Browse >
Home / Archive: August 2009
King County Sheriff’s Deputies have identified a person of interest in a series of arsons in downtown Snoqualmie on June 30.
Because of the ongoing nature of the investigation, Snoqualmie police are not commenting beyond saying that King County’s arson investigators are interested in an adult male suspect in connection with the arsons.
Three suspicious fires were started in the early morning hours of June 30.
The first began at the Northwest Railway Museum’s Snoqualmie Depot on Railroad Avenue. The fire was set inside a plastic garbage can outside of the Depot’s freight room. It occurred around 2 a.m. The fire damaged about 100 square feet of siding, melted speaker wires, charred two deck boards, and caused smoke damage to the building.
Read more
From Staff
Enrollment for Snoqualmie Hospital’s Affordable Access Program is going well, according to Clinic Operation Administrator Kris Haight.
“We’ve heard from people in the community who can’t afford health care that this is a great offering,” Haight said.
The Affordable Access Program will provide primary care services such as checkups, physicals and other visits to the North Bend Medical Clinic for a monthly rate of $30. Beyond the monthly rate, enrollees will pay only $5 per clinic visit, and a one-time $45 set-up fee. The program does not cover specialty and emergency care.
The program is designed to promote health, prevent disease, diagnose and treat minor illnesses and injuries, as well as manage chronic diseases.
The enrollment deadline for a participant to start the program in September was extended to Aug. 18. Now that the deadline has passed, new enrollees can start the program in October. However, Haight said that since the program is new, the hospital may allow some flexibility for individuals who want to participate in the program before October.
“Primary health care services must be able to focus on long-term health and promotion and disease prevention, in addition to addressing more immediate patient needs in order to truly benefit the community,” North Bend Clinic Physicians’ Assistant Ken Wiscomb said. “Financial barriers often stand in the way of both levels of service. Folks end up receiving urgent care in the emergency room or putting off other health concerns until they too become urgent. This increases costs and further limits access. I believe providing affordable access to primary care is the first step towards fixing this problem and improving the health and well-being of our community.”
For more information about the program, contact the hospital at 831-3430 and leave contact information to receive a return call, or send an e-mail to affordableacess@snoqualmiehospital.org, or simply drop by the North Bend Medical Clinic at 213 Bendigo Boulevard North, Suite 1.
Enrollment for Snoqualmie Hospital’s Affordable Access Program is going well, according to Clinic Operation Administrator Kris Haight.
“We’ve heard from people in the community who can’t afford health care that this is a great offering,” Haight said.
The Affordable Access Program will provide primary care services such as checkups, physicals and other visits to the North Bend Medical Clinic for a monthly rate of $30. Beyond the monthly rate, enrollees will pay only $5 per clinic visit, and a one-time $45 set-up fee. The program does not cover specialty and emergency care.
Read more
By Michael Bayless Rowe
North Bend’s estimate of how many people live in the Woods River neighborhood and other areas that joined the city when the land was officially annexed on July 6 was very close.
“We couldn’t have gotten much closer,” North Bend City Administrator Duncan Wilson said.
A special census of the area recently annexed into North Bend has determined that the city added 888 residents. The city estimated 500-800 new residents would join the city after the annexation.
The annexation area included the Woods River subdivision and other properties off Tanner Road east of North Bend. The annexation area was about a square mile in size, and was officially called the Tanner Annexation by city leaders.
The results of the annexation mean that the city is now looking at how it can add two members to its City Council. The council is currently a five-member group, with the option of expanding to seven members. The city plans to add two new members before a 2010 census by the state Office of Financial Management.
“The City Council will be discussing a process to select the new council members at a regular meeting in September,” Wilson said. “Once the process had been determined, we will make a call for applicants. We expect to wrap up the selection before the end of the year.”
The city’s population before the annexation was estimated at 4,760. With the annexation, it is 5,648.
North Bend’s City Council approved a final ordinance annexing the land June 23. It went into effect July 6.
