Destinations: Space Needle fireworks show may be in jeopardy

Space Needle from Kerry Park on Queen Anne
Photo by Steven H. Robinson

By Diane Hettrick

Seattle Center always throws a big party for New Year's. Winterfest features an ice rink, and continuous daytime activities. 305 Harrison St, Seattle 98109 (campus map and transportation options)

At 10pm on New Year's Eve they have a big dance party and light show at the International Fountain.

It often rains, but that never stops anyone here.

At midnight a huge pyrotechnic show is planned for the Space Needle. There are parties in the restaurants on the Needle, where people burst into phony hilarity when the camera turns on them.

People on the ground below get cricks in their necks leaning back to see the fireworks - which are pretty impressive on the spot. The fireworks are coordinated with music, except for that one awful year when something misfired and the music was ten minutes ahead - or was it behind? It was cringeworthy.

Sweet Joyce Taylor was one of the newscasters shivering in the cold to cover the event live and she kept trying to think of positive things to say - a lost cause.

When it all goes off well, it can be quite wonderful.

Which brings us to Tuesday night. The Seattle Fire Marshall said that if the wind gusts are 35mph, it's not safe to be blowing things up. Too great a danger of fire.

According to our WeatherWatcher a high wind advisory has been issued. "Southeast winds of 20 to 35mph with gusts to 45mph expected. Winds are expected to be strongest between 9pm and 2am."

The show is only ten minutes long. It's possible that marshall could allow the show.

If it does, and you are there - send us some photos!

Free rides on Metro on New Year's Eve

King County Metro will again offer free rides on New Year’s Eve with promotional support and sponsorship from Seattle Center, which draws thousands of people for New Year’s Eve festivities, including free Seattle Center Winterfest activities at Seattle Center Armory and International Fountain and midnight fireworks off the Space Needle.

Rides will be free from 7pm Tuesday, December 31, to 4am Wednesday, January 1, on Metro buses and other Metro transit service.

In addition, Metro will add more frequent service to its night routes, focusing on helping people travel near Seattle Center following the fireworks at midnight.

“There's no better night to leave your car at home than New Year’s Eve, and with free fares you can ride Metro transit, celebrate late, and not have to worry about parking or a safe ride home,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine.

Photos: 2019 Goodbye viaduct

Photo by Steven H. Robinson

They had begun demolition when Steve Robinson took this photo in February 2019.

Photo courtesy WSDOT

They started at the southeast by getting rid of the ramps.

Photo courtesy King County TV

Buildings long-hidden by the viaduct were suddenly exposed.

Photo by Joe Brouwer
August 2019

We were so used to how much we loved the view from the viaduct that we forgot just how very ugly it was. The waterfront isn't done but this shot of the view for commuters driving off the ferry give an idea of life after the viaduct.

WeatherWatcher: High Wind Advisory issued

Shoreline after a windstorm August 29, 2015
Photo by Carl Dinse

The National Weather Service in Seattle has issued a wind advisory for the greater Seattle area including the cities of Shoreline and Lake Forest Park. This is our first advisory or warning of any kind issued this 2019-2020 storm season.

Wind Advisory in effect from 10am Tuesday to 4am PST Wednesday.

• Southeast winds of 20 to 35mph with gusts to 45mph expected.
• Winds are expected to be strongest between 9pm and 2am.
• Impacts: Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects. Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages are possible.

Rain: We are expecting several decent doses of rain starting with one dose on Tuesday bringing us a quarter to a half inch of rain. Tuesday night into Wednesday morning we have break in the steady rain but there's a slight chance of a thunderstorm during that break. If we do see a thunderstorm we could see heavier rainfall. The timing of the thunderstorm chance is between around 10pm Tuesday night, along with the winds, until around mid-morning Wednesday.

Our next dose of rain comes in Wednesday afternoon with another quarter to a half inch of rain possible. We'll get a short break Thursday morning and then our next wet system moves in.

Thursday's storm is expected to last through Saturday afternoon, and more winds are possible with that system as well. I'll be able to have a better idea on those winds when we get closer to Thursday.

For current weather conditions and immediate storm updates visit www.shorelineweather.com

Crime pays: U.S. Attorney’s Office collects more than $14 million in civil and criminal actions in fiscal year 2019

Seattle – U.S. Attorney Brian T. Moran announced that the Western District of Washington collected more than $14 million in criminal and civil actions in fiscal year 2019. $10.3 million of that amount was collected in criminal cases, while $3.7 was collected in civil cases.

Additionally, the office forfeited more than $4.6 million in criminally involved property in fiscal year 2019.

