West Seattle, Washington
30 Tuesday
We’re on Alki, still socked in with fog, but spirits are bright as runners and walkers finish the 2011 edition of the Alki Beach 5K, raising money for Northwest Hope and Healing. NWHH executive director Shari Sewell estimates almost 1,200 came to the beach for this year’s fundraiser. The first finishers, by gender, were identified as (male) Brett Winegar and (female) Kelsey Lenzie:
(Photo courtesy Cami MacNamara)
Kelsey is 10 years old, according to race emcee Eric Radovich; she finished in 20:48! Pre-5K warmups were courtesy of Lori and Tim McConnell of West Seattle Runner (WSB sponsor):
Pep talk was courtesy of “Warrior Marathon Runner” and breast-cancer survivor Carolyn Dellinger :
(Here’s our story about Carol, published last night). Post-5K treats are being distributed now – including the Kiwanis Club of West Seattle scooping Husky Deli ice cream:
ADDED 11:07 AM: A dynamic duo we met before the 5K:
Elizabeth Crouch and Kim Schaaf are with CheckYourBoobies.org – a nonprofit that will send a breast-health educator if you organize a party – it can be a party just for breast-health education, or, says their brochure, an event coupled with some other kind of gathering you’re already having.
P.S. Alki has a few more 5K (and similar events) coming up in the next few months – on September 17th, the Walk and Roll for ataxia awareness, and a new event, Beat the Burn, on October 16th.
Story and photos by Ellen Cedergreen
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
Tomorrow morning, “Warrior Marathon Runner” Carol Dellinger will cheer on the Alki Beach 5K run-walk participants, and then will join them.
They are walking/running to raise money for Northwest Hope and Healing‘s work, helping breast-cancer patients.
Carol knows what that’s like. She is not your average marathon runner. Completing more than 250 marathons is a feat in and of itself, but the 49-year-old Spokane resident has an even bigger claim to fame: She’s a breast-cancer survivor, and she completed her 235th marathon just 9 weeks after undergoing a mastectomy. Since then, she’s completed 8 more, bringing her grand total to 253, 254 after next weekend. We talked with her at West Seattle Runner (WSB sponsor), shortly after she arrived in Seattle this afternoon for the Alki Beach 5K (9 am Sunday morning – and you can still register in person at the Bathhouse, starting at 8).
Dellinger lost her mom to breast cancer 25 years ago and has other family members who’ve battled the disease. She’s a firm believer in early detection and has been getting annual mammograms since the age of 35. According to her cancer treatment center, many age-eligible women do not get mammograms, often due to fear, but Dellinger wants to remind women that breast cancer can be100% curable if discovered early.
Dellinger chose not to have reconstructive surgery after learning her cancer had not spread to the lymph nodes.
An update tonight from Tasha Mosher about tomorrow’s work party at the Recovery Garden in North Delridge: She says that staff from the Downtown Emergency Service Center, including its executive director Bill Hobson, are expected to join in; Tasha says she invited DESC to participate after hearing that they wanted to get more involved with the community, since they are proposing building a 75-unit apartment building here for chronically homeless people dealing with issues including substance abuse and/or mental illness, and she says it’s a chance for community members to come chat with them one on one – while of course working in the garden: “We will be spreading mulch over the areas we didn’t cover at the last cleanup. We might also spread burlap and wood chips. And of course, we will be doing some light weeding where little tenacious plants have popped back up.” 10 am-2 pm. The garden is at 26th/Brandon (here’s a map). Tasha says gloves and tools will be provided, but if you have a last-minute question, e-mail her: t.m.mosher@hotmail.com.
You can almost hear those kids thinking “Can’t wait to get in there!” as they peer through the fence at the Lafayette Elementary playground, now in the final stages of the latest upgrade phase, with less than two weeks to go till more than 500 kids start the new school year there. Yesterday, volunteers from ING Direct Investing pitched in – and Lafayette parent volunteer Luckie shares these photos of some of the results:
Tomorrow, they could use all the community help they can get for tasks including painting, moving wood chips (you can see the pile in the background of Luckie’s photos), weeding, and washing, at various spots around the playground/school. Just show up at California/Lander and they’ll put you to work – even if you can only help for part of the time they’ve blocked out from 9 am to 4 pm. They are planning an art project for kids, too.
