February 2012

It must have 30 coats of paint.

It has changed doors and windows too many times to count. It was the former Game Collective, a medical marijuana outlet until November of last year.

In looking back, it was also a Chinese late night eatery, a video store and heaven knows what before that.

I recall it as the former Epicure Restaurant in White Center. It was once the second office for me in the ‘50s and ‘60s. It had everything but the keyboard of Vi Childs whose music must echo still from the dim little lounge in the rear. The air yet heavy from those years of cocktails and cigarettes.

This ageless building with several faces sits on the corner of 16th S.W. and S.W. 98th St. in the heart of the town. A town now in the throes of a battle being waged for annexation to Burien.


My office was one block west of the Epicure, on 17th, making for an easy stride to coffee. I had a very small gathering area inside the newspaper building, certainly not adequate for staff to meet. It made sense to use the restaurant.

Besides, my secretary could not make coffee like the beautiful German waitress I eventually married. Elsbeth Warsow was my bride for 43 years. 


Valentine’s Day will come and go, yet love stories from history, myths and legends reign eternal and likely will be told for so long as mankind sees the light of day.

Falling in love with a person is often a gamble for happiness. Falling for the awesome beauty of Puget Sound waterfront and adjoining communities is rewarding.

It was 1792, when British naval Captain George Vancouver was sent to the northwest coast of America to settle fur trade dispute claims and complete the geographical exploration begun by Captain Cook on his final voyage here of 1778.

History records Capt. Vancouver’s ship anchored at Brown’s Point for dinner, 9 miles south of Des Moines. It’s difficult to picture how the city we live in now must have looked those centuries ago.

Indians lived in the Kent Valley, yet came to Des Moines and Saltwater Park areas to harvest clams and other seafood. Many Indian myths and legends are a large part of local history, as recorded in the book, “One Hundred Years of the Waterland Community.” (Editor, Richard Kennedy, Assistant Editor,Grechen Schmidt, and Historian, Melanie Draper, deceased)

By Charles Ganong

Recently I was a substitute teacher in the Highline School District.

As luck, fate or karma would have it, I was often called to work at the Evergreen High campus, my alma mater. Which is weird, actually, because for the last 35 years I’ve had this recurring dream that, due to bureaucratic bungling, my whole class has to go back and repeat our entire senior year—no matter that we are now frumpy, middle-aged grown-ups with families, mortgages and lives of our own.

Luckily, that particular dream—or nightmare—has yet to come true. But my long-lost goal of becoming a teacher—even though of the part-time, fill-in variety—was realized for a short time, enriching my life considerably.

When I first started substitute teaching, I figured that it was I who had much to offer my lucky students: troves of wit, wisdom and all the other admirable traits bestowed by age, experience and raw survival. But something happened on my last day at Evergreen that showed me that I was the one who had much to learn from my students:

Home invasion, assault happens in Burien
Three people invaded a home in the 13500 block of 6th Ave. S.W. in Burien on Feb. 8. The three forced their way in, assaulted a female resident and took numerous items before escaping in her car.
Police are looking for the suspects (more details can be found here).

Son swindles elderly couple out of their home

U.S. Rep. Adam Smith, D-Tacoma, has announced federal funding for the Seahurst Beach Restoration project in Burien.

“Seahurst Park serves as a key location for research, education and recreation in Puget Sound and I’m happy the Army Corps has prioritized its restoration with funding support,” Smith said. “This project will
The Seahurst Phase II Ecosystem Restoration Project is the second phase of a partnership effort between the city of Burien and the Army Corps to remove and reduce the impact of bulkheads to the nearshore and restore shoreline in Puget Sound."

Completion would result in the largest nearshore restoration in the area and will renovate beach habitat to protect endangered wildlife.

Each year, Seahurst serves as an outdoor classroom to researchers and more than 10,000 students who receive environmental education about the beach and shoreline restoration efforts. The project is endorsed by the Puget Sound Partnership and has significant support from the scientific and academic community within Washington state.

By Gwen Davis

All you peanut butter sandwiches out there, fear not – there are 3,000 more jars of jelly in Des Moines these days, which means that more of you sandwiches will get that sinfully sweet condiment you deserve.
That’s thanks to Bill Asher, pastor of First Baptist Church of Des Moines who makes 3,000 jars of jelly a year.

Asher gives every jar away. Recipients include the Judson Park retirement community, the Fort Lewis Commissary and to his church. He also mails several jars to his brother.

