Snoqualmie Police request public to call 911 when they see a bear
May 2, 2012
Bear activity has increased in Snoqualmie neighborhoods as they look for food following winter, according to a city of Snoqualmie press release.
There have been no conflicts between humans and bears in Snoqualmie, but you may want to review safety tips for living in neighborhoods with black bears that is posted on the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife website at http://wdfw.wa.gov/living.
According to the website, the best ways to avoid conflicts with bears are:
Don’t feed bears. Often people leave food out for bears so they can take pictures of them or show them to visiting friends. More than 90 percent of bear/human conflicts result from bears being conditioned to associate food with humans. A wild bear can become permanently food-conditioned after only one handout experience. The sad reality is that these bears will likely die, being killed by someone protecting their property, or by a wildlife manager having to remove a potentially dangerous bear.
Manage your garbage. Bears will expend a great amount of time and energy digging under, breaking down or crawling over barriers to get food, including garbage. If you have a pickup service, put garbage out shortly before the truck arrives — not the night before. If you’re leaving several days before pickup, haul your garbage to a dump. If necessary, frequently haul your garbage to a dumpsite to avoid odors.
Keep garbage cans with tight-fitting lids in a shed, garage or fenced area. Spray garbage cans and dumpsters regularly with disinfectants to reduce odors. Keep fish parts and meat waste in your freezer until they can be disposed of properly.
If bears are common in your area, consider investing in a commercially available bear-proof garbage container. Ask a local public park about availability or search the Internet for vendors.
The Snoqualmie Police Department requests that the public call 911 for each bear sighting. Dispatchers will send Snoqualmie police to the location. The police want to track bear activity and they already work closely with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Enforcement Office on this issue.
In June, garbage and recycle collection will transition from Allied Waste to Waste Management, and upon request, WM will provide the option of wildlife-proof garbage containers. The container is free; the collection service is $3.13 per month with regular service. WM will provide more information about this service option in May.
Calendar
May 2, 2012
Public meetings
- North Bend Public Health and Safety Committee, 4 p.m. May 8, City Hall, 211 Main Ave. N.
- North Bend Planning Commission, 7 p.m. May 10, City Hall
- Snoqualmie Finance and Administration Committee, 5:30 p.m. May 8, Snoqualmie City Hall, 38624 S.E. River St.
- Snoqualmie Valley Hospital Board meeting, 6:30 p.m. May 10, Snoqualmie City Hall
Music/entertainment
- Valley Center Stage presents “Moon Over Buffalo,” May 3, 4 and 5; tickets $12.50 to $15; all shows at 119 W. North Bend Way
- Poetry Open Mic Night, 6 p.m. May 3, The Black Dog, 8062 Railroad Ave. S.E., Snoqualmie, 831-DOGS (3647)
- Jim Marcotte, 8 p.m. May 4, The Black Dog
- Jeremy Serwer, 8 p.m. May 5 The Black Dog
- Extra Sauce Please, 8 p.m. May 5, Snoqualmie Taproom and Brewery
- SVSD music faculty in concert, 7 p.m. May 9, Mount Si High School Auditorium, 8651 Meadowbrook Way S.E.
- Dar Stellabotta, 7 p.m. May 10, The Black Dog
- Forrest Roush, 8 p.m. May 11, The Black Dog
- Charlie Loesel, 8 p.m. May 12, The Black Dog
- Left Coast Gypsies, 8 p.m. May 12, Snoqualmie Taproom and Brewery
Snoqualmie Tribe member celebrates Mother Joseph Day with stories, songs
April 26, 2012
John Mullen, a member of the Snoqualmie Tribe, has been a carver and sort of spokesman and educator for the tribe for about 11 years.
In addition to spreading and teaching the Snoqualmie tradition of carving, Mullen also carries on the tribe’s tradition of singing and drumming.
On April 16, he was at Issaquah’s nonprofit Providence Marianwood skilled nursing facility, with his handmade tools, one of his handmade dugout canoes and plenty of stories and talk to share.
By Tom Corrigan During his presentation at Marianwood in Issaquah, John Mullen said one of the traditional Snoqualmie songs he sang was thought to be 800 years old.