“Part of holding law breakers accountable is taking the profit out of crime and misconduct,” said U.S. Attorney Brian Moran. 

“I want to recognize the hard work of the attorneys and professional staff in the U.S. Attorney’s Office who work diligently to get offenders to pay up and work to see that civil fines and payments go to help those who have been damaged.”

Criminal and Civil case collections

• In criminal case collections, the office secured more than $2 million in restitution for the investment fraud victims in U.S. v. Dennis Gibb.

• In U.S. v. Steven Ross, the U.S. Attorney’s Office collected the full $368,000 in restitution for this case involving fraud on the Social Security Administration.

• In civil collections, the office collected more than $400,000 from doctors and medical practices who settled allegations they received kickbacks for ordering unnecessary medical tests. And a nationwide flooring company paid more than $133,000 to settle allegations it paid kickbacks for government work.

The U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, along with the department’s litigating divisions, are responsible for enforcing and collecting civil and criminal debts owed to the U.S. and criminal debts owed to federal crime victims. 

The law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss. 

While restitution is paid to the victim, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the department’s Crime Victims Fund, which distributes the funds collected to federal and state victim compensation and victim assistance programs.

Forfeiture of criminally-involved property

Additionally, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of Washington, working with partner agencies and divisions, forfeited $4,625,430 in criminally-involved property in FY 2019. The proceeds from those forfeitures are deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund, where they are used to restore funds to crime victims and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.

• In 2019, significant Department of Justice forfeitures included the criminal forfeiture of $745,000 real property and financial accounts in U.S. v. Lionel Hampton, et al. The criminal group distributed controlled substances including oxycodone and laundered the proceeds through real property purchases.

• In a second case, U.S. v. Keenan Gracey, the office forfeited nearly $604,000 in proceeds that Gracey paid to rent a mansion used in the fraud scheme. We have requested that these funds be applied to Gracey’s restitution order and paid to his victims.

Olympic Fly Fishers to hear from Ryan Smith of Avid Angler

Ryan Smith will speak at the Jan 14
meeting of the Olympic Fly Fishers
Photo courtesy Avid Angler

POSSIBLE SNOW CLOSURE
If it snows and if the Edmonds School District cancels classes, the Senior Center will close and this meeting will be canceled.


The January meeting of the Olympic Fly Fishers will be held Tuesday, January 14, 2020 at the Mountlake Terrace Community Senior Center, 23000 Lakeview Dr, Mountlake Terrace. 

The social hour begins at 6pm, followed by dinner at 6:45pm. Our speaker will be will be Ryan Smith, guide and managing owner of the Avid Angler fly fishing shop located in Town Center, Lake Forest Park.

He will speak about lesser known stream and lake fishing opportunities in the area.

There will also be a brief business meeting and raffle.

There is no cost for attending the meeting. Dinner is $20.

GUESTS ARE WELCOME.

Vehicle emissions testing program ends Dec 31

Emission testing facility

From the Department of Ecology

After 38 years, Washington’s emission check program ends December 31, 2019. 

After this time, vehicle owners will no longer be required to have their vehicle’s emissions tested before renewing their registration.

Why is the program ending?

Air quality in Washington is much cleaner than when the program began in 1982, and every community in our state currently meets all federal air quality standards.

The combination of the testing program, advances in vehicle technology, and improved motor fuels have led to significant reductions in transportation-related air pollution.

Even without a testing requirement, it remains illegal in Washington to drive a vehicle with modified emissions controls, and drivers can be ticketed if their vehicle smokes or poses a threat to public health.

The end of the testing program will have little effect on Washington’s efforts to fight climate change. The testing program was always aimed at toxic forms of air pollution like carbon monoxide, rather than the carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that are the primary drivers of climate change.

Closing the program will affect about 180 people statewide that work for Applus, a contractor that operates the testing stations for the state, and a dozen employees at Ecology, plus several independent testing stations and certified repair facilities. Applus and Ecology have been working with their staff members to help them prepare for the shutdown, and find other positions when possible.

Photos: Deception Pass Bridge

Photo by Wayne Pridemore

Under the Deception Pass Bridge. No particular reason for this photo - I just like it. I grew up with stories about how no sane person ever took a boat through Deception Pass because the currents were so dangerous.

Wayne Pridemore went on a whale watching trip and look where they went? So glad that he survived the trip...

New Year's Day sale at Third Place Books and new authors on the weekend

Wednesday, January 1, 2020 New Year’s Day Sale at Third Place Books. Get 20% off all books and merchandise at Third Place Books, this day only.

And two newly published books - a psychological thriller and a spiritual transformation, presented by their authors.

Third Place Books, upper level Town Center, intersection Bothell and Ballinger Way NE, LFP.