The city recently mailed out letters to residents and businesses welcoming them to the city, and explaining the impacts and benefits of the annexation.
The city also recently received its first application for a business license in the annexation area. Real Estate Consultant Jeri Cranney, owner of Abaco Pacific, Inc., was the first applicant to file for a business license on July 30.
“We have looked forward to becoming part of the city of North Bend for some time,” Cranney said in a press release from the city. “We are really excited about doing business in the city as an active participant in our vibrant community.”
The census of the annexation area was performed by Calm River for a $7,500 contract with the city. The census contractor also collected information on businesses in the annexation area so that the city can begin to collect business and occupation taxes from businesses in the new part of the city.
The business inventory part of the census shows an estimated 130 businesses operate in the annexation area.
Reach reporter Michael Bayless Rowe at mrowe@snovalleystar.com or 392-6434, ext. 248. To comment on this story, go to www.snovalleystar.com.
North Bend’s estimate of how many people live in the Woods River neighborhood and other areas that joined the city when the land was officially annexed on July 6 was very close.
“We couldn’t have gotten much closer,” North Bend City Administrator Duncan Wilson said.
A special census of the area recently annexed into North Bend has determined that the city added 888 residents. The city estimated 500-800 new residents would join the city after the annexation.
The annexation area included the Woods River subdivision and other properties off Tanner Road east of North Bend. The annexation area was about a square mile in size, and was officially called the Tanner Annexation by city leaders.
Read more
Residents who live off of 415th Avenue Southeast near North Bend heard from the King County Road Division on Aug. 11 and 13 about building a short span bridge over Clough Creek to replace a box culvert.
The King County Road Division says the existing box culvert caused road closures for 15 days in the 2008-2009 winter, due to flooding, and has cost more than $150,000 to maintain. The county is looking at getting a mitigation grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to replace the box culvert with a bridge.
The site of the proposed project is located near Interstate 90 and the Uplands and Wilderness Rim neighborhoods. The culvert is located at the southernmost portion of 415th Way Southeast, where the road turns north-south and becomes 415th Avenue Southeast.
Read more
By Laura Geggel
With their insulating feathers, snowy owls can maintain a warm body temperature even when the mercury drops to 50 below.
Rainy weather is another story. On a recent photo expedition to the Alaskan tundra, Seattle photographer Paul Bannick witnessed a mother snowy owl transform herself into an umbrella to shield her fuzzy chicks from the cold rain.
“The female, as soon as it started raining, brought her wings up in a slow, continuous motion,” Bannick said. “The chicks ran in tighter circles, and by the time she had closed her wings, only their beaks were peaking out from under her breast feathers.”
Bannick will share stories from his travels photographing his book, “The Owl and the Woodpecker,” at the Cedar River Watershed, at 19901 Cedar Falls Rd. S.E., North Bend from 10-11 a.m. Aug. 22. The cost is $5 per person. Call 831-6780 or e-mail crwprograms@seattle.gov to make reservations.
A sold-out bird walk follows the lecture.
Listeners unable to attend the lecture can tune into KUOW 94.9 FM at 2 p.m. Aug. 22 to hear Bannick speak on “Travel with Rick Steves.” To learn more, visit www.paulbannick.com.
Bannick, a fourth-generation Seattleite, grew up in Bellevue at a time when it was more like North Bend, sporting more woods and fields than office buildings and condominiums. He saw his first owl by his house as a youth, a snowy owl sitting on a telephone pole.
But Bellevue’s landscape changed and Bannick pursued a career in technology. He always felt the tug of nature, so different from the unnatural glow of his computer screen. In 2000, he quit his job and worked at several nature nonprofits, before ending up at Conservation Northwest, a nonprofit focusing on protecting and connecting wildlife habitats. Over the past two years, he traveled North America, photographing owls and woodpeckers, both species crucial to their environments.
Owls are indicator species, the top of the food chain. If owls are not doing well, it is an indicator that something lower in the food web is awry.
