Just getting this on your radar for Saturday, if you’ll be out and about and able to donate – it’s the Kiwanis Club of West Seattle‘s annual donation drive for the West Seattle Food Bank. Volunteers and collection bins will be at West Seattle Thriftway (4201 SW Morgan; WSB sponsor) and Junction QFC (42nd/Alaska). If you catch them as you go into the stores, you can get specific wish lists for the WSFB’s Home Delivery and Mobile Food Bank programs, which “deliver nutritious food to the homes of the homebound elderly and disabled neighbors unable to access the food bank.” And if you shop at Thriftway, give them your receipts, too, because the store will donate back 1 percent to WSFB. The drive is set for 9 am-2 pm this Saturday (April 2nd).

From the Chief Sealth International High School PTSA:

Chief Sealth International High School sends out a big THANK YOU to our community, especially the Westside Universalist Unitarian Congregation and St. John’s Episcopal Church, for their generous donations of clothing, school supplies and funds. Our students appreciate not only the useful items they get from the Clothing Closet, they are grateful that their community cares about them.

We have many students looking for gently used 2-piece business suits, white dress shirts and ties (thinner is more on-trend for youth) for their college, job and internship interviews. We can use all sizes and especially sizes that will fit slim young men. Donations can be dropped off at the front office Monday-Friday or contact Lisa Conley at lisalconley@hotmail.com to make other arrangements. Thanks!

Sealth is at 2600 SW Thistle; this year’s bell times are 8:40 am-3:10 pm, if you’re timing a donation dropoff.

More love for the West Seattle Food Bank from rock ‘n’ roll superstar-land.

You’ll recall the WSFB’s announcement that it would be spotlighted during last night’s Bruce Springsteen concert at KeyArena.

They sent a few photos and then tonight posted the results, including the news that West Seattle’s own Eddie Vedder (who took the stage with The Boss) is helping too:

Thank you to all of the many Bruce Springsteen fans who came out last night and donated generously to the Food Bank. And yes, Eddie Vedder said he would match it! It was a great night for the food bank – just under $24,000 worth! Thank you to Bruce and the E Street Band for partnering with us and thank you to our volunteers who worked so hard to collect all the donations. We had fun and I hope you did too!

You can follow their example and help the WSFB too.

That’s Clayton, who’s hoping you can help with a donation drive that he and his classmates are wrapping up at the end of the week. The photo and request were sent tonight by his family:

Clayton and his 7th-grade classmates at Westside School are collecting supplies for homeless youth. Clay’s group is trying to wrangle 50 new or barely used reusable water bottles by this Friday! They’d love some help from the West Seattle Community. Donations can be dropped off at our house (5417 36th Ave SW) or at Westside School by Friday at 8:15.

The school is at 10404 34th SW in Arbor Heights.

Thanks to Megan for the photo and report on one of the troops that participated in Scouting for Food last weekend:

Our West Seattle troop, #282, participated in Scouting for Food the last two weekends. We put up door hangers in the Genesee neighborhood the first Saturday, asking residents to donate food for the West Seattle Food bank. We went back last Saturday to pick up donations. Residents of Genesee were very generous. We collected 356 pounds of food for the Food Bank. We do this every year at this time because it is a time that food banks are historically low on supplies but yet there are still many in our community who need help.

If you weren’t in the territory covered by the Scouting For Food drives, you can still help local food banks in many ways – West Seattle Food Bank info is here; White Center Food Bank info is here.

(Photo provided by WSFB)

Maybe “everybody’s got a hungry heart,” as Bruce Springsteen sings, but no one HAS to have a hungry belly, if we all help each other. And with that in mind, Judi Yazzolino from the West Seattle Food Bank shares the news that Springsteen’s helping the WSFB while in town this week, as he has before:

Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band are bringing their “River Tour” to KeyArena, this Thursday, March 24th. While in town, they’ve chosen the West Seattle Food Bank as their partner charity.

If you are lucky enough to have tickets to Bruce’s sold-out show, please look for the West Seattle Food Bank volunteers with the signs in the arena, say Hi and give generously to help the adults and children in our community that are in need of nutritious food and other services.

(UPDATED 7:36 PM with video and more photos; earlier 5:53 pm update with revised total: $600,000+)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

“These kids are our kids.”

Interconnection was at the heart of what brought more than 600 people together this afternoon – not just theirs, but their interconnection with the people they were there to help via WestSide Baby, which now serves families in need all over King County.