Saturday, January 4 at 6pm
Tarryn Fisher
The Wives

How far would you go to find the truth about your husband? The Wives is an engrossing psychological thriller from bestselling Seattle author Tarryn Fisher. 

Sunday, January 5 at 6pm
Kellie J. Wright
Internal Journeys: A Spiritual Transformation

No one knows you like you, no one can reach you like you, and your life is your gift to behold. Internal Journeys is about finding your true colors in life and vibrating to their frequencies, and about learning to love yourself so that you can love others.

Arcane Comics hosts Board Game Nights twice a month in Shoreline

Arcane Comics is hosting a bimonthly Board Game Night at their shop in Shoreline on the 2nd and 4th Saturday of every month from 2-6pm!

In January: January 11 and January 25, 2020.

There are a lot of games on hand to demo or play, including a library of over 100 items, but also plenty of space to bring in your own to play or share.

Arcane provides table space and a friendly environment to play, share, and talk about board games with other people who share your passion.

During Board Game Night, ALL board games and gaming supplies purchased in-store will be 15% OFF! (excludes Magic and Pokémon cards)

Snacks and beverages will be available to purchase as well!

Arcane Comics in Parkwood Plaza, 15202 Aurora Ave N, Shoreline 98133

No place to hide: troopers are out looking for impaired drivers this week

Troopers are patrolling this week
to look for impaired drivers before
this happens.

Washington State Patrol (WSP) Troopers will be out looking for impaired drivers this week in preparation for the New Year. 

Patrols will be increased to include troopers brought out to supplement regularly assigned patrols. 

WSP has partnered with five other states to form the Western States Traffic Safety Coalition.

Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Nevada and Arizona are working together to save lives by removing impaired drivers from all of our roadways.

The message is clear; A New Year but an old truth - There’s no safe place for impaired drivers to hide.

These extra patrols will include specially trained troopers to help identify and detect drug impaired drivers. 

You can’t drive safely if you’re impaired. That’s why it’s illegal everywhere in America to drive under the influence of alcohol, marijuana, opioids, methamphetamines, or any potentially impairing drug–prescribed or over the counter. 

There are many misconceptions about marijuana use, including “stories” that marijuana can’t impair you or that marijuana use can actually make you a safer driver. Several scientific studies indicate these assertions are false.

Driving while impaired by any substance—legal or illegal—puts you and others in harm’s way.

New Year's Eve may feel like the ultimate party night, but police will be alert throughout the region for alcohol and/or drug impaired drivers.

Many people choose to start the New Year with a New Year’s Resolution. Let your first resolution for the New Year be to NOT drive impaired and to make sure that you and your loved ones get home safely.

Richmond Beach / Edmonds running club Polar Plunge

Join the Edmonds crazies by running into Puget Sound
Photo courtesy RB Running Club

New Year's Run with the Richmond Beach / Edmonds Running Club

• 12pm   Café Louvre
• 1pm   Plunge: Brackett's Landing, Edmonds

Come out and join us for our first club run of the year!

It's a great excuse to behave yourself on New Year's Eve and start off the New Year with a "fresh start." 

This year we will be changing both the start time for those of you who think an 8am on New Year's Day is a little too much and moving the location to Edmonds and joining in with the rest of the Edmonds crazies by running into the Puget Sound at 1pm. 

By the way, the Puget Sound will be more than 10 degrees warmer than Green Lake's average for this time of year for those of you whom may worry.

 
We will meet up at our normal Sunday meeting spot of Café Louvre at 12:00pm, run the waterfront route and end up at Brackett's Landing. 

Bring a bag to drop off before the run. There will be a bag drop so that your warm clothes and towel can meet you for the after plunge. Once everyone is nice and dry we will head back up to Café Louvre where we will go over last year's "napkin-o-goals" and make a new one for 2020.

Café Louvre address: 210 5th Ave S, Edmonds WA 98020

For the Birds: What will be your 2020 Bird Totem?

Bewick's Wren feeding bug to nestlings
Photo by Greg Pluth

By Christine Southwick

Look outside — what is the first bird that you see New Year’s Day?

That is your 2020 bird totem!

What does that mean? Get your kids to help you find out everything you can about this bird species (We need young birders).

Fox Sparrow in heated bath
Photo by Chris Southwick

How many eggs does the female lay? What do the eggs look like; color, size? What does the nest look like? 

What does that bird use to make its nest — grasses, moss, spider webbing, feathers, dog or cat hair? 

Do both the parents build the nest, or does the female do all the work? 

Some birds will have more than one brood — is the species you saw one of those?

