Written by Sheriff Harvey Gjesdal

Published: 24 October 2017

On 10/17/17 at approximately 8:43 PM a Douglas County Deputy learned that a vehicle he had observed had an associated warrant out of LaSalle County, Illinois.  The warrant was for Aggravated Criminal Sexual Assault of a Child. 

The Deputy followed the vehicle to a residence and was able to contact the driver and person named on the arrest warrant, 35 year old Victor Guerrero of East Wenatchee.  He was arrested without incident and booked at the Chelan County Jail.

Good work by an observant and tenacious Deputy.

Written by Herb Sargo

Published: 24 October 2017

CLICK HERE FOR MORE PHOTOS!

It was a beautiful weekend in the Stehekin Valley, and, despite an 80% chance of rain, we avoided any notable precipitation!  It was also a record-setting weekend, with all three events having a great number of attendees.  Most importantly, there was a tremendous amount of good times!!

Valley Music Across the Generations, featuring many fine Stehekin Valley musicians, hosted over 180 people at the Stehekin School Friday evening.  Many thanks to JoAnne Reiter (coordinator) and all those who shared their musical talents with a packed house!  Our sincere thanks to the Stehekin School and students for the use of their building and for setting up!

Picking, Pressing, and Potluck welcomed more than 260 people to the Historic Buckner Orchard on Saturday, finding trees with an abundance of common delicious, Rome beauties, and Johnathon's.  Many thanks, again, to Agnes on Fire for providing a great set of tunes for those enjoying the chili, cider, and all the potluck goodies.

Saturday's Harvest Fest activities can be viewed in slideshow form by clicking on the photo above.  Select the first photo once in, then click on the triangle button in the lower left corner to view the slideshow.  No downloading needed!

This year's Harvest Fest Raffle raised more than $1,300 to support the work of the Foundation at the Orchard.  If your name is Jeff Parsons, you were the big winner for the day, winning three times, including the helicopter flight!   Many thanks to all who supported the Orchard in this fashion!

Our very sincere appreciation to those who donated the raffle prizes, including:

Helicopter Flight-Lake Chelan Helicopters

(Winner-Jeff Parsons)

Custom-knit socks/mittens—Bob Nielsen 
(Winner-Colleen Sargo)

Custom-knit stocking cap—Nancy Barnhart  
(Winner-Bucky Gans)

Quilted wall hanging—Christy of Little Sisters Quilts  
(Winner-Nathan Thomas)

The Stehekin We Remember—The Buckner Sisters
(Winners-Trapper Robbins, Jeff Parsons, Patty Schrag)

Buckner Orchard Apple Wine—Dick Bingham
(Winners-Jeff Parsons, Larry M, Dana Barton, Wendy Garfoot)

Individual or Family Portrait Session—Barnhart Photography
(Patty Schrag)

One-hour Message—Stehekin Massage, Wendy Garfoot
(Winner-Danita Breeze)

Holden Village Gift Basket - Holden Village
(Winner-Fritz Griffith)

 Poetry Night culminated a very well-attended weekend with 32 folks reading, reciting, or just enjoying listening to a variety of pieces selected by those in attendance.

 Harvest Fest by the Numbers

• 182 -Valley Music Night attendees  (previous high 162)
• 266 - Harvest Fest attendees (220)
• 32 - Poetry Night attendees (19)
• 0 - amount of rainfall on Saturday!
• $1,300 - raised by the raffle
• 3 - number of raffle prizes won by Jeff Parsons, (book, wine, and helicopter ride)
• $110 - donations
• 13 - people at Friday Work party
• 36 - number of total volunteer hours on Friday

Thanks!

The work of many individuals make Harvest Fest the event it is.  Additional thanks also goes to The Stehekin Pastry Company, The Stehekin Landing Resort, Stehekin Valley Ranch, Jim's Pumping Service, Lake Chelan Boat Company, Mountain Barge Services, and the National Park Service for their support, as well.

Written by Sheriff Harvey Gjesdal

Published: 24 October 2017

On 10/16/17 at approximately 6:51 PM Douglas County Deputies received a report of a hit and run accident involving a pedestrian.  

The victim, a 57 year old Rock Island woman, was walking her dogs on the sidewalk near the intersection of Saunders and N. Garden Ave.  She said the suspect  vehicle came through the intersection and up onto the sidewalk striking her.  The woman rolled up on the hood and off the passenger side.  She saw the vehicle pull into a small trailer park and was able to give deputies a good description of the vehicle and driver. 

Deputies were able to locate the driver and contact him.  He appeared to be intoxicated.  The driver, 63 year old Miguel R. Isidro of Rock Island, was arrested for hit and run and DUI.  He was booked at the Chelan County Jail without incident. 

The victim was taken to Confluence Hospital.  Her condition is unknown but it is believed her injuries were not life threatening.

Written by Sheriff Harvey Gjesdal

Published: 12 October 2017

On 10/08/17 at approximately 1:50 AM a Douglas County Deputy was on routine patrol near the intersection of Sunset Hwy. and Hwy. 2 when he observed a silver 2009 Ford Taurus traveling at a very high rate of speed. 

He caught up with the vehicle on the Eastmont extension and paced it at 75 mph in a 40 mph zone.  The Deputy gave chase with his emergency equipment on and followed the vehicle up a dead end road.  The suspect vehicle turned around to come back the way he came and nearly hit the Deputy.  The suspect turned from Eastmont onto Baker and collided with a guard rail. 

The Deputy saw multiple suspects exit the vehicle, jump the guard rail, and flee on foot.  One juvenile male suspect was found hiding in some bushes near a private residence.  He was arrested without incident and booked at the Chelan County Juvenile Detention Center.