Asher’s jellies and jams come in the full gamut of flavors: blackberry, strawberry, blueberry, raspberry, mixed berry, blackberry/raspberry, pomegranate, cranberry, orange marmalade, zucchini marmalade, pineapple, grape and others.

He makes batches of jelly using Splenda for people with diabetes.
Asher said that when he wants to donate large numbers of jars to a certain person or cause, he usually receives an incredulous reaction at first.

“People would think I was pulling a joke on them,” Asher said regarding incidences when he would tell people of the amount of jelly he makes.

By Patrick Robinson and David Rosen

The Trader Joes grocery store under construction at 4545 Fauntleroy Way s.w., now 2 years in the making will likely open in mid-April according to what employees are being told. Several of the Burien store employees who live in West Seattle plan to transfer to the new store.

The West Seattle Herald took a tour inside the new store as it was under construction this week.

Todd McLEAN is the Project Manager overseeing this project for J. Hughes Construction, Inc

They told the Herald that what remains to be done is the last bit of shell work and the interior fixtures.

The finished store will be 10,000 square feet of retail area and back room, featuring a covered parking garage, and an elevator in store.

The completion date for construction is on or about April 1 but Trader Joes hasn't officially released an opening date.

It was January 2010 when the West Seattle Herald broke the news they were confirmed for the former Huling Brothers location.

The Seattle DPD page notes that the estimated cost of the remodel is $420,000.

When complete the store will be the 17th Trader Joes location in Washington State.

Friday, Feb. 10
Boys basketball
Decatur 70, Kennedy 62
Decatur captured the No. 1 seed into the 3A West Central District tournament with Friday's win over Kennedy Catholic.
The Gators open district action with a 6:15 p.m. game at Franklin Pierce Friday. The tournament continues Saturday and concludes with the finals at 2 p.m. Monday at the ShoWare Center in Kent.

Saturday, Feb. 11
Girls basketball
Enumclaw 59, Decatur 46
The Gator girls season ended with Saturday's loss to Enumclaw in the South Puget Sound League Class 3A tournament.

Union 50, TJ 32
Thomas Jefferson's season also ended Saturday as the Raiders lost a pigtail game for the final WCD girls berth at Union High School.

Boys wrestling
4A Region II
Todd Beamer took second place at Saturday's tournament held at Rogers High School in Puyallup, scoring 132.5 points behind the 212 of first place Graham-Kapowsin. Federal Way came in 14th with 23.5 points.

KENT - In a game that Federal Way never led, Kent-Meridian used its Royal treatment to stop the Eagles, 46-39, to gain the South Puget Sound League No. 3 seed to the Class 4A West Central/Southwest Bi-District tournament from the SPSL boys basketball tournament at the ShoWare Center on Friday, Feb. 10.

"We just had a tough time scoring," said Eagle head coach Jerome Collins. "This is a young team and this is going to happen. We needed to come up with more loose balls. This was good challenge and we'll keep moving forward."

Despite three ties in a 7-7 first quarter standoff, the Federal Way shooters were just a little off as 8-of-29 shooting from the field in the first half corroborated. Kent-Meridian pulled way to lead by seven points twice in the second -- including 20-13 with 47.3 seconds left in the half - before D'Londo Tucker's trey near the end of the quarter kept the Eagles within 20-16 at the half.

The Royals (15-7) opened up their lead to 27-18, but Tucker scored five straight points to bring Federal Way within 27-23. KM led 29-23 after three quarters.

Press release from the King County Sheriff's Office:

Police Need Help Identifying Home Invasion Robbery Suspects

Burien- King County Sheriff’s Detectives are asking for help in identifying three suspects who forced their way into a home and robbed the occupants. The incident occurred Wednesday night (Feb. 8) at about 11:15 PM in the 13500 Block of 6th Ave SW.

The suspects knocked on the door of the residence and when the home owner opened the door they grabbed her forcing her back into the home. The suspects demanded money and credit cards from the 31-year-old resident and a friend who was in town visiting.

The suspects fled in the victim’s vehicle after taking cash, credit cards, a gaming system and other items.

The vehicle was recovered around 3PM on Thursday in the 800 Block of SW 136th St.

The three suspects are described as;

Suspect #1- Black female , 40 years of age, 5’9”, heavy build. She was last seen wearing a Drew Brees #9 Saint’s Jersey, black jacket, jeans and she carried a floral Hello Kitty cloth backpack. (see photos)