August 2013

By Maggie Nicholson

As a child, Linnea Long was the tallest of her friends. She didn’t like to stand up straight. She thought of herself as the great big girl. She was a Girl Scout Brownie and carried a boxy camera on a string around her neck.

Her parents named her Linnea after the Linnaea flower. The flower was a favorite of Swedish botanist Karl Linnaeus. Linnea was of Scandinavian descent. She loved her light blonde hair, the color of pollen. She often sat in direct sunlight, soaking it into her roots. It was a pallid shade of blonde, almost white. Her hair was very fine and would break easily if tugged. “You know when you get a piece of hair in your mouth and you’re like, yuck! And pull the thread out?” asks her husband David. “With Linnea, it wasn’t like that. It was so fine, it would almost dissolve.”

When she sat outside, her light-colored hair attracted bumblebees. This dissuaded her from camping. She hated bugs.

The Paul G. Allen (of Microsoft co-founder fame) Family Foundation ponied up a $91,000 one-year pilot grant to allow the Seattle Public Library to provide expanded services to libraries at Sanislo and Roxhill elementary schools in West Seattle.

The partnership between the schools and SPL was announced on Aug. 5.

Here are the details from SPL:

Through the grant, titled, "Sharing Our Stories: A School and Public Library Partnership Project," The Seattle Public Library will:

• Loan books and materials to Sanislo and Roxhill elementary schools that support the Common Core State Standards and serve the needs of emergent, or aspiring readers.
• Provide special Library cards to Sanislo and Roxhill elementary school teachers and librarians. These institutional Library cards will make it easier for them to check out materials for their students from The Seattle Public Library.

I wish I could make this message more dramatic but as a layman, my views may be one sided but i wish to express them for what they are worth. Our hard working Sheriff Deputies are laying their lives on the line, frequently performing dangerous duties, and need recognition.

However, from a financial view are our taxpayers receiving their dollars worth in the correct priorities from enforcement?

We hear the terms "going after the bad guys" which we feel needs rethinking.

The time and effort spent apprehending these bad guys, then going though our expensive justice system ( which seems far too lenient) provides very little payback for all the investment from taxpayers resources. Some times a slap on the wrist or to short jail time for repeat offenders... is this proper punishment?

There is however, income available if vehicle traffic enforcement was made a higher priority, and traffic officers were assigned and made available. As an example, the City of Seattle installed cameras at a few school zones and they are collecting millions of dollars from speeding driver in just a few locations.

Seattle Public Schools announced their replacement for Director of Schools for the Southwest region (including West Seattle) on Aug. 6. In mid-July Carmela Dellino announced she was leaving the position to take a job with the City of Seattle.

Mr. Israel Vela is taking over after a 13 year leadership tenure at the Kent School District.

Here is the announcement from SPS Superintendent Jose Banda:

Dear Seattle Public Schools community,

I am pleased to announce that Mr. Israel Vela has been appointed Executive Director of Schools for the Southwest region.

Mr. Vela will support the principals and schools in the southwest region of the city with responsibilities that include coaching principals, coordinating professional development for principals and teachers, strengthening our systems for monitoring and using student data, and conducting frequent learning walks in the schools – all in service of ensuring a world-class, 21st century education for every child in every classroom in the Southwest region.

Sportswatch

Youth sports
All-City swimming
The Seattle Summer Swim League's annual All-City meet will be held Tuesday, Aug. 6 at the Sand Point Country Club in North Seattle.
Action starts at 4 p.m. in the pool located at 8333 55th Ave. N.E. for the meet that marks the end of the SSSL season.
Included in the meet are the Arbor Heights club of West Seattle, the Gregory Seahurst club from Burien and Normandy Park's Olympic View and Normandy Park teams.

High school sports
Fall turnouts
Tryouts for high school football in Washington state get underway Wednesday, Aug. 21, followed by all other fall sports on Monday, Aug. 26.

Pro sports
Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners have a busy week of Major League Baseball ahead, starting with three games against the Toronto Blue Jays followed by three against the Milwaukee Brewers.
Seattle hosts the Blue Jays for 7 p.m. games Monday, Aug. 5 and Tuesday, Aug. 6 followed by a 12:40 p.m. game Wednesday, Aug. 7.

