August 2012

Press release:

Burien Little Theatre presents the rip-roaring pirate play “Bold Grace: The Voyages of the Pirate O’Malley”, written by Ashley Schalow, in two pay-what-you-will fundraiser performances on Friday, Sept. 7 and Saturday, Sept. 8.

In this simply jaw-dropping one-woman performance, actor Anna Richardson brings16th-century Irish pirate Grace O’Malley to life.

The real Grace lived a very full life, including pirating up and down the Irish coast, leading an army of 200 loyal fighting men and her own fleet of ships, two marriages, four children (one born while Grace was at sea), and even a documented face-to-face meeting with Queen Elizabeth I.

Beginning with her first voyage with her father at the age of nine, Grace relives key points in her life until her death in 1603. Under the direction of Steve Cooper, Anna Richardson is so spellbinding as Grace you will swear you can feel the salt air on your face.
This show is suitable for ages 12-plus due to some adult language.

Got a hankering for Ivar’s? Well, maybe this once, that hankering will actually go to a cause worthier than your stomach.

Ivar’s new campaign “Shell-Out for Hunger” campaign seeks to benefit local nonprofit Northwest Harvest to help combat hunger. People may drop off non-perishable food at any Ivar’s location and, in return for their good deed, they will get a free cup of clam chowder (one per person) for donations of five or more items. Not only that, but Ivar’s will match every item collected with a cup of chowder to Northwest Harvest.

Monetary donations are also accepted and may be given through a simple text. All you need to do is text “SHELLOUT” to 80888 for a one-time donation of $10.

According to their website, Northwest Harvest is the only nonprofit food bank distributor operating statewide in Washington with a network of over 325 food banks and meal programs at high-need schools. They provide over 1.6 million meals every month to the network.

Now, with this campaign and with your help, they might be able to provide more meals. With a side of clam chowder, of course.

The non-Scandinavians out there might look at the title of the Nordic Heritage Museum’s new exhibit, “The Eight Seasons in Sapmi, The Land of the Sami People,” and ask, “What is Sapmi, and who are the Sami people?”

Of course, that is exactly what the exhibit, which opens up to the public this Friday, is here to help people understand. The exhibition is a collaborative effort between Danish-American photographer Bigitte Aarestrup; Ajtte, the Swedish Mountain and Sami Museum; and Sami Duodji, the Sami Handicraft. The event also features items and traditional Sami clothing from Nordic Heritage Museum’s own private collection.

As for Sapmi, a poem that can be found at the exhibit helps explain:

“We call our land Sapmi,
It is not a state, it has no marked borders,
But it is our home.
Sapmi means both the land and the people.
We are part of this earth and the soil is part of us.”

By Christy Wolyniak

The approach of autumn season brings with it not only BHS football (go Beavers!), but another, perhaps lesser known opportunity at the Loyal Heights Community Center. Volleyball.

Seattle Parks and Recreation hosts the Community Center leagues for only $35 for the whole season. Compared to $1,500 a season for some club leagues, the price makes learning to play volleyball an affordable option for students, particularly those in middle school. The program began at the Ballard Community Center, but recent cutbacks in funds led the program to make Loyal Heights its new stomping ground.

“I love coaching because I like teaching something that I myself love to do. If I can impart the love that I have for the sport to others then that’s great,” said Loyal Heights Coach, Mark Myers.

Myers has been coaching for community centers for seven years and coached four years for the Cascade Volleyball Club. Trained in Gold Medal Squared (GMS), the Loyal Heights coaches use the same coaching system used by the US Olympic teams, University of Washington, and many other college and high school programs.

Bringing the season of Hiawatha Concerts in the Park for 2012 to a close is Curtains for You described as "Classic harmony-laden pop with a cult following."

Now in their fourth season of concerts the Hiawatha Concerts in the Park series is brought to you by the Admiral Neighborhood Association.

The shows take place at Hiawatha Park 2700 California Avenue SW (between Lander St & Stevens St)

Concerts start at 6:30pm and kids, babies, dogs, and families are welcome. Bring a blanket or something to sit on and enjoy.

This is a FREE event but a donation in support of the concerts would be appreciated.

Thursday, August 30, 2012 - 6:30pm - 8:00pm

You can get a sense of what they sound like from these YouTube videos, or by visiting the Music page on their website.

