Community Connections - Coming up from Third Place Commons

Tuesday, January 12, 2021

As we all struggle to navigate these very stressful times, community feels more important than ever. The pandemic may have separated us physically, but we don’t have to abandon our community support entirely thanks in part to Third Place Commons.

If you’re looking for chances to connect with your community, engage with issues of importance, or just to find some welcome opportunities to take a break from it all, check out these upcoming free events.

TPC Movie Club – Tues, Jan. 12 (and every 2nd Tuesday night) at 7:30pm

This month’s session focuses on “Selma,” the true story of the civil rights march from Selma to Montgomery, led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., that ultimately caused President Johnson to sign the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Oscar nominated for Best Picture and winner of Best Song, this universally acclaimed film will leave you inspired. Register here for the monthly TPC Movie Club. (Register just once for the link to use each month.)


What Is Dr. King’s Beloved Community and How Do We Achieve It? – Thurs, Jan. 14 at 7pm

A community conversation about the concept of Beloved Community, Dr. King’s global vision for a world in which “racism and all forms of discrimination, bigotry and prejudice will be replaced by an all-inclusive spirit of sisterhood and brotherhood.” How do we bring this estimable goal to life? How is it already manifesting in the real world? Register here to learn more and get inspired to take action.

Commons Community Book Club – Weds, Jan. 20 (and every 3rd Wednesday) at 5:00pm

The January chat will focus on the book Exit West by Mohsin Hamid. Two lovers in a country torn apart by a civil war hear rumors of mysterious doors that can whisk you away to other places. But if they can manage to find one and muster the courage to go through, where will they land and what dangers will they face? This unusual take on love and the refugee experience is a NYT bestseller that was awarded the LA Times Book Prize for Fiction and named one of the New York Times Book Review’s 10 Best Books of 2017. Register here for the Commons Community Book Club. (Register just once for the link to use each month.)

(Note: As luck would have it, this monthly meeting just happens to fall on Inauguration Day this month. While it is currently still scheduled to move forward as planned, you may wish to check the online calendar for updates should current events impact this or any other planned programming.)


Pandemic Picks: Movies! – Weds, Jan. 27 at 7:00pm

Everyone needs a break from the news of the world now and then, especially in times of turmoil. Sometimes a cinematic escape is just good self-care. So tune in for Pandemic Picks: Movies!, the next installment in the popular series of programs where local leaders and content experts share their recommendations to get you through this wintery lockdown. Register here for Pandemic Picks: Movies!

TPC At Home

Of course, there are other ways to connect with community through the Commons, too, through all of the TPC At Home programs. These include weekly foreign language conversation groups (German on Mondays, French on Tuesdays, and Spanish on Thursdays at 5:30pm) and monthly Computer Q/As. Check the Third Place Commons online calendar for links to join to these welcoming and fun groups.

Third Place Commons, a community supported 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, has been building real community in the heart of Lake Forest Park for over 20 years. In addition to presenting its largest program, the Lake Forest Park Farmers Market, Third Place Commons now also fosters real community in digital space. To learn more, or to make a gift to support the Commons and the market, visit ThirdPlaceCommons.org



Read more...

Case updates January 10, 2021

Case updates January 10, 2021


United States
  • cases 22,322,956 - 220,887 new cases since yesterday
  • deaths 373,167 - 2,083 new deaths since yesterday

Washington state
  • cases 276,686
  • hospitalizations 15,978
  • deaths 3,699

King county
  • cases 69,188 - 716 since yesterday
  • hospitalizations 4,466 - 19 since yesterday
  • deaths 1,141 - 1 since yesterday

Seattle - population 744,995 (2018)
  • cases 17,300 - 125 since yesterday
  • hospitalizations 1,061 - 8 since yesterday
  • deaths 293 - 1 since yesterday

Shoreline - population 56,752 (2018)
  • cases 1,738 - 8 since yesterday
  • hospitalizations 168 - 2 since yesterday
  • deaths 81 - 0 since yesterday

Lake Forest Park - 13,569 (2018)
  • cases 228 - 1 since yesterday
  • hospitalizations 18 - 0 since yesterday
  • deaths 4 - 0 since yesterday


Read more...

Seattle Times: Seattle man charged with assault from actions during U.S. Capitol attack

An organized mob broke down the doors and windows of Congress
in an attempt to overthrow the presidential election
Photo by Louis Velazquez on Unsplash

According to The Seattle Times and other news media:

A Seattle man has been charged with assaulting a federal police officer during the siege of the U.S. Capitol.

Mark J. Leffingwell, 51, of Seattle, was also charged Thursday in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia with entering a restricted building and violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.

The siege on Wednesday left five people dead, including a U.S. Capitol Police officer. The assault charge against Leffingwell stems from a separate assault on a federal law-enforcement officer.   

Times story here

Leffingwell was charged in Federal court, released into the custody of his wife, and forbidden to travel to Washington D.C.

Two Seattle police officers are being investigated after they posted photos on their social media pages.



Read more...

Jayapal tests positive for COVID-19 following lockdown at Capitol with Republican lawmakers who refused to wear masks

U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal
From the Office of Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal

United States Representative Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) received a positive COVID-19 test result Monday night after being locked down in a secured room at the U.S Capitol where at lease nine Republican lawmakers refused to wear masks in the moments after the January 6 attack. 

Dr. Brian Monahan, the Attending Physician of the United States Congress, advised representatives and Congressional staff on Sunday that those in the secured room could have “been exposed to another occupant with coronavirus infection.” 

