Gesa Credit Union has been selected as Washington’s Best-in-State Credit Union by Forbes. 

Forbes and Statista, a market research firm, identified America’s Best-In-State Credit Unions based on an independent survey of more than 25,000 consumers. Respondents were asked a variety of questions regarding their banking relationships and were asked to rate credit unions on criteria such as overall satisfaction, trust, digital services, and financial advice. Of the nearly 5,200 credit unions in the nation, only 3.5% of credit unions were placed on the ‘Best-in-State’ listing.

As a member-owned credit union, Gesa was built to support our members and the communities we serve. An example of this can be seen during the COVID-19 pandemic. To meet our members’ needs, Gesa created many programs allowing members to extend loans without penalty, receive a fee-free mortgage forbearance, or utilize low or zero interest personal loans. Additionally, Gesa immediately contributed over $100,000 back to the community by way of donations to non-profits providing assistance to those in need. To support Gesa member businesses, gift cards were purchased to thank first responders and assist members in need.

“Being a responsible community partner and a true advocate for our members’ financial wellbeing are some of the core values we live by as an organization,” added Don Miller, President and CEO of Gesa Credit Union. “This achievement is a reflection of our members’ loyalty and commitment to excellent service by our team. We are extremely honored to receive this recognition.”

Gesa Credit Union was also recently named ‘Best Credit Union’ by the Tri-City Herald in their annual ‘People’s Choice’ awards. This was the eighth year in a row Gesa has received this honorable distinction. For more information about Gesa Credit Union’s commitment to members and communities they serve, visit gesa.com.

Mid-Columbia Libraries’ (MCL) Othello Branch opens today for curbside pickup services. It is the first of MCL’s 12 branches to offer curbside pickup since temporarily closing in March due to the statewide stay home order; all other MCL branches and Bookmobile remain closed until further notice.

Customers can place books and materials on hold by visiting the library’s online catalog or by phone. Once customers receive notice that their items are ready for pickup, they can park on the right side of the alleyway just off Main Street next to the branch, located at 101 E. Main St., and call the phone number on the blue sign, (509) 546-8020. A staff member will collect held library items, check them out, and deliver them to customers waiting outside. Customers should open their trunk and wait inside their vehicle. Customers are strongly encouraged to wear face coverings when using curbside pickup services.

The service is available during regular branch hours, Monday through Friday from 11 am to 7 pm and Saturday from 10 am to 3 pm. For more information visit the branch web page at midcolumbialibraries.org/branch/othello.

Books and materials can also be returned to the branch using the drive-up returns box, also located in the alley next to the building. Returned items will be quarantined for 72 hours.

Cardholders can access thousands of eBooks, eAudiobooks, eMagazines, streaming video, and more 24/7 at midcolumbialibraries.org.

Petersen Hastings, an independent registered investment advisory firm, headquartered in Kennewick, WA, announced today the opening of a new office in Walla Walla, WA. The office is located in the historic downtown Drumheller Building at 5 West Alder Street, Suite 317. With the expansion announcement, comes the addition of a new wealth advisor. Petersen Hastings is excited to welcome John Keyes to their team. 

“Our firm continues to grow, and we are excited for the opportunity to expand our footprint to Walla Walla and be located in the heart of this community,” said Scott Sarber, CEO & President. “Investing in this new location will allow us to better serve existing relationships in the region and connect with new clients who value fiduciary expertise and a high standard of client service.”

About Petersen Hastings
Originating in 1962, Petersen Hastings has grown to be one of the largest independent, fee-only wealth management firms in Eastern Washington. As a primary fiduciary, Petersen Hastings serves committed investors with complex financial needs by utilizing a comprehensive wealth management process that involves investment management, advanced financial, tax, trust and retirement planning. Petersen Hastings has continued to provide each and every client with a team experience through the Trusted Financial Path™. To learn more about Petersen Hastings, visit www.petersenhastings.com or call us at 509.735.0484.

About John Keyes
John was born and raised in Walla Walla. He is passionate about continuing his career in his hometown by working with local individuals, families and businesses to address their financial challenges and guiding them to financial prosperity. John is a 2005 graduate of Whitman College, and he earned his Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics while competing on both the Whitman men’s golf and swim teams. He maintains his connection with the college by serving as an active board member of the W-Club. John will reside in Walla Walla and lead our new location as a wealth advisor.

