Green Bluff Grange readies for major renovations

The aging Green Bluff Grange will get much needed improvements next month with the help of local volunteers and the KXLY Extreme Team.

The current building at 9809 E. Greenbluff Road next to the popular Harvest House orchard was built in 1935. A community hall was built soon after the Grange formed in 1910, but it burned down 1916. The Grange became dormant and was reorganized several times before beginning its current run in 1926.

The building needs a new roof, new siding and electrical upgrades. The planned work will also include renovation of the kitchen, enhanced handicap access, new paint inside, added insulation and parking lot improvements.

The Grange started a beautification committee four years ago with an eye toward making improvements to the building, said Grange spokeswoman Brandy Donough. It was created in part to continue the effort of longtime Grange member Sherm Simpson, known as the Mayor of Green Bluff, who had become ill.

“He helped build all this” Donough said. “Him and his sons maintained this for the last 50 years.”

Granges have been in existence for 150 years. They are an agricultural family fraternity that offers fellowship, service and membership activities, Donough said. They often provide a place for farmers to meet and discuss problems and also serve as a community hub.

The Green Bluff Grange hosts a variety of community activities, including a haunted house the last weekend in October, a Harvest Festival the first three weekends in October and a free community event on the first Tuesday of every month. The event Oct. 2 will be a dutch oven cook out with Boy Scout Troop 288.

The Green Bluff Grange has 120 members, but only 10 are active. Some live as far away as Olympia. “We’re an organization that brings people together,” she said. “You don’t have to live in Green Bluff.”

The building is also rented out to other groups for community events as well as for funerals, weddings and other gatherings.

They knew they needed help with a building project of such magnitude and first reached out to the Extreme Team three years ago, Donough said.

“It took me three years of pounding on their door,” she said. “I never heard back so I kept going until I got a no or a yes.”

The Grange has been doing fundraising events for more than a year in an effort to raise $10,000 to help pay for the improvements. They have breakfasts on the last Sunday of every month except December, most featuring eggs, sausage and pancakes topped with whatever fruit is in season at Green Bluff.

The breakfasts bring in about $400 or $500 each, but about half that is needed for expenses. “It’s not that profitable, but it’s something,” she said.

The October breakfast, however, usually draws a much larger crowd. “That’s what gets us through the year – is the October breakfast,” she said.

They also held a chili cook-off in May, a pie auction in April and a barn dance with a silent auction in June. A recent chicken poop bingo event was a hit. They set up a GoFundMe page and recently partnered with BECU in a program that offers people $50 for opening a checking and savings account with an additional $50 going to the renovation project. That deal is continuing through Sept. 20 and has raised $1,500 so far, Donough said.

Despite all their efforts, the Grange has only managed to raise half of the $10,000 they need. “We need donations,” she said. “This is the biggest project they’ve ever done.”

Asbestos abatement is expected to start Sept. 1. During the second week of September the professional workers will come and do their part, including the siding and roofing. The community is needed to come and volunteer from 10 a.m. to about 7 p.m. Sept. 17-20.

The volunteers will be painting, installing drywall in the basement, putting in landscaping and leveling and graveling the parking lot. Volunteers will be provided donated meals.

Several organizations have already committed to sending volunteers, including Spokane County Fire District 4, BECU, the Spokane Rock Rollers, the Green Bluff Growers and the Green Bluff Lions Club.

“I’m keeping my own kid out of school for one day to help,” said Donough.

The remodeled Grange will be revealed to the community during an open house at 5 p.m. Sept 20.

Visitors are always welcome, Donough said.

“We want people to come up and experience the community,” she said.