Reflecting On A Successful State Grange Convention
By Tom Gwin
State Grange
Master/President
The 137th Annual Session of the Washington State Grange is now history! We experienced two weather extremes this year. The first few days were extremely warm, while the last few days turned off cloudy and breezy. It seemed like we couldn’t find a happy medium in the delegate meeting room. Weather aside, we completed the session on time and had plenty of breaks along the way.
At the Convention, we debated 28 resolutions and the recommendations of eight Standing Committees. We elected three state officers, with two moving to new positions and one completely new officer. Contests were held and awards presented. There certainly was something for everyone to enjoy at this year’s convention.
There are many, many Grange members who contributed to the success of this year’s convention:
The Convention Steering Committee, chaired by Debbie Riegel-Yates with Scott Hackett as the vice chair, Clarene Ricarte as the secretary, and Mary Celia as the treasurer, and all the other host committees… you did an excellent job of meeting the needs of the delegates. It was good to see representatives from several counties involved in the host duties.
The staff of the Skagit County Fairgrounds in Mount Vernon, specifically Fair Manager Aric Gaither, was wonderful to work with. Their excellent facilities and professional staff are to be commended!
To those who completed each of the details necessary for our success, including Progress Room Workers, deputies, officers, directors, and others, thank you for your part to make this a memorable convention.
To the delegates and committee chairs, congratulations on discussing each aspect of every resolution and recommendation. The in-depth discussion on each subject was astounding! You did a great job of answering the delegates’ questions and providing the requested information.
To the office staff, each of whom brings their own special talent and skill level to their job, your long hours and dedication to your jobs is truly remarkable.
To the youth and juniors, who bring a lively can-do attitude that reminds many of us of our not too distant past.
Now that convention is over, we quickly turned our focus to our Grange Youth Fairs Program. Our fairs have already begun and will continue across the state through the month of September. There are 17 fairs across the state that are allowing our Grange Youth and Juniors to showcase their projects, including livestock animals. Other fairs will have intricate Grange designs and still others will have Grange operated food concessions. Whatever role your Grange plays in the fair, I encourage you to do it well and to the best of your ability.
We are currently looking for Grange members to serve in two roles for the State Grange. Elsewhere in this issue, you will find an article on the Youth Fairs Program Management Team and an additional article on the Washington State Grange Foundation Board of Trustees. Review the items and if you are interested in either group, please contact us at the State Grange Office.
Important Dates And Initiatives
By Jesse Taylor
Legislative Lobbyist
Hello Grangers! The sun has set on the 137th Washington State Grange Annual Convention but it feels like we were all just together in Mount Vernon. I had a great time visiting with dozens of Grangers from every corner of the state talking about policy, grants, fundraising and everything in between. Skagit County gave us a great opportunity to see one of the true bread baskets of our state producing over 90 commercially grown agriculture commodities and is also home to some very powerful legislators.
If you attended convention this year you got the chance to listen to one of those powerful legislators as Senator Ron Muzzall of Oak Harbor stopped by to visit. Senator Muzzall gave great remarks regarding policy coming out of the capital around health care, agriculture, budget and many other issues. He was also gracious enough to take questions from as many Grangers that had them and spoke very highly of the impact our legislative efforts have had in Olympia lately.
Primary and General Election Important Dates- 2026
July 17 (Friday) – Primary voting period begins; ballots mailed to all registered voters, ballot drop boxes and voting centers open.
July 27 (Monday) – Deadline to register or update your voter registration online or by mail for the Primary.
August 4 (Tuesday) – Primary Election Day. Ballots must be postmarked or placed in an official ballot drop box by 8:00 p.m. Same-day, in-person voter registration and updates are available until 8:00 p.m.
September 19 (Saturday) – Military and overseas ballots begin mailing for the General Election.
October 11 (Sunday) – Counties may begin publishing the official Notice of General Election.
October 15 (Thursday) – Deadline to file as a write-in candidate (without paying a filing fee).
October 16 (Friday) – General Election voting period begins; ballots mailed to all registered voters, ballot drop boxes and voting centers open.
October 26 (Monday) – Deadline to register or update your voter registration online or by mail for the General Election.
November 3rd (Tuesday) General Election Day – State, federal and local.
Income Tax Initiative
Washington’s new “millionaires tax” is headed toward a statewide vote this November after opponents comfortably cleared the signature hurdle. The conservative political committee Let’s Go Washington submitted more than 511,000 signatures by the July 2 deadline—well above the roughly 309,000 valid signatures required to qualify Initiative IP26-645 for the ballot. State election officials certified the initiative’s signatures on July 15th and now voters will decide whether to repeal the new 9.9% tax on annual income above $1 million, which lawmakers approved earlier this year. Supporters, including Gov. Bob Ferguson, have already launched a campaign to defend the tax, setting up what is expected to be one of Washington’s most expensive and closely watched ballot fights of 2026.
Other Ballot Initiatives
IL26-001 – Restoring Parents’ Rights
• Repeals the Legislature’s 2025 amendments to Initiative 2081 and restores the original Parents’ Bill of Rights.
• The Legislature took no action during the 2026 session, so the measure automatically advanced to the November ballot.
IL26-638 – Protecting Girls’ Sports
• Would require K-12 schools to restrict girls’ sports to students the initiative defines as biologically female.
• Signature verification was completed in January, the Legislature declined to enact it, and it likewise advanced to the November ballot.
