
Pharaoh’s Family Farm Grows Legacy for Next Generation
November 20, 2020 – Pharaoh’s Family Farm is a new business introducing DairyGrow, an organic OMRI certified premium fertilizing compost. Pharaoh’s Family Farm is a family business with Pharaoh Skinner at the helm. Her business concept came from the realization that a narrowed focus could allow her family of four to build a sustainable future with a product that is both locally-sourced and mindfully-produced. “Our mission is to create a sustainable future and a legacy for the next generation,” Pharaoh said. Pharaoh’s Family Farm contracts for the Stevenson Farmers Market as well as participating occasionally as a vendor selling her family farm’s bounty. Pharaoh has leveraged the knowledge gained from her two-acre mini-farm in Stevenson to introduce DairyGrow to the retail market. With funding support from Mid-Columbia Economic Development District, Pharaoh will purchase the bags and secure a lease from the Port of Skamania in North Bonneville for her operation. Pharaoh’s takes a long-term view of the farm by generating soil fertility through natural cycles. Their first product, DairyGrow, is an organic, non-GMO compost, free of heavy metals, litter debris, fillers, seeds, pathogens, and sewage. It is totally clean, safe to touch, and free of exotic imports. “Many composts and potting soils include nutrients and fillers harvested and mined to the detriment of delicate ecosystems. Not ours. Our DairyGrow helps us too because we use it,” Pharaoh said. The family behind Pharaoh’s Family Farm “Our farm operation is a lot of work, but we approach this work knowing how important it is. We have farmed our Columbia Gorge-area land since 2015. In the years since settling here, we have started growing our family. We always knew how special it was, but along the way, we realized we didn’t want to keep it to ourselves. Our journey has led us to bringing DairyGrow to share with you. The joys of our hard work reward us every day, and we love what we do,” she added. Pharaoh’s Family Farm is starting with a small operation but has plans to grow into a national market and diversify their product line to include products targeted at the organic backyard gardener. You can learn more about DairyGrow at DairyGrow.com. [Continue Reading]
MCEDD Mobility Manager Awarded 2020 Public Transportation Hero Award
November 18, 2020 – Congratulations to Kathy Fitzpatrick, who was awarded the 2020 Public Transportation Hero award by the Oregon Transit Association. The Oregon Public Transportation Awards are intended to recognize those individuals and agencies that have made significant contributions to public transportation in Oregon. Kathy accepted the award, but noted that she was accepting on behalf of the five transportation providers that she serves: The Link Public Transit, Sherman County Community Transit, Columbia Area Transit, Mt. Adams Transportation Service, and Skamania County Transit. “These five transit agencies are the everyday heroes, making sure that our families and neighbors can access medical appointments, groceries, school, work–many times bringing food and prescriptions to the door of those who are especially vulnerable.” Kathy said in an award acceptance video. You can watch the video here. [Continue Reading]
MCEDD Recognized With Two 2020 NADO Impact Awards
November 18, 2020 – MCEDD has been recognized with two 2020 Aliceann Wohlbruck Impact Awards from the National Association of Development Organizations for work on Economic Resiliency Resources and the Gorge TransLink.com Website Project. Economic Resiliency Resources: Over the last several years, the Mid-Columbia region has seen increasingly frequent economic shocks resulting from natural disasters, specifically wildfire and winter weather events, major accidents, and business shifts. In 2019, MCEDD began a focused effort to review the region’s responses to recent economic shocks to identify gaps in support for small businesses and develop more focused strategies to support long term economic resiliency in the region. MCEDD and its partners have begun working on several key initiatives, which have been critical during the pandemic response. For more information about MCEDD’s Economic Resiliency Resources, visit: https://www.mcedd.org/ready/. The Gorge TransLink.com Website Project represents the many years of hard work, partnership, and coordination required to build a truly seamless and connected regional public transportation system. This website is the digital hub of the regional system, highlighting the individual transit services and their connectivity using accessible and innovative rider-facing tools. The technology is open-source, WordPress-ready and compatible, and available for any transit agency to build a similar website at very little cost. This project impacts the entire region, giving all residents access to the essential mobility benefits of public transit. [Continue Reading]Wasco County Coordinated Human Services Transportation Plan
November 2, 2020 – Wasco County is updating the 2020-2024 Wasco County Coordinated Human Services Transportation Plan. The draft document will be available for public review from November 2-November 20, 2020. Comments can be submitted to Kathy Fitzpatrick, MCEDD Mobility Manager at kathy@mcedd.org. Hard copies are available at The Dalles Transit Center (The Link) or on request by email here. Click here to access the draft Plan. [Continue Reading]Sherman County Coordinated Human Services Transportation Plan
October 26, 2020 – Sherman County is updating the 2020-2024 Sherman County Coordinated Human Services Transportation Plan. The draft document will be available for public review from October 26-November 6, 2020. Comments can be submitted to Kathy Fitzpatrick, MCEDD Mobility Manager at kathy@mcedd.org. Hard copies are available at the Sherman County Community Transit office or on request (email kathy@mcedd.org). Click here to access the draft Plan. [Continue Reading]