West Seattle's ArtsWest Theater has won a $10,000 grant from the American Theatre Wing, best known as the creator of the Antoinette Perry "Tony" Awards. The grant, one of the organization's 2012 National Theatre Company grants was given to only 10 theaters . ArtsWest is the first theater in Washington State to win this award.

According to a press release from ArtsWest, "The grant is given to emerging regional theaters that have articulated a distinctive mission, cultivated an audience, and nurtured a community of artists in ways that strengthen and demonstrate the quality, diversity, and dynamism of American theatre."

The ATW Grants have distributed some $3 million dollars over the past 55 years.

Artistic Director Christopher Zinovitch said, "Any grant, any award is always a surprise." He expressed his gratitude to, " the board, staff, actors, volunteers, and founders, and all who have contributed to ArtsWest. Because of all of you, we were able to move forward and get to this level."

Two-thirds of Burien residents think the city is headed in the right direction, according to the results of a community assessment survey presented at the Aug. 27 City Council meeting.

However, that is a slight decrease from 2010 when 72 percent said Burien was on the right path. The figure was 74 percent in 2008.

According to the survey-takers, the slight downtick may be a spillover from dissatisfaction with national and state events, according to City Manager Mike Martin. He noted that 2012 is a presidential election year.

The Burien survey is taken every two years to gauge how residents feel about the general quality of life in Burien and city services. Four hundred scientifically selected residents were surveyed on the phone.

The survey indicated that a majority of people feel safe in downtown Burien and in their neighborhoods, especially during the day. More women felt unsafe in the 2012 survey, compared with 2010 and 2008.

Surprisingly the top reason (25 percent) survey participants gave for living in Burien is they have lived here their whole life or since childhood. Affordable living was cited by 15 percent.

Workers are busy outfitting the former Bohemian Restaurant at 3405 California Ave. s.w. as it becomes the newest in a small chain of restaurants by owner Greg Beckley. West City Kitchen (the name used on the city permit), if all goes well will have the principal remodeling work done in the next 30 to 40 days according to workers on the site and will open possibly in October or November, pending permit approval.

The Bohemian closed in December of 2010.

So far the changes that are visible are new casement windows (there was dry rot there previously) that will open, 7 booths for dining, the bar extended and moved toward the door, a new back bar and the restructuring of wall by the kitchen. The ceiling now has exposed beams. The bathrooms remain unchanged. They will offer outdoor dining when the weather permits with a new iron railing being built.

Beckley is also the owner of Saltoro at 14051 Greenwood Avenue North, and Bick's Broadview Grill 10555 Greenwood Avenue North.

Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn held a town hall meeting with West Seattle residents on Aug. 28 to answer a multitude of questions.

McGinn opened the meeting with a summary of Seattle’s economic situation, saying our city is leading the state in job creation, but still sits at 6.5 percent unemployment, meaning “there is a lot more work to be done,” in the form of job training and working with businesses to understand their needs.

Here are some highlights:

Salaries and library closures
An attendee representing Stand Up America asked that McGinn consider lowering his salary in the face of serious budget cuts and the current weeklong library closure. McGinn responded, on the library front, that closures should not occur in the future since Seattle voters passed the library levy in the most recent election.

“I do make a good salary … and I work pretty hard,” McGinn said, adding that he donates $10,000 a year to Seattle charities, chosen by his wife and children.

“I love this job, I’d do it for free,” he continued. “If the city council wants to change my salary, they can go ahead and do that.”

Highline Public Schools press release:

Highline public schools made significant progress on state standardized tests in 2012, especially on math exams, where scores are up across the board.

Math: Scores are up in every grade tested at elementary school, middle school and high school levels. Results increased dramatically in several grades, including third grade (+8) and eighth grade (+13)

Science: Test results improved at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. Scores jumped13 points at fifth grade.

Writing: Scores increased in every grade level in which writing is assessed. They went up by five points in fourth grade and tenth grade.

Several schools saw significant gains in all subject areas. At Des Moines Elementary, Principal Jenniffer Reinig says closely monitoring students’ progress, embracing the district’s new math curriculum, and teaching to state standards led to improvements.

Des Moines Elementary State Test Score Improvement
Reading Writing Math Science
+7 +19 +10 +22