On the other wing, woodpeckers are a keystone species, meaning they alter their habitat. When a woodpecker knocks on wood, it creates sap wells for insects and speeds the decay of the tree, making it easier for other animals — like wood ducks — to create cavities in the tree. Woodpecker cavities are also homes for other species, including owls.
“My passion has been photographing keystone and indicator species,” Bannick said. “Indicator species, because they rely on the most sensitive elements of an ecosystem, and keystone species, because they alter habitat for the benefit of many other species.”
Snoqualmie Valley birdwatchers can spot local owls and woodpeckers — including great horned owls — along the edges of fields or meadows, saw whet owls in tree cavities at middle elevation locations, red-breasted sapsuckers near fruit trees or pileated woodpeckers in the cavities of older trees.
When photographing, Bannick does his best to blend into the environment.
“The key element is you have to do a lot of research to learn where the wildlife is, what season and what place, how it’s behaving,” Bannick said. “In order to capture a nice shot, you have to be able to become part of the environment. If you’ve done your research, you’ll understand how to do that.”
“The Owl and the Woodpecker” holds 130 color photographs of all 19 species of owl and 22 species of woodpecker found in North America. The $30 book comes with a CD of birdcalls and woodpecker drums, produced by audio recorder and Nature Sound owner Martyn Stewart, a resident of unincorporated Redmond.
Stewart said noise pollution has made sound recording difficult. In the 1980s, it would take Stewart about four hours to record “one pristine hour” of birdsong. Now, it takes him about 2,000 hours.
“I have to have absolute quiet around me,” Stewart said. “You have to do your homework, you have to know their habitat.”
Reach reporter Laura Geggel at 392-6434 .221 or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com. To comment on this story, visit www.snovalleystar.com.
With their insulating feathers, snowy owls can maintain a warm body temperature even when the mercury drops to 50 below.
Rainy weather is another story. On a recent photo expedition to the Alaskan tundra, Seattle photographer Paul Bannick witnessed a mother snowy owl transform herself into an umbrella to shield her fuzzy chicks from the cold rain.
“The female, as soon as it started raining, brought her wings up in a slow, continuous motion,” Bannick said. “The chicks ran in tighter circles, and by the time she had closed her wings, only their beaks were peaking out from under her breast feathers.”
Bannick will share stories from his travels photographing his book, “The Owl and the Woodpecker,” at the Cedar River Watershed, at 19901 Cedar Falls Rd. S.E., North Bend from 10-11 a.m. Aug. 22. The cost is $5 per person. Call 831-6780 or e-mail crwprograms@seattle.gov to make reservations.
A female snowy owl lands near her chicks on the Alaskan Tundra
Read more
Wayne M. Thompson
Wayne M. Thompson, age 85 of North Bend, died in Zillah, Wash., Aug. 12, 2009.
Wayne was born on a farm near Fairview, South Dakota on May 10, 1924, where he grew up, attended school and was confirmed at Bethany Lutheran Church. He served in the United States Marine Corps in World War II in Okinawa and later served in the Korean War, both times being honorably discharged. He lived in North Bend, from 1960 until 2007. He retired from Weyerhauser Company in Snoqualmie in 1986.
Survivors include two sisters Eunice (Ted) Aanenson, of Sioux Falls, SD, Clarine Gaffin, of Harrisburg, SD; and numerous nieces, nephews, and friends.
He was preceded in death by his parents Rendel and Mary Thompson; a sister Jeanette Roberts; an infant brother Raymond and two other brothers Roland and Kenneth Thompson.
Burial will be at Tahoma National Cemetery in Kent.
Arrangements are by Flintofts Issaquah Funeral Home.
Wayne M. Thompson
Read more
By Laura Geggel
North Bend’s Deborah Schneider has just been swept off her feet with a romance award from the Romance Writers of America.
The budding romance author’s day job as the public programming coordinator at King County Library System allows her to schedule free literary events for the public. Her fellow writers in the Romance Writers of America’s Greater Seattle chapter recognized her contributions and nominated her for the award. After the board of directors at the Romance Writers of America sifted through nominations from across the country, they selected Schneider as the final recipient.
