May 2016

The Highline Capital Facilities Advisory Committee (CFAC) is narrowing down a list of solutions for facility concerns facing Highline Public Schools.

CFAC met twice during the month of May. During the meetings, committee members broke into groups to explore solutions to the top priority problems. The groups developed draft solutions, which must now be evaluated for cost and feasibility:

Solution for condition of Des Moines Elementary: Build a new school on the Zenith site at a capacity of 750 students in Phase 1. (Retain existing Des Moines building for public use.)

Solution for condition of Southern Heights Elementary: Rebuild the school on the current location at a capacity of 750 students in Phase 2.

Solution for condition of Highline High School: Build a new school on the current location at a capacity of 1,800 students in Phase 1. Save the façade as much as possible, and replicate the existing architectural style in new construction.

Solution to Elementary Capacity:
Scenario 1: Elementary schools with 6th graders
Rebuild Des Moines Elementary
Rebuild Southern Heights Elementary
Build two new elementary schools

by Pat Cashman
I was in a ferry line earlier this week---and saw the road sign you may well be familiar with: “Report ferry line cutters”---followed by the phone number you’re supposed to call: “1-877-764-HERO.”
Really? Hero?
I naively always thought of heroes as people who changed the world, did something truly
great, achieved courageous things and inspired others. You know, George Washington, Gandhi, Oskar Schindler, Amelia Earhart, Harriet Tubman---guys like that.
But squealing on someone else? A hero?
It all takes me back to the 7th grade at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School---a day I was very worried. After all, teachers did not normally tell a kid to stay after class unless there was trouble. I braced for the worst.
“Pat,” My nun teacher, Sister Mildred Marie, began, “I have some news for you.” I swallowed hard, as she continued. “Have you ever heard of The Leaders Club?” she asked.
“No,” I said, waiting to be hit over the head with such a club.
“It’s an honorary organization that only the very most special students are chosen to be a part of,” Sister said. “And you, Pat, have been selected.”

 by Amanda Knox
I’m a camper. Or, at least, I used to be. During the summers of my childhood, my family went on a few weekend and week-long trips to the campgrounds around Gold Bar and Lake Roosevelt in Eastern Washington. My middle school had an outdoor education program that included multi-day hiking and camping trips twice each academic year—to Mt. Rainier, Olympic National Park, and the peninsulas along the coastline. When the weather cooperated, my friends from the UW rock climbing gym and I piled together into one of our cars and drove down I-90 until we encountered a reliable cliff face or bouldering camp. During breaks in the schoolyear, my college boyfriend DJ and I hiked to muddy hot springs in the middle of nowhere, and glissaded, usually head over heels, down mountainsides. I brought all my camping gear—tent, sleeping bag, camping stove, rock climbing gear—all the way to Italy, taking up valuable room in my suitcase, because I was looking forward to hiking trips in the Umbrian countryside, particularly around Lake Trasimeno.
 
Now, for the first time in eight years, I’m headed outdoors again.
 

Genesis Global Spiritual Center is pleased to announce that Reverend Gayle Dillon has been hired to fill the post of Senior Minister and Spiritual Director effective June 1, 2016, following the eight-year term of founding Minister, Rev. Charles Hall.
Rev. Gayle was selected by the Burien based congregation after four months of interviewing ministers from a variety of states. Reverend Gayle has been the senior minister at Everyday Center for Spiritual Living in Santa Fe, New Mexico for the past five years.

“I love the Northwest and am thrilled to be returning to the area after a long departure. Burien is a community that has embraced Genesis Global Spiritual Center and its inclusive, interfaith philosophy for many years now. I hope that I can help increase our visibility and continue to build partnerships with other churches and organizations in the community.” commented Reverend Gayle.

KJR sports radio host and voice of the WNBA Seattle Storm Dick Fain is featured in this month’s #HighlineAlum social media campaign. Fain is a 1992 graduate of Mount Rainier High School.
 
Fain began his career in broadcasting at KJR in 1997 and worked his way up to show host and sports director. He is the host of the Live @5:30 show and co-host of the Mitch in the Morning show. Fain is entering his ninth year as the voice of the WNBA Seattle Storm and is in his third year as a fill-in sports anchor on KING-5 TV. 
 
“This is a special place that we should all be proud of. The diversity of the district is second to none. It should be celebrated,” said Fain. “There are so many kids that I went to school with that all went their separate ways in college and in their 20s. Look where they came back to 15 years later to raise their kids. There is a reason for that and Highline should take great pride in that fact.”
 
