June 2012

Anti-love in an elevator
A female resident of a retirement/elderly living facility on 35th Ave S.W. got a little rough with the staff on May 31, leading to a 911 call and police filling out paperwork for aggravated assault with a weapon. The resident and a staff member were in the elevator when the resident asked, “What floor do I live on?” The employee later told police the woman habitually forgets her floor and misplaces the keycards she is given to gain entry to that floor. In this particular case, the employee said she told the woman which floor she lived on, but the resident became upset and started ramming the victim in the legs and hips with her walker. No arrests were made.

A fight’s gravitational pull

Discovery Shop
4535 California Ave. S.W.
206 971 7169
In honor of dad, it will be Tool Day on Saturday, June 16th. Pink tag items are 50% off marked price through June 19th, then will be marked down to $1 June 20th-June 30th. All men's wear 50% off marked price every Sunday. High School students, 20% off every Saturday with a student I.D. Mondays, early bird shoppers receive double stamps 10-noon. Seniors get 20% off their entire purchase all day Tuesdays. Please remember that when you shop and volunteer with us, you help fund cancer research. The all volunteer, non-profit American Cancer Society shop is open Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and every other day from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.  Look for us at discoveryshopwestseattle.blogspot.com  

Yoga & Labyrinth Walk
The Hall at Fauntleroy
9131 California Ave. S.W.
Tuesday, June 19. Yoga 5:45-7 p.m.; Labyrinth Walk 7-8:30 p.m. Yoga & Labyrinth Walk $15 suggested donation; Labyrinth Walk $5 per person / $20 per family suggested donation. Proceeds go to Harmony Hill Retreat Center. www.harmonyhill.org or www.tuxedosandtennisshoes.com

Summer Tai Chi Classes

To the editor:
I just have to respond to the excellent article in the May 23rd Herald by Jerry Robinson, publisher. The article about pills, have I taken one. I laughed out loud, several times. As we get older we all have to take all these pills. Boy, Jerry, at age 92 your sense of humor is still intact. Good for you. I used to be one of your employees. I worked at the front desk in the West Seattle office until it closed. Boy, did I love that position. I miss my West Seattle Herald family so much.

I keep in touch with Bob Tornow and Beverly Moore, and run in to Steve Shay also.

The West Seattle Herald is alive and well!!

By Kyra-lin Hom

I recently stumbled across an article from this year's Vanity FairJanuary issue that I'd like to share with all of you. In case you would like to look it up for yourself, the article is entitled “You Say You Want a Devolution?” and it was written by award winning non-fiction novelist Kurt Andersen. It's online and easily found with a google search.

The article covers what Andersen believes to be a radical stagnation in America's popular artistic culture. According to him, for much of America's modern age (say, about the early 19th century onward) there has been a distinct difference between the artistic works of one time period and those produced roughly two decades earlier or later. He cites many examples to nail home his point, but I think most of us can agree on pure instinct. Afro's weren't exactly all the rage in the 1950's or 90's after all. Further, he posits that this trend for innovation has stopped.

press release
The public is invited to join with the Kiwanis of West Seattle on Wednesday, June 13th at 12 noon at BE’s Restaurant, 4509 California Ave SW, as the Club presents its Everyday Hero Award to the Menashe family for their significant ongoing support of the West Seattle Community. Call 206-938-8032 to reserve your place. Lunch is $8.

Jack Menashe has owned Menashe and Sons Jewelers, also know as The Store with the Clock, for over 35 years. He is a staple of the West Seattle community and continues to grow his family as well as his business. Beginning as a young man working as a stock boy in a downtown Seattle jewelry store, he has learned from what he says “the bottom up.” He is a knowledgeable jeweler who specializes in being a full-service jewelry store with strong values and realizes the importance of customer service.

The small lock at Hiram M. Chittenden Locks will be closed two weeks for repairs following Sunday's boat crash.

The small lock was damaged when a vessel malfunctioned and could not disengage its engines on Sunday afternoon, hiting the lock gates. Quick-acting lockwall staff were able to clear visitors prior to impact.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers structural engineer Mike Likavec and Lake Washington Ship Canal maintenance staff inspected the gates and anchorage on Monday and determined that repair will take about two weeks.

“Safety is our primary concern, and in the coming months we will re-inspect the gates on a routine basis to identify any signs of distress from the incident,” Likavec said.

Corps workers have begun repair work, which officials estimate will cost $10,000 to $20,000.

The small lock will remain closed to all but police and fire vessels on emergency response until structural members of the walkway, which help protect the gate, can be fabricated and installed.

Pedestrians can use the east gate walkway but won’t be allowed to cross using the west gates until the railing is replaced in about a month.

On Saturday, June 9th, neighbors gathered at Webster Park for a festive celebration of the park's 15 years of play and Groundswell's 20th year of incorporation.

Webster Park, just west of the Nordic Heritage Museum, holds a special place in the heart of all those advocating for more green space in Ballard as it was the project that started Groundswell NW and in turn led to many more Ballard parks.

Today, Webster Park is the sight of moms pushing strollers, the elderly on their daily strolls, teenagers playing basketball, and kids smiling as they gleefully dig their hands in the sandbox or perform cartwheels in the grass. But 23 years ago, when Lillian Riley first took interest in the parcel of land along NW 68th Street, it was nothing but grey concrete.

West Seattle teens from Madison Middle School and the Delridge and South Park Community Centers helped document the history of the Duwamish Peninsula this spring by taking part in the Southwest Seattle Historical Society’s “Telling Our Westside Stories” oral history project.

The teens interviewed a wide variety of southwest Seattle elders and longtime residents covering the topics of land, work and home. The results of their work will be on permanent display at the Log House Museum starting this summer, and a traveling exhibit with photos, transcribed stories and headphones to listen to interviews will jump around to area schools, community centers and libraries.

The project is expected to continue for the next several years, allowing the firsthand stories of early southwest Seattle to be forever captured.

White Center Storefront Deputy BJ Myers unveiled details on a new crime deterrent for the community: putting up two high-visibility surveillance cameras in the downtown area.

Speaking to the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council on June 7, Myers said they are “overt cameras, meaning that they will be highly visible with signage indicating this is an area that is being taped. The thinking behind this is – much like those block watch signs you see when you enter a neighborhood – to let people know this is an area we are watching.”

Cameras will watch the 16th Ave S.W. business corridor from a light pole on the corner of 16th and 98th, and another will watch the intersection of Roxbury and 15th.

Both of those locations have made the news recently, from the shooting death of Sweetheart Failautusi on 15th to the rampant drug and gun trafficking along 16th that caught the ATF’s attention, leading to dozens of arrests and contraband seizures in Operation Center of Attention. When trouble comes to White Center, the majority finds a home in one of those two corridors.

press release
The 2012 West Seattle Hi-Yu White Rose Reception will take place from 7-9 p.m. Tuesday, June 26, 2012 at Fauntleroy Church, UCC, 9140 California Ave SW in West Seattle.

This event is for women only and is a celebration of past and present Hi-Yu royalty. Come and share your Hi-Yu memories and learn about this year’s plans for our community festival. Past royalty are encouraged to wear or bring your crowns and memory scrapbooks.

Tickets are available at the door for $10 and every ticket comes with two raffle tickets.

For more information about Hi-Yu past and present please contact our website at www.westseattlehiyu.com.