West Seattle, Washington
10 Saturday
(WSB photo from 2018 Laps With Lou)
It’s one of June’s most joyful events – for 20 years now, Lou Cutler has led a daylong walk/run-a-thon at Pathfinder K-8 on Pigeon Point, raising awareness and money for Make-A-Wish. Lou taught PE at Pathfinder until retiring, but has continued to return each year for one day of leading students and community members in the number of laps equal to the years he’s celebrating with his next birthday later in the month – this year, that’s 72. Laps With Lou has historically been on a school day, but this year it’s happening on a Saturday. While that means no all-school laps – a highlight of years past – it means more community members can stop by and join Lou for a lap (or all 72).
It’s happening on Saturday, June 17th; Lou expects to start his first lap around 8 am, with students and alumni expected to show up around 9, and then a break at 11 am, when Lou plans to speak to everyone about Make-A-Wish, which will have volunteers and staff on hand. Plus, Lou adds, “We are going to have a former Make A Wish kid of mine, Jacob, D-DoubleJ, has volunteered to be the DJ and Teacher Andy will once again man the megaphone!” He’s also working to organize a potluck reunion of Pathfinder families past and present after the laps, 2:30-5 pm ish.
You can lend your support just by showing up on Saturday, June 17th, and/or you can donate online to support Make-A-Wish work – here’s Lou’s page.
5:56 PM: Seattle Fire has a full response arriving at what firefighters described to dispatch as a basement fire in a house in the 3600 block of 22nd SW on Pigeon Point [map]. Updates to come.
6:01 PM: Firefighters tell dispatch they have the fire under control. They’ve searched the house to be sure no one was inside. No word of any injuries so far.
6:13 PM: Firefighters have declared the fire “tapped” (out).
6:21 PM: As we finally arrive from the other end of the peninsula, firefighters are wrapping up. Adding photos.
6:26 PM: We talked to incident command at the scene. No one was home, no one hurt. The fire was confined to one room in the basement. SFD’s investigator is on the way to determine how it started.
ADDED WEDNESDAY: SFD tells WSB, “The fire was ruled accidental. Caused by an overheated extension cord that was plugged into a portable heater.”
9:48 PM: Police investigating reports of possible gunfire heard on (corrected) Pigeon Point have confirmed it – officers have just told dispatch they’ve found casings at 19th and Dakota, and on 19th west of that intersection. They also told dispatch that neighbors are reporting a vehicle might have been involved, and the plate given to police by one witness checks to a copper-colored 2003 Nissan. No injuries or property damage reported so far. They’re now canvassing the area to see if the gunfire might have been caught on any home security cameras.
10:04 PM: Police told dispatch they’ve found a total of four casings.
Two West Seattle Crime Watch notes:
HIGH POINT SEARCH WARRANT: Thanks for the tips/questions. Multiple law-enforcement agencies – including Seattle Police, King County Sheriff’s Office, and ATF – are at a residence near 32nd/Holly. (The photo above shows some of their vehicles staged nearby.) All they’ll say so far is that it’s a warrant service, and that includes a warrant to search the residence. In the meantime, SW Holly is blocked in the immediate vicinity. We’ll be following up.
STOLEN CAR FOUND AT SCHOOL: A reader emailed around 7:30 this morning to report that at Pathfinder K-8 on Pigeon Point, “There are belongings scattered all over the school parking lot, and a car has crashed through the fence right where the downed tree was.” By the time we got over to look around 8:45 am, the scene was clear, but we got a bit of followup information – the car found there was a Hyundai stolen in Pierce County. No arrests reported; the car was unoccupied when police arrived.
Thanks to Paula for the photos! Two months ago, we reported on the plan to repaint the neighborhood-created intersection mural at 21st/Genesee; today, SDOT crews did the repainting.
Paula says this is actually the third time for the mural designed by Pigeon Point neighbor Toni Wells: “The first two times it was painted by the neighborhood, to be scrubbed away by car tires like big erasers.” SDOT told us they would use a “more durable paint”; Paula said she was told the crew was using a thermoplastic process, which has long been used for certain types of street markings.
