West Seattle, Washington
14 Saturday
Today, Fauntleroy Way got some TLC in the form of dozens of new trees – tomorrow, 35th SW through Westwood, Gatewood and Sunrise Heights needs as many volunteers as can be mustered for a 10 am-1 pm cleanup of sidewalks and planting strips. Westwood Neighborhood Council and Friends of the Southwest Library are co-sponsors (as first reported here); check in at the library (35th/Henderson) at 10 am.
We’ve mentioned this a few times and with Saturday just around the corner, it’s time for another reminder: The Rotary Club of West Seattle is helping lead the way in a big tree-planting project along Fauntleroy Way this Saturday, along with local Boy Scouts and the city – and hopefully, with you too! Just be at Fairmount Playground starting at 9 am Saturday. Meantime, here’s the latest news release – read on:Read More
This Saturday, the youth group from Peace Lutheran Church in Gatewood hopes you’ll drop by and help them amass a sizable food donation for the West Seattle and White Center Food Banks. Peace Lutheran youth director Nicole Klinemeier explains, “The food drive is part of an event where we are talking about hunger issues. This is one of our service projects during the event. The event itself lasts for 24 hours, but they commit to not eating for 30 hours, as a taste of what it is like to go hungry.” She says the items food banks need the most include:
Cereal
Dry variety (e.g., Hamburger Helper, Rice a Roni, etc.)
Beans
Rice
Canned meat (anything but tuna)
Canned fruit and vegetables
Diapers (size 4, 5, 6)
You can drop off donations on Saturday between 8 am and 12:30 pm; Peace Lutheran is at 39th and Thistle (map). And remember – because of the Feinstein Challenge (explained here), ANY donation to the local food banks through the end of April counts for extra.
Story and photo by Keri DeTore
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
Back in January, we first told you about David Town’s decision to participate in Fred Hutchinson’s Climb to Fight Breast Cancer in honor of his wife Lisa, a breast cancer survivor.
Last night, David and Lisa held a fundraiser at Talarico’s in The Junction, to help reach David’s goal of raising $5,000 by June for the summertime climb.
Story and photos by Christopher Boffoli
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
A small but passionate group of West Seattle citizens met at the High Point Library Tuesday night to discuss ongoing issues with the maintenance and upkeep of what has become an icon at the gateway of West Seattle, the Walking on Logs sculptures.
The meeting was organized by Nancy Driver (2nd from right), who helped to orchestrate a community cleanup at (and beyond) the sculptures’ site two years ago. Driver is seeking to establish a plan for ongoing maintenance and upkeep of the site and to relieve the burden on 89-year-old Earl Cruzen (2nd from left), who has been a steward of the site and its sculptures since before their creation.
This weekend, like most, West Seattleites have stood up, bent over, dug up, pitched in to pull weeds, pluck trash, plant trees – including the special events in Delridge (WSB coverage here) and Highland Park (WSB coverage here). So tonight we’re reminding you about a chance Tuesday to stand up and say you can help take care of one of the peninsula’s “gateway” areas – the one along the southwest end of 
The Bridge. You’ll be helping pick up the baton from a West Seattle hero – Earl Cruzen, shown at right with Kimberlee Archie as he was honored a year and a half ago, the day of the big “Gateway Cleanup” (proclaimed “Earl Cruzen Day” by the city). The “Walking on Logs” sculpture and Welcome to West Seattle sign area was part of that cleanup, but that was just one, albeit big, event; Cruzen has put in countless hours taking care of the area himself. As Nancy Driver wrote in the announcement we published last month, “The statues and surround have been maintained for the past decade or more by local hero Earl Cruzen. Earl is 89 now and it’s time for others to take over upkeep of the statues and the grounds directly surrounding them.” First step toward getting involved is the Tuesday meeting at High Point Library (35th/Raymond) – 5:30 pm. Even if you’re not 100% sure you want to commit, be there to find out what needs to be done and how to be part of it.
