InSPIREd Sunday

 Odessa, Washington home of the annual Deutschfest.
In October 1902, Odessa was incorporated with a population of 500.  The town continued to grow reaching approximately 1200 people and remaining fairly constant over the years.  These plucky pioneers and their descendants are to be commended for their thrift, industry, simplicity, and Christian beliefs. Their lives revolved around home, family, church, "Kirche, Kinder, and Kuche" (Literally church, children and kitchen). 

80% of immigrants settling in Odessa are consisted of Germans from Russia.  Many settlers heard of the new land through friends and relatives already living in areas south of Odessa, such as Ritzville and Colfax.  These German families, living along the Black Sea and the Volga River in Russia as wheat farmers for the past 100 years, were discouraged by increasing taxes, government harassment, and forced military service.  Therefore, their decisions to leave Russia and move westward were easily made.  Entire families came to the Odessa area, bringing with them the German culture they strove to retain throughout the many years of hardships under Russian domination.  

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