The upgrade-in-progress playground of West Seattle’s most populous elementary school, Lafayette, are swarming today with hundreds of volunteers in bright orange shirts. The ING Direct Investing team members are working on playground components including maps of the world (top photo) and the U.S., and the new play structure itself:
They’re also painting, and planting, in and around playground walls:
And they’re helping install the bricks that helped raise money for the project, which is using a combination of community donations and city matching funds:
Next step: This weekend, a community work party, which might stretch to a second day if needed. Here’s the announcement from one of the project chairs, Holly Grambihler:
We still need your help to finish our project. Our next big Lafayette volunteer work party is scheduled for Saturday, 8/27. We will start work at 9 am and will work until 4 pm. We’re hoping to once again to complete our tasks on Saturday and work on Sunday 8/28 only if needed. …
The main objectives of the weekend work party are to put the final touches on the playground. We’ll be spreading fresh wood chips around the new big toy, and completing any planting and weed pulling. In addition, we will be working on finalizing any of the interior painting projects (we’re painting the front lobby, around the classroom doors and in the new portables), and helping move the teachers into their portables.
Please bring work gloves. Also, we are in need of: wheel barrows, shovels & rakes, tarps to help carry the wood chips, and planting/weeding tools. Please make sure to have your name on your tools. … Please bring snacks/lunches. We’ll provide waters.
Kids are okay to bring – but there will still be a fence separating the satellite play area, and they will not be able to play on the new big toy yet. We may have a special project or two for the kids!!
The playground’s grand opening is set for September 6th, 5-7 pm – on the eve of the first day of school.
In case you haven’t already seen this in the WSB Forums: The encampment that’s been on a city-owned site in easternmost West Seattle since mid-May, Nickelsville, hopes to raise some operating funds this Saturday with a benefit car wash. As posted by longtime WSB’er and current Nickelsville resident Mike (miws) in the Forums, it’ll be at Les Schwab Tires in SODO, 6111 4th Avenue South, 8 am-5 pm Saturday (August 27th). Cash donations accepted; they’ll use the money to cover ongoing operating expenses, particularly portable restrooms and trash service.
Matt Haggerty is going into his senior year at Seattle Lutheran High School in West Seattle – a time when students not only are completing their coursework, but also working on their senior projects involving community service. Matt’s project is called “Ritual Running,” and he’s inviting you to be part of it. It’s a running group that will start meeting in September, working up to a 5K/10K run/walk event that will raise money to go toward buying and shipping shoes to areas of the world where they’re most needed, in conjunction with One World Running, which donates shoes in the U.S. as well as other parts of the world. Participation in the group is free, but the eventual event will have an entry fee and will encourage participants to gather pledges for the cause. Running is one of Matt’s passions – he says he runs both cross-country and track and has completed 4 marathons, “3 of which I ran in under 3 hours.” He’s planning on running the Boston Marathon next year.
The running group is set to start September 6th – a little over two weeks away – meeting Tuesday and Thursday evenings, 6:30 pm, and Saturday mornings at 10:30 am. The target date for his 5K/10K is October 8th, but Matt warns that could change. In the meantime, you can sign up by e-mailing Matt at ritualrunning@gmail.com. He has a website in progress at ritualrunning.com, and Ritual Running is on Facebook, here.
Next Sunday morning is when you can put your feet to the street and help Northwest Hope and Healing in its work to help newly diagnosed breast-cancer patients deal with the fact that diagnosis and treatment don’t stop the rest of life from rushing forward. It’s the fundraising Alki Beach 5K Run/Walk, and once again this year, it’ll shut down the street from the Bathhouse to Anchor (Luna) Park for a few hours – so you might as well get out and be part of it. You can register online or in person, and today you can do the latter, with a special discount, at Coastal Boutique on Alki (right along the route you’ll be walking/running next week!) during a registration party starting at noon; you can also register at West Seattle Runner (WSB sponsor; NW corner of California/Charlestown). The 5K starts at 9 am next Sunday (August 28
Looking ahead while looking back, the West Seattle Helpline celebrated a “Gallery of West Seattle History” last night at Alki Arts. That’s executive director Tara Byrne, with one of the displays, which recounted Helpline’s own 22-year history. This time of year, Helpline has traditionally helped local kids with school supplies – and this year, they’re working to help the efforts of Pencil Me in For Kids, a project near and dear to partygoers Martha and Sue:
Showing off food donated by nearby Alki restaurants as well as Tuxedos and Tennis Shoes Catering was Helpline board member Rev. Ron Marshall from First Lutheran Church of West Seattle:
Miss the party? You can reach out to help Helpline any time; find out how by going to their website.
