February 2011

Neighbor Appreciation Day was celebrated with over 50 celebrations around Seattle on Saturday but St. Alphonsus Parish School is celebrating this day all week.

Parents and students will be delivering a card and cookies to neighboring businesses to show gratitude for being part of the Ballard neighborhood.

The drawing on the card was drawn by a student in St. Alphonsus Parish School's second grade.

Ben titled his Good Neighbor drawing, "I love my neighbor, Jean." Jean is an elderly neighbor of Ben's who has a large old maple tree in her front yard. Last fall when Ben came home from school Jean was out front raking all the leaves into a big pile. Ben wanted to help her. They raked up a large pile of these big maple leaves and Ben and another neighborhood boy spent hours jumping into the pile of leaves!

A banner with Ben's drawing also hangs on the school's campus fence-line.

The iconic 120-year-old bell on Ballard Avenue has stood silently for almost 20 years but this weekend it rang for dozens of Ballardites to hear.

The bell hadn't ran since it was returned to Ballard in 1989 but in honor of Bertha Davis' 97th birthday and the launch of the "Let it Ring" project, the 1,600 pound bell tolled with all its might.

The project, led by the Ballard Historic Society, intends to install an automatic ringer in the Centennial Bell Tower. The group has applied for a Small and Simple grant through the city and is collecting volunteer pledges to fund the project.

Mrs. Bertha Davis, a retired teacher who has taught thousands of Ballardites during her 50 years at Webster School, remembers how the bell used to ring at 6 p.m. every day and has made restoring the bell her mission. For those who have lived in Ballard as many years as Davis has, the bell represents a link between present-day Ballard and its 1889 origins when the bell was housed by the city hall which once stood on Marvin's Garden.

Riding a bike on Alki isn't unusual in the slightest but riding one that combines an elliptical climber and a bike will get some attention, as it usually does for Doug James who often rides it on Alki. Called an Elliptigo he purchased the device online from Elliptigo.com and while it's not an inexpensive bike at $2500, James said, "It's very much worth it."

"I used to run but I can't right now because of arthritis in my knees so it's like running but without the pounding."

He's been riding it since July of last year and has lost a little weight, since it's workout to ride it. He even commutes to work on it two to three times a week.

"It's kind of a head turner because it's kind of dinky looking but it's fun. You are up so high you have good visibility." It has eight gears which allows you to "climb pretty well," he said.

The best thing about it? "The workout, outside. I get to be outside and do what I like to do."

You might think a bike like this would cause people to ask questions about it, and it does. Has it gotten Doug any dates? "None that I'd admit to," he said laughing.

Click onto photo for SLIDESHOW:

While West Seattle prides itself on Thursday Night Art Walk the second Thursday of every month, it is the Alaska and Morgan Junction areas that come alive the most with shops hosting established artists and future Picassos. Now, Alki Arts Museum/Art Gallery at 2820 Alki Ave. SW by Cactus Restaurant has been drawing large crowds to its aesthetic island to the delight of Alki residents within walking distance and beyond.

The gallery opened just over half a year ago, and its owners, the chirpy Diane Venti, and her equally amicable husband, artist Tom Wyrick, seem to exhibit good instincts on what to, well, exhibit. Venti graduated West Seattle High School, class of '80. She said that even dogs are attracted to the co-op gallery and event space because the location had been an All the Best Pet Care and many a pug and chocolate lab seem to halt at the gallery's front door, from memory, and perhaps the scent of a dog bone or two hidden somewhere in the shop that humans cannot detect.

West Seattle's Lilli Ann Carey operates "Dance for Joy!" Her 19 year-old daughter, Claire, teaches with her at the Highland Park Improvement Club. Instructor Nancy Fry instructs with Lilli Ann at the Hiawatha Community Center. You can learn Waltz, Swing variations, Zydeco, Polka, Foxtrot, One-Step/Blues and others while bonding with your spouse, meeting someone new, or both.

"I started dancing with my daughter when she was six or seven," said Lilli Ann at her Saturday night "Dj'd dance with pre-dance lesson" that runs 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. She has been dancing 15 years. "To dance with your kid is probably one of the coolest things on the planet," enthused Lilli Ann, who described West Seattle as "a little more like a small town, more warm-hearted than other places around Seattle."

Lilli Ann Carey teaches Wednesday nights, too, at Hiawatha Community Center, which offers affordable childcare with advanced notice for the dances, (not yet available for the classes). The Highland Park Improvement Club classes are Tuesdays, 7:00 p.m. and again at 8:15 p.m.