The White Center-headquartered nonprofit got a sizable show of support this afternoon – (5:53 pm update) $600,000+ is the revised total – during its 15th annual CommuniTea, held once again at the Hilton conference center by Sea-Tac Airport, following what was hailed as a “record-setting year.”

The fundraising total grew (from $315,000 last year), as did the number of children served by WS Baby this year – 31,325, up from 331 in its first year – said executive director Nancy Woodland, who also noted other numbers:

For example, tea attendance was more than 600, almost 8 times the first benefit tea not long after Donna Pierce founded WS Baby in 2001. The organization has “stayed true to its mission,” Woodland said, of providing diapers, car seats, and other vital items to children in need.

With the tea reaching the 15-year milestone, a special spotlight shone on people who had long been involved with WS Baby; they reminisced about the milestones it hit over the years.

Read More

@sgerding tweeted a photo just as we were about to pass Seacrest – where, she explained, there are two groups selling Girl Scout Cookies right now, including one “drive-up” along Harbor Avenue. So we stopped. Their troop is #44428 and they’re here until 6 pm.

(On drive-up duty are Madelin and Lucy; closer to the pier are Stella and Logan.)

This Sunday (March 20th) is the last day for “cookie booth” sales all over our region – our previous coverage includes links you can use to find who is selling, where and when, until then.

The next door-to-door food drive is days away – here’s what’s ahead for “Scouting for Food” this Saturday:

If you live on SW 30th through SW 34th St. between SW Myrtle St. & SW Thistle St., Boy Scout Troop #284 (based at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church) would like you to know that for our Scouting for Food effort this year, we will be picking up donations for the West Seattle Food Bank this Saturday morning (the 19th).

If you would like to contribute, please leave your donations outside your front door by 8:00 AM. You may have received a door flyer from us last Sunday — or maybe not, since Sunday’s well-publicized wind storm started up shortly after our flyer distribution began, most likely removing a good number of said flyers from the attention of their intended recipients.

The most needed items are:
Canned meat
Canned beans
Peanut butter
Canned fruit
Canned vegetables
Spaghetti sauce
Pasta/rice
Breakfast cereal
Oatmeal
Baby food/formula
Shampoo/soap
Feminine products

Thank you in advance for helping those in need in our community!

Dwight Gilmore
Boy Scout Troop #284 parent

(2015 WSB photo by Patrick Sand)

It’s one of a kind, once a year, and a way to get a closer look at an area of West Seattle you might only have driven or rode through – or never seen at all: The Fairmount Ravine community cleanup is next Saturday. From longtime coordinator John Lang:

Fairmount Ravine Preservation Group will sponsor the 24th Annual Spring Cleanup and Reforestation of Fairmount Ravine, Saturday, March 12th, at 8:30 am.

Meet at top of ravine (Forest St. and Fairmount Ave. – map). Wear boots and gloves. Bring a pruning saw if or large loppers if interested in removing ivy from trees. Delicious beverages and food from our local merchants will be provided.

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 206-932-5151.

By the way, you don’t have to go up under the bridge, as shown in our photo from last year – lots to clean up at the surface, including, as John mentions, getting ivy off the trees. As he said following last year’s cleanup, “It is a great example of community pride and putting into action the teamwork necessary to tackle a difficult situation.”

As West Seattle Helpline executive director Chris Langeler describes it, it’s “the most delicious night of the year in West Seattle” – the Helpline’s big food-and-drink benefit Taste of West Seattle. Tickets are now on sale, and you’ll want to get yours early because this always sells out. They’re still adding food-and-drink vendors to the lineup, too, as well as sponsors – here’s the info:

Date: May 26th, 2016

Location: The Hall at Fauntleroy (9131 California Ave SW)

Time: 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm (VIP entry at 6:00 pm; General Admission at 6:30 pm)

Tickets are now available for the Taste of West Seattle 2016! This local, community-based food fair is the largest event of its kind in West Seattle. This year’s Taste will feature food and drink from more than 40 different restaurants, breweries, wineries, coffee shops, bakeries, chocolatiers, and more–all from right here in West Seattle!

All proceeds from the event go directly to the West Seattle Helpline’s emergency assistance and homelessness prevention programs. These services stabilize and support low-income individuals and families in West Seattle who are recovering from a crisis or unexpected hardship.