(Saturday photo by JanS)
FROM THE WSB FORUMS: Ready for some good news? There’s a heartwarming “rave” in the WSB Forums’ Rants & Raves section – someone thankful for the people who helped an injured dog find its way home. Read it here.
YET MORE HELPFULNESS: Last weekend, Greg Hatcher shared the story of the booth he and his Madison Middle School student artists planned to have at Emerald City Comicon downtown. Today – his mega-report on the convention and the generosity of folks who chipped in to help them raise money to keep the program going (it relies in part on Partners With Youth, for which the West Seattle YMCA [WSB sponsor] is raising money right now). Read his story here.
“NEIGHBORHOOD OF THE WEEK”: Our citywide-news partners at the Seattle Times are featuring Genesee Hill as “Neighborhood of the Week” today. They’ve featured West Seattle areas before but we’re noting this (a) because Dale e-mailed us about it and (b) since it’s home to the newly formed Genesee-Schmitz Neighborhood Council (WSB coverage here).
In 1988, the Talking Heads sang, in “(Nothing But) Flowers,” about blacktop turned back into flowers and fields. A little bit of that is going on outside Highland Park Improvement Club right now, as its Spring Clean event continues till 5 pm. Becca Fong (above) and other volunteers are pulling away asphalt put over parking strips long ago, so they can plant trees (a few of which you can see at the left of this next picture):
Inside, Monica Cavagnaro and others are cleaning and sprucing up the historic HPIC building itself (just celebrated its 90th anniversary last November).
And a variety of other tasks are under way – including litter pickup in nearby greenbelt areas. Need incentive to drop by and help? Somebody mentioned “banana bread” while we were shooting pictures. Just show up any time before 5 pm, when this is scheduled to wrap up, at 1116 SW Holden (map). (And note that HPIC has some other cool events coming up too – like Wine For Our Times on April 24; the building’s also the scene of Highland Park Action Committee meetings, next one this Wednesday, March 24, 7 pm, including a candidates’ forum with those running for 34th District State House Position 2.)
(Photo by Savanna Nichols)
Thanks to North Delridge Neighborhood Council co-secretary Holli Margell for sharing these photos from Saturday’s Delridge Community Center Playground (and vicinity) cleanup by adding them to the West Seattle Blog photo group on Flickr. As that first photo shows – teamwork spanned the generations. 8 months have passed since the huge volunteer effort that built the playground; volunteer help will keep it in good shape, too, and here are more of the folks who joined forces Saturday morning to pitch in:
(Photo by Savanna Nichols)
You have more chances to help brighten West Seattle neighborhoods, today and both days next weekend (here’s our roundup with details).
Got room in your home, heart and life to help raise puppies to become guide dogs? This Monday night, there’s a chance for you to find out what’s involved and whether you can help. West Seattle See Dogs, a puppy-raising club for Guide Dogs for the Blind, “needs volunteers to spend a year or so teaching puppies good house manners and introducing them to the world,” according to organizer Ruth Oldham. As the Guide Dogs for the Blind website puts it, “As a puppy raiser, not only will you discover the delight of a four-footed, wet-nosed companion, you will join a community of like-minded people all working toward improving the quality of life for people who are blind.” The meeting’s at 7 pm Monday, Merrill Gardens-Admiral Heights (WSB sponsor) at 2326 California SW (map), and you’ll get to meet some of the “puppies in training.” If you can’t make the meeting but would like to find out about getting involved anyway, e-mail seedogs@comcast.net or call Ruth at 206-953-0268.
If you have an old pair of glasses you don’t need any more, here’s a way to make sure they don’t go to waste: Keller Williams Realty in The Junction is continuing to collect used prescription and non-prescription eyewear through the end of the month, to help Vista Missions. Hominee at KW explains, “They deliver them to people in need in foreign countries to provide free vision clinics and eye exams. Our goal is to collect enough eyeglasses by March 31st to supply an entire 5-day clinic for the team leaving for Mexico in April.” You can help by dropping off used eyewear at KW’s Junction office, 4452 California SW (map). They’re open weekdays 8:30 am-5:30 pm.
