Columbia Basin group elects 2020 board, officers

Moses Lake, WA - The state’s organization serving as the “voice” of the Columbia Basin Project elected new board of trustees to serve in 2020. The Columbia Basin Development League has supported the Bureau of Reclamation’s Columbia Basin Project and its future development since 1964.

Last month, two board members were elected with nine being re-elected to the board. The new members are Kelly Cochrane, Cochrane Farms, Kahlotus and Christina Wyatt, Big Bend Electric Co-op, Ritzville.

Nine board members were re-elected: Orman Johnson, Clarke Kagele, Richard Burres, Mark Stedman, Dale Pomeroy, Alice Parker, Eli Stahl, Reid Phillips and JC Baldwin.

Following board elections, the trustees elected members to serve as the Executive Committee.

Mark Stedman, Davenport, will continue to serve in his leadership role as the chair. Stedman is a Lincoln County Commissioner and formerly served nearly 40 years in the public education sector. Kevin Lyle, Windy Prairie Inc., Othello, will serve as past chair with Matt Harris, Washington State Potato Commission, as vice chair; Orman Johnson, Johnson Agriprises Inc., Connell, is treasurer; Clark Kagele, Kagele Family Farms LLC, Odessa, is secretary; with at-large members Jake Wollman Jr., Warden Hutterian Brethren, Warden; Bill Wagoner, Quincy; Stephen McFadden, Adam’s County Economic Development Director, Othello and Dale Pomeroy, Port of Warden, Warden.

The remainder of the board includes Vicki Gordon, commissioner, Port of Pasco, Pasco; Chip Dobson, Mattawa; Milt Miller, Port of Moses Lake, Moses Lake; John Moody, Ephrata; Mark Booker, Othello; Mike LaPlant, Ephrata; Benjamin Leavitt, Warden; Roger Hartwig, Ritzville; JJ Danz, Mesa; Joe Gross, Marlin; John Preston, Warden; Michele Kiesz, Ritzville; Randy Gubler, Moses Lake and Brad Peck, commissioner, Franklin County, Pasco.

The League works in Washington, D.C. and Olympia advocating for a fully developed Columbia Basin Project that supports a robust regional and state economy and quality of life through efficient, well-maintained, affordable infrastructure and sustainable environmental stewardship.