The duration in the room was multiple hours and several Republicans not only cruelly refused to wear a mask but mocked colleagues and staff who offered them one.
 
“Too many Republicans have refused to take this pandemic and virus seriously, and in doing so, they endanger everyone around them. Only hours after President Trump incited a deadly assault on our Capitol, our country, and our democracy, many Republicans still refused to take the bare minimum COVID-19 precaution and simply wear a damn mask in a crowded room during a pandemic — creating a superspreader event on top of a domestic terrorist attack,” said Congresswoman Jayapal. 
“While I am isolating per the Capitol Physician’s instructions, I will continue to work to the best of my ability because the deep urgency of our many crises is paramount. I share the outrage and anger of my constituents and those across this country who have watched Donald Trump fail to combat this raging pandemic and refuse to take care of Americans who are suffering, dying, and devastated. 
"Now, we have also watched him openly fuel and incite these insurrectionists who attacked the Capitol and our democracy on January 6 — so I will not rest until I do everything in my power to remove this President from office.”
“I am also calling for serious fines to be immediately levied on every single Member who refuses to wear a mask in the Capitol,” Jayapal continued. 
“Additionally, any Member who refuses to wear a mask should be immediately removed from the floor by the Sergeant at Arms. This is not a joke. Our lives and our livelihoods are at risk, and anyone who refuses to wear a mask should be fully held accountable for endangering our lives because of their selfish idiocy.”

Jayapal began quarantining immediately after the attack on the U.S. Capitol, fearing and foreseeing exactly what would occur given the number of maskless lawmakers sitting in the same room as her and her colleagues. 

In an interview with The Cut on Thursday, she said, “I’m quarantining now because I am convinced that where we ended up, in the secured room — where there were over 100 people and many were Republicans not wearing masks — was a superspreader event.”

Rep. Jayapal is the second lawmaker in the room to test positive for COVID-19. They have not released the name of the person who was sick before the lockdown.



Read more...

The Little Free Pantry Angels

Every pantry is different but most - not all - have shelves and doors

It started out last April. Two friends were talking about their concerns about hungry children and families in the Shoreline School District.
 
One of them, Kim Clasen, is a fifth grade teacher at Lake Forest Park Elementary and the other, Barb Swan, has spent the last 35 years doing annual food drives for Northwest Harvest and local food banks. 

They understood the stress of families facing food insecurity, and realized the coronavirus pandemic was throwing many persons who had never before needed food assistance into the precarious balance of how to feed themselves and their families.
 
Kim, who grew up in Lake Forest Park, had heard that many of the local “Little Free Libraries” were being converted into “Little Free Pantries;” roadside cupboards where people could discreetly “Take What They Need, Leave What They Can.”

She started driving the area and found several, all of which needed filling. So Barb and Kim sent an email out to their network of friends, collected some donations of money and food, and set about filling up those pantries.

Within a matter of weeks they had a routine: Barb started collecting funds and shopping, and Kim drove the delivery route. Through word of mouth, social media and a blog post, their friends began sending Venmo donations and dropping off checks and canned food. 

Kim's van, ready for the weekly delivery run

Barb sources the best deals on hygiene and food staples. Some friends donated their government stimulus checks, some generous souls donate a bit each month, others have heard through friends and sent money for this quiet cause.

To date they have purchased and stocked over $13,000 worth of hygiene items and food staples to the Little Free Pantries throughout the Shoreline School District.

What started as a simple gift of helping local families one time has snowballed into nine months of sourcing, shopping, and delivery. 

After seeing a need for a pantry in the northern part of Lake Forest Park, the women coerced Barb’s husband into building a new pantry with materials donated by a local contractor and found a generous family to install the pantry in front of their home.

Barb logs each donation and purchase into a notebook, and has learned to source the best prices on the things they note have highest turnover in the pantries. Every week she purchases cases of peanut butter, jam, ready-to-eat meals like chili, ravioli, refried beans or hearty soup, shelf stable milk, breads, canned fruits, tuna, canned chicken, shampoo, toothpaste, deodorant, feminine hygiene, baby wipes, hand and dish soap. 

She sometimes receives pretty strange looks when she is loading 24 packs of maxi pads into her cart, but she has become accustomed to masking up and heading out to load up her SUV with goods every week.

After she stocks up, they transfer everything into Kim’s bright red van and over the course of the week Kim makes the rounds to the now twenty-two Little Free Pantries in the area. Sometimes the pantries are in desperate need of restocking, other times community members have filled them. 

There have been occasions where Kim has seen moms in cars with children waiting for her to drive away so they can discreetly take a few things for a meal. The two have found that our community at large has been generous to the little pantries in the area, but they note that nearly every time Kim restocks, the basic necessities and hygiene items which she delivered previously have been “shopped.” 

Simple things like shampoo and toothpaste can make all the difference to a person trying to find a job or get through a day -- and oftentimes those items are not available through community food banks.

Their intent is simple; keep their community fed and as healthy as possible in these trying times. It is an endeavor that has kept them busy through the pandemic, and grateful each day for those with generous hearts supporting their quiet undertaking.

To donate to Barb and Kim’s Angel Pantry program contact Barb at barbswmo2@comcast.net or Kim at kim@theclasens.com



Read more...

Rep. Ryu to concentrate on economic development, affordable housing as legislature convenes

Rep. Cindy Ryu, D-32
By Evan Smith

State Rep. Cindy Ryu plans to concentrate on economic development and affordable housing during the 2021 legislative session that opened Monday in Olympia.