If you can bring sea monsters and pizza into the Biblical creation story, or turn the tale of Daniel and the lion into “Here, Kitty, Kitty,” you can work your own kind of miracles. And so did Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter/kindie-rocker Justin Roberts tonight in the Fauntleroy UCC Church sanctuary, helping Family Promise of Seattle raise more than $1,000. Fauntleroy UCC is one of ten area churches that are in partnership with Family Promise, taking turns providing sleeping quarters, dinner, and breakfast to newly homeless families. But tonight – instead of housing homeless kids, they were accommodating dancing kids.
(Photo courtesy Kathy Ablott)
Before the concert, FP board leader David Jones explained the organization’s mission:
Roberts performed about an hour of songs from his “Why Not Sea Monsters?” album. He’s a one-time divinity student turned singer/songwriter, who played guitar throughout his set, and enticed the audience – all ages – to sing along, sometimes goofily, sometimes quietly, as golden evening sunlight illuminated the evergreens outside the huge window at the front of the sanctuary. Though his songs riffed off Biblical stories – Jonah and the whale, loaves and fishes, walking on water, the burning bush – they were by no means preachy or somber. Just exuberant music. One review quoted on Roberts’ website describes him as the “Paul McCartney of kids’ music”; appropriate, then, that a toddler who joined the dozen or so dancers up front wore a Beatles T-shirt. FP also accepted donations for refreshments afterward; More ways to help them are listed online.
P.S. Roberts is part of the lineup for the Tots ‘n’ Tunes kindie-rock extravaganza at Seattle Center this Sunday, 11 am-5 pm, as is West Seattle’s own Caspar Babypants (who is busy this weekend! tomorrow he performs in the Camp Long Lodge at 11 am during the Nature Consortium‘s Arts in Nature Festival).
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
“Goodbye” is a good thing at Family Promise of Seattle.
They are about to bid farewell to another one of the newly homeless families they have helped since reopening their unique community-partnership shelter program two months ago.
This Friday, though, they hope to say “hello” to you – and your family – as Grammy-nominated musician Justin Roberts (with his Not Ready for Naptime Players) comes to West Seattle for a benefit concert. A big fall benefit is on the drawing board, too, we learned in a conversation with FP’s executivedirector Norman Schwamberg, to see how things have been going since they reopened.
Art, history, and generosity will come together Friday night at Alki Arts, on behalf of West Seattle Helpline, during a unique fundraiser, the “Gallery of West Seattle History.” Helpline’s executive director Tara Byrne explains that you’ll be able to enjoy live music, drinks, and food while learning more about West Seattle’s history, courtesy of displays provided by the nearby Log House Museum. Singer/guitarist Sue Quigley, who’s played gigs from Hollywood to SXSW to KeyArena at Storm halftime, will perform. And if you haven’t been to Alki Arts lately – this is also a great chance to see the amazing art they’re displaying and offering for sale. Tara says the money raised will go to help local students through Pencil Me In For Kids, and that donors to make it a great party include Pegasus, Celtic Swell, Elliott Bay Brewery, Bamboo Grill, and Tuxedos and Tennis Shoes – as well as Alki Arts donating the space. You can get your $30 ticket right now online, at westseattlehelpline.org.
Also Friday night – who says you can’t make it to both? – it’s the 34th District Democrats‘ annual Garden Party and Auction at West Seattle Nursery. On the website for this area’s largest political organization, you’ll find a list of what’s been donated for the auction so far – a very long list including myriad chances to hang out with local political leaders, plus gift certificates for local faves, and adventurous outings including a visit to an alpaca farm. The auctioneer is West Seattle expat New York Vinnie, visiting his old stomping grounds for the occasion. The night’s theme is Mediterranean, including music from Croatia; the party’s 6-9 pm Friday, $34/ticket or $60/couple.
That video from Wellspring Family Services features West Seattle-residing rocker Chris Ballew, who in his Caspar Babypants kindie-rock mode is once again offering a once-in-a-lifetime prize as part of a fundraising contest that has two weeks to go. It’s the annual “Kids Helping Kids” coin-collecting drive. Wellspring helps homeless kids and families around King County; everybody who turns in donations via “Kids Helping Kids” gets entered in the drawing for Caspar B to write a custom song about them. (In the video, you’ll hear part of “Happy Heart,” inspired by 7-year-old Rena Mateja, who collected more than $500 for Wellspring.) Deadline is September 1st; donations can be turned in to Wellspring directly or via CoinStar machines. Information on how to sign up and how to donate is in the links on the right sidebar of this page.
