December 2012

Kennedy won not walking away but running away on Wednesday dominating every facet of the game. A large part of the domination was due, in part, to the play in the post by No. 40 team captain Cole Madison.

Madison’s performance was key to the Lancers victory. When a shot at the basket failed to drop in there was Madison to scoop it up. Very few offensive or defensive rebounds got by him.

When Madison was pulled early in the third period the damage had been done with the score 40-11 and Kennedy comfortably in control.

Another standout for Kennedy was No. 12 guard Anthony McCluskey. The Lancer guard seemed to hit almost every shot he took. When McCluskey didn’t have the rock it was Chandler Reed No. 32 or No. 10 James Jolly dropping bombs from the corners.

It was the long range shooting by Kennedy that baffled Highline. When the Pirates would close off the lanes Kennedy shooters would simply move to the corners and pound in three’s or long two point shots.

When asked about the game head coach Don Hoffman had this to say; “We had a lot of miss matches we took advantage of and our kids played great defense.”

Wednesday is this month's open-to-the-public Ballard District Council meeting. As usual, the good folks of Ballard will be convening at 7 p.m. in the Ballard Branch Library Conference Room.

Councilmember Richard Conlin, who chairs Seattle's Planning, Land Use and Sustainability Committee, will be dropping by to chat. Of course, this means you can direct all of your questions about condos and apartment complexes -- as well as the future of Ballard -- at him, so come prepared with your best questions.

Additionally, proposals from Ballard groups for funds from Bridging the Gap Levy's Neighborhood Street Funds program will also be presented to the Ballard District Council.

And there's more. Just see the agenda below, and come hang out. (I will be there.)

AGENDA

7:00 Introductions & Short Announcements - please hold announcements to not more than one min.

7:15 A Chat with Seattle City Council Member Richard Conlin

Southwest Precinct Crime Prevention Coordinator Mark Solomon shares advice on how to protect your home and holiday packages from thieves. He writes:

Dear Community Friends,

I receive many emails from you in the community about incidents of crime. Recently, I’ve seen a lot of email traffic regarding burglaries and concern about theft of delivered packages from residence porches. Today’s newsletter is to discuss trends, burglary methods, and reinforce burglary and theft prevention measures. Some of this material will be familiar to some of you.

The Trends
Burglars Are Concerned About Who Can See Them
First, when burglars come in to an area and are looking for that home to break in to, they look to see if anyone notices them. So if you see someone in the neighborhood looking around at who may be looking at them, take note and watch what they do. Slowly walking down the street is not illegal; slowly walking down the street looking into people’s home windows, their cars, and looking around at who may be watching is suspicious, and worthy of a 911 call.

Burglars Select Homes That Appear Easy To Break Into

My name is MaryAnn Scott.

I am new to West Seattle, originally from Southern California.

Though I think West Seattle is one of the most beautiful places ever, this holiday season is particularly hard for me. I am not only away from my family but I know literally one person here. That person is the kind property manager that rented us our home!! Sad but true!!

This morning while leaving the Met Market, I was feeling rather down. I was stopped at a red light.

In the middle of the intersection a car was stopped. Soon an elderly lady slowly got out of her car and attempted to push it out of the busy street. I was so upset by what I saw. I started to get out to help, looked up and was amazed.....

Within less than 30 seconds, people literally were running from all directions to rescue this stranded senior. I counted 13 people, young and old running toward her with smiles on their faces. I couldn't stop the tears that ran down my face. It was such a refreshing sight to see. Suddenly I didn't feel so alone.

Thank you West Seattle, for taking care of each other!! I hope to meet more of you soon.

Happy Holidays,

Kids across Puget Sound entered 150 different possible names for the SR 99 Tunnel boring machine in a recent contest, and the winning entry is Bertha, named after Seattle’s 1926 Mayor Bertha Knight Landes – the first woman to lead a major American city.

Just like Landes, the boring machine will be another first for Seattle … and the world. Bertha is currently being put together in Japan to ensure she’s in working order before sailing to Seattle in 40 different pieces, the largest of which weighs 900 tons. She’ll be the biggest Bertha ever at 57.5 feet in diameter, 326 feet long and weighing 6700 tons (about the same as 558 38-foot, 84-passenger buses).