Ryu is chairwoman of the new committee on community and economic Development.

“I am especially excited to be working on both the short-term economic recovery as well as long-term future of our state,” Ryu said Sunday. 
“The committee will consider issues relating to community development; community investment programs; and underrepresented communities. 
"This committee also considers issues relating to economic development and economic resiliency, including small business assistance; business financing; international trade; tourism; parks and recreation; telecommunications; and broadband; as well as emergency preparedness, response, and resiliency.”

For the last five years Ryu led a committee on housing, community development and veterans, but jurisdiction over housing and veterans’ issues have been moved to another committee.

She retains her interest in housing issues.

“I am very interested in increasing affordable housing units both for renters and homeowners, she said. 
“I have introduced House Bill 1070, allowing acquisition and construction of affordable housing and facilities within existing tax authority, and HB 1128, allowing cities or counties to establish a housing benefit district for the purpose of acquiring, land banking, predevelopment contracting, selling, improving, funding, and leasing land for the creation of affordable low-income and middle-income housing and community development projects.”


Ryu has introduced another bill to set up a State Office of Resiliency recommended by the Work Group on Disaster Resiliency, on which she served. 

“Facing increasing wildfire and other catastrophic disaster events with limited resources, we agreed we must coordinate state operations for resiliency in recovery and worked with dozens of stakeholders throughout 2019 and 2020 under the leadership of the Office of the Insurance Commissioner.”

Democrat Ryu represents the 32nd Legislative District, including Shoreline, part of northwest Seattle, the town of Woodway, south Edmonds, the city of Lynnwood and a small part of Mountlake Terrace.

In addition to the committee on community and economic development, she is a member of the House Appropriations Committee and the Consumer Protection and Business Committee.

Evan Smith can be reached at schsmith@frontier.com



Read more...

Local fire departments training in Mia Roma building on Bothell Way in Kenmore

Photo courtesy Northshore Fire

The old Mia Roma Building in Kenmore (7620 NE Bothell Way) has been acquired by the North King County Training Consortium. 

If you've driven by recently, you may have seen a bunch of firefighters, several fire engines and even some light smoke.

Photo courtesy Northshore Fire

This is all being done for training purposes and they will not be burning the building down.

The building housed a large Italian restaurant which has been closed for years.

Contact the Northshore Fire Department if you have any questions: 425-354-1780.



Read more...

Gloria's critters: Back away, photog, these seeds are MINE, Dougie shouted

Monday, January 11, 2021

 

Photo by Gloria Z Nagler

holding onto the feeder for all he was worth...

(Douglas's Squirrels are pugnacious defenders of what they deem theirs:)

--Gloria Z Nagler



Read more...

Claudia Balducci re-elected Chair as County Council embarks on busy new year

Coming off a challenging past year and looking ahead to a busy 2021, the King County Council has re-elected Claudia Balducci as Chair, and Joe McDermott and Reagan Dunn as Vice Chairs.

“I’m proud of the work the King County Council accomplished in 2020 under unprecedented conditions and look forward to leading the Council in 2021 as we continue to respond and recover from the pandemic,” Balducci said. 
“As the pandemic raged, the King County Council adapted and worked together to support our constituents. In 2021, we will recover and build toward a better, more equitable future with economic opportunity and improved public and mental health for all.”

The council faces a full docket in 2021, including:
  • Vaccine Distribution and COVID-19 Recovery – Job number one in 2021 continues to be saving lives, preventing the spread of the virus and getting to the other side of the pandemic. The council will continue to provide oversight and budget support to respond to the pandemic, while also working to deploy COVID-19 vaccines countywide.
  • Best Starts for Kids Levy Renewal – Six years ago, the voters of King County approved the first Best Starts for Kids levy, dedicated to putting every baby born and every child raised in King County on a path toward lifelong success. In 2021 the council will review accomplishments, set priorities and determine investments for a levy renewal to be put before voters.
  • Law Enforcement Reforms for Public Safety and Equity – With voter approval of charter amendments to improve accountability in law enforcement, the council will work with the Executive, community, stakeholders, and experts toward public safety and reduced racial disparities in law enforcement practices.
  • Strategic Climate Plan Update – As the region confronts the realities of a warming planet, the urgency to act now as a County is even greater. In early 2021, the King County Council will review and approve a 5-year update to our groundbreaking strategic climate action plan.
  • Rebuilding Transit – Access to frequent and reliable transportation improves economic opportunity. Following the wake of the pandemic, the council have a lot of work to rebuild our transit system, including planning and updating our policies to enable a more robust and equitable transit network throughout King County.
  • Homelessness – Homelessness continues to be a crisis in all parts of our County. Councilmembers will work toward real progress putting roofs over heads as the County implements the Health through Housing Program approved last year. Council will also continue working with its partners to stand up a truly regional response to this humanitarian crisis.


Read more...

Case updates January 9, 2021

Case updates January 9, 2021


United States
  • cases 22,102,069 - 248,578 new cases since yesterday
  • deaths 371,084 - 3,432 new deaths since yesterday

Washington state - not updated on weekends
  • cases 271,595
  • hospitalizations 15,771
  • deaths 3,698

King county
  • cases 68,472 - 527 since yesterday
  • hospitalizations 4,447 - 50 since yesterday
  • deaths 1,140 - 0 since yesterday

Seattle - population 744,995 (2018)
  • cases 17,175 - 146 since yesterday
  • hospitalizations 1,053 - 11 since yesterday
  • deaths 292 - 1 since yesterday

Shoreline - population 56,752 (2018)
  • cases 1,730 - 14 since yesterday
  • hospitalizations 166 - 1 since yesterday
  • deaths 81 - 0 since yesterday

Lake Forest Park - 13,569 (2018)
  • cases 227 - 4 since yesterday
  • hospitalizations 18 - 1 since yesterday
  • deaths 4 - 0 since yesterday



Read more...

