February 2008

"Only 2 percent of all Boy Scouts make it to the eagle rank," said former governor and U.S. Sen. Dan Evans as he inducted Will Mentor, 18, to the highest rank of Eagle Scout at a ceremony at Camp Long in West Seattle. Mentor, a senior at Seattle Prep High School lives in West Seattle and plans to attend The University of Puget Sound where he was drafted to play baseball for UPS next year.

Joe Mentor Sr., Will's grandfather, was a legislator in Washington State from the Kitsap area and also an Eagle Scout.

We wonder why it is that disputes involving parents, students, the administration of the Seattle Public School District and its board of directors always end up in a squabble that includes charges, counter-charges and even name calling.

West Seattle seems to have its share of these disputes. The first one still lingers, that the physical plant of Pathfinder alternative school is a wretched disaster. The second one still lingers also, that of the smoldering battle over the four-period v.

The Edwards family loves Otis, who is a Golden Doodle, a cross between a golden retriver and a poodle."He's about two-thirds poodle and one third golden retriver," said Matthew Edwards, a 2 year West Seattle resident. They also admit that he is a little sneaky sometimes. His owner Bradon Edwards said, "We were having happy face pancakes and he went jumping up from under the table and grabbed one."

Otis, who is 4 months old now came into their family as a Christmas present.

Helmetless riding stupid, illegal

By Dave Kannas

There's certainly something to be said for wind blowing through one's hair and whistling unimpeded past one's ears while rolling along on a bicycle sans helmet among the many mine fields that we bicyclists negotiate. The same sensation is true for motorcyclists.

Then there's "helmet hair," yuck! But there's also my wife Delores, a trauma nurse at Harborview Medical Center's Trauma Intensive Care Unit in Seattle.

Son Scott thinks floats are fun

By Scott Robinson

As a kid I had a lot of good old fashioned fun. Lucky for me, my dad has always been a creative guy and back when we were little, he worked hard at including us in all manner of interesting projects, not all of them fully meeting the definition of "fun."

During the spring we did yard clean up together, in the winter it was firewood gathering, but in the summer we built floats for the White Center Jubilee Days Parade.

Deer Fern, also known as Blechnum spicant by its Latin name, is one of many ferns that can be found in Seattle's natural areas. Ferns are a group of plants that do not have flowers. They are an ancient plant and many a fern has been preserved in a fossilized form. You can buy fossils of fern leaves easily online or at your local museum. Ancient ferns have been turned into our fossil fuels. Because it took millions of years to create, fossil fuels can not be renewed.

The leaves of the ferns are called fronds.

Myanmar is currently known as Myanmar, and was known as Myanmar before the British came, who took the Arakanese pronunciation and called the country "Burma." While the Burmese, when speaking English, call the country Burma, in Burmese, the country is always called Myanmar.

Ashin Sopaka

Seattle

Thanks for covering this story, Ballard News-Tribune. I was surprised to see Diane Sugimura in my backyard - so much so that I couldn't think of anything to say to my expectant guests.

I am truly honored to receive this Proclamation from the Seattle City Council. I still cannot believe it!

I am a senior citizen on a fixed income. I got a letter from the city of Seattle telling me I had to have a small evergreen removed from my front sidewalk. If I don't they were going to fine me.

I called the Ballard Senior Center and I talked to Gail and she said to call Greg Allen from Ballard Tree Service and they might give me a senior discount.

Thank you for publishing this story on Burma and my friend Steve Dunn. Steve is an amazing activist and there is so much to be learned by his life and example. I hope that others will be inspired by this story and respond. World Aid always needs help with funding and volunteers to help keep the mission alive and running. Many thanks for your partnership in spreading the word.

DeAnza Spaulding

Ballard