March 2011

Ballard High School has hired Joey Thomas for the position of head Football coach.

Thomas, a 1999 graduate and decorated athlete from John F. Kennedy High School, was a three‐sport athlete in football, basketball and track. While playing for the Lancers, Thomas was a two time high school all‐area and all‐state selection in football.

He accepted a football scholarship to the University of Washington where he red‐shirted his freshman year, then decided to transfer to Montana State University where he had 122 career tackles as a defensive back and 11 interceptions, and was selected as a two time All‐American and All‐Big Sky conference football player. Thomas also ran track for the Bobcats and finished 3rd in the 55m Big Sky Indoor Track & Field Championships.

Thomas was the 3rd round draft pick for the Green Bay Packers in 2004. He then played for the New Orleans Saints, the Miami Dolphins and finished his professional career with the Oakland Raiders – where he retired this season due to injury.

This afternoon Seattle University biology professor Lindsay Whitlow brought 25 of his students in four white vans to Richey Viewpoint which includes Constellation Park and a Marine Reserve area on Beach Drive SW near the end of 63rd Ave. SW.

While they were studying in the real world, they got hit with a large dose of reality, and water, as winds there gusted in the 40 mph-plus range.

"They have come to collect invertebrates that live in the intertidal for their Intertidal ecology lab," said Whitlow of his semi-soaked students. "Today they got to experience what it's really like to be an organism that lives in this environment all the time. We collected barnacles, muscles, starfish, limpets, and snails."

Speaking of muscles, it took some to fight their way back to the relative safety of their parked vans before departing.

CLICK ON PHOTO FOR SLIDESHOW OF OTHER WINDY SHOTS

When family members mentions "the good old days," if you're like me, you might wonder what was so good about them.

But wait. We must remember that when families actually do have good old days to recall, it means our families are still here and have a reason to move forward. For out of the hardships of the past, come love, commitment and our own personal stories.

Sound a bit mushy? Probably. But admit it, sometimes you love mush.

The usually silly and antic folks with Breeders Theater are mushing it up too, but in a good way.
BT founder and playwright TM Sell gives us Part II of his family's journey from North Dakota to Missoula, MT in his latest show, "West."

Faithful BT fans will recall 2009's production of "Prairie Heart," the first installment of the series inspired by stories from Sell's grandmother and her siblings about their childhood on their parents' homestead near Minot, SD. From there, Sell's grandparents moved west, and so their story continues.

A new physical therapy practice has opened in Ballard. Salmon Bay Physical Therapy, run by a local husband and wife team, hopes to become the number one outpatient clinic for physical therapy services in the area.

"It just came to the point where we wanted to what we really wanted to do and open up our own local place," said Owner Tucker Schonberg.

"Our kids will be entering school and we wanted to bring the practice closer. We've working all over the Sound."

Schonberg said they focus on everything from headache to ankle pain. His wife Andi, also a physical therapist, will offer women's health services including postpartum pelvic pain and lymphodema.

A big aspect of their practice is giving back to the community, Schonberg said.

"We're hoping to hold a blood drive every two months and host a community once a month," Schonberg said.

Schonberg said they'll invite experts to the community night to talk about health-related topics. At the moment they're collecting topic ideas the community would like to hear about.

They will also be collect food for the Ballard food bank all year.

Lafayette Elementary is staging a production of the classic musical The Music Man Jr. March 11 and 12.

The play begins at 7 pm, refreshments will be served and there is a $5 requested donation for admission.

Nearly 100 children are involved in the production and all costumes, sets, and props were donated or constructed by volunteers.

The play is directed by Lafayette teacher Meila Scranton, the art teacher at the school. She has been working on the play as an afterschool program since November. Sara Jaecks is the Stage Manager.

A gallery of play photos is available online here.