State Fire Marshal warns of fire hazard from e-cigarettes

The State Fire Marshal’s Office would like to advise residents of the fire risks when using electronic cigarettes. 

The main cause of e-cigarette fires and explosions is the failure of lithium-ion batteries when charging or during transportation.

To reduce the risk of fires caused by failed lithium-ion batteries in e-cigarettes, please take the following precautions:
  • Follow the manufacturer’s recommendations for charging batteries. Use the charger that came with the device. Don't substitute with a phone or tablet charger.
  • Remove charger when battery has been fully charged and avoid charging batteries overnight. They can overheat if overcharged.
  • Keep batteries at room temperature and avoid exposing them to extreme temperatures.
  • Store loose batteries in a protective case to prevent contact with metal objects.
For more information, contact the State Fire Marshal’s Office at 360-596-3929.



Read more...

Shoreline Chamber hosting Black Owned Business panel discussion Wednesday


The Shoreline Chamber of Commerce is hosting a Black Owned Business panel discussion on Wednesday, January 13, 2021 and are inviting the community to attend. 

January ZOOM Luncheon Featuring a
Black Owned Business Panel Discussion

Wednesday, January 13, 2021
11:30am - 1:00pm

Join us for this FREE panel discussion, hosted by the Shoreline Chamber of Commerce via Zoom.

Across the country, the Black Lives Matter movement has mobilized communities at an unprecedented scale with its simple message that unarmed people should not be more than twice as likely to be killed by the police due to the color of their skin. 

The heightened interest in understanding bias and dismantling systems of oppression has inspired many to seek out ways to be supportive of black-owned businesses. A recent report from Yelp showed that searches for Black-owned businesses were up from approximately 35,000 last summer to more than 2,500,000 this summer. 

But as a recent Forbes.com article revealed, an extreme wealth gap persists between black and white families, hindering the formation and growth of black businesses. Since the onset of the COVID-19 economic crisis, Black entrepreneurs are hardest hit: fully 41% of Black small-business owners stopped working altogether between February and April of 2020. White small-business owners, by contrast, ceased work at less than half the rate of Black small-business owners. In light of these troubling statistics, what can be done to catalyze heightened interest in equity into action in our community?

We are excited to announce we have recruited an experienced leader in Equity, Diversity and Inclusion to facilitate a discussion with Black business leaders in our community to speak about the barriers they face, things we in the broader community can do to support diversity in our business community and attract more entrepreneurs of color, how we can introduce young people of all backgrounds to diverse business people, and the resources available to businesses owned by people from traditionally underserved communities.

Register at: https://shorelinechamberofcommerce.wildapricot.org/event-4063272



Read more...

Long lines for styrofoam recycling event at Lake Forest Park

A line of cars waits to turn in their styrofoam blocks on Sunday
Photo by Robin Roat

Safeway offered an event on Sunday in Lake Forest Park to take styrofoam blocks in for recycling. They allowed four hours for collection but didn't realize just how long people had been collecting the difficult to recycle styrofoam.

There were long lines of cars during most of the event. Safeway had brought in two large trucks but ended up filling four!


Read more...

LFP Council continues opportunities for comments on Town Center at special meeting Monday


LFP City Hall 
Photo by Steven H. Robinson
City of Lake Forest Park Council Committee of the Whole will hold a special (virtual) meeting on Monday, January 11, 2021 at 6pm to review 

Town Center Design Guidelines Update – Review of Draft Design Guidelines Pertaining to All Redevelopment

Citizens will be given three minutes each to comment

Click on the following link for information about how to provide oral Citizen Comments: https://www.cityoflfp.com/615/Virtual-Meetings-during-COVID-19

Because the City has implemented oral comments, written comments are no longer read under Citizen Comments.

Instructions for participating in this meeting virtually:

When: Jan 11, 2021 06:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Topic: Committee of the Whole Special Meeting 1/11/2021 

Click the link  to join the webinar: https://zoom.us/j/95099515155

Or iPhone one-tap :
US: +12532158782,,95099515155# or +13462487799,,95099515155#

Or Telephone:
Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location):

US: +1 253 215 8782 or +1 346 248 7799 or +1 408 638 0968 or +1 669 900 6833 or +1 301 715 8592 or +1 312 626 6799 or +1 646 876 9923

Webinar ID: 950 9951 5155
International numbers available: https://zoom.us/u/abRIYYLicr



Read more...

Lake Forest Park Rotary collects and donates 345 pounds of peanut butter in December


The Rotary Club of Lake Forest Park collected 225 jars of peanut butter - large and small - during the month of December. It totalled 345 pounds!


They donated it to North Helpline and the Shoreline - Lake Forest Park Senior Center.


Fighting food insecurity one jar at a time!



Read more...

KING TV: Ken Jennings to be the first guest host of Jeopardy!

Ken Jennings on Linked In
KING 5 reports:

Champion "Jeopardy!" contestant Ken Jennings will front the first week of new guest-hosted episodes of the famous quiz show after the late Alex Trebek's last taped episodes have aired.

