Our Place in Walla Walla #18: Summer!

Our place knows how to enjoy summer vacation. Long days and no school mean that it’s time to take full advantage of the Valley.

For this final column of the academic year, it seems appropriate to appreciate what summer in Walla Walla offers. Whether you will be in Walla Walla for a day or the entire summer, you have myriad opportunities to enjoy our community.

Whitties know a lot about this topic: Alyssa Ortiz ’22 shared lovely reflections about a summer spent here. Bertine Lakjohn, too, offers terrific advice.

I am also grateful to my adventuresome and generous colleagues who shared ideas, wisdom and insider knowledge.

Susan Prudente (Development): “Veterans Memorial Pool is an affordable and great place to gather and cool off with friends as well as to get in a cardio work out in the lap lanes while soaking up Vitamin D.”

Baker Weilert–Pekar (Debate) mentioned these activities including live music at Tranche, Walla Walla Sweets baseball games and the Downtown Concert Series.

Colette Marie (Academic Resource Center) suggested the annual Juneteenth celebration, Farmer’s Market, and productions by the Walla Walla Symphony, Little Theatre of Walla Walla and Gesa Power House Theatre.

Walla Walla City Council Member Gustavo Reyna (and Colette’s partner) commented: “Summer is a wonderful time to discover some of the beauty in our surrounding areas. A visit to Wallowa Lake in Oregon is always rewarding. It provides opportunities to hike, camp, paddleboat, swim and enjoy the gondola ride to the summit of Mt. Howard. Walla Walla also provides great opportunities for biking around the country roads and trails in our valley.”

Angela Harvey (Office of Accounting and Business Services) and her “team” (kids Cosmo (8), Fiona (9) and Piper (13)) brainstormed this list: Bluegrass Jam first Friday of the month at the Public Library, boating on Bennington Lake, hiking in the Wallowas, painting ceramics at the Senior Center through Parks & Rec, floating the Grand Ronde River, Fort Walla Walla Museum, art classes at Enable Art in College Place, throwing pottery at the Refinery, bowling, bike path in Dayton along the river, Drive-in movies in Milton-Freewater.

Laura Norris (Health Center) recommended: “Get to water at Jubilee Lake, Fishhook and Charbonneau Parks on the Snake River; music at places like Three Rivers and all around the valley; fresh veggies from Edwards Family Farm; Food Truck night; the Pioneer Park July 4h festival and fireworks; and concerts at Wine Country Amphitheater.”

My colleagues in the Career and Community Engagement Center chimed in, with Jonathan Simons noting that lots of wineries hire seasonally during the summer which could be a nice opportunity for students who may be sticking around and Abby Juhasz invited folks to stop by the CCEC to brainstorm ideas for volunteer opportunities with these long-standing community partners.

If you want to get a sense of how our community “works” you can attend neighborhood block parties hosted by our city government, sit in on a City Council meeting. Have a picnic in the soon-to-be-reopened Heritage Park and spend some time reading about all of the images of Walla Walla’s demographic variety. And of course, you can read the Union-Bulletin online(or even in print). You can even reread this entire series (and prepare for the Fair and Frontier Days, which takes place August 28 through September 1, just before the start of fall semester).

Phew! Lots to do. And, if you make it through this whole list, you can check in with our friends at Visit Walla Walla, our local tourism office, for even more summer ideas!

Finally, please know that heat is a big part of our summertime. Several colleagues emphasized that if this is your first summer in Walla Walla, you should have a plan to beat the heat, which gets above 100 for long stretches each summer. Stay hydrated, wear a sun hat and lotion, and think about how you can cool your apartment with a fan or air-conditioning.

Many thanks to all of you who read these columns this year. If there are aspects of the rich and complex landscape and history of the Walla Walla Valley that you would like to see featured next year, please drop me a note at leavitns@whitman.edu.

Wherever your plans take you, I wish you a restorative, fun, healthy and meaningful summer. See you in the fall!