Winlock Cedar Village Pharmacy Pharmacist Don Hilley has provided many years of service to the community, not just Winlock but all of south Lewis County. Don has the responsibility of keeping prescriptions available to many, a responsibility he does not take lightly. Without Don, many would be lost.

Winlock Schools are now open. Even though they are open in hybrid, meaning they aren't in class every day, they are open. Students are attending classes and teachers are very happy to have their students back.

Lewis County has two new county commissioners, Sean Swope is one of two new commissioners who were elected this November to serve the citizens of Lewis County.

COVID-19 is back in full force with numbers being the highest we have seen. Nationally, we have seen numbers increase in the tune of 150,000+ cases per day. Washington State topped 2900 cases on November 12. With the increase in cases comes new restrictions. Unfortunately, the new restrictions will impact several of our local businesses. Please continue to support them as much as possible, it's tough times for everyone.

Lewis County elections have been decided and a few changes are taking place. We have a new legislator for the 20th district and two new county commissioners to assist Lewis County as they continue to grow.

First, Peter Abbarno won his legislative seat in the 20th District easily with a landslide victory of 72.64%. Abbarno is an attorney in Centralia with Althauser, Rayan and Abbarno, LLP, and now he represents the people in Olympia. He stated, "I appreciate all the support from my family, friends, community and voters throughout the 20th district and beyond. The state is facing some serious issues that need real solutions. I will work hard and represent the values of SW Washington every step of the way to make sure our students, families and small businesses don't get left behind."

At the end of the 2019-2020 school year Geoff Parks, the former Napavine superintendent, announced that he had accepted a position in Arizona so that he and his family could be closer to his wife's family. This was sad news to the district. With this news, the school board asked Shane Schutz to step in as interim superintendent. Schutz said he was "very surprised" and that it "felt like an honor to apply for this position and the opportunity to run a district."

When you think of Winlock and our history, you automatically think of Roy Richards. Roy passed away at home this past week and Winlock lost a man who loved this town more than most. His love was shown in every piece collected for his museum and every time he opened the door to someone new.

Toledo lost a 2020 graduate this past week, John Caleb Pyles passed away after a car accident on October 24, 2020. He was born on February 12, 2002, and spent his short life in Toledo. Our condolences go to his parents David and Shawn Pyles and his remaining family.