Show producers released a promotional video on Twitter Sunday with Jennings as host who said, "sharing this stage with Alex Trebek was one of the greatest honors of my life." 
Jennings, who isn't expected to permanently host the show, appeared to hold back emotion as he spoke fondly of the beloved Trebek.

See the story here

"Ken Jennings is an American game show contestant, consultant, author, and television host. He is the highest-earning American game show contestant of all time. Jennings holds the record for the longest winning streak on the U.S. game show Jeopardy! with 74 consecutive wins." Wikipedia

Wikipedia also says he was born in Edmonds and it looks like he now lives in Seattle.




Read more...

Sound Transit sting operation saves bees in Shoreline

Sunday, January 10, 2021


Beekeeper Peter Nolte and Jarrad Pimentel,
with SKH, get ready for the hive rescue.

By Katie Metzger, Sound Transit

To bee or not to bee, that is the question. The answer: save the bees.

When Sound Transit crews found a honey beehive in a tree along the Lynnwood Link Extension alignment, a rescue operation was in order, and we brought in beekeeper Peter Nolte of Rainy Day Bees.

The bee keeper had to be lifted 25 feet into the air
to cut comb from the hive so it could be relocated.

The tree that was home to the bees is set to be cut down to make way for the light rail line, but Nolte said the bees wouldn’t have lived through the winter on an exposed tree branch, especially considering the amount of honey they had.

“This was the only way they could survive,” he said. “We’re giving them the best chance we can.”


Nolte said the hive was relatively small – 10,000 to 20,000 bees, compared to an average of 50,000 to 70,000 bees – meaning that it was a newer colony. He said it's not uncommon for bees to colonize so high in the canopy, but it's the first time he's had access to a lift (thanks to our contractors) to bring them down.

When honeybee colonies want to reproduce, they swarm. Half stay behind to raise a new queen, while the other half leave in search of a new home. Often, this results in a cluster of bees hanging out under a picnic table, in the eaves of a house or on a tree limb.

These bees created quite a buzz.

These are intermediate locations while bee ‘scouts’ continue the search for a permanent home – like a hollow tree trunk, or an old hive that’s not being used anymore. In this case, the bees decided to hunker down and started building comb in the tree branch itself.

Nolte suggested that the hive rescue take place at dusk, when all of the foragers come back from collecting pollen and nectar during the day.

He cut out individual pieces of honeycomb by hand and put them into a frame that will hopefully become their new hive.

Time will tell if the bees, especially the queen, will survive the transfer and adapt to their new surroundings.

Getting ready to transfer the bees to their new home.


Nolte is a member of the Puget Sound Beekeepers Association, and he sells honey and pollen (which is rich in B vitamins - really) at local farmers markets. He has been interested in social insects since he was a kid.

A visit to the Puyallup Fair sparked the interest in beekeeping.

He also said he had done theater in college (“where they put us on all kinds of teetering ladders”) so going up in the lift wasn’t too uncomfortable, though he had never been up that high while beekeeping before. Usually, swarms are on the ground, or can be reached with a 20-foot pole.

There are many threats to the bee population in the U.S., from habitat degradation to incorrect use of pesticides to invasive species. But Nolte said honey bees are “a complete necessity” for agriculture, especially here in Washington where they pollinate our apple orchards and berry fields.



Read more...

Kenmore student wins scholarship from TranscriptionServices.com after national competition

For those who have never struggled with hearing loss, it is all too easy to take the ability to hear for granted. 

At TranscriptionServices.com, we are aware of the crucial role hearing plays in our transcriptionists’ ability to be great at what they do.

Millions of people around the world do not have the same privilege. That’s why with every order, we commit to providing a month’s worth of hearing aid batteries to a recipient in a developing country.

This year, TranscriptionServices.com offered a $500 scholarship to students who wrote an essay related to this topic.

In line with our emphasis on creating awareness of the importance of hearing in daily life, we asked applicants to write an essay between 500 and 750 words based on the prompt:

If you woke up tomorrow with permanent hearing loss, what would be the biggest challenge you would face? How would you address that challenge?

Our applicants didn’t disappoint. We received 371 submissions(!), each giving a different perspective on how they would navigate a world void of sounds.

Some shared their thoughts as individuals living with disabilities. Some took the philosophical route in examining ways to cope with a new and scary reality. Some reflected on the emotions involved in the loss of ability to do the things they once loved.

With no shortage of talented writers among the submissions, choosing a winner was not an easy task. 

However, after much deliberation, the 2020 TranscriptionServices.com Scholarship has been awarded to:

Claire Longcore, Kenmore, who attends Inglemoor High School in Kenmore, WA. 

Her essay explores the painful consequences of losing not just her technical abilities as a musician but her intimate connection with the musical world and the people in it that have shaped most of her life.

Close contenders who vied for the scholarship are John Legarte based in Champaign, IL, and Alexa Quintero from Merrimack, NH. John takes us on a journey that begins with the moment of realization and progresses through losing his identity and then reclaiming his identity by adapting to the new reality. Alexa gives us a passionate account of a dancer who will not let hearing loss stop her from moving to the rhythms of her heart.



Read more...

Governor discusses legislative budget priorities

Gov. Jay Inslee
Gov. Jay Inslee took questions and addressed his priorities for the 2021 legislative session at the Associated Press' annual Legislative Preview Day Thursday, January 7, 2021.