For additional information, contact Scott Sarber at 509.735.0484 or scotts@petersenhastings.com.

Cover your face and maintain your space. That’s what local elected officials are encouraging the Tri-Cities community and greater Mid-Columbia region to practice in a new public service announcement (PSA) in effort to lower the transmission rate of COVID-19 in the region.

Benton and Franklin Counties, the cities of Kennewick, Pasco, Richland, West Richland, Benton City and Prosser partnered with Visit Tri-Cities to create the PSA encouraging the residents of the Mid-Columbia region to adopt the wearing of face coverings. According to the Benton Franklin Health District, if everyone who is able to wear a face covering in the community does so, the region’s transmission rates will drop. This will allow Benton and Franklin counties to move into the next phase of the Safe Start Washington plan. In addition, the use of social distance and good hand hygiene will also support lowering transmission rates. These steps are essential to help restore community health, the preservation of business, jobs, our economy and quality of life in the Mid-Columbia.

The PSA is available to be shared with the community and may be found on Visit Tri-Cities’ YouTube page. Local agencies, businesses and individuals are encouraged to share the message on social media, websites and/or any method of communication.  

The next seminar in Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Community Science and Technology Seminar Series, “Effectiveness of Habitat Restoration in the Lower Columbia River and Estuary” presented by Nikki Sather, Research Scientist at PNNL Sequim, will take place on Tuesday, June 23, 2020, at 7:00 p.m., via Zoom.

Estuaries provide critical habitat for threatened and endangered juvenile salmon. Habitat restoration is often implemented with goals focused on providing benefits to juvenile salmon, yet few projects are comprehensively studied to understand how restoration affects juvenile salmon. To evaluate the effectiveness of habitat restoration, we studied fish and invertebrate communities at eight tidal wetlands in the lower Columbia River and estuary. Our research evaluated biological responses at newly restored wetlands and compared these findings to nearby reference wetlands. Biological conditions were more favorable in reference wetlands for some monitored indicators. While there were distinctions between newly restored habitats and more mature habitats, the subtlety in differences suggest that restoring wetlands are achieving their desired goals and supporting ecological processes that provide benefits for juvenile salmon.

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Community Science and Technology Seminar Series was launched to help the general public better understand and explore how science transforms our world. 

Those who are interested can register here.

​Trios Health is pleased to announce that Trios Laboratory Services has moved its collection site at the Trios Care Center at Southridge from the second floor to the first floor.

The move to the first floor creates a full-service outpatient laboratory in a prominent location and allows patients easier access to Trios laboratory services. Trios Medical Group providers are now able to refer their patients for outpatient testing to the new lab, and results will be sent directly to providers electronically.

“We are excited to have a more patient-friendly location and provide quality lab services to our Trios Medical Group providers and patients,” said Mindy Aichele, Trios Laboratory Director. 

With the move also comes a change in hours. Laboratory services will now operate Monday through Friday from 7 a.m.-5 p.m. 

The Trios Care Center at Southridge is located at 3730 Plaza Way adjacent to Trios Southridge Hospital.

Benton-Franklin Health District announced today that free drive-through COVID-19 testing will be available in Kennewick and Pasco beginning Wednesday. The sites are open to anyone who believes they should be tested; people with COVID-19 symptoms as well as anyone who has been exposed, or thinks they have been exposed, to the virus are urged to get tested. Appointments are required and can be made by calling 2-1-1.

“We’re able to expand testing now because we finally have adequate testing supplies, said “Dr. Amy Person, Health Officer for Benton and Franklin Counties. ”That’s changed dramatically in the past few weeks. Previously, we had very limited supplies and we needed to make sure we prioritized testing to critical cases. Now we can do broader testing because we have more supplies, more access to supplies, and expanded testing capacity.”