At the Romance Writers of America national conference in Washington, D.C. in July, Schneider received the 2009 Librarian of the Year award.
She recalled learning about the award, even though she was half asleep when the president of the Romance Writers of America called her at 7 a.m. to congratulate her.
“I said ‘no way,’ and she said ‘way!’” Schneider said.
The romance novelist started reading romance as a teenager in upstate New York. She married her husband after graduating from the State University of New York College at Oswego and taught high school, before embarking on a six-week driving trip out west with her mother and husband in 1979.
“I drove the covered wagon, which was our van,” Schneider said.
The untamed West held an allure for her and it provided the scene for her first published romance novel, “Beneath a Silver Moon.”
Based in Montana, the book is about Victorian heroine Sinclair Readford who moves to Montana to find her long lost aunt. The plot thickens when Readford discovers her aunt is not running a hotel for young ladies but is a madam, and she’s missing.
“Sinclair is an authority on lots of things, but she has no idea how to survive in the West,” Schneider said.
Burying herself in research, Schneider often found herself at the library reading about the nineteenth century.
“It was actually very fun to research, I went to Montana a couple of times,” Schneider said. “You do a tremendous amount of research and then you put very little of it in the book because you have to be right.”
She researched everything “from the clothing to the carriage.” One woman in North Bend even challenged her about the train her heroine rode, but luckily Schneider had already memorized the details and knew there was a spur line that ran to small Montana towns in the 1800s.
Schneider cautioned her material might not be appropriate for readers under age 18, but she also dismissed critics who labeled romantic literature as sub par literature. In today’s romance novels, women fight domestic abuse, solve mysteries and more, all whilst falling in love.
“It’s so diverse that it appeals to a variety of readers, from young adult to suspense,” said Stephanie Fry, bookseller and librarian liaison for Romance Writers of America.
Local romance writers can join either the Greater Seattle or Eastside chapters of the Romance Writers of America, a national organization with more than 10,000 members. Annual dues are $85 for American residents, with a one-time $25 registration fee.
Writing romance has its payoffs. At a time when most businesses are flailing, romance novel sales are through the roof.
One of the members of the Greater Seattle chapter, Julie Revell Benjamin of Duvall, praised Schneider for offering free writing and meet-the-author workshops within King County Library System.
“She is tireless in her advocacy, not only for readers, but writers,” Revell Benjamin said.
Next, Schneider is working on a trilogy with the titles of “Promise Me,” “Honor Me” and “Cherish Me.” For now, she’s basking in her award and encouraging readers to follow her blog at www.debschneider.com.
Reach reporter Laura Geggel at 392-6434 .221 or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com. To comment on this story, visit www.snovalleystar.com.
North Bend’s Deborah Schneider has just been swept off her feet with a romance award from the Romance Writers of America.
The budding romance author’s day job as the public programming coordinator at King County Library System allows her to schedule free literary events for the public. Her fellow writers in the Romance Writers of America’s Greater Seattle chapter recognized her contributions and nominated her for the award. After the board of directors at the Romance Writers of America sifted through nominations from across the country, they selected Schneider as the final recipient.
At the Romance Writers of America national conference in Washington, D.C. in July, Schneider received the 2009 Librarian of the Year award.
North Bend writer Deborah Schneider’s next book, ‘Promise Me,’ the first installment of a romance trilogy, will be published Jan. 22, 2010.
Read more
By Laura Geggel
The children sat in a circle on the floor of the North Bend Library as Encompass speech language pathologist Kari Weed read them a story. To reinforce the lessons about emotions, Weed read “Knuffle Bunny,” by Mo Willems, a book about baby Trixie, who throws a fit when her daddy misplaces her favorite stuffed animal.
“What is the look on her face?” Weed asked. “What do you think Trixie feels?”
The children, all members of Champ Camp, were learning about social interactions. Designed by Encompass Pediatric Therapy Manager Marsha Quinn, the camp helps children with autism and other special needs learn about and practice their social skills.