Mullen’s visit was part of Marianwood’s marking of April 16, formally Mother Joseph Pariseau Day in Washington.
A member of the Catholic order of the Sisters of Providence, Mother Joseph is credited with building 29 hospitals, schools, orphanages and shelters for the aged or mentally ill in the late 1800s in Washington and surrounding states.
Her influence can be felt as far north as Canada, said Providence Marianwood’s Andrea Abercrombie, who told residents at least part of the story of the Sisters of Providence and Mother Joseph in Washington.
Valley writing award goes to 12-year-old leukemia survivor
April 26, 2012
Natalie Smith dreams big and hopes even bigger. Or vice versa, depending on how you feel about leukemia and pop tunes.
The 12-year-old, a seventh-grader at St. Joseph Catholic School in Snoqualmie, dreams of succeeding in middle school, high school, college, med school and then becoming the oncologist who cures cancer once and for all.
She also said she hopes to meet Justin Bieber, even ranking meeting him a notch above curing the disease.
(Remember, she’s 12.)
By Sebastian Moraga Natalie Smith, here with her mother Dene James, won first prize in the young adult writer category of the SnoValley Writes writing contest. Smith, a leukemia survivor, based her story, ‘The Battle,’ on her struggle to beat the disease.
Diagnosed with leukemia as a first-grader in 2006, Smith overcame the disease once before it came back in 2008. She underwent a bone marrow transplant after the relapse, and now has penned her story of survival in a story titled “The Battle.”
The story won Smith first place in early April in the Young Adult Writing category of a writing contest organized by SnoValley Writes.
A painter and a poet, she has utilized her struggle against leukemia as a source of inspiration for her art, she said.
“It was good therapy for her,” said Dene James, Natalie’s mom, who admits to getting teary-eyed just hearing her daughter talk.
“It was hard,” she said of watching Natalie battle leukemia. “It was so hard.”
New SVCN director bets on future of the Snoqualmie Valley
April 26, 2012
Laura Smith knows what’s in the cards. In more ways than one.
As the new executive director of the Snoqualmie Valley Community Network, she launched trivia cards highlighting good things about life in the Valley.
Twenty-seven days into the job, she also knows the future looks cloudy for the network’s current funding.
Laura Smith
State cuts will eliminate $50,000 this summer. Then, in 30 months, $125,000 in Drug-Free Communities grant money disappears.
Even without the uncertainty, the job is big.
Smith, hired April 2, said her respect for predecessor Kristy Trione has increased.
“Kristy was holding so many more details and so many more irons in the fire than I thought,” she said of Trione, who moved to Costa Rica this winter. “My hat’s off to her.”
Perhaps the only thing bigger than the challenges is Smith’s optimism.
Calendar
April 26, 2012
Public meetings
North Bend Planning Commission, 7 p.m. April 26, City Hall. 211 Main Ave. N.
North Bend City Council, 7 p.m. May 1 at Mount Si Senior Center, 411 Main Ave S.
North Bend Finance and Administration Committee, 4 p.m. May 1, City Hall
North Bend Public Health and Safety Committee, 4 p.m. May 8, City Hall
North Bend Planning Commission, 7 p.m. May 10, City Hall
Snoqualmie Valley Hospital Board meeting, 6:30 p.m. May 10, Snoqualmie City Hall
No city of Snoqualmie meetings had been scheduled as of April 23.
Men honored for saving girl’s life
April 18, 2012
During the annual Red Cross Heroes breakfast March 27, North Bend residents Jason Mark and Eric Zender were honored as heroes for their rescue and resuscitation of 4-year-old Ainsley Hewson, of Renton. As her parents sat nearby, the men took turns accepting the award, recalling the day that forever changed their lives.
Celebration turned to tragedy
The Fourth of July 2011 started like any other. Families were gathered at Denny Creek for a day of barbecues, hiking and fun.
Four-year-old Ainsley Hewson was walking with her father when he turned and saw she was no longer beside him. The rushing river, full from the spring run-off, masked any sound he might have heard.
