The Washington State University Tri-Cities MOSAIC Center for Student Inclusion, in collaboration with Wavelengths Salon, will hold an LGBTQ+ Panel at 6 p.m. Feb. 22 in the East Auditorium on campus and via Zoom. The event will feature a panel of community members across the LGBTQ+ spectrum and allies who will share their experiences and answer questions from the audience. 

Learn about the experiences, aspirations and work done by LGBTQ+ members and allies that help make the Tri-Cities a more inclusive environment. Conversations will center around panelists’ sexual and gender identities, the impact of allyship and representation for their own coming out stories, dreams for inclusive and safe spaces in the Tri-Cities and more. Each panelist brings their perspective and relationship to the forefront to create awareness and representation in the community. 

Panelists include:

• Faith Gambetty (she/her) – a transgender woman and co-owner of Wavelengths Salon
• Seth Johnson (he/him) – a transgender man
• Cassandra Loomis (she/her) – a parent of a transgender boy
• Luis Madigral (he/him) – a gay Latino therapist
• Pastor Marj (she/her) – a lesbian pastor
• Scott Rogers (he/him) – a straight ally and local attorney
• Gemini Stark (they/them) – a nonbinary hair stylist at Wavelengths Salon

RSVP for in-person attendance at tinyurl.com/lgbtqpanel22. COVID-19 guidelines and requirements will apply. The Zoom registration link is tinyurl.com/lgbtqzoom22.

​The Tri-Cities Airport (PSC) is pleased to announce that passenger numbers at PSC increased by 82% in 2021, when compared to 2020. A total of 690,549 people traveled through the airport last year, approximately 312,000 more than the previous year.
 
The growth can be partly attributed to the three new routes that PSC added to the following locations: Hollywood Burbank Airport with Avelo Airlines, San Diego International Airport with Allegiant Air and Reno-Tahoe International Airport with aha! Airlines.
 
“While the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on the entire aviation industry, it is encouraging to see our passenger numbers trend toward pre-pandemic levels,” said Buck Taft, Tri-Cities Airport Director. “We are grateful for the opportunity we had to add new routes for the residents of Southeastern Washington and will continue to safely serve our passengers as they return to air travel.”
 
Airlines count their passengers in terms of enplanements, or the number of people who board an aircraft at an airport. The number of people arriving are considered deplanements; the sum of both numbers is an airport’s total passenger number. In 2021, the airport saw 346,503 enplanements, an 83% increase over the 188,959 enplanements recorded for 2020.
 
PSC’s cargo operation has remained strong throughout the pandemic. Enplaned cargo, or the goods shipped from Tri-Cities elsewhere in the world, increased 12% over 2021. Alaska Airlines, FedEx and UPS all contributed to the increase. In total, 3,350, 996 pounds of goods were processed through the airport during 2021.
 
Additional statistics can be found here on the Tri-Cities Airport’s website. 

As of January 17th, HAPO Community Credit Union became one of only 1,333 financial institutions certified as a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. HAPO is one of only 15 CDFI-certified credit unions in Washington State.

A CDFI certification can be earned by a financial institution that offers fair and affordable financial services and continually works to transform the lives of the underserved populations in its community. CDFIs invest in their local communities by providing important funding resources.

“We’re honored that we’ve earned the CDFI certification” said Dolores Broeske, President and CEO of HAPO Community Credit Union “This recognition makes it clear how dedicated we are to tailoring our services to the needs of our members. We will continue building partnerships that enhance and allow us to serve members in all areas that we reside in.”

With this new certification, HAPO will be able to apply for the CDFI’s annual grant. Through this competitively-awarded benefit and other CDFI programs, HAPO will be able to build our capacity to better serve lower-income individuals and families.

“Every time we can help a member get into a safer car, a first home, or provide resources to enhance the lives of those around us, we’re thrilled,” said Broeske. “With CDFI resources, we’ll be able to grow those opportunities and keep reaching more of our community.

HAPO Community Credit Union serves over 170,000 members and has 19 locations throughout Washington, and Umatilla, Morrow, and Clackamas Counties in Oregon.

Communities in Schools (CIS) announced today that philanthropist MacKenzie Scott has made a transformative $133.5 million gift to the Communities In Schools network, the largest, unrestricted gift in CIS history. This unprecedented gift includes $5.85 million given specifically to Communities In Schools of Washington and three Washington state CIS affiliates: CIS of Benton-Franklin, CIS Peninsula, and CIS Renton-Tukwila.

“We are honored and humbled to receive this generous gift that will strengthen our capacity to surround students with the support they need to succeed in school and life. Our priority will remain on amplifying the voices of those who have been disproportionately impacted by generations of educational and systemic inequities while, simultaneously, working towards a future where one’s success is not predicated on race, ethnicity, identity, or socioeconomic status. We believe this gift speaks to our proven success and creates an incredible opportunity for our local business, nonprofit, educational and community leaders to come alongside us to sustain this transformational work.” -Lupe Mares, MSW, Executive Director of Communities In Schools of Benton-Franklin

Working directly inside schools, and in partnership with teachers and parents, CIS is uniquely positioned to address the challenges standing between students and their academic success. Our evidence-based, student-centered approach is designed to support the educational and social-emotional development of youth that allows them to succeed in the classroom and beyond. We accomplish this by coordinating with schools and local service providers to address the barriers facing students and families, as well as to create access to critical resources, like food, housing, transportation, mental health support, healthcare, remote technology, and more.