Is it a ground nester or a cavity nester? If it is a ground nester, you need to protect them from cats (and loose dogs); if it is a cavity nester, it will need trees in which to nest -- you can put up an appropriate nest box.

Does this bird feed and rest in bushes and branches, or does it mainly forage on the ground? Native plants, especially those with berries and flowers will help and draw in the most birds. Some birds need evergreen trees (like Chestnut-backed Chickadees), others need more open areas (like Dark-eyed Juncos and most sparrows).

Oregon Junco finding food in lawn
Photo by Chris Southwick

Pesticides and herbicides poison bugs that birds need, and don’t make our environment better — some of these herbicides even cause cancer in humans and probably pets.

In the wintertime, giving birds seed or suet will help many individuals survive cold and wet times. 

We humans have taken away so much of their habitats that it is only fair that we make our yards the best habitats for birds that we can.

Where can you find all these answers about your 2020 totem? We have several great local bird books:

Birds of Puget Sound by Dennis Paulson, 2016; 

Birds of Washington by Stan Tekiela, 2001; and 

Kenn Kaufman has a great book, Field Guide to Birds of North America which clearly shows identifying points.

Townsend's Warbler- a year-round resident
Photo by Chris Southwick

Also, here are two websites that can help: Bird Web and All About Birds

Get to know your totem bird — watch it and learn its mannerisms — you’ll be amazed at how much you will enjoy getting to know this species.

I can’t wait to see who my totem will be this year!

Support the work of the LFP Stewardship Foundation with a donation for their auction

The Lake Forest Park Stewardship Foundation is now seeking sponsorships and item donations for their Leap Day Dinner raffle and auction, to be held on February 29, 2020.

Do you create art or products, or provide a service, which would be good prizes or auction items to support our cause? Sponsorships are also available at the $1000, $500 and $300 levels.

It's a great way for you or your business to show your support for the work of the Foundation! You will receive signage and acknowledgement at our event, as well as promotion on our facebook and website -- and know that your support makes a difference right here in our own watershed.

Contact them at info@lfpsf.org or leave a message at 206-361-7076

Death notices November 1 - 30, 2019

Obituary flowers - oil painting by Chrystine Westphal

Obituaries are condensed biographies of people's lives, written by the people who loved them.

Like a memorial service, they tell us things we may not have known about the person, and may leave us wishing we had known them better

Obituaries extracted from The Seattle Times and other sources

Louise Joyce Jones 1926 - 2019  For over 40 years, Joyce worked for the Shoreline School District. Her greatest joy was time spent in the classroom helping children with special needs.

Gary Snyder  age 80  A charter member of the Washington State Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame, he led Shorecrest High School to the AAA state championship title in 1975.

Grace Frances King 1929 - 2019  Grace was involved in many clubs in her community and made friends wherever she went. Her memorial will be at Lake Forest Park Presbyterian Church.

Bernard Alvin Carnes "Doc"  1923 - 2019  Doc and his wife Betty lived in Shoreline for 47 years, wintering in Mesa AZ. He was a 50 year Life Member of the Lake City Elks.

Joseph Gustave (Munary) Munari 1972 - 2019  Joe was active in the Shoreline YMCA Guides, Cub Scout Pack 301, and later achieved the rank of Eagle Scout while a member of Boy Scout Troop 345.

Rosemary Sneeringer  1921 - 2019  Ray and Rosemary married in 1946 and raised their six children in a home in Shoreline near St. Luke Parish. The Sneeringer kids all attended St. Luke school. She continued to golf competitively at Jackson Park into her 90's, shooting her age several times. Burial at Holyrood in Shoreline.

John "Howard" Kirkpatrick 1929 - 2019  Howard and Bonnie raised their five children in Shoreline, where he lived for 65 years. He was a veteran of the Korean Conflict. He started and managed Aurora Lawnmower where he worked over 60 years, retiring at age 80. He volunteered as a Scout leader, PTA President and served on the Shoreline Juvenile Court Conference Committee for 27 years.

Jan Wittmeyer  age 91  Died in Shoreline. Survived by her two daughters and four grandchildren. A celebration of life was held for her at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Shoreline.

Kathleen Mae Kreiss 1936 - 2019  She taught at King's Schools in Shoreline, then worked at the Center for Human Services at its Bitter Lake office. She was an officer in the League of Women Voters and active in Camp Fire. As president of the Snohomish County Foster Parents Association, she was a strong advocate for the rights of children caught up in the foster care system. More than a dozen foster children were part of her family during the 70's, and animals, especially rescued shelter dogs, were always important in her life.

John Bradley Bannecker 1930 - 2019  Died in Shoreline. A marine, he served in the Korean War. Taught industrial arts in Seattle Schools for 25 years, and set an example for the differently-abled students he served from his wheelchair.

