What does the weather forecast look like for the last day of 2018 and the first few days of 2019? Check our local weather coverage.
In case you missed it, here are some of the top stories of the weekend (and of the year):
News staff picked the 10 biggest stories of the year from a list of 27 nominees, and then voted on which they thought was the biggest. Teacher strikes and the waterfront opening both appeared on 23 of 25 returned ballots, but teacher strikes earned the top spot with nine first-place votes.
The continuing saga of former Living Hope Church pastor John Bishop — featured in a six-part series in The Columbian earlier this year — received five first-place votes.
Our year-end story features recaps of the top stories of the past 12 months.
Read the full story: Clark County’s Top 10 stories of 2018
The Earth will have once again orbited the sun by midnight Monday, and county residents wishing to mark the occasion with fireworks can avoid an unpleasant exchange with a fire marshal, or a steep ticket, with a refresher on local fireworks regulations.
Rules for fireworks for New Year’s Eve differ slightly from July 4 fireworks usage in the county and other cities but are also more straightforward.
Read the full story: New Year’s Eve fireworks rules in Clark County differ depending on area
The holidays produce some weird waste specific to the post-Christmas purge. When else are people looking to unload mass quantities of tiny light bulbs, sheets of bubble wrap and entire dead trees over the same week?
For those looking to un-deck their halls, they should keep in mind the limitations on disposing of certain holiday paraphernalia.
Not everything can go in the recycling bin, and not everything should go in the trash. When in doubt, ask the experts.
“We have a search tool online, it’s a free app and it’s a web tool. It’s called Recycle Right,” said Melissa Johnston, a waste reduction specialist at Waste Connections.
“It’s customized for Clark County. You can type in any item you’re thinking of — Christmas lights, or wrapping paper — and it’ll show you recycling options, or whether it’s garbage.”
Read the full story: Do’s, don’ts of un-decking the halls
Matthew McDonnell, a Jemtegaard Middle School sixth-grader, sat on the floor of his family’s living room in Washougal on Friday while Patrick Chiotti, 26, praised him. When Matthew said he “guesses” he is selfless, Chiotti cut him off. “No, you are,” he told Matthew. “You definitely are.”
The two formed a bond about a year ago, shortly after Chiotti’s stepdaughter, Summer Worthington, now 3, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia the day after Thanksgiving. Matthew’s mother, Jennifer McDonnell, worked with Summer’s grandmother at Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center. McDonnell told Matthew about Summer and her family, and Matthew wanted to help.
The McDonnells live on a Washougal street known for having a lot of holiday decorations, so Matthew decided to open a hot chocolate stand one night when he thought there would be plenty of traffic on the street. He made about $400 and donated it to Summer and her family.
“What he did speaks so much about his character,” said Chiotti of Camas. “To want to help out and then to go do so at such a young age, he’s clearly not a selfish person at all.”
Matthew opened a hot chocolate stand again earlier this month for one night, this time bringing in more than $700. He used it to buy gifts for a mother and her two kids, ages 11 and 7, who lost their father in November to cancer. Matthew originally planned to donate money from the hot chocolate stand to cancer research, but when he heard about the two kids having Christmas without their father, he said he knew he wanted to help them out.
Read the full story: Washougal sixth-grader donates hot chocolate stand money to families affected by cancer
