Longtime Colfax resident, Emily Adams, passed away peacefully on October 13th in Austin, Texas, after a long illness. She was 84.

Emily Lucille Stanton was born in Jacksonville, Florida on October 16, 1941 to George Harold and Martha McClellan Stanton. She grew up in Neptune Beach, Florida, where she acquired a lifelong love of the ocean and beachcombing.

After graduating from high school, she attended Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia, earning a bachelor’s degree in English.

Emily attended graduate school at the University of Denver where she met John F. Adams, an English professor. They were married on January 1, 1964 and their first daughter, Hannah (Erika) Barclay was born in October of that year. When John accepted a position at the newly established University of California, Irvine, the family moved to Laguna Beach, California. Their second daughter, Cora Stephanie, was born there in 1965.

In 1968, the family moved to Colfax, Washington, where John joined the English department at Washington State University. Their third daughter, Martha Susan, was born in Pullman, WA in 1972.

Emily spent her first years in Colfax as a busy mother, before entering the workforce at the Colfax Gazette. She started out as a rural correspondent, writing the Recipe Column and Wedding Column. She quickly earned the nickname “Scoop” because she seemed to find and photograph news everywhere she went. She soon became a reporter, covering school events, fires, and the Palouse Empire Fair.

During her journalism career, Emily was best remembered for her five-part series in the Colfax Gazette about Rock Lake, including the legend of the monster, which sold out the paper for five consecutive weeks. She learned how to use the darkroom, and spent many years developing pictures, laying out stories and advertisements. She also filled in writing for The Daily Bulletin, and later spent two years working on The Bulletin exclusively.

In 1990, Emily decided to do something a little more 9-to-5, taking a position as a clerk at the City of Colfax in 1990. In her characteristic clever fashion, Emily learned all the ins and outs of city government, and eventually became the City Administrator. She retired in 2006.

Emily was a gifted artist in many media. After retirement, she converted the family room into a huge art studio, where she made fabric art, pastel drawings, oil paintings, and watercolors. She also used the space to host classes and friends, and to make endless art projects with her beloved granddaughters. Emily was also a musician, playing piano and guitar.

Emily believed strongly that all people should have the opportunity to explore their creativity and express themselves through art. In 2006, she was one of the founding members of the Colfax Arts Council. She also facilitated the formation of the Colfax Historic Preservation Commission in 2005.

Emily was preceded in death by her parents, George Harold Stanton and Martha McClellan Stanton, and her husband, John F. Adams.

She is survived by her sister Eleanor “Dolly” Harvey (Charles “Mac”); daughters Hannah Walker (David), Stephanie Hunter (John), and Susan Adams (Matthew Ott); granddaughters Lucy Danielle Marco and Chloe Emily Marco; step-grandson Holden Ott; one niece, one nephew, one great-niece, and two great-nephews.

A memorial honoring Emily will be held at Colfax Community Church (109 S. Mill St) on Saturday, October 24th, at 1 pm with a reception to follow at The Center in the Whitman County Library (110 S. Main) at 2 pm.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Colfax Arts Council or the HERD Trust elephant orphanage at https://herd.org.za.