Karen Roberta Burgoyne (née Busby)  1959 - 2019  Member of the Shorecrest High School graduating class of 1978. Services were held at Shoreline Covenant Church on N 185th in Shoreline.

Brian Peter Cohee 1965 - 2019 Died in Shoreline. He was a Chief Technology Officer for several companies and named Best CTO by InfoWorld in 2009. He loved hiking and climbing mountains. He loved tweaking and tuning his several motorcycles and especially riding off-road at remote locations. He helicopter skied, had a hole-in-one at golf playing with his father, and mountain biked with reckless abandon.

Photos: Poinsettias

Photo by Lee Lageschulte

Lee found this display at Sky Nursery before Christmas. One had been sold from the display and most probably many of the rest went for holiday decorations.

Self Care Sunday at the Creativity Loft

Self Care Sunday, December 29, 2019, at The Creativity Loft, 1539 NE 177th St, Shoreline 98155

Join The Creativity Loft for a restorative and rejuvenating experience after the holidays. Register for vision boards, chakra balancing, therapeutic massage, and oracle reading to start your new year inspired and refreshed!

$25 | Vision Boards (10AM to 2PM)
$25 | Chakra Balancing (15 minutes)
$30 | Therapeutic Massage (20 minutes)
$45 | Intuitive Tarot Reading (20 minutes)

Book Your Session

The Creativity Loft is a community space for artistic expression and healing.
206-745 - 2281

Help Ridgecrest meet their Hopelink food drive goal

Ridgecrest Neighborhood Association has organized a Holiday Food Drive for Hopelink, Shoreline's Food Bank, for 11 years.

This year, they raised the bar with the hopes of collecting 1,300 pounds of food.

With just 3 days left to go they still need to collect 369 pounds of non-perishable food.

Your help to reach the 1,300 goal is appreciated.

To make donating easy, there are two drop-off sites in the Ridgecrest Neighborhood.

• CAFE AROMA, 509 NE 165th, 6am - 6pm, open 7 days a week

• RIDGECREST PUBLIC HOUSE, 520 NE 165th, Mon-Wed 4pm-Midnight, Thurs-Sun 2pm-Midnight

To make things even easier for you, at Cafe Aroma, you can just drive up to the order window - you don't even have to get out of your car - just hand your donation through the window.

Letter to the Editor: Such a pleasure to read about the FC Shoreline soccer team

To the Editor:

It was such a pleasure to read about not only the successes of this team (We All Wore Blue) but also the diversity of the membership. 

If only our local and national representatives would follow such a path. Imagine what could be achieved.

Many thanks to Emerson Robbins for telling us the story.

Jonelle Kemmerling
Shoreline

What to Expect Before You Go to College - Eastside CHADD Jan 15

Bree Callahan is the featured speaker for the Wednesday, January 15, 2020 meeting of Eastside CHADD (for children and adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).

6:45 p.m. to 8:45 p.m at the Boys and Girls Club of Bellevue, 209 100th Ave NE, Bellevue 98004, 2nd Floor

This program is for teens, parents, and school staff.

• Do my accommodations directly transfer from high school to college?
• Do I have to talk to staff about my disability?
• What will be different in college for me as person with a disability?

These are just some of the common questions students and families ask of college Disability Services staff as they explore the transition to college. Join Bree Callahan from the UW to learn more about differences in college as a student with a disability, steps to help prepare for a successful transition, and ask all your questions about getting started in a new school system. 

Bree Callahan UW
Featured speaker

Bree Callahan currently serves as the ADA/Section 504 Coordinator for the University of Washington, working across all campuses and UW Medicine. A key role of the ADA/Section 504 Coordinator at the UW is to provide: leadership, coordination and oversight of strategic priorities relating to accessibility.

Prior to transitioning to this role in October 2018, Bree served as the Director of Disability Resources for Students at the UW. In this role she oversaw an office charged with facilitation of the accommodation process.

DRS works annually with 3000+ students with disabilities, 3200+ faculty/academic staff, and 15 academic colleges and professional schools. Overall Bree has seventeen years’ experience in higher education at both two-year and four year institutions within Washington State.

She has also served on two WA State Legislative Task Force’s examining barriers in place for students with disabilities transitioning and/or transferring to Washington State higher education institutions.

