Community | The JOLT News Organization, a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit

County Health Officer answers three questions about COVID-19

Letter to the Community: September 1, 2020 Hello Thurston County! Labor Day weekend is coming up! While you are enjoying the long weekend and taking time to connect with family and loved ones, … more

9/1/20

Jury trials allowed to resume in Thurston County Superior Court

THURSTON COUNTY -- For the first time since July, jury trials are scheduled to resume in Thurston County along with a slew of safety guidelines aimed at preventing potential spread of COVID-19 … more

By Cody Neuenschwander of JOLT | 8/31/20

Local pet parents can use a new online tool to help find their lost pets.

Get reunited with your lost pet using new tool

Joint Animal Services continues to implement new and creative ways to provide services to our community during the pandemic. Their latest improvement helps reunite owners with their lost pets – 24/7 online reporting. more

8/31/20

“The Third Thirty” oral history project highlights stories of Olympia elders

OLYMPIA –– The Olympia Heritage Commission met Wednesday evening to learn about “The Third Thirty,” an oral history project led by Elaine Vradenburgh, an oral historian and local educator. more

By Andrew Oslin of JOLT | 8/27/20

The National Guard Armory could be the site of a new community creative campus.

City officials talk Armory creative campus plan

OLYMPIA –– City officials discussed a proposal from the Olympia Parks, Arts and Recreation Department to create an arts center in the city out of the current National Guard Armory. more

By Andrew Oslin of JOLT | 8/26/20 | 1 comment

The Lacey Historical Commission shared updates to the pending Lacey Museum & Civic Center project.

Lacey museum project progresses

LACEY –– On Wednesday evening the Lacey Historical Commission provided some quick updates on the status of the Lacey Museum & Civic Center project, which is making progress despite complications from the COVID-19 pandemic. more

By Andrew Oslin of JOLT | 8/20/20

Child with Egg by Joe Batt, a sculpture that is up for the 2020 People's Choice contest, is one of several members of the community can vote on to be displayed at Percival Landing.

Sculptures on Display, People's Choice Voting Now Open

OLYMPIA –– Voting is now open for new sculptures to be put on display at Percival Plinth, an annual project that shows a new batch of sculptures at Percival Landing. Members of the community get to vote on the best sculpture, and the most popular sculpture will be added to the city’s public art collection. more

By Madeline Shannon of JOLT | 8/19/20

Eviction Rent Assistance Program Coming Soon to Thurston County

OLYMPIA – Yesterday, the Thurston County Board of Commissioners approved a contract with Community Action Council of Lewis Mason and Thurston Counties (CAC) to manage the Eviction Rent Assistance Program (ERAP) for Thurston County renters. more

8/17/20

Lacey Veterans Services Hub receives 2020 Municipal Excellence Award

LACEY –– The Lacey Veterans Services Hub recently received an Association of Washington Cities (AWC) 2020 Municipal Excellence Award. Lacey was one of five Washington cities to receive the award, which recognizes creative approaches in municipal projects and programs that significantly improve the quality of life in communities. more

8/14/20

Wild Art in Wildwood

Olympia -- Neighbors in the Wildwood Neighborhood Association figured out a way to have an event that let them observe social-distancing rules, avoid the 10-person limit for public events and create … more

By Danny Stusser of JOLT | 8/7/20

In the time of COVID-19, the Olympia Film Society, which often screens films at the Capitol Theater, has had to adjust to conducting operations differently during the pandemic.

Capitol Theater redirects course during pandemic, finds audience online

OLYMPIA — Like countless other entities across the world, the folks heading up the nonprofit Olympia Film Society, which operates the historic Capitol Theater, found themselves needing to adapt in a world ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic. more

By Cody Neuenschwander for JOLT | 8/6/20

Could you be Olympia's next Poet Laureate?

Poetry is a powerful tool for reflection and creativity. more

8/5/20

Olympia addresses plans to reduce homelessness

OLYMPIA –– Olympia’s five-year plan, the “One Community: Healthy, Safe and Housed” plan was up for discussion by city officials again Monday night as homelessness and poverty continues to be an issue in the greater Olympia community. more

By Andrew Oslin of JOLT | 8/4/20

Buy Nothing Projects Bring Neighbors Together

OLYMPIA –– When I first heard about the Buy Nothing Project, my boss was telling me how she parted out her crockpot for free to people who came and picked it up off her porch. She just posted a picture in a Facebook group, and the broken crockpot found a new home. more

By Nikki McCoy for JOLT | 8/3/20

Racial justice town hall touches on race and economic opportunity

OLYMPIA –– The second in the series of racial justice meetings in Olympia Thursday night focused on economic opportunity across race lines. Like the first meeting last Friday centering on the legal system, this endeavor brought together a diverse lineup of panelists of color to bring to light their perspectives. more

By Andrew Oslin of JOLT | 7/30/20

Thurston County business leaders spoke about child care and working families in the area at this week's Declassified meeting, a virtual meeting between business professionals in the area.

Local business leaders talk childcare and the workforce

OLYMPIA –– Business leaders gathered in this week’s “Declassified” meeting to discuss challenges to working families accessing local childcare and impacts to lack of access on the workforce in Thurston County. more

By Madeline Shannon of JOLT | 7/30/20

Japanese Knotweed, deceptively beautiful, is a pesky plant local man Denny Hamilton continues to battle in his yard.

Knotweed: the opposition

OLYMPIA –– Even in human time, it hasn’t been long. From the beginning until now, it’s been a bit more than two months. more

By Denny Hamilton for JOLT | 7/28/20

Local man Denny Hamilton took this photo when out on a hike in Watershed Park recently. His walks through nature in the time of COVID-19 prompted him to think about types of hikers he's encountered when outdoors.

Trail etiquette in the time of COVID

OLYMPIA –– I have only lived in Olympia for a few months. Most of that time has been during social distancing, face masks and hand washing in the COVID era. more

By Denny Hamilton for JOLT | 7/27/20 | 1 comment

Nicole Barer, 16, started her own soap company, NRB's Beauty, in March. Her first quarter of sales was so successful, she said, that she wanted to host two pop-up shops this summer to celebrate.

Local girl launches successful soap company

OLYMPIA –– It started with sensitive skin and pretty soap. The then-10-year-old Olympia resident, Naomi Barer, would walk into a store that sold beautiful soaps that the sensitive-skinned Barer couldn’t use. more

By Madeline Shannon of JOLT | 7/26/20

The now-empty Olympian building, where The Olympian set up shop. The current staff at the local daily moved operations to a new, nondescript building in Olympia.

McClatchy sold to New Jersey hedge fund

OLYMPIA –– A bankruptcy court judge issued a decision in a New York court late Friday that McClatchy, the 163-year-old news media company that owns more than two dozen newspapers nationwide, including The Olympian, would be sold to one of the two major hedge funds that owns most of the company’s debt. more

By Madeline Shannon of JOLT | 7/24/20