Watch Fain’s video here.
 
Highline boasts a long list of well-known and accomplished alumni and dozens of grads you haven't yet heard of who are making their mark on the world.
 

Police reports
by Matt Wendland
17-year-old shot near Evergreen High School
Officers from both the King County Sheriff’s Office and the Burien Police Department rushed to the intersection of Ambaum Boulevard S.W. and S.W. 116th Street on May 19 after reports of shots being fired. Police arrived to the intersection just after 12:15 a.m. to find a 17-year-old boy who had been shot in the chest outside of an apartment complex near Evergreen High School and Cascade Middle School. The boy was rushed to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Police are now looking for two Hispanic men who were seen fleeing the scene in a silver or gray 2000s sedan. Police used K9 units to search the area and though shell casings were found nearby, no suspects were found. Because of the victim’s minor status, further details have yet to be released. 

Des Moines man shot in online date ambush

Featuring excellent views and good ideas for those of us with health restrictions, this is the garden to visit on the 2016 Highline Garden Tour.
Beginning 40 years ago, this gardener has worked with a property that was initially a summer cottage with pasture and a few fruit tees. Now, one enters the property through a more formal setting of rhododendrons and azaleas, while the side and back yards are filled with perennials and row plantings, chosen for ease of access and care due to the gardener’s rheumatiod arthritis.. The backyard features the addition of a clever playhouse/potting shed, made from recycled materials from a Vashon Island artist.
The Highline Garden Tour is June 11th from 10 AM – 4 PM. Tickets are available at Burien Bark, Umpqua Bank, Wild Birds Unlimited and Furneys. For more information visit the Highline Historical Society website: www.highlinehistory.org

You’re not going to want to miss the Artist’s Reception on Friday, June 3 at the Burien Arts Gallery for the opening of Vancouver B.C. artist Josh Byer’s wildly colorful Faux Fauvism exhibit.
The reception is 5 p.m.-8 p.m. at the Gallery, 826 SW. 152nd St. in Olde Burien.
Josh describes Faux Fauvism as “capturing the moment immediately before a composition disintegrates into pure abstraction.”
The technique, inspired by Henri Matisse, celebrates elements of Fauvism, Cubism, Pointillism and street art.
The exhibit runs June 1-June 25.
Josh’s work has been displayed in Toronto and Los Angeles as well as on the cover of numerous publications.
The incredibly multi-talented and prolific artist has also earned extensive credits as a screenwriter, director, producer, actor, copywriter, journalist and author.
Also in June at the Burien Arts Gallery, Artists United presents a small works show of affordable art by over 20 local artists. The show will feature a variety of media, including oil, acrylic, pastel, watercolor, collage, photography, mixed media, fiber and colored pencil. All artwork will be less than 12 inches by 12 inches.

Break-in on Delridge Way

Officers were dispatched to the 7900 block of Delridge Way S.W. at 6:30 p.m. on Wed., May 18, in response to a burglary call. The victim said he had left his home locked at 11:45 a.m. and returned at 6:30 p.m. to find his rear glass entry door was completely shattered and the front door unlocked. He said that a car stereo was stolen, as well as cigarettes and two coin collections. He also noticed damage to the screen on the rear of the house. The suspect had moved a small metal tin which officers took to search for fingerprints.

Garage robbery

A homeowner on the 2100 block of 45th Avenue S.W. called police at 6:43 a.m. on Thurs., May 19 to report that during the night, a burglar had entered his detached garage and stolen several items. Missing were various tools, sporting goods and camping equipment. The estimated loss was approximately $5,000. The victim said that the garage was not locked and access was made into the backyard by way of an unlocked gate off the alley to the west.

Security alarm thwarts burglar

One of the reasons criminals get arrested is that they aren't very smart in the first place. Proof of that came this week when Seattle Police arrested three suspects at at Westwood Village Monday after they tried to sell a very expensive bike stolen days earlier from the REI store in downtown Seattle.

According to police on May 21, someone in a mask got into a fenced, gated area at the REI flagship store in the 200 block of Yale Avenue and stole a black and neon green Ghost Kato bike worth $2,700.
Keeping an eye out an alert REI staffer found an ad for a just such a bike on Craigslist. The ad listed the bike at $1,500, describing it as “brand new” and “ready to be picked up.” “Serious inquiries only!!!,” the seller wrote.

REI staff shared the ad with police, and Southwest Precinct Anti-Crime Team Officer Ernie Debelle contacted the seller setting up a Monday night meeting.