January 2013

The search for a new executive director for the Ballard Chamber of Commerce has ended, with a choice right underneath our noses.

The Board of Directors chose Mike Stewart, who took the reins of the Chamber after long-time Director Beth Miller unexpectedly resigned after 12 years in the position. Originally, on Oct. 15, Stewart came on only in a part-time, interim capacity and there was no reason to believe that he would stay on in the position.

But Stewart will in fact be staying on, starting full-time on Jan. 14, and he brings with him a bevy of communications experience.

“As a seasoned communications professional, Mike has a strong background in public and community affairs, marketing, community organizing and coalition building,” said Greg Swanson, co-president of the Board of Directors and chair of the executive director search committee. “We initially hired Mike to serve in an interim capacity, but it didn’t take long to realize that he has the right skills, background and drive to lead the Chamber on a permanent basis.”

Tuesday, Jan. 8
Boys basketball
O'Dea 75, Chief Sealth 63
Griffin II swished in 25 points, but the Seahawks still came away from O'Dea with a loss Tuesday.
Aaron Knox sank 17 more points and Brown added 13.

Wednesday, Jan. 9
Girls basketball
Holy Names 69, Chief Sealth 36
Proctor poured in 15 points to lead the Seahawks in their 69-36 loss to Holy Names on Wednesday.
Hazen 55, Evergreen 50
The Wolverines put fourth a strong effort in a five-point defeat at the hands of Hazen. Martinez led the Wolverines with 19 points.
Boys basketball
Hazen 63, Evergreen 59
Evergreen battled all the way into overtime before taking a tough four-point loss to the Highlanders.
Campbell led the Wolverines with 25 points.

Thursday, Jan. 10
Girls basketball
Shorewood Chr. 41, Rainier Chr. 24
Nicole Jones led the way with 12 points as Shorewood Christian of West Seattle blew away Rainier Christian this past Thursday.
Boys basketball
Sherwood Chr. 71, Rainier Chr. 57

Control of the caroms and face-to-face defense set up the transition offense in a 61-42 Shorewood Christian boys basketball defeat of visiting Evergreen Lutheran in Jan. 8 SeaTac 1B League action held at the former Glacier High School location on S. 142nd St. which is called the Lions Den by the home team.

"Hard work and team basketball is what we do," said Shorewood Christian head coach Alfonso Gonzales. "We play up tempo and push the ball. The team plays old school man-to-man defense. It was a slow start to the season, but we're coming around and want to finish strongly."

First half action featured close combat most of the way with the Lions (3-3, 5-6) taking an 11-8 lead after one quarter.
Ben Baker of the Eagles (1-3, 3-4) notched a free throw in front of an Andrew Goyins basket inside the lane to force an 11-11 standoff.

Shorewood Christian responded quickly on a reverse lay up from Darren Morris and a penetration bucket by Jordan King. Karl Leitzke converted a short range jump shot to draw the visitors within 15-13.
Suddenly, the familiar one and done nemesis returned to plague Evergreen Lutheran for the duration of play.

By Holly Brown

If you’re planning to kick off a diet, cleanse, or new healthy regimen, you'll be delighted to know that you don't have to stop eating great food, or entertaining in style to detox. You can enjoy a healthy lifestyle full of antioxidants and cleansing ingredients in your daily meals and menus.

I'm not really a dieter. I love to eat! If you do too, 2013 can be your year to focus on “return on consumption” ingredients. Simply incorporate key ingredients in you daily meals and menus like cinnamon, cumin, chilies, garlic, green leafy veggies, berries, nuts, dark chocolate, and red wine for all the "detoxification dining" you desire!

Shorewood Christian girls basketball coach Nikiole Peterson knew that her team had to accomplish two things to be successful against the opponent of this night.

"Our team needs to run up and down the court and use our quickness," she said. "This is how our team plays with our fast players."

On Tuesday, Jan. 8, the home team Lady Lions succeeded at both to edge out visiting Evergreen Lutheran, 39-32, in an entertaining SeaTac 1B League hoop encounter.