Kitty Harbor, a rescue, rehabilitation and adoption facility for cats and kittens located at 3422 Harbor Ave s.w., was bustling with soon-to-be adoptive parents and animal shelter/rescue group workers doing their best to find new homes for 50 cats and kittens on Feb. 12.

The Cat-tacular Adoption Event, happening Feb. 12 and 13 from noon to 4 p.m. got off to a good start with 20 cats finding new homes by 3 p.m. on Saturday.

Half of the felines came from Regional Animal Services of King County shelter in Kent while others had a seven hour journey from the Colville Valley Animal Sanctuary north of Spokane in Stevens County.

Pam Smith and Lorraine Schanzenbach brought the cats from Colville in hopes of finding them parents in Seattle. Smith said they have little choice but to come to Kitty Harbor since Stevens County has no county-supported animal control or shelters. In addition, the Spokane shelters are full.

“We don’t know what we would do without Kitty Harbor,” Smith said. “We are a rural community, a poor community … they are looking for barn cats who have a life span of less than a year if they are lucky with coyotes and owls.”

Saturday, Feb. 12, marked Seattle's 17th annual celebration of Neighbor Appreciation Day and the 2011 Department of Neighborhoods "Neighbor Appreciation Day Student Art Contest".

Each year, K-12 Seattle students submit artwork reflecting the day's theme, to be caring and active neighbors. The 1st, 2nd, 3rd place and Honorable Mention winners were hosted at an awards ceremony Feb. 12, at Hamilton International Middle School in Wallingford where they were recognized by Mayor Mike McGinn, Councilmember Mike O’Brien, Hamilton Principal Chris Carter, Dept. of Neighborhoods Interum Director, Bernadette (Bernie) Matsuno, family and teachers. 1st Place winners are featured on official Neighbor Appreciation Day free greeting cards and e-cards.

This year's 1st Place gold medal winner, 4th-grader Angel Corpuz of Dunlop Elementary School in South Seattle has a West Seattle connection. Her father, Romualdao, is employed at the Jefferson Square Safeway, and worked at Admiral Safeway and Roxbury Safeway for 13 years total. Her mother, Andrea, worked at the Admiral Safeway before being moved to Rainier Beach prior to construction.

For the first time since 2002, the Ballard boys basketball team is headed to the State championships.

Ballard played their second playoff game against Newport on Friday evening and put on an exciting show.
The Beavers started without their second lead scorer, Seth Berger, who was out due to a sprained ankle he suffered in the previous game.

The Beavers came out a little sluggish and Newport gained a nine-point lead in the first quarter. By halftime, Ballard was still down by nine.

Ballard came out much stronger for the second half, closing Newport's lead to only two points.

The anticipation was high in the last quarter as the Beavers evened the score and both teams battled to get shots through the hoop before the clock ran out. The game was decided in the final minutes as Ballard gained the lead on Newport. Senior Nick Onstad-Hawes made two clutch free throws to secure the win at the end, winning the game 46 to 50.

Senior Salim Gloyd scored 15 points and had 14 rebounds.  Junior Brad Baker added 11 points and 4 assists.  Senior Nick Onstad-Hawes had one of his best games of the season scoring 9 points.
 

In a West Seattle basement, a rock opera is being assembled. Local musician Reed Hutchinson has composed, performed and recorded a 90 minute show called "Making it", comprised of 34 songs. The project is about a young musician with dreams of glory who pursues those dreams and does succeed but not without clearing many hurdles along the way. "It's about getting what you want only to find that the fortune and fame doesn't always make you happy," Hutchinson said. In some ways it mirrors Hutchinson's own experience though it's not an autobiographical story.

Almost completely self taught, Hutchinson plays all the instruments, sings, produces and records all the parts using an array of recording and performance tools to create something genuinely remarkable. He is not quite finished and for certain parts would like to bring in other musicians, notably female singers to add a different quality to the project and because there is a central female character, among others, in his story.

It's time to break out the cookbook or the old recipe cards or to call gramma on the phone because West Seattle High School Grad Night needs your help.

If you have a family recipe that is always a delight or know of the perfect dessert homemade or purchased that you can donate to their auction please contact Terese Morgan at tmorgan@pyramidbrew.com or cell 206-427-9375.

Proceeds of the dessert portion of the auction benefit Seniors' Grad Night. All donations are tax deductible.

WSHS Grad Night is an organization dedicated to all night alcohol and drug free celebration being held for seniors on graduation night. Here is their Facebook page.