"Our priorities are right, fair and just, unequivocally rising to the challenges we face. Because my agenda is focused on three things: Relief, recovery and resilience," Inslee said. 

"Relief for the here-and-now; a recovery plan to turn the corner; and resilience for our long-term economic health."

Inslee’s 2021-23 budget proposals would:
  • Continue an aggressive response to the ongoing pandemic and build more capacity for tackling future public health crises.
  • Rebuild the state’s economy and continue efforts to support households, students, workers and businesses impacted by the pandemic.
  • Protect previous investments in areas such as education, childcare and early learning, climate action, behavioral health reform, combating homelessness and access to health care.

Inslee also discussed his historic package of equity legislation, which focuses on reforming independent investigations of police use of force, supporting immigrant workers impacted by the pandemic, further advancing equity-focused policies for state agency operations and $365 million total for equity-related agenda items.

More on the governor's proposals to address climate change, fix the state's regressive tax system and more can be found here.



Read more...

Cartoon by Whitney Potter: Safari

 


Previous cartoons by Whitney Potter HERE



Read more...

Change the World Through Coffee - local couple is close to opening a mobile coffee business on Ballinger but needs a little help


Heather and Dave Skogerson and sons,Vaughn and Finn, are the family behind SKÖG Haus Coffee, a mobile, specialty coffee business.

It will be housed in a vintage Airstream trailer, which will be parked at The Local 104 on Ballinger in Lake Forest Park in the early morning to early afternoon hours to offer espresso / coffee, tea, smoothies, baked goods and amazing customer service all in a drive through, walk up style business.


They are in the final steps of getting ready to open and need $5,000 to finish. They have set up a kickstarter campaign that allows backers to either donate or pre-pay for their coffee!


We are humbly asking for your support to help us raise enough money to finalize the purchase of our espresso machine, built right here in Seattle, Washington, and to also complete the build out of our trailer which includes electrical and plumbing work necessary for WA State codes, permitting and inspections. 
With these things complete, we can be up and running and serving our community even sooner! We have already purchased the trailer, necessary gear and have done so much work over the last year and a half to begin, now all we need is you to join our SKÖG Haus Coffee family!

Here's the kickstarter link: Change the World Through Coffee



Read more...

For the Birds: The Irruption of 20-21

Saturday, January 9, 2021

Small, trusting, hungry little bundles of fluff - keep your feeders full for them
Photo by Craig Kerns

By Christine Southwick

Have you had flocks of small birds noisily sitting in your trees, swarming on your bird feeders, and seeming to erupt all over your yard? You really are a lucky one.

Beginning in October this area has seen vast numbers of Pine Siskins, the like not seen for over a decade. Certainly, this is one of the biggest irruptions of these finches ever recorded throughout the United States, even into Georgia and Alabama.

Hungry Pine Siskins have fled Canada in search of food
Photo by Craig Kerns

Bird feeders throughout our country are being emptied by hungry, stressed Pine Siskins who have left their Canadian boreal forest ranges, looking for food due to a meager cone crop there.

An occurrence of a sparse number of cones has always been somewhat cyclic, but now in addition many of the Canadian old-growth forests are being timbered, reducing even more the trees capable of supplying the normally abundant supply of cone seeds.

Water needs to be kept liquid during cold temperatures
Photo by Craig Kerns

Why is this called irruptive behavior and not migration? This type of flock movement is not a regular, annual movement along established flight routes, but an irregular movement, often years apart, and more often east-westward versus predominantly north and south.
  
These little brown striped birds with yellow feathers on their wings have sharp narrow bills which are suited for eating cone seeds, and they love sunflower chips in backyard feeders. They also like nyjer (thistle) seeds, but in our wet winters I don’t put nyjer seeds in my feeders due to rapid spoilage.

Salmonella seems to affect Pine Siskins more than other birds -- but does it really? 
These finches congregate in number, so a tired and starving Pine Siskin may die and its tiny body found below or near a feeder. 
Keep your feeders, suet, and bird baths clean, but don’t take everything down. Wintering birds still need healthy food.

Pine Siskins don’t see many people in their boreal forest habitats, so they are not afraid of individuals, and if you move slowly you will probably be able to get very close to these birds. 

I have even been able to get individuals to climb onto my finger.

Small, trusting, hungry little bundles of fluff — what’s not to love?

Yes, right now those 20-50 finches are eating all the food in your feeders, trying to get nourishment, but after this coming spring, you might not see Pine Siskins again for several years. 

Enjoy them while they are here.



Read more...

Book review by Aarene Storms: Leave Me Alone!

Leave Me Alone! by Vera Brosgol

Once there was an old woman who lived in a little house with a big family and a big stack of knitting.

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" she shouts, as she leaves home for the forest, then leaves the forest for the mountains, the moon, and finally moves to the void on the far side of a wormhole -- which is a nice quiet spot to knit without distractions.

Share this fun picture book with kiddos ages 3 and up ... or with other adults who wouldn't mind going to the void just to get some peace and quiet.

Aarene Storms 
Teen Services Librarian
King County Library System 



Read more...