Trailing 28-27 after a robust Eagle rally midway through the fourth quarter, Shorewood Christian grabbed a 29-28 lead before Nicole Jones nailed a 3-point scoring basket to enlarge the margin to 32-28. From this juncture, the Lady Lions chewed up the Eagles in a 7-1 stretch run to victory.

"I really thought this shot was the one that finally turned the game," added coach Peterson.

Shorewood Christian stands at 4-2 league and 6-4 overall. Evergreen Lutheran is now 0-3 and 1-4.
Playing in the former Glacier High School location on S. 142d St., Evergreen Lutheran opened up as cold as an iceberg with Shorewood Christian assuming a 7-0 first quarter lead.

Highline Schools Superintendent Susan Enfield and staff met Jan. 10 with the top law enforcement officials of the five municipalities in Highline to discuss possible changes to the district’s security plan.

At the meeting, Burien Chief Scott Kimerer, Des Moines Chief George Delgado, Normandy Park Chief Chris Gaddis, SeaTac Chief James Graddon and King County Sheriff’s Captain Patrick Butschli all agreed to assist Highline with recommendations.

However, Jason Powell, business agent for Teamsters Local 763, which represents about 1,000 district employees including security officers, dismisses the meeting as another ploy to disarm security officers.
Powell claims Enfield wants the police chiefs to agree to add more armed school resource officers (SROs), commissioned police officers assigned to schools, in exchange for disarming the district’s security officers. The district would pay part of the cost to the police agencies for the SROs.

Powell also said, if the security officers don’t need firearms certification, district officials could argue their wages should be lowered. The district’s collective bargaining agreement with the security officers ends Aug. 31.

It's an un-serious spin which makes a serious matter more palatable. In the wake of a series of recent disasters -- of hurricanes, tsunamis and earthquakes in such places as New Orleans, Japan, Haiti and more -- a group of Ballard residents are gathering together for a day simply called "Zombie Apocalypse Day."

Zombie Apocalypse Day is not a fan tribute to the hit AMC series, "Walking Dead," but rather an opportunity for community members to gather together and learn how to prepare for an emergency, should the worst happen.

According to organizer and Ballard resident Jay Condon, the event will have twenty vendors, demos, speakers and entertainment for children.

Condon remind people, "It is important to be prepared for a crisis. The intent of this event is not to scare you. It is purely an educational event for the community. Being prepared doesn't mean you are living paranoid. It is a sense of responsibility to you, your family, and your community."

Of course, like the end of the Mayan calendar, it's unlikely that an actual Zombie Apocalypse should come. But that doesn't mean other disasters won't.

The timing couldn't have been worse.

Two days before a gunman killed 20 students and six adults at a Connecticut elementary school, the Highline School Board held a work/study session to review a new security plan that could include disarming school security officers.

At the study session and the following regular meeting, security officers say a few board members gave the impression that they discounted the danger that security officers face in Highline schools. Board president Angelica Alvarez implied there is a connection between armed security guards and the number of student suspensions and expulsions.

The officers’ union, Teamsters Local 763, has filed an unfair labor practice claim against the district stemming from a subsequent meeting with assistant superintendent Susan Smith Leland. The union said she threatened security officers over their testimony before the school board.

District spokesperson Catherine Carbone Rogers said Leland’s intent was to request respectful behavior. Rogers noted the district doesn’t challenge the right of employees to present their opinions to the school board.

According to Seattle Public Shools officials, we can blame the overcrowding of West Seattle schools today on a combination of demographic trends five years ago, the recession, and an anomalous number of five year olds being signed up for kindergarten (serving as an indicator for continued rise in population).

In a meeting with citywide media on Jan. 9, SPS’s team explained the need to purchase up to 30 portable classrooms, repurpose existing school rooms and, in some cases, entire buildings to make room for a spike in Seattle’s student enrollment that started a few years ago.

Thanks to a $122 million library levy passed by Seattle voters in 2012, all Seattle Public Library branches will be open on Sunday this year.

To celebrate their new found hours, the High Point Library (at 3411 S.W. Raymond St. in West Seattle) is holding a free celebration this Sunday, Jan. 13, from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

There will be refreshments and kids' arts and crafts activities, and the Seahawks should have convincingly dispatched the Falcons by the time the fun begins!

To learn more about the new Sunday hours, please check out our prior coverage.