March 2008

Ethel Leonard is 107 and a group of friends, relatives, including her daughter Shirley Johnson gathered at the Park West Care Center on March 24th to help her celebrate. Born on March 24th, 1901 in Cumberland, MD, Ethel has had an interesting life. Her parents were mute and she had to learn sign language, which she still remembers today. She's apparently made of sturdy stock, she has a sister who is 101.

Ethel was married, and raised four children. She worked as a nurse's aide for many years and moved to West Seattle in the late 1950's.

Scottish Terriers are dogs who know their place and it's everywhere. That is, they are territorial and not afraid of anything. At the off leash park Romeo, now 2 years old, picks out an area and defends it. His owner Emily Kennedy says, "He's the Alpha dog at his daycare," and "He helps dig weeds when I'm gardening." She found Romeo through www.puppyfind.com and purchased him from a breeder in Idaho. Despite his willingness to take on any canine challenge, Emily describes him as "A lover of people."

Disappointment

By Georgie Bright Kunkel

Since not one of us in the human category can rule the world single-handedly, we have to learn to give and take. We can't have it all. Certainly we can't have whatever we want whenever we want it. Thinking otherwise is a road map to big time disappointment.

When I was a lot younger I could list all my disappointing moments on one page of my diary. Once I was told by my older sister that she and her friend would take me swimming at Deep Lake if I would cut my long scraggly hair. Not!

Turning 60! What does that mean?

By Sharon Best

I was at the Admiral theatre recently, watching Michael Clayton. I thought it was a pretty good movie - but I couldn't really hear it very well. I thought I might complain, but then I realized no one else was having a problem! Every once in a while, when I thought the dialogue might be fairly important, I innocuously cupped my hand behind my ear so I could understand the words.

The speaker drones on for a few minutes, telling us in governmentalese with lots of acronyms and bureaucratic double speak, straining the minds of his audience as well as their tolerance for a packed, hot, stuffy room and the desire to drift off into a refreshing nap.

Then she says she does not want to hear what we have to say.

I have a question. What is going to happen with the Charlestown Cafe restaurant on California Avenue towards West Seattle High school? I am disappointed that they are closed permanently. My family and myself go there every Sunday for early dinner. Now we lost are favorite restaurant and can't find another one like it.

Traci Phillips

West Seattle

I was shocked to see the Herald's headline about Tim St. Clair's death.

The only time I met Tim was when I was working at the polls one election day. I commented that I had known some St. Clair's but Tim said they weren't related. After he left I realized he hadn't signed the registry to validate his vote.

Some time later a young lady came in and she said, I see Tim has already voted. I explained that he hadn't signed so she said she lived next door to him and she would tell him.

Rumors are swirling around the Admiral district about a redevelopment of the Safeway store, but the company say a final decision is perhaps two years away.

Some refer to the Admiral Junction Safeway as "the other Safeway" because of its older appearance when compared with its sister store in Jefferson Square. The Admiral store sits on a prime 121,000 square-foot lot, almost three acres.

"We are investigating a very real possibility of plans for the Admiral Safeway for the near future," said Safeway spokesperson Cherie Myers.

While sisters Erika and Julia affectionately feed treats to their cavalier King Charles spaniel in their warm West Seattle home, their thoughts drift to the tenacious Siberian huskie teams that plow their mushers through 1,100 wind-chilled Alaskan miles of Iditarod trail, and through the tiny villages that welcome the two and four-legged athletes.

The 12- and 14-year old Guerette sisters attend Our Lady of Guadalupe School and are too young to mush in the Iditarod Sled Dog Race coined the "Last Great Race." But they do participate by collecting books donated at school to give other

Mariachi Quinto Sol, a mariachi group based at the University of Washington featured in a story in the March 19 issue of the West Seattle Herald, and which performed at Chief Sealth High School, traveled to the Vancouver Mariachi Festival, not Chula Vista.

The young dancers mentioned were part of a local folkloric dance group, Joyas Mestizas; they were not part of Mariachi Chula Vista.

We regret the errors.