The photos and report are from Rose – it happened on Pigeon Point:
So this morning someone stole a truck. They drove to 22nd.
They parked in front of a house who actually knows the truck (it [belongs to] their boss). They go out to find out why he was at his house.
Well, it wasn’t his boss. A small confrontation has the thief push the neighbor, almost run him over.
Then he tries to back up, smashing into a bunch of cars. He flees.
He left his unlocked phone in the car. They know who he is.
She adds that the truck’s owner apparently also knows the suspect through social media. We’re checking with SPD to see if there’s any indication the hit-run driver/stolen-truck suspect has been found yet. Case number for the truck theft is 22-231325; the hit-run crash – which Rose says is reported to have damaged up to seven vehicles – has at least three separate case numbers, starting with 22-231291.
(Photo courtesy SDOT)
Thanks to Kate for the tip, via a question about a big circle in the intersection of 21st and Genesee on Pigeon Point – too big to signal a future traffic mural, as she described it. SDOT tells us they’re planning to repaint the mural that community members painted in that intersection in 2015 (WSB coverage here), with “durable, long-lasting paint.” SDOT says they “got in contact with the original artist and have been working with her to design a refreshed version of the artwork that can be installed with more durable paint that will last for years to come.” Here’s that design:
The repainting is expected to happen within the next month or so; some prep work will be done this Sunday – grinding the road to “create a smooth surface for the plastic-based paints to stick to.” As noted in this flyer for the project, which is on the Delridge-Highland Park Greenway, they also plan some paving work, “filling cracked pavement,” and “improved trail lighting” along the greenway.
At Pathfinder K-8 on Pigeon Point, Laps With Lou 2022 is on! For almost two decades, now-retired PE teacher Lou Cutler has raised money for Make-A-Wish by doing a lap for every year of the age he’ll be when his birthday arrives later in June. Students join him throughout the day. This morning, before taking to the field, Lou spoke to the school via the PA system:
This year he’ll be turning 71, so he plans that many laps – plus one for a bonus, to bring the total distance to 12 miles. Students have been going out to the field in groups, starting with photos.
Lou’s been a Make-A-Wish volunteer even longer than he’s been leading this annual fundraiser – for more than a quarter-century!. You can support his quest to grant more wishes by donating here.
ADDED FRIDAY NIGHT: He did it again! Thanks to the Pathfinder parent who sent photos from the end of today’s laps:
(WSB photo from 2018)
For almost two decades, Lou Cutler has raised money to help grant kids’ wishes via a unique birthday-celebration run at Pathfinder K-8, where he taught PE before retiring. Most years, it was a giant group run throughout the day, with students joining Lou as he took one lap around the school field for every year he was celebrating. Then came the pandemic; in 2020, schools were closed, so Lou did a “lap” around the peninsula instead; last year, students joined him in small groups over two days. This year, when Lou takes to the Pathfinder field on Friday (June 3rd) in celebration of his upcoming 71st birthday, it’ll be a little more like the events of years past. He explained to us via email:
This year, rather having me communicating with everyone with a megaphone on the field, I will address the school from the office at 9:00 and then grade bands will come out in staggered time frames every 15 minute or so and I will take pictures with each class before they go on the field. All classes will stay out until the entire school is on the field at the same time and I believe everyone will stay on the field for 15 minutes or so and from that point some classes may go in while those who want to see how many laps they can run, will stay out and run to their heart’s content.
Make-A-Wish alumni are invited to join in the festivities, as are MAW staff and volunteers and Pathfinder parents, so I hope we have a tremendous turnout for the day.
As for me, I will be 71 on June 25th, so this year I will walk and run, though mostly walk, 71 laps, 11.8 miles, and add on a bonus lap to make it a full 12 miles because I love round numbers.
Over the previous 18 years we have raised $86,000 for MAW and as always, my hope is that we can raise as much money as possible, as I have seen the power of a wish in the boosting of spirits and hopes for wish kids and families over my 26+ years as a MAW volunteer!
