February 2017

By Amanda Knox
 
I remember how Don Saulo, the chaplain at Capanne prison, visited every cell each morning and greeted every prisoner by name. He brought in movies for us to watch, and each one—Kung Fu Panda, Avatar—made him cry. He told the prison staff that he needed me to spend a few hours a week in his office helping him prepare for mass, when really he let me pass the time singing and playing Beatles songs on the guitar. When I crocheted him a bracelet, he took it, thanked me, and said, “White. The color of resurrection…” When we first met, I was freshly imprisoned and afraid and surrounded by strangers, and I told him I was innocent and I knew he, like everyone else, didn’t believe me. He replied, “I can’t say if you are innocent, but I believe you are sincere when you tell me you are innocent.”
 
Which is to say that, from the moment we met, Don Saulo was always a man of kindness and integrity. That very first day, he showed me his brutal, compassionate honesty, and it was because of this honesty that I knew it was true when he eventually told me he believed me, years later.
 

by Lindsay Peyton
West Seattle artist Troy Pillow is preparing to put the finishing touches on his sculpture “Transpose” at Junction Plaza Park, located just at the corner of 42nd and Alaska.

The kinetic homage to the park – reflecting the intersection of nature and the bustling shopping and dining district – was erected at the end of November. Now Pillow is installing lights to let the stainless steel piece continue to glow at night.

The sculpture has become an anchor to the plaza. The small park features a few benches and a small lawn, perfect for a moment’s relaxation.

Now when the wind blows, the bright blue leaves on the metal tree whirl like a pinwheel – adding a bit of eye-catching whimsy to the public space.

Pillow said the park was dedicated in 2010 and that funding became available and made it possible for the installation of a sculpture.

He was selected by the West Seattle Junction Association for the project and, together with the organization, sought public input for the design.

He began fabricating the sculpture last September.

Assault suspect leaves rabbit at scene of crime

Officers were dispatched to the intersection of California Ave SW and SW Alaska St. around 10:20 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 31 to check on a fight. The victim said he was waiting on a bench at a bus stop when the suspect asked for a cigarette. When the victim said he did not have any, the suspect became agitated, cussed and punched him in the face. The suspect ran away before police arrived – but left a rabbit behind. There were two other subjects on the scene, who knew the suspect but refused to identify him other than saying he was about 16 or 17 years old and homeless. They agreed to watch the rabbit until they saw the suspect again. The Fire Department responded and told the victim to get medical attention for a laceration above his left eye. Officers checked the area for the suspect but were unable to locate him.

Attempted commercial burglary on Marginal Way

information from JuNO

It’s not enough for the City of Seattle to reach out only to single-family home residents affected by the recently proposed upzone and boundary expansion of the West Seattle Junction Urban Village – apartment residents should have their voices heard as well, said the Land Use Committee of the Junction Neighborhood Organization (JuNO).

Last week came word that the City Office of Planning and Community Development will canvass residents in single-family homes slated to be upzoned under the controversial Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda (HALA). That effort needs to be expanded to those living in apartment buildings, the committee said.

“Apartment residents deserve the chance to ask the City any number of critical questions, including how many units of affordable housing the HALA plan will create specifically in our urban village, what kind of units will be available for what income levels – including those for families – and why the upzoning is taking place even before we know where the light rail stations will be placed,” said committee member Christy Tobin-Presser.

Update 10:00pm
City Light crews worked all day to keep up with power outages that seemed to crop back up after being solved when heavily snow laden trees would break and a branch would snap a power line. At last check the power to the Burien area and North Highline was mostly restored but 46 isolated pockets of outages remain from 116th SW and the water over to Tukwila Intl. Blvd in the east. Crews expected those to be resolved by midnight.

Update 4:30pm
Power for more than 3200 from Burien to North Highline was out with new outages taking place down to Three Tree Point and part of Normandy Park. An estimated time of restoration for those north of 136th SW was 7:00pm but for those south the matter was still under investigation.

Original Post 8:30am
The snowstorm that arrived and began accumulating in earnest in the early morning hours of Feb. 6 knocked out power for nearly 8000 customers in the Burien area.

Update 5:21
The power has been restored for all but a few in the West Seattle/White Center/Highland Park area but power outages still persist for 104 in one area near 116th SW and Seola Beach Drive SW and other isolated outages. Power remained a problem for other areas south down to Burien too.

Update 4:20pm

"We can now confirm that all the travelers who came to Sea-Tac Airport last Saturday have been legally permitted to travel in the United States.

"The final traveler returned to the United States today.

"The Port of Seattle has continued to facilitate legal representation for travelers since the abrupt and chaotic implementation of this executive order last Saturday, Jan. 28.

"On the first day of implementation, we identified expert immigration advocates in our community and connected those experts to families waiting for a detained traveler. Where appropriate, we provided operational information that helped families and advocates understand the deadlines and legal landscape. The remarkable and real-time collaboration between public agencies and legal experts ensured that two travelers with legal visas, who were about to be denied entry and returned to their country of departure, were allowed to enter the United States last Saturday.

information from King County Metro

Transit service in King County may be affected by snow or ice starting late Sunday or early Monday. It is not possible to determine what areas or service – if any – could be affected, as forecasts and predictions are constantly changing.

Northwest Symphony Orchestra is excited to announce their “Valentines Concert” on Friday, February 10, 2017 at 7:30pm at the Highline Performing Arts Center in Burien. This concert is part of the NWSO’s 30th Anniversary Season and features Anniversary Overture by Northwest composer Roger Treece, Tchaikovsky’s popular Piano Concerto #1 with internationally known soloist Sown Le Choi, and Symphony #4 by Ludwig van Beethoven.

Since their inception, the orchestra has received local, regional, and national acclaim, having been featured several times on National Public Radio and once on NBC’s Today Show.  Under the leadership of Music Director Dr. Anthony Spain the mission of the NWSO is to be the premier orchestra in performing and promoting the music of contemporary Northwest composers while also performing, and educating the public in the full spectrum of classical music.

“The Northwest Symphony Orchestra is proud to of their 30th Anniversary Season.  In this season we reach the unique milestone of performing 150 works by northwest composers in our history.  This year, we include a variety of exciting traditional pieces, as well as several well known soloists.

Across Washington State, thousands of women, families of diverse communities, and members of the LGBTQ community took to the streets in a peaceful protest to stand up for equality, civil and women’s rights, and religious freedom.

It was an inspiring day, but one we can all agree must be followed by longer term action.

With over 50% women in the Democratic Caucus in the Washington State House of Representatives—one of only four women-dominated chambers in the country and the most diverse we have ever been--we have a request of you: run for public office.

Each of us has a different story about what finally pushed us into running. Fully funding our kids’ public education after decades of legislative delay. A road safety issue. Pursuing social justice. A desire to bring business acumen to the table to solve complex economic issues. Protecting the environment for the next generations.