“This is an amazing and generous gift that will support youth throughout our bi-county region by increasing access to the life-changing supports provided by Communities In Schools of Benton-Franklin. The work of CISBF in schools is essential and we hope this gift inspires partners in our community to join us as we empower our youth to achieve in school and life. I could not be more proud of Lupe and the incredible team of Site Coordinators serving students at CISBF.” -Elizabeth Burtner, Board Chair of Communities In Schools of Benton-Franklin

In the 2020-2021 school year, CIS of Benton-Franklin served nearly 19,000 students through whole school supports and 780 students via individualized case management. Ninety-seven percent of case managed students were economically disadvantaged, and 93 percent had been exposed to some form of trauma, yet we still saw a 100 percent improvement in Behavior, 94 percent improvement in Academics, and 75 percent improvement in Attendance. In addition, 99 percent of students in grades 9-12 stayed in school and 98 percent were promoted or graduated. While both the footprint and impact of CISBF has grown significantly over the past seven years, there remains much work to do and over 30,000 youth yet to be served.
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“Today is an important day for students who are underserved, under-resourced, and in need of support to build a brighter future,” said Rey Saldaña, President and CEO of Communities In Schools nationally. “This unrestricted gift allows us to combat the inequities in public education and reimagine the way schools operate and show up for all students. Our National goal is to bring our model inside of every one of the 70,000 Title I-eligible schools in the country; currently, we operate in 3,000 schools – so we still have a long way to go, and we will need ongoing support to get there.”

Locally, CISBF currently serves 48% of our Title-I eligible schools with the generous support of our donors and partnering school districts. While this transformative gift will allow CISBF to begin closing that gap, ongoing support at the state and local level will be critical in ensuring students have access to the tools and resources they need to overcome what is certain to be a generational impact of the COVID-19 crisis.

Today, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced workers have begun the first large-scale treatment of radioactive and chemical waste from large underground tanks at the Hanford Site. This marks completion of the first of an ambitious slate of 2022 priorities set by the DOE Office of Environmental Management (EM).

In a message of congratulations to the Hanford workforce, Senior Advisor for EM William “Ike” White called the Tank Side Cesium Removal (TSCR) System a “cornerstone of the Direct Feed Low Activity Waste program”. 

“It’s a capability that will transform the Hanford Site and benefit the entirety of the EM program,” White said. “I’m optimistic about what Hanford will achieve this year as we work toward around-the-clock operations to treat tank waste.”

The newly operational TSCR System removes radioactive cesium and solids from tank waste.  The treated waste will be fed directly to the nearby Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant for vitrification, or immobilization in glass, when the plant comes online next year. 

The cesium removal system is a key part of the Site’s Direct Feed Low Activity Waste (DFLAW) program, an assembly of several highly interdependent projects and infrastructure that will operate together to vitrify and safely dispose of millions of gallons of low-activity tank waste once operational.

“This is an exciting new era in our Hanford cleanup mission,” said Brian Vance, manager of EM’s (DOE’s) Office of River Protection and Richland Operations Office. “For the first time in Hanford Site history, we are treating a significant amount of tank waste on an industrial scale.”

Hanford tank operations contractor Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS), working with EM staff, other site contractors and regulatory agencies, built, installed and tested the cesium removal system next to large underground storage tanks. Those tanks, called the AP tank farm, are located near the center of the Hanford Site, which is less than a quarter mile from the vitrification plant. The cesium removal technology is nearly identical to a system operating at DOE’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina.

John Eschenberg, WRPS president and CEO, said the launch of the TSCR system operations was nearly three years in the making.

“I’m extremely proud of our team, the dedicated workforce who delivered this project on time and on budget during some challenging times over the last 18 months,” Eschenberg said.

The Hanford Site is home to approximately 56 million gallons of radioactive tank waste stored in 177 underground tanks, representing one of DOE’s largest environmental risks and most complex challenges.  The tank waste is a result of nearly five decades of plutonium production that supported national security missions and helped end World War II.

Twin sisters Aditha and Ashitha Chintapatla will be presented with Scouting’s highest honor in West Richland, WA on February 5th, the Blue Mountain Council, BSA has announced.  Aditha and Ashitha are two of the council’s four first female Eagle Scouts.
 
They are the daughters of Rangaswamy and Sucharitha Chintapatla of West Richland, WA and both girls are members of Troop 219, chartered by Hillspring Church.  Their Scout leader is Wendy Cicotte.
 
In order to achieve the rank of Eagle Scout, Aditha and Ashitha each had to earn 21 merit badges and show leadership by planning, developing, and completing a community service project.  For their projects, the sisters each made improvements to the temple and surrounding property for the Hindu Society of Eastern Washington in West Richland.  Aditha’s project consisted of remodeling the temple’s stage flooring, while Ashitha’s project focused on improving the temple’s outdoor garden and trees.  Between the two Scouts, they raised $10,000 to fund the projects.  Leftover funds were set aside for other Scouts to complete projects for the temple.
 
Both girls are Juniors at Richland High School and are active as officers in Key Club, DECA, and National Honor Society, both carrying a cumulative 4.0 GPA.  They are also active youth leaders in Balagokulam, which is a Hindu school for youth age 5-18.  They are responsible for organizing youth activities for High School age youth.  Aditha has aspirations to continue her studies and become a physician, while continuing to expand her interest and hobby with interior design. Ashitha would like to pursue a career in an engineering field, while continuing to further her skills and interest in photography.
 
The rank of Eagle is earned by less than four percent of all youth who join Scouting.  In 2021, 49 boys and girls in the Blue Mountain Council earned the Eagle Scout Award, providing through their Eagle projects alone more than 8,000 hours of service for our communities.