At West Seattle Nursery, the Dog Days of Summer started with Furry Faces Foundation‘s Teri Ensley and King County’s Rebecca Cleveland-Diel tapping a donated keg of Manny’s. Till 4 pm, it’s a beerfest, with hot dogs, but it’s also a pet-adoption-fest:
That’s volunteer Kory with two dogs hoping their new forever homes might be found today – the little white one he’s holding is a “special needs” pet, with eye trouble. Or if you’re looking to add a kitty to the family, here’s one in classic nonchalant cat mode:
West Seattle Nursery is having a sale, too. Meantime, your dog (leashed) and/or cat (carrier) are welcome to join you at Lien Animal Clinic till 2 pm, for the 60th anniversary open house – we found a few visitors there this morning:
And of course, there’s anniversary cake!
Lien is on SW Alaska between 37th and 38th, in The Triangle.
Two reasons to get to The Junction if you’re not there already:
Outside and inside West 5 till 4 pm, it’s “Brunch for Boobies” fundraiser day for the 3-Day for the Cure walkers who comprise Team Tracy – including namesake Tracy Dart, fourth from left. These women are so busy raising money (and awareness!) before the big event, tirelessly, you might wonder if the inspirational-and-intense walk itself (September 16-18) will feel in comparison a tiny bit like a stroll in the park. Anyway, if you can’t make it to West 5 today, you can donate here.
If you’re not up for three days on your feet, but maybe a little more foot-powered exploring around West Seattle, go to the WS Farmers’ Market before 2 pm:
That’s Chas Redmond at the Sustainable West Seattle booth, where you can get the new West Seattle Walking Trails map.
(Side note: Make your walks, bike rides, bus trips, etc., count even more by signing up for West Seattle In Motion!)
(August 2010 photo by Christopher Boffoli)
Two weeks from today, Alki Avenue SW will fill with runners and walkers – more than 1,100 last year – for the Alki Beach 5K, raising money for Northwest Hope and Healing‘s work to help breast-cancer patients. Starting at 9 am Sunday, August 28, participants will head east from the Alki Bathhouse vicinity to Anchor Park on Duwamish Head, and back, as detailed on the official website. Something special this year: NWHH director Shari Sewell says participants will hear from “Warrior Marathon Runner” Carol Dellinger, who’s finished 253 marathons – 19 since being diagnosed with breast cancer, including one less than three months after a mastectomy (scroll down this page for her story). You can register for the Alki Beach 5K now – at West Seattle Runner (WSB sponsor) or CAPERS, or online by going here. Click ahead for the official news release with even more info:Read More
Actually “West Seattle and vicinity” scene – the annual 40-mile Water and Spirit Bike Ride starts and finishes in West Seattle, but riders ferry over to Kitsap County along the way, and take the Southworth-to-Fauntleroy ferry back. Krista Livingston shared the photo of one group on Saturday’s ride; she says, “It turned out to be a wonderful day for the 4th Annual Water and Spirit Ride! We had a great showing, beautiful views and a lot of fun. Thank you to all of the volunteers and riders that made this a fantastic event.” It raised money for Scholastic Journey and Family Promise of Seattle (whose next major fundraiser is the Justin Roberts concert on Friday!).
10:24 AM: After event chair Amy May congratulated the crowd for raising more than $35,000, King County Council candidate Diana Toledo fired the starter’s pistol, and hundreds of runners/walkers were off on the first-ever Breathe Deep Seattle 5K. They’re all in our starting-line video. As explained at the official website, this is a fundraiser for the LUNGevity Foundation, trying to find a cure for lung cancer. (Missed the event? You can still donate! Pre-event fundraising, by the way, even included one of the sales during this year’s West Seattle Community Garage Sale Day.)
4:34 PM UPDATE: For those who opted to be timed, the race results are now posted online.
Four more notes about one-time-only events this weekend:
WATER AND SPIRIT BIKE RIDE: Tomorrow’s the 4th annual Water and Spirit Ride, described by organizers as “a 40-mile bike ride with some of the most beautiful scenery in the Pacific Northwest, including three ferry crossings and a farmers market!” You can sign up till 9 tonight by going here, or sign up tomorrow morning at the start/finish line at Salty’s on Alki, starting at 6:15 am (cash/check only). You can depart from there at either 6:30 or 7:30 am (the first leg goes downtown to catch the first ferry of the ride route). Ride proceeds will benefit Family Promise of Seattle and Scholastic Journey.
ENDOLYNE JOE’S PIG ROAST: 5-8 pm Saturday, Endolyne Joe’s in Fauntleroy is having a pig roast – second year in a row. Here’s the full menu and pricing.