All are welcome to join us for this informative meeting.
Eastside CHADD Members : No fee - a membership benefit
Non-members: Suggested donation of $7 to help defray the meeting costs and chapter expenses

More information on meetings

Eastside CHADD now meets the THIRD WEDNESDAY of the month, September - June (except December)

Support and information for families and individuals living with ADHD. Please join us at our informative presentations that are held at the Boys and Girls Club of Bellevue (2nd floor)

Visit a bilingual classroom at North Seattle French School open house Jan 15

Open house hosted by North Seattle French School, a French immersion and bilingual preschool and K-5 elementary school in Shoreline.

Wednesday, January 15, 2020 from 10:30am – 12:00pm. Shoreline Center, Wing F, 18560 1st Ave NE, Shoreline 98155.

North Seattle French School invites you to an open house and tour of the school while class is in session. Come learn about our curriculum and the benefits of immersion and bilingual education, and see our faculty and students in action.

Families will also have the opportunity to meet current parents and teachers and talk about about the NSFS experience with those who have firsthand experience.

North Seattle French School is now accepting applications for the 2020-2021 school year.

French language experience is NOT needed for students entering preschool or kindergarten.

North Seattle French School (NSFS), an independent preschool and elementary school, moved to the Shoreline Center in July of 2019. NSFS offers excellent academics, an engaged community of families, and a school-wide focus on social and emotional learning, all in a bilingual environment.

We believe that learning another language helps children grow into capable, independent thinkers who will contribute as global citizens of the future.

To RSVP, email office@northseattlefrenchschool.com

Friday afternoon at the movies: Jan 3 at Senior Center

Coming Up for Friday Afternoon at the Movies, January 3,2020 at the Shoreline-Lake Forest Park Senior Center

In partnership with Scarecrow Video come and enjoy Tim’s Vermeer, a 2013 film. (See what Wikipedia has to say about the documentary)

Inventor Tim Jenison seeks to understand the painting techniques used by 17th century Dutch Master Johannesburg Vermeer. How did he achieve such photographic realism in his paintings?

New movie time is 1:00pm and will be held in the Bridge Room. A $2.00 donation is suggested. The film is 80 minutes in length.


The Shoreline-Lake Forest Park Senior Center is located in the southernmost building of the Shoreline Center campus, 18560 1st Ave NE. 206-365-1536.

Scam of the week: Email pretending to come from the minister of your church

At least two Shoreline churches are reporting an email scam.

Church members receive an email purporting to come from the minister of their church. The "minister" tells them that a church member is in need of help and can they contribute?

The church member is asked to reply to the email (because the "minister's" phone is not working). Once hooked, they are asked to purchase a gift card and email the numbers to the "minister."

This vegetarian diet was more wearisome than Clyde had anticipated...

Photo by Gloria Z Nagler

but greens are good for you (even if they are a little hard to handle)

Ten Years Ago: Information sessions about the bond proposed to rebuild the high schools

By Diane Hettrick

Now that construction is complete for Shorewood and Shorecrest High Schools, it's startling to see what a long process it was.

In December of 2009, the Shoreline School District, which had been planning the new high schools since design work was funded by a 2006 bond, were ready to start showing all the details to the public ahead of the February election.

Nine meetings were announced but there were at least two dozen, as school administrators talked to every group they could find in Shoreline and Lake Forest Park.

The special election scheduled for February 9, 2010 was a big one for the school district. In addition to building two new high schools, they were asking for a four year renewal of the maintenance and operation levy, and a four year capital levy for technology purchase and support.

All of the measures passed.

In other December 2009 news, Bob Ferguson was unopposed in his re-election to the King County Council and talking about running for State Attorney General.

Shoreline was asking citizens to vote on an environmental slogan, with these choices:

• Forevergreen
• Sage Advice
• Keeping it Green
• Sowing the Seeds of Sustainability

Did any of them win? Darned if I know.

The Shoreline City Council saw the election of three new members, with Keith McGlashan being the only incumbent councilmember in four years to be re-elected.

The three local Rotary clubs (Shoreline breakfast, Shoreline lunch, Lake Forest Park) banded together to buy a full-color dictionary for every third-grader in Shoreline Schools.

Book review by Aarene Storms: The Great Alone

The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah

It's 1974. Dad is a Vietnam POW survivor and has massive PTSD, including nightmares and rampant paranoia. Mom figures that if she loves him enough, he'll stop bashing her around. Daughter figures if she can keep a low-enough profile, everything will be "fine."

They decide to move to a (then) remote area of Alaska. BECAUSE 6 MONTHS OF DARKNESS WILL DEFINITELY MAKE THINGS BETTER?!?!

As the narrative steadily chugged towards catastrophe, I could not look away-- in fact, I had to shut off the audiobook and switch to print so I could survive it faster.

Recommended, but there are plenty of triggers, including a lot of domestic violence, cussing, sexual situations, bullying, mental illness, alcohol, PTSD, and blood.