The primary season is in full swing right now as ballots landed in mailboxes last week. This marks the official kick-off of the 2026 election so make sure your registration is up to date and you have completed all steps to be registered to vote this year! You can check all of that here https://www.sos.wa.gov/elections/voters/voter-registration/register-vote-washington
I look forward to hearing from all of you this summer and fall regarding legislative visits to your grange, grant requests and legislative priorities. Happy Summer!
Grange News Staff
Delegates to the Annual State Grange Session filled three state officers this year. Originally, only an Executive Committee position was open for a three-year term. Incumbent Rick Ferguson (Waitsburg Grange) shoes not to run for reelection, retiring from the Executive Committee for the second time.
Tom Cullen (Buena and Fruitvale Granges) was elevated from the position of State Steward to the State Executive Committee. Cullen is the current President of the Yakima Valley Pomona Grange. Tom grew up in the Grange, graduated from WSU, and worked in the nursery industry in Gresham, Oregon. Upon retirement, he moved back to the Yakima Valley. He was the driving force for the Host Committee efforts when Yakima hosted the Western Regional Grange Conference in 2024.
The elevation of Cullen to the State Executive Committee, created an opening for the position of State Steward. Jonny Pittman, the President of Moses Lake Grange in Grant County, was elevated from the position of State Assistant Steward to State Steward. Pittman, a chemist with Moses Lake Industries, also serves with his wife, Brittney, as the National Grange Youth Fairs Program Coordinators.
Pittman’s elevation created an opening for the position of State Assistant Steward. The delegates selected Brady Lierman of Horseshoe and Garden City Granges in Snohomish County to finish the unexpired term as the State Assistant Steward. Lierman, having grown up in the Grange, works at a UPS store. He and his sister, Isabella (State Grange Secretary), are the fourth generation of their family to serve as State Grange officers.
A full election of State Grange officers will be held in 2027.
By Grange News Staff
John and Helen Gardner are Seventh Degree Golden Sheaf members from McMillin Grange #848 in Pierce County.
Helen joined the same Grange as her parents, grandfather, and extended family when she was sixteen. John, coming from a part of the country with few Granges, was unfamiliar with the organization, but married into it. (He was told he had to pick one of the fraternal organizations of his bride’s family and went with Grange.) Both have held multiple offices in their subordinate Grange, John mostly at Master and Steward and Helen primarily at Lecturer and Secretary, although she served as Master as well. (Both of Helen’s parents and John and Helen’s oldest son were also Master at the same Grange.)
Both have spent many hours on the projects of their local Grange. They helped with the quilt show and the hot dog stand that served people traveling for the Daffodil Parade when those projects were in place and they helped install the display at the Pierce County Fair, sometimes by themselves. They devoted countless hours over many decades to get the agricultural exhibit at the Puyallup/Western Washington/State Fair ready for generations of fairgoers to enjoy and Helen has enjoyed her many hours in the information booth. They delivered Words for Thirds dictionaries and school supplies for years. John continues to take care of many of the small repairs any century-old hall needs on a regular basis.
Both spent years on the McMillin Grange Fifth Degree and drill teams and Helen continues as a part of the countywide degree team. Both have served on multiple Pomona committees and have spent a lot of time in the Pomona Kitchen at the Pierce County Fair. John and Helen have both been Pomona officers and Helen is currently Pierce County Pomona Lecturer.
John and Helen were Washington State Grange’s Young Couple of the Year in 1983. They have both been on committees during the annual session and Helen has served in four state offices: Lady Assistant Steward, Flora, Pomona, and Chaplain. John has run the sound system at the state session for many years and had the status of Special Deputy for a time in that role. John was a Junior District Director and Helen was a member of the state Lecturer team. Helen helped with several Junior Granges and was for years the craft lady at Grange Camp. They have devoted a lot of time to sorting and organizing the historical materials of the Washington State Grange and Helen regularly creates displays for state convention.
John was born in Rapid City, South Dakota and raised in Orange, California. Helen was born in Puyallup, Washington and raised in McMillin, Washington. They met in college at Pacific Lutheran University during school plays where Helen was an actress and John was on the stage crew. They married in 1970. John was employed by the Washington State Employment Security Division until retirement and now works a few hours a week at Arrow Lumber. Helen taught in the Puyallup and White River School Districts until retirement. They have resided in Buckley, Washington since 1972, where they raised three boys, Jarrod, Justin, and Seth.
John and Helen are known for their support of Grange programs with their purchase of at lease one quilt during the annual auction at the state session.
By Grange News Staff
With an anticipated increase in activity to assist in securing the financial future of the Grange across our state, the Washington State Grange Foundation Board of Trustees is looking for additional members for their Board of Trustees.
Currently, the Board of Trustees consists of the six members of the State Grange Executive Committee. The current board has agreed to amend their bylaws to allow for five additional trustees to allow for increased input in the expanded role of the foundation. Final approval of a bylaws amendment allowing for the additional trustees will be at an upcoming Board of Trustees meeting.
The five appointed trustees will serve for a three year term, with terms being staggered to allow for rotation of trustees each year. One trustee will represent each of the four Grange Convention Districts (Eastern, Central, Southwest, and Northwest), with the fifth trustee appointed at-large. Trustees will serve without renumeration, however travel expense reimbursement may be available.
Grange members interested in serving on the Board of Trustees for the Washington State Grange Foundation should request an application from the State Grange Office. You may also request an application by emailing the State Grange President at tagwin@wa-grange.org Completed applications will be due back to the State Grange Office by August 25 this year. The current board will review the applications and appoint the new trustees in September.
Questions regarding the foundation board may be directed to any of the State Grange Executive Committee members.