50 years ago 1965
1965: Ellen Holmason, 18, of Sunnyside was ready to depart town for a 10-country, People to People Tour of Europe. She was one of 30 young people from Central Washington selected for the trip. Before leaving the U.S. the young ambassadors met with Vice President Hubert Humphrey and Washington State Fourth District Congresswoman Cathrine May in Washington D.C.
photo courtesy of the Sunnyside Sun
- Announcing their candidacy for the title of Yakima County Dairy Princess were Elaine DeHaan, Carol Wheeler, Dorothy Worbes, Karen Cleveringa, Patricia Haupt, Marianne Barnes and LaWanda June Davis.
- A 1957 graduate of Sunnyside High School, Theodore McGraw, was selected as the 1965 Armed Forces Man of the Year by the Spokane Chamber of Commerce. McGraw, a Spec-5, was stationed with the 1st Missile Battalion of the 43rd Artillery at Fairchild Air Force Base.
- Bill Bennett, a junior at Sunnyside High School, was awarded a trip to the United Nations headquarters in New York after winning the U.N. Pilgrimage for Youth speaking contest.
- Sunnyside High School junior Mark Pfouts was elected president of the Washington North Idaho United Christian Youth Movement.
- City officials began a search for a new police chief when they learned O.E. Hill was planning to retire. City Manager George Hubbert said the monthly salary for the new chief would fall between $478 and $574.
- Becky Whiteside was crowned DeMolay Sweetheart of the Sunnyside chapter of DeMolay.
- The Yakima YMCA board of directors gave its approval for Sunnyside to begin establishing its own YMCA. The Sunnyside group in charge of forming the local YMCA named Clive Greene to head up the project.
- Mojonnier and Sons was the first firm in Sunnyside to receive asparagus from local growers. The first delivery of the grass was made by Orville Dorsey, who had a field on Sheller Road.
- Seven Sunnyside Junior High School students earned straight A’s for the fourth quarter of the 1964-65 school year. They included Pamela Partch, Nancy Potter, Kathy Aiken, Cheryl Jeffords, Kay Borchardt, Mike Egan and Elaine Padgham.
- The publishing firm Doubleday was releasing the book “Big Sam,” written by the son-in-law of renowned Sunnyside author Roscoe Sheller - Sam Churchill Jr. The novel by Churchill, who worked as the farm editor for Yakima’s daily newspaper, centered on the life of an Oregon logger. He said he wrote the book as a tribute to the courage of Northwestern loggers.
- Members of the Sunnyside School Board approved a resolution to open schools an hour later than the usual time during asparagus harvest season.
- Dick Golob of Sunnyside was the recipient of the first-ever Distinguished Service Award presented by the Jaycees.
- Presented co-valedictorian trophies at the Sunnyside High School commencement exercise, which featured 226 seniors earning their graduation diplomas, were Sharon Bacon and Carol Schinmann.
- Yakima City Creamery officials announced they would be closing their Sunnyside plant by the end of the year.
- Principal Harry Benson crowned Suzette Bell queen of the annual Sunnyside High School Junior-Senior Prom.
- Dr. J.R. Hale was installed as president of the Sunnyside Lions Club.
- Ray Edmerson of Sunnyside was named Area 6 Governor of Toastmasters.
- Sharing valedictorian honors at Sunnyside High School were Carol Schinmann and Sharon Bacon. Named co-salutatorians were Janet Lee Carter, Sharon Cline and Darlene Johnson.
- H.W. “Wes” Farwell of Sunnyside was named general manager of Bleyhl Farm Service in Sunnyside and Grandview.
- Staff Sgt. Melvin Schneider, son of Mr. and Mrs. Adolph Schneider of Mabton, was decorated with the U.S. Air Medal for meritorious achievement during aerial flight in support of the fight against Communism in Vietnam.
- New homes were being built on Sunnyside’s San Clemente Street, Sunnyside Avenue, Terry Street and Grandview Avenue.
- Longtime Sunnyside attorney Stephen E. Chaffee died at the age of 84.
- The Sunnyside City Council approved its first-ever franchise agreements for cable services to the community, granting rights to Columbia Television Inc. and Cascade Broadcasting Co.
- Sunnyside’s annual pioneer picnic drew about 300 people to Central Park. During the business portion of the gathering, J.W. Hans was elected president of the pioneer association. He succeeded Ernest Hager.
- Cutting a hole through the roof to gain access, burglars pried open a safe in the office of Totem Sales in Sunnyside, making off with about $1,100 in cash. The thieves did not touch the diamonds that had been left in the safe.
- New Sunnyside High School basketball coach Bob Thomas announced he was organizing a summer basketball program for local youngsters.
- Playing at both the Liberty Theatre and the Starlite Drive-in Theatre in Sunnyside was the movie “Cheyenne Autumn,” starring John Ford.
- Terry Kramer, 16, was recovering from a concussion, fractured ribs and possible internal injuries sustained when his sled collided with a vehicle on San Clemente Avenue in Sunnyside.
- Joyce Newhouse, a senior at Sunnyside High School, was named the winner of the Betty Crocker Homemaker Award, qualifying for state and national scholarships.
- Mrs. E.E. Stahlhut was named the city campaign director for Sunnyside’s March of Dimes fundraising efforts.
- The Sunnyside City Council approved a garbage, water and sewer rate hike for 1965, which when totaled came to an extra 64 cents per month for each household.
- Announcing their candidacy for the title of Miss Sunnyside were Linda Bauerle, Jean Grafelman, Leslie Jones, Marla Newhouse, Earlene Partch, Staci Stephens, Dolores Tabares, Rebecca Whiteside, Barbara Worbes and Lynda Young.
- Dr. Walter Clore announced that Sunnyside’s Presbyterian Church would sponsor a new Boy Scouts troop. Named as scoutmaster was Gerald Bird.
Courtesy: Sunnyside Daily Sun News 600 S. 6th St., P.O. Box 878 Sunnyside, WA 98944 Ph. 509-837-4500 - Fax 509-837-6397