Quinn, whose two sons are on the autism spectrum, knew families with special-needs children had to drive to Bellevue or Seattle for summer camps. When she couldn’t get a grant to finance such a camp at Encompass, she worked with Encompass administration to set up a tuition-based program.
Once local families learned about Champ Camp, they enrolled their children in droves. Every Tuesday and Thursday for the month of August, children ages 3 to 6 attended a morning session and ages 7 to 10 participated in an afternoon session, learning about social interactions and going on community outings.
“We needed something that really addressed social skills,” Snoqualmie Valley Schools teacher Kirsten Baxter said. “It’s hard to find camps for these kids that really fit.”
Baxter, who teaches special education children at the Snoqualmie Elementary preschool, partnered with Weed and several volunteers at Champ Camp. Many of the campers had passed through Baxter’s preschool class, and she was familiar with their strengths and areas needing improvement.
She praised the children for learning the names of their Encompass campmates and for remembering important social details, such as looking at someone in the eye and saying hello.
“These kids need to be taught,” Baxter said. “It doesn’t come naturally to them.”
Researchers are still trying to learn the causes of autism, a brain disorder causing people to have challenges with social interaction, communication and repetitive behavior. One Encompass camper would repeatedly ask the same question, but the counselors are using a sign to help the child realize when to stop asking the question.
Baxter and Weed encourage the children to interact with one another, something they can’t get during a private therapy session. When the campers made smoothies, they held a vote about the drink’s ingredients. During another lesson, the campers interviewed each other.
The Champ Camp counselors also wanted their campers to become more familiar with the community, and vice versa.
“It’s important for them to know how to act when they go out of their homes, out of their schools,” Baxter said.
Encompass volunteers — Snoqualmie Middle School sixth-grader Payton Graves and Mount Si freshman Katie McGrath — sat next to the campers at the library. Graves said her younger brother is on the autism spectrum, so she’s used to working with children who have autism.
“They just learn in a different way,” Graves said.
McGrath offered her advice for interacting with people living with autism.
“You should just treat them the same as everyone else,” McGrath said. “When they do good stuff, you should congratulate them and give them positive feedback.”
At the end of the day, the parents were given a syllabus about the day’s activities so they could follow-up with their children and help them practice the skills they had learned.
“You can’t send her to any old camp, so we’re happy they have this camp here,” Carnation resident Kristin Minner said of her daughter, Laura. “She’s ecstatic to be here. She loves any school type setting.”
Not all of the children had autism. Some had speech delays and others, called typical peers, had no development problems and were there just to have fun.
Tracy Marrero, the mother of Justin and Nicolas, said her sons help each other at home.
“They spend so much time together,” Marrero said. “In that sense, Nicolas is a great typical peer, so why not carry it into camp?”
Encompass may continue the camp on a weekly basis throughout the school year. The August camp cost $350 for the entire month, a deal compared to the going rate of a speech language pathologist at $120 per hour.
To learn more about the camp, contact Kari Weed at Encompass at 888-2777 or kari.weed@encompassnw.org.
Reach reporter Laura Geggel at 392-6434 .221 or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com. To comment on this story, visit www.snovalleystar.com.
The children sat in a circle on the floor of the North Bend Library as Encompass speech language pathologist Kari Weed read them a story. To reinforce the lessons about emotions, Weed read “Knuffle Bunny,” by Mo Willems, a book about baby Trixie, who throws a fit when her daddy misplaces her favorite stuffed animal.
“What is the look on her face?” Weed asked. “What do you think Trixie feels?”
The children, all members of Champ Camp, were learning about social interactions. Designed by Encompass Pediatric Therapy Manager Marsha Quinn, the camp helps children with autism and other special needs learn about and practice their social skills.
Quinn, whose two sons are on the autism spectrum, knew families with special-needs children had to drive to Bellevue or Seattle for summer camps. When she couldn’t get a grant to finance such a camp at Encompass, she worked with Encompass administration to set up a tuition-based program.
