of his House tenure. Walden spent over 30 years in public service, including 22 years in the House of Representatives from 1999 to 2021. For 20 of those years, Walden served on the Energy and Commerce Committee, chairing the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology for six years before being elected as Chairman of the Full Committee in 2017 and Ranking Member in 2019. At the ceremony, the Hood River Republican called serving in Congress and chairing the House Energy and Commerce Committee two of the greatest honors of his life.

Softball

Corbett 20, Stevenson 8

  Boys Tennis

Hood River Valley 8, Crook County 0

  Girls Lacrosse

Hood River Valley 22, Central Catholic 1

  Girls Golf

Nellie Wilkinson of The Dalles finished fifth and Hood River Valley’s Maysie Kern in a tie for seventh at the eight-school Crook County Invitational.

A search is underway for a missing snowboarder at Mt. Hood Meadows.  The Hood River County Sheriff’s Office says 30-year-old Ryan Mather of Aloha was reported as overdue by his girlfriend at around 9:30 Tuesday evening.  Mather had been snowboarding at Mt. Hood Meadows during the day and had failed to return home.  The Sheriff’s Office says Mather’s vehicle was located at Mt. Hood Meadows, but overnight operations could not locate the man.  Search operations today are focused on areas around the Shooting Star Express chair lift, which was Mather’s last reported location late Tuesday morning and includes access to some back country areas.  Hood River Crag Rats, Pacific Northwest Search and Rescue, Mt. Hood Meadows, Portland Mountain Rescue, Corvallis Mountain Rescue, Lane County Sheriff’s Office, Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office and the Oregon Air National Guard are involved with search operations.

A local family has donated a plane to the Columbia Gorge Community College Foundation for use in the school’s aviation maintenance program that is currently in development.  The family of Cary Lowe, who lived in The Dalles area for over 55 years and was a long-time pilot before passing away in November, is donating a Piper Cherokee 235.  Foundation executive director Wendy Patton says Lowe owned the four-seater airplane for 28 years.  Patton said the plane will be used to help the next generation of aviation mechanics hone their skills.  The college is developing its aviation maintenance technician training program to be based at Columbia Gorge Regional Airport.  Program review by the Federal Aviation Administration is anticipated to be completed later this spring.

Klickitat County Childcare Committee is offering free supply kits to those working through the steps to open a new at-home or center-based childcare in Klickitat County.  Five kits are available to help reduce startup costs.  The kits offer new providers various supplies for caring for children, including essentials like diapers, wipes, a bottle warmer, child-safe silverware, plates, and bowls.  The addition of equipment like sleeping mats, an activity table, a child-sized toilet seat, and a high chair will help new providers save money.  A locked medicine cabinet and a gift certificate to purchase a certified fire extinguisher also come with the kit.  Those actively working on a licensing application with the Washington Department of Children, Youth, and Families will qualify to receive a kit while supplies last.  Contact kccc@wagap.org to learn more about how to obtain a supply kit.

The remains of a man found in December 2009 by children playing in a wooded area west of an Oregon Department of Transportation gravel storage facility in Hood River County has been identified through advanced DNA testing.  The Oregon State Police says the Oregon State Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed the positive identification in July of 2021.  A month later, the Hood River County Sheriff’s Office informed the family of the man who had been reported missing from the East Coast, but they were unconvinced the body was that of their missing loved one.  The OSP says a kinship inference analysis done with a sample of an oral swab from a sibling of the missing man confirmed the initial determination.  The Hood River County Sheriff’s Office and the Oregon State Medical Examiner’s office have now collaborated with the family, and the body was successfully released to the funeral home of their choice this month.  The OSP says the name of the man has not been released at the request of family members.

Washington State 14^th District Representative Gina Mosbrucker says she is “extremely disappointed” that Gov. Jay Inslee has vetoed House Bill 1623 in its entirety, despite the measure gaining unanimous approval by 147 lawmakers in committees and in both chambers of the state Legislature. Mosbrucker’s bill sought to ensure the state continually addresses plans to help avoid energy blackouts, brownouts or other inadequacies of the electric grid.  The governor vetoed the legislation last week.  Mosbrucker says it was frustrating that despite the bipartisan support of the bill in the Legislature, the governor gave no indication at any point during the process that he would veto it, adding she did not receive notification from the governor’s office afterward that he vetoed the bill.  The Republican lawmaker said she will continue to address the issue, and hopes to work with the governor’s office to make the case such legislation is needed.

Baseball Hood River Valley 5, Bend 2:  A four-run fourth inning propelled HRV to the win.  Jacob von Lubken took a shutout into the seventh inning in pitching a complete game, striking out five. Dufur 10, Columbia 0 King’s Way Christian 17, Stevenson 1   Softball The Dalles 6, Reynolds 5:   The Riverhawks scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to complete a comeback from a 5-2 deficit.  Despina Seufalemua opened the bottom of the seventh with a double, and scored the tying run on a one-out double by Kaleyah Crichton-Tunai.  With two out, Maddie Brock drove home the winning run, bringing in Crichton-Tunai.  

Wasco County Planning staff will hold once a month office hours in the Maupin Civic Center conference room as a new service for South Wasco County residents.  This new remote location service is scheduled for one Friday a month on April 15th, May 13th, June 17th, July 15th, and August 12th.  During Maupin office hours of 10am to 1pm, staff will have access to GIS Maps and other property information databases, permit applications, and other tools to advise citizens on a variety of land use and development projects or questions.   Current planning staff will continue to serve the public at their location in The Dalles on Tuesdays and Thursdays, from 10 am-12pm and 1pm-4pm.  County Planning Director Kelly Howsley-Glover says staff has planned some focused topics for citizens including non-farm dwellings, solar arrays, code compliance, RV dwellings, and land divisions if individuals want to visit and learn more about opportunities and procedures for land use in Wasco County.  Citizens will also have the opportunity, beginning in May, to review the proposed draft updates to the Land Use and Development Ordinance in person during office hours.