Best to read this in summer, when it isn't so dark out there.


The events may not have happened; still, the story is true. --R. Silvern

Aarene Storms, youth services librarian
Richmond Beach and Lake Forest Park Libraries, KCLS astorms@kcls.org

Cartoon by Whitney Potter: Frostie relaxing in the sauna

Previous cartoons by Whitney Potter can be found 

under Features in the first column of the 

front page of the Shoreline Area News

Wrestling: Shorewood placed 3rd in Gator Invite in Federal Way Dec 14

Hunter Tibodeau pinned all three of his opponents
for his first title and Leyton Houck placed
4th - both in the 182lb category

Taejin Thongdee also won his first tournament title
when he took the crown at 285 pounds.

Left: Quincy Laflin took 3rd in 120lb. Center: Yeyha Zennadine was 1st in JV 120lb. Right: Joseph Rivera was 2nd in JV 132lb.

In the 152lb competition, Devin Leach (right) was 2nd and Kody Carpenter (left) was 3rd.

Left: Curt Tanaka took 3rd in the 138lb. Center: Cole Becker was 4th in the 160lb. Right: Rory Swanson was 2nd in the JV 160lb.

It was a solid showing for the Shorewood wrestling team on Saturday, December 14, 2019 as they travelled south to Decatur High School in Federal Way for the Gator Invite. 

With seventeen wrestlers across JV and Varsity brackets, the Thunderbirds came ready to wrestle.

Highlighting the event were a pair of first time champions. 

At 182 pounds freshman Hunter Tibodeau pinned all three of his opponents for his first title. 

Taejin Thongdee also won his first tournament title when he took the crown at 285 pounds.

Altogether Shorewood placed 3rd in the team standings.

Shorewood wrestled next on Thursday, December 19, 2019 at home against Marysville-Getchell. They won 39-36 in a stress-filled game. (see article)

--Clark Norton

120 Quincy Laflin 3rd

120JV Yeyha Zennadine 1st

132 Aidan Jung 5th 

132JV Joseph Rivera 2nd

138 Curt Tanaka 3rd

152 Devin Leach 2nd

152 Kody Carpenter 3rd

160 Cole Becker 4th

160JV Rory Swanson 2nd

182 Hunter Tibodeau 1st

182 Leyton Houck 4th

182 Max Null 5th

220JV Jake Moen 4th

285 Taejin Thongdee 1st

285 Tom Bert 4th

Just published: We All Wore Blue - the FC Shoreline International youth soccer team

Players gathered for their 10 year reunion and to
celebration the publication of the story of their team
Coach / author Emerson Robbins at right

"We All Wore Blue" is the true story of a Shoreline youth soccer team comprised of players from as many as seventeen different countries, every major race and religion and how the team came together and embraced one another and celebrated their differences on their journey to winning two Washington State Championships in 2006 through 2010.

The team was located in Shoreline and was actually named FC Shoreline International.

Their coach, Emerson Robbins, has written a book about the team, which can be found on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and most of the prominent Northwest area bookstores.

It's an inspirational story for our country and the world, especially important for today's turbulent times.

Centerpieces and decorations included flags from the
17 home countries of the players

The players, now in their late 20s, reunited recently at the Innis Arden Clubhouse in Shoreline to celebrate the book launch and their ten year anniversary.

A successful screenwriter is working on developing the story into a series aimed at Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu or one of the other networks.

Here is Robbins' account of their beginnings

I was born in Seattle, but I grew up in the Los Angeles area. My family moved here (Shoreline) in 1998 and lived there until 2010, when we moved to Whidbey Island, where my wife and I currently live.

 

I have coached youth soccer for over 35 years. After coaching for about twenty years, when we moved up here I began coaching my youngest son's team. It was the typical youth soccer team you'd find in most parts of the country, except it may have been the worst team I'd ever seen.

The coaches were just Dads who didn't really know too much about soccer, but were trying to do the right thing by their kids and the team. They had not won a single game during the first three years of the team's existence. 

Once I took over, the team started winning, but also changing. 

It's a long story, but somehow, without any real intention, the team attracted many immigrant kids who wanted to play. One day, there was a tall African boy watching our team practice and seeing him jealously watching, I invited him to join our practice. It turned out he was from Ethiopia and he and his family had just come from a refugee camp in Kenya just weeks prior to coming to WA State. 

They were living in subsidized apts in Shoreline, just a block or two from the park we practiced at. He loved playing on our team and soon began sharing his joy with other immigrant kids in his ESL class at Einstein Middle School. 

Within a year or two, other immigrant boys joined our team and before long, there were more kids from different countries, races and religions than there were white suburban kids.

