A Community Cleanup and an Easter Egg Scramble had children and Volunteers on the move Saturday, April 8, as Columbia Gorge Toyota and Honda pulled off a double event giving children some glee and locals some pride after cleaning up parts of West Second and Sixth Streets in The Dalles.

Downtown The Dalles will be bubbling with beverages, flowers, and fun tonight as Downtown The Dalles kicks off its First Friday season with an ode to Spring. Morning Showers are expected to give way to temperatures in the 60s this afternoon, making for great conditions to go sidewalk cruising and boutique beverage consuming.

To complete this paving work, we need to close the entire bridge to all traffic during the nighttime only for two weekends in April. Read here to find all dates and times of closures.

Helping Hands Against Violence in partnership SafeSpace, and the Hood River Library recently installed a unique public community art installation called the Clothesline Project to call attention to Sexual Assault Awareness Month. The installation will be on display on the Hood River Library lawn until April 17th.

Lake Taco, a family owned Mexican restaurant in Hood River has re-opened in their new location and is doing better than ever, thanks to the gorge community rallying to raise over $48,000 in support of this local family and their made-fresh food.

A victim was transported to Mid-Columbia Medical Center where the victim was pronounced deceased. A suspect has been arrested for murder in the first degree and unlawful use of a weapon.

April Power brings musical flowers this week as the Bargeway Pub kicks it off with a show tonight, April 5 at 6 p.m. with Sarah Lodge & Dan Polidori playing an eclectic acoustic blend of top R&B, soul, pop and blues music. It’s just one of the dozens of offerings in music, literature, festivals, art, drum circles, plays, movies and more. Our Jim Drake’s been buzzin’ bringing a bouquet of options in this week’s gorge entertainment guide.

Wasco County Commissioners held their regular meeting on Wednesday, April 5th, 2023 at 9 a.m. and approved several important items on the agenda. At the top of the list was the YouthThink Overdose Prevention Subcontract between Wasco County and North Central Public Health District which was approved, and will provide much-needed support for the prevention of drug overdoses in local communities.

Sally Johnson comes to The Dalles Arts Center with 12+ years of managing programs, teams, and departments at for-profit and non-profit organizations. Most recently, she was the Director of Business Development for the non-profit organization, Oxbow Farm & Conservation in Carnation, WA.

The 35th Annual Spring Community Clean Up will take place the first Saturday of May. The Dalles residents are encouraged to join in the annual spring cleaning event on Saturday, May 6, 2023 from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

The Mid-Columbia Economic Development District (MCEDD) has announced the completion of the regional Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) update for 2023. Among the major updates in the 2023 CEDS is an updated regional project priority list.

It is spring in The Dalles, and this year is an Organ Crawl year! April 16th 2023 celebrates the 9th Biennial Organ Crawl, which was started in 2007 by Robert Carsner (1940-2014).

Pure Yoga, a yoga studio in The Dalles known for its free community classes for youth and adults, work with local schools and libraries, and its passionate instructors, celebrated its 15 years of business and service to the community on Friday March 31, 2023.

Reports of toilets flushing in the reverse direction in different locations around the Gorge have been flooding in for several days. Counterclockwise water has been seen swirling about in several different thrones around town. We took to the streets to see if other folks had witnessed this strange phenomenon.

In an epic battle for the fate of Middle Earth, youth at The Dalles Wasco County Public Library recently gathered to face off against a formidable foe - a piñata Ring Wraith filled with ring-pops.

Students from three D21 Elementary Schools took to the kitchen yesterday, March 29th to compete for the coveted title of ‘Top Chef’. The Future Chefs Challenge, organized by Sodexo, the company that D21 contracts with to provide nutrition services has encouraged students to make healthy food choices and spark their interest in the culinary arts for the last decade.

The City of Maupin’s recent hire of Melissa Napoli as a community liaison was done in hopes to build relationships and increase the beauty of one of Oregon’s greatest outdoor gateways. Our Nancy Henderson recently sat down with Melissa to learn more about her and how she is offering olive branches while working to put a good face on the community that welcomes tens of thousands of visitors a summer.

CCCNews chats wtih Dave Lutgens, Executive Director of St. Vincent de Paul Day Center in the kitchen, while he cooks up some chicken for tomorrows community meal.

In an incident that took place earlier today, Renalodo Cruz, age 20 was taken into police custody after firing multiple shots into the air in the downtown area of The Dalles, Oregon.

The Encyclopedic Jim Drake has done it, yet, once again with so many options for music, entertainment, learning and growth that we kind of want to start tapping a high hat and kicking that bass drum. Check out all things fun and fantastic in this week’s edition of This Week in Gorge Entertainment.