By Shara Wallace

Deadline for receiving items for Community Calendar is 5 p.m. Wednesday for the following week’s Times/News. Events are published based on timeliness and space availability. Email submissions to: hteditor@robinsonnews.com Items can be accepted from nonprofit groups and government agencies only. Others may call Dona Ozier at 206-708-1378 for inclusion in our “Out & About” advertising section.

Art Exhibits

Burien Press--Artist Scott Grigg, presents American Spring Art show a visual critique of modern American politics. 423 S.W. 152nd St.
Burien Town Square Retail Space--S.W. 151st St and 5th Pl. S.W. Crimson Park Design’s Fall Furniture Line, Series 1, Back from Nature as a part of an art installation by Shelli Park called Love Letters, An Installation. Love Letters includes Park’s recent works. Also sculpture, “Instrumental Divide (Mariachi)” by George Rodriquez.

At Hazlewood, two art pieces sold for a fundraiser to benefit a liver transplant were stolen, according to Dan'l Linehan, whose friend's father is the one undergoing the surgery.

Linehan is encouraging everyone to spread the word. He posted the story on Facebook this morning:

"Seattle - SHARE THIS! After an art auction was held to benefit a liver transplant for the father of my friend Katie Blackstock, these two SOLD pieces were stolen from Hazlewood in Ballard. These thieves didn't just steal from Katie and her dad, but they stole from our community, the bar, & the people that supported this cause with their time, hearts & hard earned money. Seattle is a small town, so spread this far and wide. Hopefully these thieves will see this and the art pieces will be returned to Hazlewood and delivered to those who bought them."

Contact us at zachb@robinsonnews.com if you know anything or have an update.

Correction: this story originally stated that the fundraiser was for a kidney transplant. It was, in fact, for a liver transplant. We apologize for the error.

Follow Ballard News-Tribune on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ballardnewstrib

Highline Schools superintendent Susan Enfield has commented on Highline's successful bid for a federal Race to the Top grant.

Enfield said Tuesday, Dec. 11,"As many of you know, Highline joined with several South King County school districts to apply for a federal Race to the Top grant.

"I am thrilled to announce that our proposal has been granted full funding of $40 million. We are one of just two applications across the country to receive the full $40 million.

"I want to thank Alan Spicciati and other members of the Highline team who contributed to developing our application. This was a regional team effort, and I am so proud to be part of the coalition that put together this successful application.

"Most importantly, this grant will give us the opportunity to make a significant difference for the children of Highline and the South King County Region.

"Exciting times are ahead!"

Here is our previous coverage:

Press release:

Highline and Tukwila are among the seven South King County school districts that have won $40 million in federal Race to the Top funds, the U.S. Department of Education announced Tuesday.

We sent photographer Jerry Gay up to North Bend on Sunday, Dec. 2 to check out the Waskowitz Outdoor School Winter Wonderland 2012 fundraiser event.

Anyone who has attended sixth grade in the Highline School District remembers attending Camp Waskowitz and learning about the outdoors.

Now staffers are raising money for outdoor school scholarships for those who cannot afford to attend.

Nostalgic ex-Waskowitz campers and others may donate at 425-888-0681.

In the first photo, Dumit Malacon pleads to get out of jail but The Grinch zealously guards his prisoner. Actually, The Grinch is Dumit’s brother, Tony Malacon and they are raising money for outdoor school scholarships.

In the second photo, Santa (sometimes known as Erick Mickelson of North Bend) and his helper elf, Missy Basnight of Burien were part of the Waskowitz Outdoor School Winter Wonderland 2012 event near North Bend.

By Ken Robinson
ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER/MANAGING EDITOR

When we were kids, the annual ritual of choosing a Christmas tree involved driving to some place like Wilkinson or North Bend and just wandering off the road into the woods to find a good tree.

This bonding time was a treasured outing, ending typically with a cup of hot cocoa as Dad tried to figure out how to make the tree stand up in the living room.

But that was in the 1950s.

There is something antiseptic about buying a tree from Rite-Aid. Going out into the woods to stalk a fir tree stirs primal memories. So it was with some sense of joy that I hitched a ride with my younger brother last week as he embarked on his own version of tree hunting.

He didn't have a lot of time. We had been at a business meeting together, then returned to the office. On the way in, he said, "I have to leave for a couple of hours. I am going to meet my wife on Mercer Island (where she works) and we are going to get a Christmas tree."