You can support Lou’s Make-A-Wish quest by donating here.
(WSB photos)
Thanks to the parents who let us know about Pathfinder K-8 students’ walkout/demonstration today. Students left the Pigeon Point campus around 11:30 am and walked to the pedestrian/bicycle overpass at Delridge/Oregon for sign-waving.
The banner in the foreground was the work of someone else (we saw it there a few hours earlier) but gun violence is one of the two issues about which the Pathfinder students were demonstrating, along with reproductive rights:
This was one of many walkouts across the country today.
… a new reminder of where you are, when you’re at 21st/Andover. The photo was sent by longtime Pigeon Point community advocate Pete Spalding. It’s just uphill from where Pigeon Point has sported many signs over the years, like the one in this story.
Instead of a sit-down indoor gala, the Pathfinder K-8 PTSA is inviting the community to a free outdoor celebration this Saturday, and asked us to share the invitation with you:
Pathfinder K-8 Welcomes Everybody to the Great Return community event on May 21st from 3-8 pm at Pathfinder K-8!
When: 5/21 3-8 pm
Where: Pathfinder K-8, 1901 SW Genesee
What: Free fun! Silent auction, music, games, food & open play
Who: Open to all! Pathfinder & West Seattle communityGoal is to raise $45K through a Direct Give Ask approach with complimentary fun! Live music, entertainment, excellent auction gifts, games & fun!
Donation not required, but if you choose to, you can do it online any time between now and Saturday, even funding specific programs.
Another stolen car to look for – this one belongs to Nate:
I wanted to get the word out that my beloved 1999 Honda CR-V was stolen from our driveway in Pigeon Point at 5:55 this morning. The license plate is 487-KCX and it has a UW and University of Oregon sticker on the upper right corner of the back window, and a green King County Search and Rescue sticker in the upper left corner of the back window. It also has a black Yakima roof rack and an aftermarket spare-tire cover. The suspects pulled up in 2 vehicles, one silver SUV and what appears to be a green sedan. (5:55 am image:)
Please contact Nate at 425-638-2326 if found.
SUNDAY MORNING: Nate emailed to say his car’s been found, in Highland Park.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Tonight, the Community Advisory Group for Sound Transit‘s West Seattle extension meets online for a “deep dive” into the Draft Environmental Impact Statement, which is up for public comment until April 28th.
Last night, another neighborhood group met with ST to get answers to questions about the DEIS, which analyzes the proposed routing and station-location alternatives that are under consideration. The Pigeon Point Neighborhood Council has a unique perspective – to get across the Duwamish River and to a North Delridge station, the line may have to cut into the north end of their neighborhood. Just south of where, for example – as discussed in informal pre-meeting chatter – a dozen or more Great Blue Herons are back in their nests.
PPNC’s Pete Spalding – who’s also a member of the Community Advisory Group – facilitated. In introductions at the start of the meeting, some attendees mentioned having received the “we might need your property” letters from ST; others had not.
The meeting began with a project recap from ST’s West Seattle point person Jason Hampton, as had other meetings. We’ve covered it before – and the presenter was asked to cut the generic stuff short anyway – so we’ll focus this report mostly on unique Q&A. Of most interest to this group were the three studied alternatives for getting light rail across the river via a new bridge – either south of the existing motorized-vehicle bridge, or north of it.
The photo and report are from Rose:
I found this at my house at 22nd SW & Charlestown SW (near the bridge). The front wheel is off kilter.
If it might be yours, email us and we’ll connect you.
Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day has become MLK Day of Service for many, and in West Seattle, that included several environmental-restoration/cleanup projects today. We stopped by the Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association Nature Team work site in Pigeon Point Park, part of the West Duwamish Greenbelt urban forest, adjacent to Pathfinder K-8.