The music is provided with the scripts and volunteers from West Seattle High School are helping the production in the sound booth

Sustainable West Seattle is planning a 'Perfect Storm' of sustainability on Saturday Mar. 12 with a series of events set to take place in and around the Landscape/Horiticulture Complex at South Seattle Community College.

Ask an Expert for the DIYer, 10am-NOON
@ The West Seattle Tool Library
Each month, The Tool Library hosts some local experts who are happy to answer any questions that you may have on your current projects, future ideas, or anything else you liked to discuss. These open and informal community meetups offer an opportunity to bounce project ideas off fellow DIYers and even receive some free professional advice in the process. You can then grab whatever tools you need from The Tool Library to get your ideas off the ground (or in the ground, if that's the case.) As always, please feel free to show up whenever you darn well please and leave whenever you like. We'll bring the coffee and pastries and look forward to seeing you there!

This month, The Tool Library will host:
Laura & Doug Elfline, Mighty Home Construction (Green Building)
Sandy Pederson, Urban Land Army (Urban Gardening)

Brent Amaker and the Rodeo's new album "Please Stand By," is out on Spark & Shine Records. The band will be playing several shows at Austin's SXSW, which is the South by Southwest event March 16 - 19. They plan to tour Europe late summer.

You can now enjoy their latest video from that album, "Man in Charge" here:

http://www.ifc.com/news/2011/03/brent-amaker-and-the-rodeos-ma.php

Some may find Amaker sounds like Johnny Cash, but even more so, on this track.

Amaker is an Admiral Junction resident whose alter-ego operates Brent Amacher State Farm Insurance, also in the Admiral Junction.

The West Seattle Herald caught up with the well-composed musician while busy on his MAC at the nearby Bird on a Wire Espresso, this newspaper's former digs.

We asked him what is it like to perform in Texas.

"Texas is a very different culture than here," he said, adding, "And Austin is its own cultural island within Texas."

That may very well define the Rodeo sound, an expressive edge of outlaw busting out of a traditional country music culture.

At Matheia School, and independent k through 5 school, the staff believes it's never too early to start helping children develop an awareness of the world around them. Every six weeks the kids of the school's peer-advocates group pick a charity and put on a fundraiser.

The student-run fundraising program started last year when the school's surrounding neighbors pushed to have a traffic circle installed and planted a tree on the circle. The tree soon thereafter got taken down by an impaired driver. Within months two more incidents took down their tree.

After the third incident the neighbors were crushed, said Director Allison Soules.

"So the kids decided they would fundraise money to buy another tree for the neighbors," Soules said.

Ever since the tiny tree gets decorated by the students with water-proof ornaments that reflect in the night.

"We use shiny stuff that looks like a warning sign at night," one student said. Last month the tree was decorated with hearts and now green clovers glisten in the sun.

As hand-drawn letter from the neighbors reads "thank you for loving our tree" and hang on the school's front door.

The Morgan Junction Festival, set to take place on June 25 this summer is looking for vendors or parties interested in having a booth at the event.

They have a downloadable form available here and at the link above.

They are encouraging businesses, crafts, demonstration projects, youth groups, etc. Questions? Contact Cindi Barker at (206) 933-6968 or via e-mail at cbarker@qwest.net.

Press Release:

When Seattle Theatre Group presents a Lyric Opera Northwest production of Puccini’s immortal opera La Bohéme at Seattle’s historic Moore Theatre on March 27, West Seattle veteran international baritone Craig Heath Nim will sing the role of Colline.

The single performance is on Sunday, March 27, 2011, 4:00 PM at the historic Moore Theatre, 1932 Second Avenue (2nd Ave. & Virginia St.) in downtown Seattle.

The West Seattle-based opera company began its move from the Meydenbauer Center Theater in Bellevue to the Moore Theatre in downtown Seattle with its launch of its musical theater product with a highly successful OLIVER! last fall. With performance of La Bohéme, LONW not only completes the geographic move, but also restores an operatic voice to the West Coast’s only surviving Italian-style opera house from America’s Gilded Age.