February 2016

By Tim Clinton
SPORTS EDITOR

High schools
Girls basketball
West Seattle opens Metro League tournament play Wednesday after receiving a first round bye as the regular season champion.
The Wildcats will face either Cleveland or Roosevelt at 7:30 p.m. in the Nathan Hale gymnasium.
Seamount League teams dive into West Central District tournament play Thursday.
Kennedy visits Lincoln of Tacoma at 7 p.m. in the 3A tournament, while at the same time in the 2A Foster is at River Ridge and Tyee at Liberty.
Seattle Lutheran received a first round bye in 1B Tri-District play and opens instead at 5 p.m. Saturday in its own gymnasium.
Chief Sealth was set to open Metro action at 7 p.m. this Tuesday at Eastside Catholic.
Seattle Christian opens with a 7 p.m. Saturday game at a site to be announced.

Boys basketball
Chief Sealth opens Metro League tournament play at 7 p.m. Tuesday against Roosevelt, after West Seattle opened Monday at O'Dea.
West Central District action begins at 7 p.m. Wednesday for Seamount League teams.

By Tim Clinton
SPORTS EDITOR

Saturday, Feb. 6
Boys basketball
Shorewood Christian 71, NW Yeshiva 44
Shorewood Christian of West Seattle finished its regular season on a winning note Saturday, winding up with a 9-1 SeaTac League record to go with a 16-3 overall mark.

Girls basketball
NW Yeshiva 40, Shorewood Christian 31
Shorewood Christian's season ended with a loss to Northwest Yeshiva on Saturday.

Wrestling
SPSL North tournament
Mount Rainier finished 10th in the South Puget Sound League North Division tournament Saturday with 34 points.

Friday, Feb. 5
Girls basketball
West Seattle 76. Franklin 18
West Seattle crushed the Quakers to wrap up its regular season Friday.
The Wildcats finished with a perfect 20-0 regular season overall mark to go with their first place Metro League record of 15-0.
Eastside Catholic 60, Chief Sealth 39
The Seahawks' regular season ended with Friday's loss to Eastside Catholic.
Tyee 54, Evergreen 37
Tyee toppled Evergreen in the Seamount League season finale for both teams Friday.

An inquiry with the Seattle Police Department yielded the fact that they have opened a criminal investigation into the potential crimes committed by West Seattle fundraiser Tracy Dart.

The West Seattle Herald broke the news last week that Dart had allegedly been lying for nearly a decade about having cancer and had held numerous fundraisers for both Susan G. Komen Foundation and herself personally.

Detective Patrick Michaud of the Seattle Police said "We now have an open case on this matter. Detectives have received several tips from community members that we are reviewing as a part of an ongoing case. I can’t go into detail about where the case stands at this point, but we are asking anyone with information to please call (206)625-5011 and speak with an officer."

Sources close to Team Tracy (her fundraising organization) originally contacted the Herald with the charges and later both Susan G. Komen and Auburn Volkswagen who gave Dart use of a car for a year came forward to say they had been in touch with Team Tracy and were told she had never had the disease.

By Greg Whittaker

The groundhog saw its shadow and snow lovers are stoked. I’m not talking about the groundhog in Punxsutawney, I’m talking about my father, Darrell, who resides in Juanita, WA. He was born on groundhogs day 1949 and I use him as my litmus test for our region. This vast U.S. does not have the same snow cycles in the east coast as the west coast, so we need to differentiate when we are looking at what length of winter we will have in the NW.

With a couple of warm fronts the last 2 weeks arriving midweek, we have been continuing to get significant accumulation on the weekends up in the Cascades and skiers and snowboarders can expect to see more. Reports from riders are that Thursday was awesome with 7-12 inches of accumulation depending on wind drift, and blue skies. As I write this on Friday, upper lifts are closed at Crystal Mountain as a warm front pushes its way in, bringing 50-70 mph wind gusts. The warm front is expected to be followed by cool arctic air which will bring 3-7 inches by Saturday morning with calming winds. The weekend cold cycle continues!

"One man scorned and covered with scars still strove with his last of courage to reach the unreachable stars; and the world will be better for this.”
---Miguel de Cervantes

By Pat Cashman

Some years ago (my kids figure it was the 1930’s) I hosted a morning radio show. It required getting up very early, driving downtown in the darkest hours of the night---and then pretending to be wide awake and chipper. In truth, most mornings, I wanted to be thrown---wide-awake---into a chipper.

But my radio experience was a distinct privilege---especially in the world of talk radio---where guests and callers always enriched the conversation with amazing stories. Maybe not true stories, but good ones.
One morning, while other serious-minded radio talk hosts were discussing world affairs, domestic policy and city politics, I brought up a different topic question: “Where’d you get that scar?”

The phones lit up like a crowd at Hempfest.

By Amanda Knox

My sister Deanna observes that Oma and I answer the phone with the same drawn-out and sing-song-y, “Hallooo!” We entertain ourselves in similar ways, dancing whether we have a partner or not, singing aloud whether we know the lyrics or not, sans embarrassment. We both read books voraciously, nurture children and animals compulsively, call people for no other reason than to say hello, or, in Oma’s words, “just checking to make sure that you’re still alive.” Both of us harbor deep, difficult-to-articulate hurt. Difficult to articulate because of how entrenched and visceral it feels, but also because the trauma is hard for many people to relate to. You know the uncomfortable pressure of witnessing or listening to another person’s suffering that leaves you feeling inadequate, hollow, defeated. It’s an isolating experience for everyone, teller and listener. All the more reason why it means so much to have someone you can call up who can comfortably listen. For me, that’s Oma.

“Hallooo!”

“Hallooo, Amanda! You won’t believe what Ole found for me.”

Destination Delridge: A Landmark Celebration Fundraiser
For the first time in five years, the Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association is hosting a fundraiser! We celebrate 20 years of DNDA strengthening the Delridge community, and 10 years of youth and arts education at the dynamic Youngstown Cultural Arts Center. There'll be great food, live entertainment, art, games, and music by some of Seattle's finest! It all happens Fri., Feb. 26th at Metropolist in SoDo. Come and reconnect with 200 guests who are passionate about social justice and community-building! Ticket info & purchase: destinationdelridge.brownpapertickets.org. Questions, or to volunteer: DestinationDelridge@dnda.org. To donate: http://bit.ly/1YISS8z.

Youth indoor Soccer at the Y!
West Seattle YMCA
4515 36th Ave SW
westseattleymca.org
Registration is now open. Leagues for ages 3 to 8. The season starts with practices during the week of February 29. Call for full information: 206.935.6000.

West Seattle Timebank Neighbor Appreciation Day
High Point Library
3411 S.W. Raymond St.

By Ken Robinson
Managing Editor
Westside Weekly

By 1972, a site for the dome stadium in downtown Seattle was chosen to build on. Construction began soon after and the dome was completed by March 1976. The stadium was named the Kingdome because of its location in King County.

The Kingdome was demolished by implosion on March 26, 2000; the Seahawks' new stadium, Seahawks Stadium (now known as CenturyLink Field) was built on the site and opened in 2002. King County paid off the bonds used to build and repair the Kingdome in 2015, 15 years after its demolition.

54,00 people showed up for the opening of the Kingdome. Now, Seattle has about 25 percent more people. Snohomish and Piece Counties have grown similarly.

Now, some promoters want to put another stadium along stadium row on First Avenue in Seattle. We thought it was a bad idea in 1969 to locate the Kingdome where it was and we think it is a bad idea now to put a new stadium where the fans of basketball and hockey want one, just down the avenue.