November 2009

Facing the threat of elimination from the playoffs, the Ballard High School volleyball team shut out Eastlake Nov. 3.

The Beavers lost to Issaquah in the first round of the double-elimination postseason Oct. 31, but they earned the right to keep playing with the 3-0 win over Eastlake.

Ballard won by scores of 25-17, 25-22 and 25-22.

Senior Lisa Day had 21 kills for the Beavers and sophomore Monique Marques added 25 assists.

Check back soon for information about Ballard's next playoff match.

UPDATE: The Beavers play a loser-out match against Newport at 3 p.m. on Nov. 5 at Bothell High School. If Ballard wins, they will face a to-be-determined opponent at 7 p.m. following the Newport match.

Ballard lost 3-0 when it faced Newport on Oct. 7.

The Woodland Park Zoo will be holding a food drive for the Phinney Neighborhood Association Nov. 21 during its annual Turkey Toss.

Non-perishable food items can be dropped off outside the zoo's south entrance. Zoo admission is not required to donate food.

After donating food, zoo-goers can see snow leopards, Komodo dragons, grizzlies, lions and more carnivorous species chow down on raw, store-prepared turkeys at the Turkey Toss presented by Franz Bakeries.

The event is part of the zoo’s ongoing program to help enrich the lives of the zoo’s animals, promote natural animal behavior, keep animals mentally and physically stimulated and engage zoo visitors.

The donated food will benefit the Phinney Neighborhood Association soup kitchen program, which operates two days a week at St. John United Lutheran Church and one day a week at Calvary Lutheran Church in Ballard.

Food donations that are in demand are non-perishable juice, jam, canned fruit, beans, canned vegetables, chili, ketchup and powdered creamers.

The food drive lasts from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Nov. 21. The Turkey Toss will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Fire damaged two more Greenwood businesses in the early morning of Nov. 5. Investigators have determined that both fires were set intentionally and most likely by the same person, Seattle Fire Department spokesperson Dana Vander Houwen said.

One fire, started at approximately 3:43 a.m., damaged the back porch of an accounting office, resulting in $5,000 of damage, Vander Houwen said.

About 27 minutes later, a fire was started a few blocks away on the exterior of Rosewood Guitars, located at 8402 Greenwood Ave. N., causing $20,000 of damage, she said.

The Fire Department has not said if they believe the fires are related to the arson that destroyed four Greenwood Avenue businesses and caused $2 million in damages in the early morning of Oct. 23.

Hue Nguyen Johnson, a nearby business owner, said the fires are making her nervous, especially because she is self-employed, She said she may start bringing her more expensive equipment home with her.

John Huddleston works across the street from Rosewood Guitars and around the corner from the Oct. 23 fire. He said he is feeling more disturbed by the arson than nervous.

Todd Beamer may have been bumped off by Kentwood, 3-1, in the first round of the West Central District girls soccer playoffs, but the Titans are still alive.

Beamer receives a second chance Saturday, Nov. 7 when it takes on Stadium High School of the Narrows League in a 1 p.m. loser-out, winner-to-state playoff at Art Crate Stadium -- which is next to Bethel High School in Graham.

It took awhile for this past Wednesday's playoff at Federal Way Memorial Stadium against Kentwood to get going, but when it did it was suddenly on the wild side.

Kentwood scored first with 10:26 left in the first half, when Kiana Kraft blasted the ball into the back of the net.

The Conqueror struck again at the 5:46 mark. Beamer goalie Megan Graf blocked a hot initial shot out of the way, but it rebounded into the control of Kentwood's Courtney Roller and she bumped it in on a short shot.

Beamer received new life in the second half, only to have it snatched away again.

The Titans drew a foul in the penalty box, giving them a shot at a penalty kick. Katie Hall shot it into an open right side to close the gap to 2-1 with 25:47 still to play in the second half.