Three meetings, averaging 200+ participants each, already have happened around the city – in the Rainier Valley, in Northgate, on Beacon Hill – to coax out citizens’ hopes and ideas for Mayor McGinn’s “Youth and Families Initiative.” Tomorrow (Monday) night, the fourth meeting will be here in West Seattle — with the mayor expected to appear — at Denny International Middle School in Westwood (map). To see what the previous meetings have been like – coverage of the first meeting is here, from the Rainier Valley Post; coverage of the meeting in Northgate is here, from Maple Leaf Life; there’s some coverage from last week’s Beacon Hill meeting in an overview story published tonight by our citywide-news partners at the Seattle Times. The city says this isn’t just ABOUT youth – they hope young people will participate as well as adults – all ages welcome at 7 pm Monday at Denny.
Tuesday night, the Gatewood and Roxhill Elementary Schools‘ music programs will benefit from a mini-concert by Westside Symphonette at Gatewood – with the minimum admission price just $1 (they hope you’ll give more, of course). Here’s the plan, from Westside Symphonette’s Toni Reineke (April 2009 photo at right):
Concert in the Community
Come hear West Seattle’s very own orchestra, 45 members strong!
Program Highlights
Orchestra classics: Finlandia, Intermezzo from Hary Janos, Bugler’s Holiday (with a twist!)
Sing along: Sounds of Simon and Garfunkel
Special guests: Gatewood and Roxhill advanced strings and their coachesGatewood Elementary, 4320 SW Myrtle [map] in the cafeteria
Tuesday, March 16, 7:30 p.m.Sponsored by the Gatewood and Roxhill PTAs; funds will benefit both music programs
The Gatewood PTA also plans a bake sale, so bring $ for treats. (P.S. Westside Symphonette’s on Facebook now – you can join its group page here.)
12:54 PM: The Nature Consortium‘s celebrating its success and looking to its future right now at The Hall at Fauntleroy, during its second annual Benefit Brunch (co-sponsored by WSB). In the capacity crowd, we spotted King County Executive Dow Constantine, State Sen. Joe McDermott, and Seattle School Board rep Steve Sundquist. The Nature Consortium 
is a West Seattle-based nonprofit, headquartered at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center in North Delridge, and its main work involves restoring the West Duwamish Greenbelt – with lots of volunteer help! Their work parties are listed on greenseattle.org – lots of chances to help (including the upcoming Duwamish Alive! events in honor of Earth Day, April 17). 1:54 PM: Added photos – including, at right, NC board member Becca Fong.
While stopping by Hotwire Coffee (WSB sponsor) in The Junction, we got that photo of some of the pet food dropped off there for the White Center Food Bank pet-food drive that wraps up today. Food’s been collected at Hotwire and two Burien locations for the past few weeks – and today you can drop off donations at WCFB (which serves part of West Seattle too) until 4 pm, 10829 8th SW (map). Read more about the pet-food drive here; also remember that donations to the WC and West Seattle Food Banks through the end of next month count for MORE because of the Feinstein Challenge (explained here).
That photo e-mailed to us shows part of the crew getting ready for tomorrow’s 4th Grade Used Book Sale at Sanislo Elementary, raising money for their annual educational overnight trip. Coffee, tea and treats, too! 10 am-2 pm, 1812 SW Myrtle (map). That’s one of four benefit sales tomorrow in the West Seattle Weekend Lineup – TONS going on – review the list here.