The team continued winning and improving.

We ended up all bonding, the players and the families and enjoyed incredible international feasts, with food from as many as 16 different countries. The parents could not afford to pay the high costs of the youth soccer fees, so I helped pay their way. 

However, the families could cook, so we all enjoyed these amazing get togethers. 

This became our FC Shoreline International team, which ended up winning our respective league titles every year as well as two Washington State Championships. 

From the worst youth team I'd seen years earlier, we transformed into one of the top youth soccer teams in the State.

However, the real story was how we all became close and the players and families all celebrated our differences. 

People from dramatically different economic circumstances, different races, religions, etc. 

And no one on the team cared about such superficial nonsense. 

We just had fun together, sharing what we had in common, the love of soccer and the incredible food from all these assorted cultures and countries. 

I knew our story might be of interest to many, as whenever we would play an away game, people would look at our motley group and wonder where we were from and how we happened to come together. 

However, it wasn't until our current President started speaking so disparagingly and cruelly about immigrants, than I was motivated to have our story told and began writing the book, "We All Wore Blue."

 

Flags at half-staff Monday for Deputy Cooper Dyson

Governor Inslee is deeply saddened by the death of Pierce County Deputy Cooper Dyson, 25, and directs that Washington State and United States flags at all state agency facilities be lowered to half-staff in his memory on Monday, December 30, 2019. 

Deputy Dyson died in the line of duty when his patrol car crashed while on his way to back up other officers on an urgent domestic violence call.

Flags should remain at half-staff until close of business or sunset on Monday, December 30, 2019.

Other government entities, citizens and businesses are encouraged to join this recognition.

On Monday, December 30, 2019, a procession will begin at 11:00am, at Joint Base Lewis-McChord’s main gate, heading north, exiting onto South Tacoma Way, then east on 26th Street, and ending at the Tacoma Dome on “D” Street.

A memorial service will be held at 1:00pm at the Tacoma Dome. The public is invited to attend the service.

Please call (360) 902-0383 if you have any questions about this flag lowering.

Basketball: Shorewood girls hoops in San Diego for holiday tournament

Coach Mark Haner talks things over during a timeout
SAN Sports Desk photo

When you’ve got a basketball roster full of high-achieving girls in the classroom, it’s not surprising when they put their collective noodles together and decide to mix business with pleasure on a trip down to sunny San Diego, “America’s Finest City,” over the holidays.

And that’s exactly what Shorewood Head Coach Mark Haner’s girls did.

“Last year the SW boys team took a similar holiday trip to Arizona to play in a tournament,” Haner said after his team was trounced by Alameda (CA) at Scripps Ranch HS Friday afternoon, December 27, 2019.

"Realizing such a dream trip was a possibility for them, our team put plans in motion to make it happen, starting back in April.”

“We’ve got a couple 4.0s (GPA), a couple 3.7s, and some 3.5s. This trip is a reward for their classroom dedication as well as the leadership they demonstrate on campus,” he said.

“And who doesn’t want to enjoy sunny weather with temperatures at least 20 degrees warmer than back home this time of the year?"

Molly Stamey #22 sees her
shot go in
Photo SAN Sports Desk

The team will play three games in four days, taking Sunday off, before heading home the morning of New Year's Eve. They went to the San Diego Zoo Thursday, with a beach hike and pool time planned, as well as a trip up to Disneyland, in the days ahead.

On the court, the good news for the T-Birds is that all eight girls who suited up scored against the aggressive, swarming Hornets from up in the Bay Area.

“We knew coming in that we were likely going to be over-matched, and that was the case today. 

But we’re learning how to respond to pressure defenses and we believe this will benefit us in the long run when we resume play in WESCO after the break."

--From the Sports Desk, on scene in San Diego

Photo: Hairbrokers display

Photo by Lee Lageschulte

No one is more enthusiastic about decorations than Hairbrokers at 8th NW and NW 185th. This is just a small portion of their holiday display. They decorate for many other holidays as well.

Hairbrokers, 622 NW Richmond Beach Rd, Shoreline 98177, located in The Shops at Richmond Beach in the 4-Corners business district.

Photo: While you were sleeping..

Felix at Red Sky Gallery in LFP
Photo by Cynthia Sheridan

While other kids were sleeping in the day after Christmas, Felix was out wandering through Red Sky Gallery with his mom, who is happy to encourage his interest in art. 

As stimulating and provocative as any museum, the gallery offers the work of nine local artists and also provides a variety of art classes.

The gallery, located in Lake Forest Park Town Center, is also available to rent as a space for special events. See their website.

--Cynthia Sheridan