By Sarah Gerdes Jason Mark, Lisa Hewson, Ainsley Hewson and Eric Zender pose after Mark and Zender were given the Nature Rescue Award at the Red Cross’ 2012 Heroes Breakfast. The pair rescued Ainsley who had fallen into a river and disappeared.
“I’d never heard a man scream,” Jason Mark recalled from the podium, during his acceptance speech. “I knew immediately what had happened.”
He ran to the bank of the river, along with many others, frantically looking up and down the stream without a sign of the little girl.
“After 10 minutes, people started giving up,” Mark said.
The water was cold and rushing, but Mark and Zender refused.
“I stopped to pray and tried again. This time, I had this impression to turn the other direction, for no reason,” Mark said.
Following the prompting, he walked around a large boulder, put his hand in the water and felt the hair of the little girl.
As Mark’s wife called 911, he felt for her vital signs.
“I was sure she was dead,” Mark said.
Snoqualmie Casino announces its outdoor concert series
April 18, 2012
Meat Loaf opens Snoqualmie Casino’s summer concert series June 30. Other bands scheduled to play at the Mountain View Plaza Sensational Summer Series include:
- Joan Jett, July 3
- Smokey Robinson, July 6
- Bachman & Turner, July 15
- The Jacksons, July 29
- Chris Young, Aug. 2
- Roger Hodgson, of Supertramp, Aug. 9
- Kenny Loggins, Aug. 10
- YES, with special guests Procol Harum, Aug. 12
- Frankie Valli, Aug. 19
- War and Tower of Power, Aug. 31
- The Temptations and Four Tops, Sept. 2
The venue is only for people 21 and older. Tickets, available through www.ticketmaster.com, are now on sale.
Calendar
April 18, 2012
Public meetings
North Bend City Council workstudy, 7 p.m. April 24, City Hall, 211 Main Ave. N.
North Bend Parks Commission, 6 p.m. April 25, Community and Economic Development Office, 126 E. Fourth St.
North Bend Planning Commission, 7 p.m. April. 26, City Hall
Snoqualmie City Council, 7 p.m. April 23, City Hall, 38624, S.E. River St.
Snoqualmie Community and Economic Affairs Committee, 5 p.m. April 24, City Hall
Snoqualmie Shoreline Hearings Board, 5 p.m. April 25, City Hall
Snoqualmie Public Safety Committee meeting, 5 p.m. April 26, Snoqualmie Fire Station, 37600 S.E. Snoqualmie Parkway
Snoqualmie Valley School District Parent Partner Program, 6:30 p.m. April 24, SVSD offices, 8001 Silva Ave. S.E., Snoqualmie.
Snoqualmie Valley Hospital Board meeting, 6:30 p.m. May 10, Snoqualmie City Hall
Moose lodge members spiffing up building for visiting dignitary
April 18, 2012
No detail was considered too small when cleaning up Moose Lodge 1666 in North Bend for its soon-to-arrive visiting dignitary.
Members spent April 14 spiffing up the place, planting flowers and sweeping sidewalks for this “once-in-a-lifetime” event for most moose lodges.
Wesley Crowder, the Supreme Governor of the Loyal Order of Moose out of Chicago, was coming to visit April 17 and everything had to look perfect.
In its 88-year history in the Snoqualmie Valley, not once has the Supreme Governor of the Loyal Order of Moose ever visited, until now.
“This is a pretty big deal,” said Moose prelate Colwell Reed.
“Most of the time, members never get to meet the people at the top of the organization,” he said.
Some regional moose representatives heard that the Supreme Governor was already going to be in the area at a scheduled visit in Ellensburg.
“So we convinced him that he should stop by here,” Reed said, as he frantically swept the sidewalks outside the Moose Lodge.
As part of the celebration, Moose members will cook a pork roast dinner, pass out awards and listen to special guests from Encompass, the Washington State Patrol and local firefighters.
The North Bend lodge at 108 Sydney Ave. is waiving its initiation fee through April 30, in honor of the special occasion.
Michele Mihalovich: 392-6434, ext. 246, or editor@snovalleystar.com. Comment at www.snovalleystar.com.
