Headlines & History since 1879 Goldendale, Washington
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 11, 2026
Vol. 147 No. 10
$1.00
Double homicide murderer sentenced Catherine Couture For The Sentinel
David Joseph Lavine was convicted of two accounts of murder in the first degree, following a hearing held back on January 26, for a double homicide committed on the morning of March 29, 2024. Last Monday Lavine was sentenced in Klicki-
tat County Superior Court. The sentencing hearing was held at 1:30 p.m. with Lavine in custody. The families of the victims came forward with their statements regarding the murder of Steven and Sasha Hicks. Included in this group were Sasha’s brother and sister, as well as her sister-in-law (Steven’s sister) and others who spoke on
their behalf. Following their statements, the court sentenced Lavine to 300 months on count one and 320 months on count two, with 60 months added to both sentences due to the crime having been committed with a firearm. In total, Lavine will serve 740 months, or 62 years, in federal prison.
Maryhill Museum of Art
FREE CHILDREN’S SHOW ON OPENING DAY: Maryhill Museum of Art opens its centennial season Sunday. Among the day’s events is a free children’s event, the Red Yarn Puppet Show.
Maryhill Museum opens centennial season this Sunday Lou Marzeles Editor On opening day each spring, the quiet hill above the Columbia River begins to stir again. Families walk the winding road toward the stately BeauxArts building, visitors pause along the bluff to take in sweeping views of the Gorge, and the doors of the Maryhill Museum of Art open once more to a new season of art and discovery. This year’s opening —this Sunday, March 15 — carries special meaning. The 2026 season marks the beginning of Maryhill’s centennial celebration, commemorating the moment in 1926 when Queen Marie of Romania traveled across the United States to dedicate the museum overlooking the Columbia River. A century later, the museum is honoring that historic connection while welcoming visitors with new exhibitions, updated galleries and a day filled with art and family-friendly events. Opening day promises something for everyone—art lovers, families, and those simply curious about what’s new inside one of the region’s most distinctive cultural landmarks. And there’s a free puppet show for children. Visitors arriving for the first day of the season will be able to explore a diverse slate of new exhibitions spanning centuries,
continents and artistic traditions. Among the featured exhibitions are: • American Classical Realism • Russian Icons; New Mexican Bultos and Retablos • Contemporary Indigenous Art • Romanian Embroidery • Illuminated Manuscripts • The 1946 Lelong Dance Dress • Romanian Folk Pottery • Teachers As Artists: The Space Between Together, the exhibitions reflect the museum’s longstanding approach of combining global art traditions with regional perspectives. From sacred devotional works and intricate textiles to contemporary creative expression, the displays invite visitors to explore a wide range of cultural histories and artistic forms. The museum is also unveiling new displays within its permanent collection galleries, including additions to the Indigenous Peoples of North America gallery made possible through donor support. Art in action on opening day Opening day itself will feature more than just gallery viewing. The museum doors open at 10 a.m., and shortly afterward visitors can see artist Aimee Erickson creating a live painting
See Museum page B1
Windy Wheat Refillery: Small changes, big impact Lorrie Fox For The Sentinel
Windy Wheat Refillery, located at 222 West Main in Goldendale, is a new family-run business focused on reducing household waste and offering non-toxic products for the home. The shop, run by Melissa Enyeart and her daughter Elizabeth “Elle” Pittman, celebrated its open house last Saturday, giving area residents a chance to browse through products and see the refill process in action. The idea for the business grew out of a realization while shopping for household products, Enyeart said. “We saw a need for more accessible, non-toxic, refillable options in our area, and we didn’t want our community to have to drive long distances to find them.” “Our family has become increasingly passionate about clean living, supporting small businesses, and reducing unnecessary waste in our home,” Enyeart said. “What started as personal lifestyle changes slowly grew into a bigger vision— creating a space where others in our community could access the same kinds of products and support.” For Enyeart and Pittman, opening the shop in Goldendale
felt like a natural choice. They love the charm and history of downtown and wanted to support the growth and vitality of the local business community. Both attended Goldendale High School and have lived in town (again) since 2011. The goal at Windy Wheat Refillery is to make the refill process easy for first-time customers. The system is designed to be simple and welcoming. “Customers can bring their own clean jars or containers or purchase one at the shop if they’re just getting started,” Enyeart said. “Each container is weighed before it’s filled with as much or as little product as needed. At checkout, customers pay only for the product, not the packaging.” The store encourages reuse and hopes community members will donate extra jars to help reduce waste, making it easier to cut down on single-use plastics without complicating everyday shopping. The name Windy Wheat Refillery reflects both the landscape and the family’s agricultural roots. “The rolling wheat fields and open winds of our region are part of what makes Goldendale special,” Enyeart said. “‘Windy
See Windy page B1
‘Blood moon’ total eclipse captured at Observatory Goldendale Observatory Administrator Troy Carpenter sends us this report on last week’s spectacular total lunar eclipse. He took this striking picture of the eclipse at its height. Last Tuesday’s Total Lunar Eclipse was our most enjoyable special event since the 2017 Total Solar Eclipse. Despite cold temperatures and early hours, over
250 visitors dropped by (not all at once!), and the sky remained clear enough to observe the eclipse in its entirety. Additionally, our live web stream was watched by almost 1,500 people, and the recording continues to receive traffic. The image seen here was taken at the moment of maximum eclipse, 3:33 a.m. with our new Astro-Physics 7” f/9 Triplet Re-
fractor. I attempted to expose the moon as it appeared to the human eye, and a time lapse sequence can be found on the special events page of our website, GoldendaleObservatory.com. Thank you to all those who made this rare occurrence a safe and happy experience. See you again on August 27 for the “almost total” Lunar Eclipse.