The Taste has drawn a sell-out crowd of more than 500 people for the past five years in a row. Make sure to get your tickets before they sell out!

Buy your tickets online – go here

Sign up to participate as a West Seattle food/drink vendor – go here

Promote your business at the Taste of West Seattle 2016 – go here

For more information – go here

Forecast says tomorrow’s weather will be better in the morning than in the afternoon. That’s good news for the Admiral Neighborhood Association‘s quarterly Adopt-A-Street cleanup – which welcomes your help. New ANA president Larry Wymer sends the invite details:

WHERE: Metropolitan Market (2320 42nd Ave) — Meet at the outdoor awning area across from the floral department

WHEN: Meet up between 8:45-9:00 am; clean up 9 am-noon

GOODIES FOR YOU: Coffee, doughnuts, brown-bag lunch (all provided by Metropolitan Market)

SUPPLIES FOR YOU: Garbage bags, gloves, grabber tools, safety vests, etc.

All you have to do is show up, and wear/bring clothing/gear for wet weather just in case.

P.S. ANA’s next meeting is Tuesday (March 8th), 7 pm at The Sanctuary at Admiral (42nd SW/SW Lander), with the agenda featuring neighborhood safety, featuring Community Police Team Officer Jon Flores. All welcome.

It’s the annual question – when do Girl Scout Cookies go on sale? This year’s answer: Friday (March 4th). You can find the nearest location via the cookie finder here. Looks like West Seattle sales start outside Husky Deli at 3 pm, and more locations join in starting at 4. The locations closest to zip code 98106 are here; 98116, here; 98126, here; 98136, here; 98146, here. See the seven varieties available this year by going here.

Your dollar(s), donated to the West Seattle Helpline right now, will go farther thanks to matching funds, as the Helpline’s Chris Langeler explains:

In November 2015, Nucor Steel Seattle paired with one of their suppliers, Graymont, to provide $10,000 in community matching funds to the West Seattle Helpline. These funds were used to match donations made at the Neighbors Helping Neighbors Dinner & Auction. Their matching support helped make that night the most successful fundraising event in the history of the West Seattle Helpline!

We recently learned that Nucor and Graymont have now allocated $2,414.77 in additional matching funds, specifically for utility assistance through our One-Time Assistance Program. By working with Seattle City Light, Seattle Public Utilities, and Puget Sound Energy, this program helps prevent electricity, water, and gas shutoffs for families recovering from an unexpected hardship.

We ask our neighbors to help us access these funds to keep the lights and heat on and the water running for local families through the rest of the cold weather season. All donations made online to the West Seattle Helpline before March 4th will be matched up to a total of $2,414.77. If we meet our goal, we will be able to help up to 100 additional members of our West Seattle community stay safe and warm in their homes while they get back on their feet!

To help West Seattle Helpline acquire these funds and be there for our neighbors in need, please make a contribution online by Friday, March 4th at:

wshelpline.org/donate.

Our sincere thanks to Nucor and Graymont for their generous donations and to the West Seattle community for their wonderful, ongoing support. The West Seattle Helpline’s motto is “Neighbors Helping Neighbors since 1989.” We are grateful every day to have the best neighbors anyone could ask for!

Helpline is a nonprofit that provides emergency assistance to “help prevent evictions and utility shutoffs (and) provide transportation assistance” and also hosts the West Seattle Clothesline, “a volunteer-run clothing donation and distribution center for low-income families.”

(Photo courtesy Bureau of Fearless Ideas)

It’s a world now where many if not most of us write more than we speak. That makes writing skills more valuable than ever – so if you can help local students improve theirs, this is for you:

The Greater Seattle Bureau of Fearless Ideas is the world-famous, volunteer-powered, Greenwood-based nonprofit writing and tutoring center that’s been serving kids across the Puget Sound area for the past decade. Our next mission: establishing a satellite bureau in White Center — a move that has us looking to build our volunteer ranks in the West Seattle and White Center areas. This winter and spring bring a number of volunteer opportunities at West Seattle schools, with bureau agents conducting writing workshops with students at Big Picture Middle School, Denny International Middle School, and Chief Sealth International High School. Have a few hours a week for 6-8 weeks to help the younger generation become better writers and communicators? Email David Schmader at david@fearlessideas.org. (And check out all things bureau-related at fearlessideas.org.)