Seattle Parks and Recreation will host the second meeting for Delridge Playfield improvements on Monday, November 23, 2009 from 7:30 – 9 p.m. at the Delridge Community Center, 4501 Delridge Way SW. Parks incorporated input from the community meeting last month into the schematic design. The community is encouraged to participate and learn about the field improvements.
 
At the first meeting, the community requested distance markers, stripping the field for lacrosse, extra fencing and re-positioning the Ultimate Frisbee field layout.  Parks will address these requests, and present the design for the improvements. The renovation to the field includes replacement of the existing all-weather sand/silt fields with synthetic turf to provide adult soccer Ultimate Frisbee.  It will also improve ADA accessibility and replace the existing field lights with more energy efficient, neighbor friendly lighting.
 
The Parks and Green Spaces Levy provides $3.2 million for project funding.  Construction is scheduled to start in spring 2010, with completion by fall.
 

The Morgan Street Thriftway staged a Holiday Taste from 4 to 7 pm Thursday November 5th. The event featured more than 25 vendors of everything from meats to cheeses to appetizers with a series of stations where samples were handed out to shoppers.

Steve Kamphause Assistant Store Director said, "This is a chance for people to taste some things that they might otherwise not know about and say 'Hey I really liked that' and come back and pick some up for the holidays."

In addition to the tasting the store offered a tasty discount coupon for 10% off on all purchases over $20.

If you missed this event the store is staging another Holiday Taste on December 4th.

Today’s teens are savvy consumers. They know a deal when they see one.

But, when it comes to planning, saving and investing, how much know-how do they possess?

Recognizing that a financial education is essential to achieving success in life, Woodstone Credit Union is offering a free series of classes, Financial Skills for Life, for high-school students giving them actionable tools and knowledge to effectively manage their hard-earned dollars.

Woodstone’s fun and inter active course turns learning into actions that result in positive financial habits for life. Students don’t just learn to manage a budget; they create their own budget. Learning is personalized so that students can immediately begin to apply financial skills in their own lives.

Through real-world exercises and activities, students will:

• Create their own financial plan
• Create their own budget
• Propose a personal saving and investing plan
• Learn to use various financial services

Students will also learn dozens of other financial skills, all designed to help them understand how easy and important it is to manage their resources.

Big Al Brewing may be labeled a microbrewery, but the owners’ dreams are in no way small-scaled while they make a huge splash from their White Center establishment.

Alejandro Brown, 36, and his wife Noelle, opened 15 months ago. They lease the building, at 9832 14th Ave SW, from Charlie and Karin McElevey, former microbrewers there. The McElevey’s are well known to many in the area for starting the West Seattle Brewing Company on California Avenue. They later sold the business to the Elliott Bay Brewery.

While Big Al Brewing’s retail bar is doing well, its wholesale clients, now 130, are growing rapidly. They speculate they will sell 2000 barrels over the next 12 months. One U.S. barrel equals two kegs or 31 gallons. The brewery occasionally makes lager beer, which involves a longer fermenting process, but is more associated with ales.

West Seattle clients include Porterhouse, the Admiral Pub, and Circa Alehouse in the Admiral Junction, the Beverage Place at the Morgan Junction, and Quest Field for the Seahawks and Sounders games.

Centerstage recently announced the return of Missoula Children's Theatre to the Knutzen Family Theatre.

The troupe will present performances of Robinson Crusoe on Friday 6th and Saturday 7th November at 7:00 p.m.

This delightful musical interpretation of the Daniel Defoe Classic, features two members of the Internationally-acclaimed Children's Theatre, plus a cast of local Federal Way students.

The two performances take place at the Knutzen Family Theatre, located at 3200 SW Dash Point Road in Federal Way.

All tickets are $10. Tickets may be purchased by calling 253 661 1444, or online at www.centerstagetheatre.com, or at the Box Office on the night of the show.

Ferry employee Johnny McElhose washes the windows outside the Fauntleroy Ferry Dock's pedestrian waiting room on a sunny afternoon.