The testing sites will be open Wednesday through Saturday this week from 8 am to 1 pm at the Toyota Center in Kennewick, in the back parking area along Grandridge Blvd, not the main entrance. In Pasco, the testing will be held at the HAPO Center (TRAC). Beginning next week, the sites will be open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 8 am to 1 pm. To make testing more accessible, no medical orders are required and the testing is free to all. Appointments can be made by calling 2-1-1 Monday-Friday between 8 am and 5 pm.

Test results will be received by telephone in three to seven days. Written results will also be mailed and received within 10 days.

Increased testing is one of the factors considered by DOH in determining when counties are ready to move forward to the next phase of the state’s Safe Start Phased Reopening Plan. DOH has emphasized the need for more testing and widespread use of face coverings as keys to getting the virus under control in Benton and Franklin Counties.
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The drive-through community testing is a joint effort by Benton-Franklin Health District, Washington State Department of Health (DOH), Benton County Emergency Management, Franklin County Emergency Management, and the Washington National Guard.

The Mabton School District has received a $5,000 grant from Yakima Valley Partners for Education (YVPE) to help 850 students impacted by the coronavirus. The district will use the money for school supply kits that will be distributed to students through its school meal distribution program which delivers more than 6,000 meals to kids at 73 locations across the district.

Dr. Joey Castilleja, the superintendent of the Mabton School District said his district was hard hit by school closures due to the virus. “Without a lot of notice, we were all suddenly expected to attend and teach school online. Families were just not ready for such an endeavor. Things as simple as scissors and glue sticks are basic school supplies that kids now need at home. These supplies mean a lot to our kids,” said Castilleja. “By providing students with the tools they need to complete their school assignments, they have one less barrier to overcome due to Covid-19.”

Save the Children secured $2,500 and obtained a matching grant from First Book, a non-profit based in Washington D.C. for a total of $5,000 for the kits. Save the Children is one of the more than a dozen partners of YVPE, a coalition formed by Heritage University to address the challenges of educational attainment faced by communities in Yakima County across the cradle-to-career continuum. This collaborative approach is known as Collective Impact and is already showing promise in the lower Yakima Valley. 

Save the Children, which operates in more than 200 rural communities across 13 states, joined YVPE through its partnership with the Grandview School District. In Grandview, Save the Children offers its “Early Steps to School Success” home-visiting program to children ages three years old and younger and their parents. Save the Children, a national leader in early childhood education, has leveraged its resources in support of children and families throughout the lower Yakima Valley.

For more information, contact Suzy Diaz, Heritage University - Collective Impact Director at diaz_s@Heritage.edu or (509) 480-9354.

Port of Kennewick announces three new vendors at its Food Truck Plaza at Columbia Gardens in Kennewick. 

Ninja Bistro and Don Taco are now operating at the Food Truck Plaza at 325 E. Columbia Gardens Way off East Columbia Drive in Kennewick. Ann’s Best Creole & Soul Food will join the Food Truck Plaza in mid- to late-June.

These new vendors join Swampy’s BBQ, which began operating at Columbia Gardens last year. Rollin’ Fresh Ice Cream is once again serving customers on Clover Island at the Lighthouse Plaza. 

Visitors will be able to select from a variety of food truck cuisine, including BBQ, Asian Fusion, authentic Mexican, or creole and soul food at Columbia Gardens, as well as ramen noodle bowls, ceviche and fresh hand-rolled ice cream on Clover Island. 
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Each vendor sets its days and hours of operation. Visit each food trucks’ Facebook Page for hours of operation and menus. Links to each vendor are available on the Port of Kennewick’s website portofkennewick.org on the Columbia Gardens and Clover Island pages.

Meier Architecture • Engineering (Meier) is pleased to announce the recent hire of Pat Fuller, PMP.  Mr. Fuller joins Meier as the Electrical Group Manager.

Mr. Fuller comes to Meier with over 25 years of experience in the electrical engineering field and will provide leadership and support to Meier and their clients.  He has worked extensively in the data center, food and beverage, Nuclear, and Pulp and Paper industries.  Mr. Fuller has over 10 years of progressive Project Management experience in construction and design/build projects, as well as over 15 years of experience in Electrical, including medium voltage, and Instrumentation and Control Systems design.

Pat holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from Washington State University.

For additional information, please contact Bobbi Keen at 509-735-6908 or bakeen@meierinc.com