#1 – HEALTH FAIR SEEKS BUSINESS PARTICIPANTS: Here’s the announcement:
What does being healthy mean to you? Pathfinder K-8 wants to know! Can you share your healthy living ideas with our community? If you are a business that promotes healthy food, fitness, environmental practices- we would love to hear from you. Pathfinder K-8 is looking for local business to share their scoop on healthy living in Seattle. April 29th the PTSA is sponsoring a health fair and we are looking for people to set up a spot in our cafeteria and share knowledge and/ or demos. For more information, please contact Lashanna Williams at lashannaw@gmail.com
#2 – EARTH DAY WORK PARTY AND FESTIVAL: On the next Duwamish Alive! day, this one on April 17th in honor of Earth Day, there’ll be a huge work party at and adjacent to Pathfinder K-8 grounds (map), 9:30 am-2 pm. Last year hundreds of volunteers worked at the site. After the work party, Pathfinder will host an Earth Day Festival 2-4 pm. If you can help with the work party, RSVP by e-mailing marisa@naturec.org or call 206-932-0853 (if you get voice mail, leave your name, phone number, and e-mail address).
#3, UPCOMING SCHOOL VISITS: Pathfinder is an option school and therefore among those that must specifically be chosen. The open enrollment period continues three more weeks, till the end of the month, and the school asked us to remind you of these chances to visit Pathfinder if you’re considering applying to go there:
K through 5th Grade Visits
8:45 am to 10:00 am
March 15th, 18th and 22nd6th through 8th Grade Visits
8:45 am to 10:00 am
March 11th and 25thPlease call the school office if you need an alternate date/time to visit Pathfinder, (206) 252-9710
Earlier we mentioned the forthcoming door-to-door food drive by West Seattle Boy Scouts. Also wanted to remind you about a current food drive that’s close to wrapping up – collecting pet food to make available to clients at the White Center Food Bank (which also serves a sizable section of West Seattle). You can drop off pet food at Hotwire Online Coffeehouse (WSB sponsor) in West Seattle (in addition to two Burien locations), and the drive will conclude with student volunteers on hand to accept donated pet food at the WC Food Bank this Saturday, 10 am-4 pm. Full details including addresses are in the announcement we originally published at White Center Now.
Most of our door-to-door alerts are of the “beware” variety. These upcoming door-to-door visitors hope to be welcomed. It’s time again for West Seattle Boy Scouts‘ door-to-door food drive, with notices this Saturday and pickups a week later – Rick McMinn of Troop 282 provides the details:
Since 1910, the ideals of Scouting have guided young men to perform “service to others and to the community.” Responding to the plight of America’s poor and hungry is a traditional Scouting “good turn.” During World War I, Boy Scouts planted vegetable gardens to provide food for the hungry. President Roosevelt called on Scouts to collect food for the needy during the Great Depression. Planting Victory Gardens were the Scouting “good turns” organized during World War II.
Today, Boy Scouts continue their Good Turn efforts in community stewardship through Scouting for Food. Scouts from West Seattle will walk our neighborhoods delivering door hangers on Saturday, March 13. The following Saturday, March 20, Scouts will follow-up to collect non-perishable food item donations and deliver them to the West Seattle Food Bank. Emphasis is on food most needed for nutrition such as peanut butter, baby formula, packaged meals and canned goods, especially tuna, soups, stews, meats, fruits and vegetables.
Please help support the hungry in our community. Watch for a door hanger on your door and get your donations out early on March 20th, so you can join our Scouts in “Doing a Good Turn Daily.”
Food Items Needed for Pickup Sat March 20
Canned meats – Canned vegetables – Boxed cereal – Canned milk – Canned tuna fish – Baby formula – Instant potatoes – Macaroni – Peanut butter in jars – Canned soup (chunky style) – Canned fruit – Beef stew – Pasta – Other non-perishable foods
(The next door-to-door food drive we know about after this one is the “Stamp Out Hunger” postal carriers’ drive, this year on May 8, same day as West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day!)