Case updates January 8, 2021

Case updates January 8, 2021


United States
  • cases 21,853,491 - 314,093 new cases since yesterday
  • deaths 367,652 - 3,623 new deaths since yesterday

Washington state
  • cases 271,595
  • hospitalizations 15,771
  • deaths 3,698

King county
  • cases 67,945 - 877 since yesterday
  • hospitalizations 4,397 - 22 since yesterday
  • deaths 1,140 - 2 since yesterday

Seattle - population 744,995 (2018)
  • cases 17,029 - 192 since yesterday
  • hospitalizations 1,042 - 5 since yesterday
  • deaths 291 - -1 since yesterday

Shoreline - population 56,752 (2018)
  • cases 1,716 - 15 since yesterday
  • hospitalizations 165 - 2 since yesterday
  • deaths 81 - 0 since yesterday

Lake Forest Park - 13,569 (2018)
  • cases 223 - 6 since yesterday
  • hospitalizations 17 - -1 since yesterday
  • deaths 4 - 0 since yesterday


Read more...

Lake Forest Park Police Department “Shop with a Cop” 2020

LFP Police Santas deliver gifts to local families. Chief Harden is on the left.
Photo courtesy LFP PD

Every year the Lake Forest Park Police Department partners with the LFP Rotary, LFP Police Officers Guild and multiple surrounding police agencies, including Shoreline, Kenmore and WSP to host our Shop with a Cop event.

In previous years we receive nominations for deserving elementary school students and their families from local schools. 15 children are then chosen to participate. Each child is paired with their very own “Cop” when they arrive at the police department. During a provided breakfast they both go over they and their families' wish list. 

Everyone is transported to a local Target where the fun really begins. After shopping and purchasing all their gifts, they are transported back to the police department where they have lunch and wrap all their gifts prior to being picked up by their parents.

Santa came to the door this year
Photo courtesy LFP PD


This year looked much different, however we realized that this event would greatly benefit families who are struggling in the current environment. It was decided to go ahead with the event, only scaled back to 5 children from Brookside Elementary and 5 from LFP Elementary. 

The family advocate provided all the necessary information on these 10 families, along with wish and needs lists. LFP employees then completed all the shopping and wrapping. The family advocate then assisted with scheduling between the police and all the families so the gifts could be delivered.
 
Over 100 gifts were delivered to 10 families with a total of 26 children receiving items they requested. Each family also received a $100 Target gift card for anything else they may need. 

All of this would not have been possible without generous donations from the LFP Rotary and the LFP Police Officers Guild. We are hopeful we will get back to our regular event next year and look forward to having a great time shopping with the kids again.


 

Families are chosen by the School Advocates
Photo courtesy LFP PD

LFP PD would like to thank all past and future supporters of this incredible event. The Lake Forest Park Police Department invites anyone who would like to donate to “Shop with a Cop” to send their donations to the North Sound Police Foundation, P.O. Box 12006 Mill Creek, WA 98082. 

Please note that the donation is for Lake Forest Park Police and the Shop with a Cop program. Checks should be made payable to the North Shore Police Foundation. 

For questions, please call Lt. Lehman 206-957-2852.



Read more...

Gloria's Birds: Drippy duck duck goose

 

Photo by Gloria Z Nagler

Photo by Gloria Z Nagler

Photo by Gloria Z Nagler

You don't usually think of waterfowl dripping water but these three put that thought to rest. Maybe they are actually drooling ducks...




Read more...

Third Place Books author events this week - all online


Tuesday, January 12, 2021 - 12:00pm
Virtual Event
This is a virtual event, taking place via Zoom Webinar! Register for this livestream event here!

B is for Beautiful, Brave, and Bright! And for a Book that takes a Bold journey through the alphabet of Black history and culture.

Letter by letter, The ABCs of Black History celebrates a story that spans continents and centuries, triumph and heartbreak, creativity and joy.

It's a story of big ideas--P is for Power, S is for Science and Soul. Of significant moments--G is for Great Migration. Of iconic figures--H is for Zora Neale Hurston, X is for Malcom X. It's an ABC book like no other, and a story of hope and love.

In addition to rhyming text, the book includes back matter with information on the events, places, and people mentioned in the poem, from Mae Jemison to W. E. B. Du Bois, Fannie Lou Hamer to Sam Cooke, and the Little Rock Nine to DJ Kool Herc.



Wednesday, January 13, 2021 - 7:00pm
Virtual Event
This is a virtual event, taking place via Zoom Webinar! Register for this livestream event here!

In Julia Ember's dark and lush LGBTQ+ romantic fantasy Ruinsong, two young women from rival factions must work together to reunite their country, as they wrestle with their feelings for each other.

Her voice was her prison...
Now it's her weapon.

In a world where magic is sung, a powerful mage named Cadence has been forced to torture her country's disgraced nobility at her ruthless queen's bidding.

But when she is reunited with her childhood friend, a noblewoman with ties to the underground rebellion, she must finally make a choice: Take a stand to free their country from oppression, or follow in the queen's footsteps and become a monster herself.

Julia Ember was born in Chicago, but raised in London and Edinburgh. She now lives in Seattle with her wife, where they are the proud parents of two cats and a very fluffy pony. She has previously worked as a teacher, bookseller and wedding cake decorator, and she is also the author of the Seafarer's Kiss duology. When she isn’t working on her prose fiction, Julia writes for video and app games.


Thursday, January 14, 2021 - 7:00pm
Virtual Event
This is a virtual event, taking place via Zoom Webinar! Register for this livestream event here!

For 50 years, Stephanie Plymale kept her past a fiercely guarded secret. No one outside her immediate family would have guessed that her childhood was fraught with every imaginable hardship: a mentally ill mother who was in and out of jails and psych wards throughout Stephanie's formative years, neglect, hunger, poverty, homelessness, truancy, foster homes, a harrowing lack of medical care, and ongoing sexual abuse.