This is a labor-intensive, long-running project to give the life-sustaining forest some help by beating back invasive plants. Removing blackberry growth was a focus for the nearly 30 volunteers who turned out today. In the spring, work parties will focus on planting – but at this time of year, the ground has to be cleared and readied to receive those new plants. DNDA has frequent volunteer opportunities for this area and other parts of the West Duwamish Greenbelt – check them out, and sign up if you’re interested, by going here.
Earlier this week, we reported on a burglary at Pathfinder K-8 on Pigeon Point – someone broke into the school music room during winter break. Today, Pathfinder parent Lisa Stencel emailed us to say they’re looking for instrument donations so the students can keep making music: “Most of the instruments were taken, so we are hoping that our West Seattle community can help us out. If anyone has any instruments that are not being used, we would gladly take them.” We asked if any specific types were most needed; her reply, “It was mostly wind and horn instruments, but we’ll take anything.” Donations can be picked up if necessary. If you have an instrument to offer – and/or questions – email Lisa at lisastencel (at) gmail.com.
4:08 PM: We’ve received two notes about this: Though today’s Pathfinder K-8 COVID-19 vaccination pop-up clinic was described on the district website as “full,” we’re told hundreds of doses for 5-to-11-year-olds are available to walkups until 6 pm. The school is on Pigeon Point qt 1901 SW Genesee.
4:15 PM: The district confirms this. But they have 5:30 pm as an end time, while the clinic was originally listed as lasting until 6 pm. (Added: A school employee tells us 6 pm is correct.)
ORIGINAL FRIDAY NIGHT REPORT: Thanks to the Pathfinder K-8 community members who forwarded this letter emailed tonight by the school’s principal, Dr. Britney Holmes:
Dear Pathfinder Families and Staff,
I’m writing to inform you about an incident that occurred today at our school.
This morning about 8:50 a.m. a staff member discovered a noose attached to a tree on our campus. They immediately notified me. I took photos to document the item, and then had the custodian remove it. Discovery and removal took place during student arrival time. We don’t know how many students may have seen it.
We immediately contacted SPS Safety and Security department. We have also made a report to the Seattle Police Department. The incident is still under investigation.
Our school administrative team will be meeting with the central office coordinated school health team to determine next steps in providing supports to our school community. In the meantime, employees can receive free, confidential short-term counseling from the SPS Employee Assistance Program (EAP). The number for EAP is 877-313-4455. Seattle Public Schools (SPS) is committed to ensuring students have safe and welcoming environments for learning.
Neither SPS nor our school will tolerate any symbols of hatred, oppression, or violence. As a community, we are working to be anti-racist. We will continue to build anti-racist systems in our school. We will continue to lift up our families and communities of color and keep them involved in our process.
I hope you can find comfort and joy with family and friends this weekend.
We have no additional information but will be following up with the district and police.
ADDED MONDAY MORNING: This is the only statement from the district so far, via spokesperson Tim Robinson: “A noose was discovered on Friday and the district is offering supports to staff and students. Additional information has come in and, working with the school principal, the district is continuing to investigate in order to gain as much information as possible regarding the use and occurrence of this abhorrent symbol.”
ADDED WEDNESDAY NIGHT: Multiple readers have forwarded us an email that Dr. Holmes sent tonight. It begins:
I’m writing today to provide an update about the recent incident that occurred at our school.
As you know, a noose was found attached to a tree on our campus last Friday. Immediately, this incident was reported to Seattle Public Schools Safety and Security and the Seattle Police Department.
Since the opening of the investigation, a member of the Pathfinder community has come forward to identify the person responsible. That information has been shared appropriately with law enforcement and SPS leaders in order to bring appropriate resolution to the matter. The case remains under investigation by SPD.
Although responsibility has been admitted, I want to emphasize that this does not mitigate the gravity of the incident and its deep impact on those members of our community. Collectively, we must acknowledge that the symbolism used in this incident, regardless of intent, invoked anger and fear in many people, particularly our BIPOC families and staff.
As a result, my immediate hope and goal is to bring our Pathfinder family together to begin the healing process with the following opportunities for understanding and conversation.