GHS tennis season underway The 2026 tennis season is underway at Goldendale High School, with practices officially beginning on March 2. The program has seen a solid turnout on the girls side, and it is hopeful that additional players may still join the boys team in the next week or two. This year’s girls team features a group of 10 players across all grade levels. Leading the squad are two seniors, Madison Groves and Linzy Hannah, who bring experience and leadership to the court. The junior class includes Jaclyn Coronel, Sofia Perry, and Isabella Perry. Ella Rice represents the sophomore class, while freshmen Lexi Payer, Heidi
Martin, and Adelina Davis round out the younger members of the team. The boys team currently has one player, Beau Hill, who has stepped up to represent Goldendale this season. Coaches remain optimistic that more boys may join in the coming weeks. A full high school tennis lineup for matches requires eight players, and additional participation would help strengthen the program moving forward. The team is coached by Head Coach Rob Wing, with volunteer assistant coaches Candi Wing and Lori Groves helping guide practices and player development. Wing last coached the GHS Ten-
nis squad in 2022. Players have been hard at work during the first week of practice, focusing on fundamentals, conditioning, and match preparation as they get ready for the upcoming schedule. Goldendale will host its first home match of the season on Tuesday, March 17, when the Timberwolves take on Stevenson. The match is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. at the Goldendale High School tennis courts. Community members are encouraged to come out and support the team as they open the home portion of their schedule. While the girls roster has a
See Tennis page B1
Unforseen expense faces proposed new giant flagpole Rodger Nichols For The Sentinel At their March 3 meeting, Klickitat County Commissioners extended a moratorium on battery energy storage systems for another six months, heard more concerns about hidden costs involved with the giant flagpole, approved hiring a deputy prosecutor to replace Rebecca Cranston, got disheartening news from Olympia and good news from the Airport Manager Jeff Renard. At that the battery storage moratorium hearing, Planning Director Scott Edelman reviewed the history of the measure. It was originally passed in September 2024 to give the county time to establish standards and an ordinance. It was later combined with a solar ordinance. An advisory committee began meeting in January 2025. That committee had not finished by March 2025, the end of the original moratorium, so it was extended another six months to September 2025. The committee finished by July 2025 and sent
their recommendations to the planning commission. The Planning Commission then took it up, and they were not finished by September so extended the moratorium again to March 2026. In December, the Planning Commission was comfortable with a draft, but they had concerns about some of the legal aspects and asked the Prosecuting Attorney (PA) to review the draft. Then the PA resigned, and in that changeover, the office has not had time to do the legal review. So commissioners extended it last week again to September 2026. Edelman said he had been talking to new PA, Rebecca Cranston, and it looked as if the office would be able to make the review in a month or two. “I don’t anticipate another extension,” he told commissioners, then backtracked a bit. “I can’t promise that, but I do expect that once we get the legal opinion, we should be able to get it to the board fairly quickly.” He said it would take only one meeting of the Planning Commission to make any changes coming out of
the legal opinion. In a brief appearance, Cranston received approval to advertise for a deputy prosector to fill the position she vacated when she stepped into the PA role. This did not violate the hiring freeze, since it didn’t affect the budget. Public Works Director Jeff Hunter came up with more potential hidden costs involving the giant flagpole. “We’re very concerned that they’re not going to be able to light that flag and make it work so it meets the city’s lighting ordinance,” he said. He reminded commissioners that Goldendale has a dark skies ordinance that mandates downlighting and said the top of the pole would only be a foot wide, which would mean a downlight would only illuminate the part of the flag nearest the pole. If the flag couldn’t be illuminated, he said, it would have to come down every night and put back up in the morning. He called that option “a nonstarter,” because there just wasn’t the manpower available. He also said there may be prob-
See County page B1