Vehicle was found to have been stolen from Entiat several hours earlier.  At approximately 1:00 PM the driver of the stolen vehicle turned himself in at the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office.  He was also booked at the Chelan County Juvenile Detention Center.

The driver was a 16 year old male.  There were three passengers: a 14 year old male and two 15 year old males.  All were from East Wenatchee.  The case is still under investigation.

Written by Sheriff Harvey Gjesdal

Published: 05 October 2017

On 10/03/17 at approximately 9:58 AM Douglas County Deputies responded to a report of an injury accident which had occurred at a residence in the 2800 Blk. of NW Empire near East Wenatchee. The accident involved a pickup and a 19 month old child.

Investigation revealed that the father of the boy was parked in his pickup in the driveway of the residence while the mother was loading boxes into another vehicle.   Unbeknownst to either parent, their 19 month old child had gotten out of the house. As the father started to back out, the child ran behind the pickup and was run over. The parents drove the boy to Confluence Health Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

There is no evidence the incident was nothing more than a very tragic accident.

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Offices offers its deepest condolences to the child’s family and their friends.

Written by Sheriff Harvey Gjesdal

Published: 26 September 2017

On 09/24/17 at approximately 3:30 AM Douglas County Deputies were called to Three Rivers Hospital in Brewster because a male had been admitted with a knife wound. 

Investigators believe a fight had occurred at a residence in the 800 Blk. of Fairview in Bridgeport.  During the altercation, the male, 21 year old Victor A. Valdovinos-Vazquez, was stabbed. 

A search warrant was obtained for the residence where the suspect was believed to be hiding.  The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office Special Response Team attempted to call the suspect out, but there was no response from inside. 

Tear gas was deployed inside, but when the team made entry, the suspect was gone. 

Valdovinos was flown to Confluence Hospital with a stab wound to his abdomen.  His condition is unknown.

Written by Herb Sargo

Published: 26 September 2017

As the poster below indicates, this year's Harvest Fest Raffle will bigger and better than ever thanks to the generosity of a number of people!

Tickets can be purchased Saturday, October 7 at the Orchard, or beforehand from Herb, if you can catch him!

Tickets are priced as follows: $20 - 20 tickets, $10 - 8 tickets, $5 - 3 tickets, $2 - 1 ticket

Written by Jessie Simmons, Executive Director, Historic Downtown Chelan Association

Published: 26 September 2017

9-20-2017 - The Historic Downtown Chelan Association is excited to announce they quickly surpassed their fundraising goal and will move forward with the Woodin Avenue Landing project in Downtown Chelan. “The support from the community has been overwhelming. It was encouraging to see the excitement around this project,” said HDCA Executive Director Jessie Simmons. In addition to financial support, a number of groups have also stepped forward to provide non-monetary support. The Lake Chelan Rotary and Morfin Landscape and Masonry will be helping with the landscaping and Lake Chelan Building Supply has offered to help provide supplies at cost.

 The project was originally scheduled to break ground on Sept. 5th. However, upon final inspection, it was determined that the current wall cannot support the new viewing platform. Simmons said this discovery led to last-minute additional survey needs in order to make the wall structurally sound. This will delay the project until early spring, but the group still expects the park to be complete before the arrival of warm weather next year.  

 The Historic Downtown Chelan Association would like to thank the many donors and volunteers who have helped keep this project moving. The organization is looking forward to completing this beautification project and then moving on to the next downtown park, which is planned in the space between BC MacDonald’s and Campbell’s Park Room.

Written by Sergeant Tim Lykken, Wenatchee Police Department

Published: 15 September 2017

At about 9:14 am on Thursday, 09/14/17, Wenatchee Police Officers, Chelan County Fire Department and Ballard Ambulance were dispatched to a two-vehicle serious injury collision in the 400 block of S. Mission Street. Upon arrival, a red 2008 Chevrolet Impala and a light blue 2013 Dodge Avenger were located about 150 feet north of Spokane Street on S. Mission Street with vehicle pieces and debris spread across the three lanes of the street.

Officers interviewed witnesses and conducted an on-scene investigation. From interviews and investigation, it appears the Chevrolet Impala had been traveling north bound on S. Mission Street and the Dodge Avenger had been traveling west bound on Spokane Street. Spokane Street is controlled by stop signs at the intersection of Spokane Street and S. Mission Street. The Dodge Avenger attempted to cross S. Mission Street and was struck by the Chevrolet Impala. Witnesses said the Chevrolet Impala had been traveling recklessly with speeds estimated to be between 50 and 70 mph in the 30-mph speed zone. Both vehicles appear to be total losses and were towed from the scene. S. Mission Street was closed for about two hours for the collision investigation.

The driver of the Dodge Avenger, a 33-year-old male Wenatchee resident, was transported by ambulance to the Central Washington Hospital Emergency Room for treatment. The male was later admitted to the hospital with internal injuries and broken bones.

The driver of the Chevrolet Impala, Wenatchee resident 21-year-old Jonathan J. Fleming-Goforth was arrested at the collision scene for suspicion of vehicular assault. While in route to the Chelan County Regional Jail, Fleming-Goforth requested to be taken to the emergency room. Fleming-Goforth was transported by a police officer to the Central Washington Hospital Emergency Room where he was treated and released to the custody of the police. Fleming-Goforth was then booked in the Chelan County Regional Jail for suspicion of Vehicular Assault.

Officers also suspected the driver of the Dodge Avenger to be under the influence of alcohol. A search warrant was applied for to test the driver’s blood. The driver was issued a criminal traffic citation for suspicion of Driving While Intoxicated (Alcohol) and Driving While License Suspended or Revoked – 1st Degree.