Ward Sanderson

The first phase of the recently approved Bigelow Junction project will open sometime in 1996, according to developer Steve Smart. That includes new offices for Environment West Landscape Services and a wholesale plant nursery. A convenience store, gas station and retail nursery should open there by mid-1997.

The Valley Northwest Bedding store is moving - literally. The building at 6000 E. Sprague will be hauled off to a different lot and put up for lease. The business itself is scheduled to re-open in a new building at 14102 E. Sprague, near Safeway and Al's Auto Supply. Owner Rob Evanson said the new store should open in early January. The old structure will be moved to 115 S. McKinnon sometime before March.

For many churches, the week between Christmas and New Year's Day is a nice break. The holiday pageants are over, the handbell choirs can nurse their sore wrists and church employees enjoy a week of vacation. But while this weekend's schedules may be shorter, the messages are no less important than usual. They could be some of the most motivating sermons of any in the year.

It started like a trip to the farm and ended like a safari. Felt like an Antarctic expedition the whole time. Despite the wind and freezing weather, Walk in the Wild's annual "Zoo Lites" event drew about 50 people Saturday night, a typical turn-out for the exhibit. Parents and kids walked the paths, checking out the glowing animal-shaped decorations and some real critters, too.

Karen Mauth loves being boxed in during Christmas rush at her Mail Box Centers. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

Robin Cole at home after decorating the Christmas tree in her living room. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

Just like the three wise men, people who usually aren't counted among the faithful often make a special journey come Christmas. Those holiday-only churchgoers pack the pews. Many churches increase the number of services this time of year to accommodate the swell - and try to find ways to get the visitors to come back sooner than Easter. Valley Assembly of God, 15618 E. Broadway, offers three services on Sunday, the normal morning times of 8:30 and 11 a.m., and an hour-long night service at 7 p.m. The night service will feature carols, a reading of the Christmas story and a monologue by the pastor. The monologue will be a depiction of how a shepherd in the Nativity story remembers the birth of Christ.

Any company anywhere with a computer and modem is now just a mouse-click away from doing business in the Valley. John Hanson, president of the Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce, unveiled the organization's new World Wide Web home page this week. The Internet site provides a complete directory of all businesses that are chamber members, along with information about the services they provide and how they can be contacted. General information about the Valley is posted there as well. "It opens up our membership to the global market," Hanson said, estimating that between 35 and 40 million people currently have Internet access.

On most weekends, the University High School library is a quiet place. Last Saturday, it was filled with the happy noise of 30 youngsters whose Christmas wishes were coming true. The occasion was the school's annual Adopt-A-Tot Christmas party. If not for the efforts of U-Hi students, these youngsters might not have had a Christmas.

Construction began this week on Aspen Village, a $7.1 million apartment complex on Fourth Avenue, just east of Sullivan Road. Its developer said her target market will be renters who want to live in a small-town atmosphere, but without the yard hassles. "It's going to be geared kind of toward a community," said developer Carol Johnson, who also owns Eagle Realty. "It will be kind of a social center . . .a place for people who lived (in the Valley) a long time and don't want to maintain their big lots and yards."

Looking through Valley church bulletins makes you wonder. Is this the 'burbs, or is this Broadway? Well, granted, the Valley does have such an avenue. But this weekend the holiday season brings with it a slew of stage performances for folks of all ages. But unlike shows on that other Broadway, these productions are free.

A state liquor store, a hair salon and an expanded banking area are all planned additions to the Yoke's Pac 'N Save store at 15111 E. Sprague. The grocery store itself will also be remodeled, said Jim Clanton, Yoke's chief financial officer. The work is scheduled to begin shortly after Christmas, and should be completed around March. The state will lease 5,000 square feet of space for the liquor store. It will be accessible from within Yoke's and from the street.

By afternoon, almost 200 animals had stopped by Evergreen Pet Shop for snaps with Santa. But no cats. Apparently, Feliz Navidad just isn't for felines.

Some Valley restaurant owners and managers say they have plenty to lose if a proposed county smoking ban takes effect. "It'll kill us. We're 10 miles from the Idaho border," said Jim Divine, owner of the restaurant at the GTX Truck Stop in Greenacres. "All the business we worked for will go down."

Christmas is coming a little early this year for St. Mary's Catholic Church. No, the holiday Mass schedules aren't being shuffled around. But the congregation will celebrate a gift they gave themselves through fund-raising efforts. On Sunday, Bishop William Skylstad will dedicate the church's just-completed "gathering place" fellowship lobby and two new wing additions to the church interior, upping seating from 600 to 800 people.

1. Reece Pitts, 4, plays with Santa's beard as he details items on his Christmas list at Valley Hospital and Medical Center. Each year, the hospital invites parents of newborns to bring the babies and their older siblings in for a visit with Santa. Photo by Liz Kishimoto/The Spokesman-Review 2. Kasey Hermens, 7 months, was fascinated by reindeer on the Christmas tree. Photo by Liz Kishimoto/The Spokesman-Review

Maybe someday they'll be engineers. For now, they'll have to settle for being good Samaritans. It took almost three months for a group of Webelo Scouts to gather and fix up bicycles for the Toys for Tots program. Pack 439 took 15 wrecks, tore them down, and salvaged 10 working bikes out of the bunch. In the process, the Scouts worked toward earning citizenship and handyman badges.

John North is one of the several tree salespersons along East Sprague. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

Lenny Munguia. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

1. Valley Center volunteer Scott Whitney helps load food into a family's car. The center assisted 470 people with Thanksgiving food distribution. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review 2. Valley Center volunteer Irv Sussman carries bags of food for a client. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review 3. Executive director Barbara Olson keeps her spirits up during Spokane Valley Center's busiest season. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

Telect, a Liberty Lake-based manufacturer of telecommunications products, has dropped its patent infringement lawsuit against AT&T.; During May of last year, the company filed the suit in U.S District Court, alleging an AT&T; "modular, staggered jack panel product" was too similar to a Telect design. Telect alleged that any manufacture, use or sale of the AT&T; product violated its patent.

Thanksgiving is a pretty recent memory, and the turkey leftovers will probably still be around for days. But face it - belts were made to be loosened. In no time at all, folks will once again be ready for a big, holiday food frenzy. On Wednesday, Spokane Valley United Methodist Church will host an all-church Advent dinner at 6 p.m. The church is at 10422 E. Main, just behind the International House of Pancakes on Sprague.

Forget the turkey in the kitchen, for just a minute. Although Thanksgiving is now on the collective Valley brain, Christmas is only about a month away. With that in mind, the living room corner sporting lots of outlets suddenly looks pretty bare, huh? Why? No tree. The Valley Hospital Foundation can cure all that. The group hosts its ninth-annual Festival of Trees this weekend at the Red Lion Inn at Sullivan Road and Interstate 90. All funds raised from the event benefit Valley Hospital and Medical Center. Lisa Orgon, the foundation's special events coordinator, said the event raised $90,000 last year.

It looked like a scene from "M*A*S*H," only the decor was nicer. And, OK, the patients were a little younger. There was enough commotion, though, and plenty of incoming wounded. The staff at Dr. Robert Wendel's office herded about 50 Valley kids from lobby to examination chair all day Friday, and all for free. They were kids whose parents lack dental insurance but don't receive public assistance. The patients were referred by elementary and middle school nurses.