Those are most of the 20 volunteers who teamed up for the 18th annual Fairmount Ravine cleanup under this morning (a few had to leave before they wrapped around 11 am, when we dropped by). As usual, volunteers cut and pulled piles of ivy away from trees – the ivy is what you DON’T see on the trees in this photo:
And they picked up what amounted to a hill of trash:
The cart you see in that photo was apparently used by people who had been camping under the bridge, according to cleanup organizer John Lang. He spotted signs of the encampment earlier in the week – including a dog – and asked police to make sure the area was clear before the cleanup. He says they found dozens of cans of dog food while cleaning up today, and planned to take it to the West Seattle Food Bank (which offers pet food to clients with pets, when available). By the way, today’s volunteers included a group of high-school students – from West Seattle HS, Kennedy and O’Dea.
Just about a week ago, before Girl Scout Cookie sales kicked off, we took that photo a local troop decorating the Walking on Logs sculptures at the Fauntleroy end of the West Seattle Bridge and picking up trash around them. This “gateway to West Seattle” area needs more help, on a more regular basis. You may not be aware that its upkeep has been largely a labor of love for one longtime West Seattleite who has given so much to the community over the decades – and now needs to pass on the torch, or in this case, the broom, the grabbers, etc. Good news is, an organized effort is about to be born – here’s the announcement from Nancy Driver:
Are you a fan of Walking on Logs? Are you interested in helping to maintain and preserve this West Seattle welcome symbol? If so, please join us at a meeting on Tuesday, March 23rd, 5:30 p.m. at the meeting room at the High Point branch library at 3411 SW Raymond Street (intersection of SW Raymond and 35th Avenue SW).
The statues and surround have been maintained for the past decade or more by local hero Earl Cruzen. Earl is 89 now and it’s time for others to take over upkeep of the statues and the grounds directly surrounding them.
The purpose of our meeting is to begin the process of creating a feasible long-term solution for upkeep of the statues and the landscaping in the area immediately surrounding them. If you are seriously interested in helping find and create a solution and have time and/or resources to contribute, please join us at the meeting. We hope not only individuals, but community groups (particularly those groups that regularly use the statues to advertise their causes) and local businesses will join us in this endeavor.
Hope to see you there. Nancy Driver on behalf of Earl Cruzen
A year and a half ago, Nancy spearheaded a massive cleanup effort that went from Walking on Logs up to the 35th/Fauntleroy end of The Bridge – Earl was honored with a plaque that day – here’s the wrapup report on that huge effort. But more-regular commitments would reduce the need to organize something that massive. So the High Point Library (map) is the place to be at 5:30 pm Tuesday, March 23.
Never too soon to set a date aside on the calendar – so if yours isn’t already marked for April 29, here’s your heads-up: That’s the date for this year’s Dining Out for Life, to benefit Lifelong AIDS Alliance. West Seattle establishments on the list of participants so far: Abbondanza Pizzeria in Morgan Junction, Buddha Ruksa in The Triangle, Fresh Bistro in The Junction, Skylark Cafe and Club (WSB sponsor) in North Delridge. Anybody else want in? Looks like signups are still under way.
The more volunteers who can pitch in tomorrow morning for the annual Fairmount Ravine cleanup, the better, particularly under the bridge – and that photo taken by John Lang this week shows exactly why. He went up to survey the scene in advance and found a worse mess than usual … what you don’t see as you drive, ride or walk through the ravine between the Admiral District and the Harbor Ave. waterfront. Before you get on with your Saturday plans tomorrow, spend an hour or two helping. From the announcement John originally sent, published here last week:
Fairmount Ravine Preservation Group will sponsor the 18th Annual Spring Cleanup and Reforestation of Fairmount Ravine, Saturday March 6th at 8:30. Meet at top of ravine (Forest St. and Fairmount Ave.). Wear boots and gloves. Bring a pruning saw if interested in removing ivy from trees. Delicious Tully’s coffee and hot cocoa along with donuts will be served. We extend a special invitation to those who use the ravine to access the waterfront; please donate an hour of your time to keep this greenbelt healthy and pristine. More info – call John at 932-5151.
Here’s a map to the meeting place.
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