Ben Rogers listens to sixth-grader Payton Graves read to him during a Champ Camp field trip to the North Bend Library.
Read more
By Laura Geggel
Parents, get your wallets and insurance cards out — Washington state is no longer providing free vaccinations for minors.
In July, Washington stopped using state funds to provide free vaccines for the human papillomavirus. Come May 2010, the state will stop subsidizing all childhood vaccinations, including measles, mumps and rubella, chickenpox, polio, hepatitis B, and the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine, among others.
By cutting its Universal Vaccine Program, the state will save $48.5 million over the next two years.
The Universal Vaccine Program began in 1990, when Washington state began providing free vaccinations for children under 19. In 1994, the federal government provided additional funds through the Vaccines for Children program.
The federal program will continue to provide Washington with immunization funds for minors, allotting the state $160 million over the next two years. Until the program is phased out in May, the state will spend another $20 million.
The state will use the federal money to continue providing immunizations for low-income children. Children under 19 who are enrolled in the state Medicaid program, have no insurance, are underinsured or are American Indians or Alaska Natives can qualify for publicly purchased immunizations. Also included in the program are children enrolled in the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, Basic Health or others in free or low-cost state health plans.
Many parents were unaware of the program because it operated behind the scenes, said Michele Roberts, health promotion and communication manager at the state’s Department of Health. Now, families with private insurance should make sure their policy covers childhood immunizations.
“Everybody should expect to be asked, ‘Do you have private insurance that covers vaccines?’” Roberts said.
Families with private insurance plans might see higher premiums, co-pays or out-of-pocket costs. For example, the human papillomavirus vaccine costs about $130 for one dose, and the vaccine requires three.
“That’s one of the reasons we’re at where we’re at is the basic series of childhood vaccines used to be fairly inexpensive around $15 per dose,” Roberts said. “Recently they’ve become very expensive at $80 to $120 per dose.”
Families whose children are not covered by insurance and who cannot afford to pay out of pocket can contact the Department of Social and Health Services or another healthcare authority. A good resource is the Family Health Hotline, a statewide information line that can help people learn if they qualify for children’s health insurance. The hotline can be reached at 1-800-322-2588.
Another resource is www.parenthelp123.org, a Web site run by WithinReach, a nonprofit helping Washington state families apply for health and food programs and locate resources in their communities.
“It’s really up to the parents to know what their insurance will or will not cover,” Snoqualmie Ridge Medical Clinic Pediatrician Dr. Ron Spiegel said. “A lot of parents mistakenly think that we’re insurance experts who know if they’re covered, and we’re not.”
Spiegel said the Snoqualmie Valley Hospital would likely provide information on immunization resources in May. He said he hopes parents have adequate insurance to cover immunizations, once the Universal Vaccine Program ends.
“It was an awesome program, it really increased the coverage rates of children dramatically,” Spiegel said. “It’s really sad to hear it’s going to be cut with the budget troubles that are out there.”
Gynecologist Macy Fox at the Snoqualmie Ridge Women’s Clinic said the new budget cuts should not dissuade children from receiving immunizations, especially the human papillomavirus vaccine. The vaccine is for women aged 9 to 26 and prevents against cervical cancer and genital warts.
“Vaccinating children is one of the best things parents can do to keep their children healthy,” said Secretary of Health Mary Selecky in a press release. “The key to disease prevention is to make sure children have continued access to vaccines — that’s our goal as we work through this change with our partners.”
Reach reporter Laura Geggel at 392-6434 .221 or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com. To comment on this story, visit www.snovalleystar.com.
Parents, get your wallets and insurance cards out — Washington state is no longer providing free vaccinations for minors.
In July, Washington stopped using state funds to provide free vaccines for the human papillomavirus. Come May 2010, the state will stop subsidizing all childhood vaccinations, including measles, mumps and rubella, chickenpox, polio, hepatitis B, and the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine, among others.
By cutting its Universal Vaccine Program, the state will save $48.5 million over the next two years.