Stephanie, in turn, knew very little about the past of her mother, from whom she remained estranged during most of her adult life. All this changed with a phone call that set a journey of discovery in motion, leading to a series of shocking revelations that forced Stephanie to revise the meaning of almost every aspect of her very compromised childhood.

American Daughter is at once the deeply moving memoir of a troubled mother-daughter relationship and a meditation on trauma, resilience, transcendence, and redemption. Stephanie's story is unique but its messages are universal, offering insight into what it means to survive, to rise above, to heal, and to forgive.

Stephanie Thornton Plymale is the CEO of Heritage School of Interior Design and the founder of the Heritage Home Foundation, a nonprofit serving families transitioning from homelessness. She lives with her husband and three children in Portland, Oregon.


Saturday, January 16, 2021 - 3:00pm
Virtual Event
This is a virtual event, taking place via Zoom Webinar! Register for this livestream event here!

Anthropologist Sophia Shepard is researching the impact of tourism on cultural sites in a remote national monument on the Utah-Arizona border when she crosses paths with two small-time criminals. The Ashdown brothers were hired to steal maps from a collector of Native American artifacts, but their ineptitude has alerted the local sheriff to their presence. Their employer, a former lobbyist seeking lucrative monument land that may soon be open to energy exploration, sends a fixer to clean up their mess. Suddenly, Sophia must put her theories to the test in the real world, and the stakes are higher than she could have ever imagined.

What begins as a madcap caper across the RV-strewn vacation lands of southern Utah becomes a meditation on mythology, authenticity, the ethics of preservation, and one nagging question: Who owns the past?

Todd Robert Petersen grew up in Portland, Oregon, and now teaches film studies and creative writing at Southern Utah University. Petersen's previous books include Long After Dark, Rift, and It Needs to Look Like We Tried. He and his family live in Cedar City, Utah, on the western edge of the Markagunt Plateau.

Liberty Hardy is a senior contributing editor for Book Riot and host of the popular All the Books! podcast. She lives in the great state of Maine, where she reads 500-600 books a year and hangs out with her three cats, who hate to read.



Read more...

King County funds community COVID-19 vaccination programs

King County Executive
Dow Constantine
King County Executive Dow Constantine, King County Council Chair Claudia Balducci, and County Councilmembers Rod Dembowski and Jeanne Kohl-Welles announce $7 million to create high-volume community vaccination sites and mobile teams so that as many residents as possible will be quickly, efficiently, and equitably vaccinated. 

The sites will serve people at highest risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19 first and eventually be open to all members of the public as more vaccine supplies become available.

To contain COVID-19 and fully re-open the region, Public Health -- Seattle and King County estimates that it will be necessary to vaccinate at least 70 percent of all adults, or approximately 1.26 million people.

Vaccines for high-risk health care personnel and staff and residents in long-term care facilities, designated as phase “1A” by state officials, kicked off on December 17, 2020.

Friday, Executive Constantine put into place an aggressive strategy to rapidly roll out community vaccinations to ensure equitable access and reach people as quickly as possible. 

These sites are particularly important for individuals who are not connected to the health care system, who work multiple jobs or face barriers to accessing health care such as availability during regular business hours.

“King County will step up and organize community vaccination centers and mobile teams to make sure we hit the ground running as more and more people become eligible to receive doses,” said Executive Constantine. 
“To get this pandemic under control, 16,000 adults must be vaccinated every day for six months. That’s why we need everyone behind this effort. We are moving ahead now despite the lack of clarity on supply chain or federal funding allocation because every day delayed impacts the lives of our residents, the strength of our community, and the vitality of our businesses.”


County Councilmember
Rod Dembowski
“Our public health department has capably led the nation in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. We will now bring to bear our 130 years of experience to vaccinate King County residents to snuff this virus out. 

"We need to do it equitably, and quickly,” said Councilmember Rod Dembowski.

“To get this done, we must lower the barriers inherent in our healthcare system – vaccination access must be easy and widespread when it’s your turn. 


"I’ve been getting vaccinated from our department since childhood, and I ask you to join me in getting vaccinated for COVID-19, as soon as it’s your turn.”

As Public Health learned from deploying COVID testing across the region, high-volume, open access, drive-up and walk-up vaccination sites are essential to ensure equitable access and reach people as quickly as possible.

These sites are vital for individuals who are not connected to the health care system. They are particularly important in South King County, which has a higher incidence of COVID-19 and other health disparities.

Although many of the approximately 185,000 people over age 70 in King County will access vaccine through their primary care provider or a local pharmacy, these strategies alone will not be sufficient to quickly and efficiently reach everyone in this group.

Executive Constantine announced an initial investment of $7 million to create two vaccination centers, likely in South King County.

In addition, five mobile strike teams will form to reach those who are not able to visit a healthcare provider or vaccination center. These teams will be particularly helpful in vaccinating members of long-term care facilities, homeless shelters, senior centers, and other areas housing vulnerable populations.

The County will continue with important partners like the Washington State Department of Health, City of Seattle, emergency responders from across King County, Kaiser-Permanente, and other hospital systems to bring widespread vaccine access to our community.

King County hopes to be reimbursed by the state and federal governments for these costs but will not wait for final intergovernmental negotiations before moving ahead.



Read more...
ShorelineAreaNews.com
Facebook: Shoreline Area News
Twitter: @ShorelineArea
Daily Email edition (don't forget to respond to the Follow.it email)

  © Blogger template The Professional Template II by Ourblogtemplates.com 2009

Back to TOP