A crowd joins festivities with West Seattle resident, King County Executive Dow Constantine in the Paramount Theater lobby tonight. Unofficially he turned 50 years old. Officially he is 39 years old, for the eleventh year. He is pictured far left of photo being introduced. CLICK ON PHOTO FOR MORE.
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King County Executive and West Seattle resident Dow Constantine seems to be moving ahead in politics quicker than his years, especially if you believe he is 39. Today he celebrated his 39th birthday, for the eleventh time. Its sort of a running gag, as he did acknowledge hitting the half-century mark to an enthusiastic crowd of friends, family, colleagues and supporters in the Paramount Theater lobby downtown tonight to celebrate this milestone.
"If you have to spend 50 years anywhere, West Seattle's a good place to do it," Constantine told the West Seattle Herald. His friends prompted him to recall when he bought his first 45 record.
"It was 'Lean on Me' by Bill Withers, either at Turnabout or Penny Lane in the Junction. One day we rode our bicycles up to the record store and stood there and didn't know whether or not to buy something so we asked the clerk what to buy. They had the singles all arranged in those days where they were on the top forty charts and one that was high up was the 'Lean on Me' single (in 1972). The guy sized us up and thought maybe that would be appropriate for kids our age. We forked over our 50-cents or whatever it was and took it home. I still have that single. It was a good choice because it turned out to be a classic."
In Constantine's speech, he thanked those who helped him become the county's executive, as well as his parents.
"He couldn't have done it without me," Dow's mother Lois told the West Seattle Herald. "He wouldn't have been here without me," she laughed, adding, "I am so proud of him."
"I think Dow's doing a great job as Executive," said Blair, Dow's younger brother, a landscape architect. "He saved Maury Island. He's reforming King County government. On a personal level Dow throws a great party and I wouldn't have missed it for the world."
"It's great to celebrate Dow's 39th birthday yet again with him," said Joe McDermott, King County Council member and also a West Seattle native. "He's doing fantastic work with the county and I'm not only happy to be a supporter, but to be his friend as well."