The Universal Vaccine Program began in 1990, when Washington state began providing free vaccinations for children under 19. In 1994, the federal government provided additional funds through the Vaccines for Children program.
In May, 2010 the state will stop subsidizing all childhood vaccinations.
Read more
By Laura Geggel
What do the Mount Si High School coordination of both Foodball and the Special Olympics have in common?
They were both ideas gleaned from the National Association of Student Councils’ national conference.
About 1,500 students from all across the nation, Canada and Puerto Rico attended the annual conference to learn about leadership and trade programming ideas. Mount Si ASB student leaders have attended the conference for at least 15 years, ASB Advisor Charlie Kinnune said, and this year was no exception. In late June, Mount Si ASB President Zac Pearlstein and Chairman of the Spirit Committee Brett Duncan attended the conference and came back with several ideas to integrate into their high school.
“We went to workshops where we got input from schools across the nation,” Pearlstein said. “Even in our free time, people were talking about what to do with their schools.”
The Mount Si crew flew to the conference in Denver a few days early to get to know the city and to connect with their fellow Washington state student leaders. The students paid for part of the $1,600 fee, and Mount Si ASB funds paid for the rest.
After applying to the Washington Association of Student Councils, 27 students from 20 high schools from around the state joined each other to sight see at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, take a gondola ride at the 14,110-foot Pikes Peak mountain and visit the United States Mint in Denver.
The pre-trip before the conference helped the Washington state students get to know one another, said Susan Fortin, director of student leadership for the Association of Washington School Principals.
Once the conference started, the students listened to motivational speakers and attended swap shops where they traded ideas about school programming. As leaders from an experienced Foodball school, Pearlstein and Duncan shared Mount Si’s success with the food drive, as well as how the school prepares for its homecoming and fundraisers.
“We had some unique things, like our way of decorating (the hallways) for Homecoming,” Duncan said. “Not many schools do what we do, like a tailgate before football games.”
Duncan and Pearlstein also took home some ideas, such as the ‘mad minute’ fundraising technique.
“At halftime a bunch of kids get together and run up and down the bleachers (collecting money,” Duncan said. “It would be really effective in our case because a lot of people come to our games.”
Mount Si could also raise spirit by working with the community for a homecoming parade or by holding more class competitions during or after school.
These idea exchanges promoted new thinking, Fortin said.
“I think it strengthens their own schools as they share ideas,” Fortin said. “It helps them identify common issues and look for solutions that they probably couldn’t find if they were just looking within themselves.”
Whatever the Mount Si ASB students do, they will have to review it to the ninth degree.
“Everything needs to be deeply researched because it not only has an effect on the school but the whole community,” Duncan said.
Kinnune commended the students for attending and said he looked forward to seeing their projects.
“We’re going to continue to do what we’ve done at a high level and continue to look for new things that will fit into our philosophy of service,” Kinnune said. “We’re going to stay on the edge and not be afraid to change.”
Reach reporter Laura Geggel at 392-6434 .221 or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com. To comment on this story, visit www.snovalleystar.com.
What do the Mount Si High School coordination of both Foodball and the Special Olympics have in common?
They were both ideas gleaned from the National Association of Student Councils’ national conference.
About 1,500 students from all across the nation, Canada and Puerto Rico attended the annual conference to learn about leadership and trade programming ideas. Mount Si ASB student leaders have attended the conference for at least 15 years, ASB Advisor Charlie Kinnune said, and this year was no exception. In late June, Mount Si ASB President Zac Pearlstein and Chairman of the Spirit Committee Brett Duncan attended the conference and came back with several ideas to integrate into their high school.
“We went to workshops where we got input from schools across the nation,” Pearlstein said. “Even in our free time, people were talking about what to do with their schools.”
The Mount Si crew flew to the conference in Denver a few days early to get to know the city and to connect with their fellow Washington state student leaders. The students paid for part of the $1,600 fee, and Mount Si ASB funds paid for the rest.
Read more
« Previous Page — Next Page »