All ballots for the primary and special elections most be returned today.

Ballots can be returned by mail or simply be dropped off in one of the drop boxes around town.

By mail, ballots must have a first class postage and be postmarked by August 6.

Ballot drop boxes are located throughout the county and no stamp is needed. Ballots must be in drop boxes by 8:00 p.m. on August 16.

In West Seattle and White Center, there are ballot drop box vans located at the West Seattle Stadium (4432 35th Ave. S.W.) and the White Center at Greenbridge Library (9720 8th Ave. S.W.).

This election is the first step to deciding the new mayor of the city of Seattle, school board candidates for the district covering Ballard, funding for parks and more.

For more info, visit http://www.kingcounty.gov/elections/currentelections/201308.aspx

Update for 11:40 a.m.
According to the Seattle Police Department, West Seattle's excitement for the day started with a witness calling 911 around 10:20 a.m. to report he or she was following a man in a stolen gray pickup full of landscaping supplies.

Potentially picking up on his tracker, police said the suspect rammed the 911 caller near 53rd Ave. S.W. and S.W. Admiral Way. A responding officer caught up with the suspect in front of Starbuck's at California Ave. S.W. and S.W. Morgan, where the suspect put it into reverse and crunched the patrol cars front end, disabling the vehicle (the officer was not seriously hurt).

Police said the suspect took off yet again, but bailed out of the truck shortly thereafter and was found hiding under a deck near the intersection of 40th Ave. S.W. and S.W. Holly St.

Original post at 11:30 a.m., Aug. 6
Seattle police have a man in custody after he allegedly stole a gray pickup truck in West Seattle and rammed into a police cruiser in pursuit on Aug. 6.

Compiled by Katie Nelson

Deadline for receiving items for Community Calendar is 5 p.m. Wednesday for the following week’s Times/News. Events are published based on timeliness and space availability. Email submissions to: hteditor@robinsonnews.com
Items can be accepted from nonprofit groups and government agencies only. Others may call Dona Ozier at (206) 708-1378 for inclusion in our “Out & About” advertising section.

Art Exhibits

Burien Community Center—
“No Boundaries 2013,Beginnings & Beyond.” Exhibit by artists with disabilities. Through Sept. 30. Monday-Thursday, 8:30 a.m.-8 p.m. and Fridays 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. For more information call 206-988-3700

Movies

Outdoor Family Movies—
8-11 p.m. Des Moines Beach Park, 22030 Cliff Ave. S. Aug. 9—“The Avengers,” Aug. 23—“Hotel Transylvania.”
Summer Outdoor Cinema Series—

A couple of nights ago, I watched ALL of the public comment from the 07/23 RCM at http://www.seatvonline.com/

A prominent argument used by many proponents of the "Good Jobs in SeaTac" initiative at the 07/23 public hearing: their allegaton that hospitality-industry employers who impose an 18% or 20% service charge on large groups are “pocketing” the money rather than distributing those "service charges" among the service workers who would normally earn it as “tips” paid directly by the customers.

If this alleged claim is verifiable - that SeaTac employers are deliberately, willfully withholding payment to workers of tip income derived from mandatory “service charges” - then WHY AREN’T THESE WORKERS TAKING THIS COMPLAINT UP WITH THE WASHINGTON STATE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR & INDUSTRIES??

If this alleged claim is verifiable, why aren't these workers taking this complaint up with the U.S. Department of Labor?

By Rachel M. Lusby
SPECIAL TO THE HIGHLINE TIMES

Five years ago a well-intention and experienced former Starbucks employee, Mike Condon, and his wife Cindy opened up “Mike’s Community Cup” in the SeaTac area, with the goal of serving a great product and lots of smiles.

In its short life thus far, Community Cup has been nominated for King 5’s Best of Western Washington award for best coffee shop, and has made the top ten each year. This last year it made top five. But the shop is not only known for its product, but for the community service Mike and Cindy continue to participate in.

Condon says he grew up in a low-income household with a single mother, a twin brother and one other brother. Even then, though, his mother instilled the importance of helping others when given the opportunity, despite not having much herself. To this day Condon carries that lesson on.