May 2018
Volume 6 • Issue 4
Columbia Park train team seeks new home, volunteers BY KRISTINA LORD editor@tcjournal.biz
Vehicle auction business to open
Page 3
Richland eatery, bakery to expand
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WSU adds Senior Living program Page 9
save the date
Asparagus Fest & Brews May 12 5 - 10 p.m. Middleton Six Sons Farms, Pasco
The colorful train that delights kids and adults on weekends in Columbia Park during the summer is in need of volunteers and a new home. Dick Nordness, chairman for the J&S Dreamland Express Committee, oversees the mighty but modest volunteer team which collects the tickets, drives the train and mans the caboose. “It’s perfect for retired people that are looking for something to do. We’re always looking for volunteers. When we operate the train during boat races, it’s the mode of transportation to the nearest gate. During that boat race weekend, we’re running 12 hours a day. We get a lot of people,” he said. The Kiwanis Club of the Horse Heaven Hills operates the 90-foot J&S Dreamland Express. Nordness is a Kiwanian, along with about 40 others. The train’s been operating since 2001 in the park. The Kiwanis club took it over in 2007. The $1 tickets sold to ride the train have added up over the years to raise $28,250 for scholarships for local students. Last year, the club collected more than $11,000 and recorded 935 volunteer hours for club members. It also reported 311 hours of volunteer service from those outside the club. In 2014, the club’s biggest year to date, more than $14,000 was raised toward the scholarship fund. The Kiwanians want to be able to continue to run and operate the train to seed the scholarship fund, but the train is in need of a home. The city condemned the building near Edison Street where it had been stored for about 10 years, Nordness said. uTRAIN, Page 2
Paul Labrie sculpts a glass octopus in his downtown Benton City studio, Labrie Glass Studios. The experienced artist recently opened the gallery and looks forward to the upcoming spring and summer tourism seasons when people visit to taste wines at nearby Red Mountain wineries.
Longtime glass artist opens gallery in Benton City BY ROBIN WOJTANIK for Senior Times
Few people can say their career took off by making unicorns. Paul Labrie credits the thousand or so sculpted glass unicorns he made while in college with helping cover his school expenses until he began working full time as a glass artist. Today, his work is featured in galleries across the country. Labrie, 60, recently opened Labrie Glass Studios in downtown Benton City, providing customers an oppor-
tunity to see his gallery or blow their own glass. The studio held a grand opening in April. “People are surprised when they come into Benton City and they find a glass blower. I think they’re appreciative of the fact that there’s an artist in town,” he said. Labrie said he is ready for his first full season of spring and summer wine tourism. The studio isn’t far from many of the popular wineries on Red Mountain. uGLASS, Page 8
New Pasco dance, martial arts school offers senior ballet classes BY LAURA KOSTAD for Senior Times
A Pasco retiree said she feels more graceful and balanced after taking ballet classes created just for senior citizens. One of the goals of a new dance and martial arts school in downtown Pasco, called Find your Center, is to provide more opportunities for seniors to stay active. It’s part of the new studio’s overall mission to make dance and martial arts accessible to everyone, regardless of age, ability or background. “The ballet for seniors class on Friday afternoons is a great way for retired folks (to) keep their minds and bodies active and express themselves artisti-
cally,” said Kate Robins, who owns the studio with her husband, DeShawn Robins. Janet Tubito of Pasco said the class has been perfect for her. “Kate shares her expert ballet knowledge in a gentle, creative, respectful, and fun way. This is my first dance class ever and I don’t feel at all like this is beyond my ability because Kate focuses on making ballet accessible,” she said. Tubito also tried the martial arts class called capoeira (pronounced “kapooay-rah”) during the drop-in “roda” class available to Find Your Center members on Saturdays. uDANCE, Page 14
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