The principal then lists three times next week for the school and Pigeon Point community to have that conversation, in “affinity spaces” for white participants at one and BIPOC participants at the other, and a third event for all.
Thanks to Pete for sending the photo! The northeast West Seattle neighborhood of Pigeon Point has been seasonally renamed.
P.S. Thanks to everyone who’s sent tips and/or photos of Halloween-season decorations so far, after our invitation! Watch for a gallery/list page soon.
That’s the aerial view of a – distanced! – neighborhood celebration this past weekend on Pigeon Point. Robert Shampain sent the video, report, and photos:
On Sunday, August 22, The Pigeon Point Neighborhood of West Seattle (just south of our Once-and-Future West Seattle Bridge) hosted the “Pigeon Point Back-Together-In-Person Get-together” near Pathfinder K-8 School. It was sponsored by a Small Sparks Grant from the Department of Neighborhoods, along with several local businesses, and it was a huge success!
Over 200 people attended during the afternoon, and enjoyed free tacos from West Seattle’s own El Chapulin Oaxaqueño taco truck along with lots of other food and drink, wonderful music by 5 local resident professionals (Brian Cutler, Nick Droz, Scott Herman, Ellaina Lewis, and Gabi Montoya), and presentations by the Duwamish Tribe’s Ken Workman, the new Pathfinder K-8 Principal and Vice Principal, the “Ridge-to- River” and West Duwamish Greenbelt trails project, PREP (Puget Ridge Edible Park), and DNDA (Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association).
There were a lot of kids-and-family events, like “Nature Art” with the Nature Consortium’s Jules Hepp and Jen Paur of “Tiny Science,” who brought all sorts of wonderful insects and information on bugs to share. Cindi Barker from the West Seattle Emergency Hubs had an information booth, as did the West Seattle SkyLink project, who had asked to attend. It really was an amazing afternoon. And best of all, neighbors all pitched in to clean up so well at the end, you couldn’t even tell how much fun had been had!
What a way to celebrate turning 70! At right in our photo is Lou Cutler, the retired PE teacher who is also a longtime Make-A-Wish volunteer raising money for MAW every year with a walkathon at his old school, Pathfinder K-8. Two weeks ago, Lou spent two days walking laps there with students in a pandemic-modified version of his annual fundraiser; the laps totaled a half-marathon, 13+ miles, and today he’s replicating that, with a 13+-mile walk around West Seattle with friends, family, and supporters. We photographed them leaving the Pathfinder campus on Pigeon Point just after 10 am; Lou said the plan was to head northwest to Alki, then south to Beach Drive and Lincoln Park, looping back northeast to finish back at Pathfinder. He says he’s not worried about the heat – “We’ve got water!” He’s also hoping to return to his classic “Laps With Lou” format next year – one day of lapping the school track with one lap for every year of his age, so that’s 71 laps next year. P.S. You can support the Make-A-Wish kids that Lou’s long supported by donating here.
ADDED: Afterward, Lou told us via email, “It took us a little longer than I planned, but we finally made it back to Pathfinder about 7 hours after we left, though we had lots of fun stops along the way and were not in a rush to finish.” His fundraising for this year is getting closer to the goal, too, and he’s still welcoming more donations, to make more kids’ wishes come true.
Balloons and banners were displayed in abundance this afternoon as Pathfinder K-8 on Pigeon Point had a farewell parade at the end of the final school day of the year. Stars of the show – two high-profile departees, principal David Dockendorf:
And assistant principal Lisa Clayton:
Dockendorf is retiring after 23 school years at the helm of Pathfinder. He told us he’s planning a trip to Mexico – and after that, he’ll figure out what else is next.
Clayton has spent 25 of the past 27 years at Pathfinder, assistant principal for the past decade. She will hold that role at Genesee Hill Elementary starting this fall.
Today’s parade also honored the rest of Pathfinder’s staff – lots of gratitude in evidence with everyone who drove by. Pathfinder’s new principal, as announced back in April, will be Dr. Britney Holmes.
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