DOG DAYS OF SUMMER BEERFEST: Hot dogs and beer at West Seattle Nursery on Sunday afternoon, noon-4 pm, with donations benefiting Furry Faces Foundation. Adoptable pets will be there too, according to this post in the WSB Forums.
HUSKY DELI ICE CREAM @ LOG HOUSE MUSEUM: On Sunday afternoon, 1-3 pm, you’ll find Husky Deli’s Jack Miller serving up his famous ice cream for $2/scoop during an ice-cream social at the Log House Museum courtyard (61st/Stevens), celebrating the deli’s 79th anniversary. Live piano music by Verona Morgan Ryan, and coffee by White Center’s Dubsea Coffee.
This arrived in the WSB inbox under the heading, “The Case of the Inadvertently Missing Punchbowl.” Admiral UCC Church hopes you can help solve the “case”:
Here are the facts as we know them:
1. A glass punchbowl set with punch cups and a glass ladle was loaned to the Admiral Congregational United Church of Christ for use during receptions a month or so ago.
2. At some point it was inadvertently placed in a stack of items to be sold at the annual yard sale.
3. On July 30th, at the annual yard sale, it was sold to a lady from West Seattle whom the cashier did not know.
4. There are a number of red faces around our church because this happened, and shouldn’t have.
5. The punchbowl set was sold in a box with the name “Verle Kramer” written on it.
6. While the owner admits that the set has no great monetary value, it belonged to his mother, and therefore has sentimental value.
7. If anyone has any knowledge of the whereabouts of the set, please contact the church at 206 932-2928.
8. The purchase price will be refunded, and there is a reward being offered.
(Photos by Beth Grotelueschen for WSB)
The guest of honor was resplendent in purple, and bathed in love and support, as the “We Heart Tracy Dart” bash filled The Bridge on Sunday night, to rustle up some financial assistance for somebody who has given so much even while fighting a three-round battle against breast cancer. (With Tracy in the top photo are Trudy Muller and Chad Johnson.) Lovely night, so many were out on The Bridge’s spacious patio:
Back inside, colorful bags represented each item on the long list of donated prizes waiting to be won during drawings.
” Also donated: Live music – In Cahoots opened the night (Explone was the other scheduled band):
You can still pitch in to help Tracy, by donating online via PayPal (you don’t need a PP account – you can just use a credit card). As explained on the official We Heart Tracy Dart website, “100% of funds donated go to a trust fund that will be used to directly pay for things like prescriptions, insurance premiums, utilities and rent. Meanwhile, besides going through cancer treatment, Tracy also is preparing for the next 3-Day Walk with her ever-growing “Team Tracy” in mid-September; she’s also chronicling that on her personal website.
ADDED 9:32 AM: Co-organizer Lisa Dawson says as of first thing this morning, the fundraiser had brought in more than $6,300, with online donations still coming in. More than 50 prizes were donated, and an estimated 200+ people attended the party. Lisa’s summary: “It was a great night!”
(Photo courtesy Seattle Chinese Garden)
Hundreds of polished green granite bricks will soon adorn that wall at the Seattle Chinese Garden on the north side of the South Seattle Community College campus atop Puget Ridge. Yours can be one of them, if you order it by August 25 (provided the remaining allotment doesn’t run out sooner). The bricks will decorate the Friendship Wall, with its first side to be dedicated on October 15th. Even the garden’s own neighbors have secured a spot; the garden says Puget Ridge resident Judy Cashman got 40 families to join in on a specially inscribed brick. A news release from the Chinese Garden quotes her as saying that “… my neighbors describe it as a refuge and a jewel they enjoy visiting, so of course they wanted to support it.” You can find the order form (and see a sample brick) by going here, or call the garden office at 206-934-5219.
Family Promise of Seattle, the only homeless shelter in this area helping families stay together while getting back on their feet, is less than two weeks away from a major benefit – Grammy-nominated family-music performer Justin Roberts in concert. Katy Lloyd, who’s helping publicize the performance, notes, “I recently learned that Family Promise receives 6-8 phone calls/week from case workers looking to place a family in emergency housing. Sadly, Family Promise can only handle two families at a time, and each family can take up to 3 months to place in more permanent housing. Now more than ever Family Promise needs the support of our wonderful community to help families in need. Most other shelters must segregate families by gender. This can make the situation for a family in crisis even worse. The goal of Family Promise is to keep families intact and offer case worker support while helping them locate a more secure footing.” The show is at 6:30 pm August 19th at Fauntleroy UCC Church (9140 California SW). Suggested donation at the door is $5/child, $10/adult, $15/family; cookies and lemonade will be sold afterward, also by donation.
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