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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

The Slice Strangers Rescue Birthday With Presents Of Kindness

Michael John, who lives near tiny Evans, Wash., north of Colville, was driving his young daughter and five of her girlfriends to a Spokane restaurant for a birthday party.

But his van broke down near Chewelah. So John and the little girls walked to the nearest house. They were greeted by Barbara Jeanneret, who let John use the phone. Then she drove everyone to Chewelah, where John’s wife would be meeting them.

As a Plan B, it was decided that the birthday party would take place at Polanski’s Pizza in Chewelah, where, it happened, Jeanneret’s daughter, Clare, works.

Unbeknownst to John, Jeanneret called her daughter and advised her of the situation. So after the road-weary group arrived at the restaurant, Clare presented the birthday girl with a Polanski’s T-shirt and a cake adorned with a candle.

Said John: “The acts of kindness by these two Jeanneret women helped my daughter and her friends feel like it was a birthday party after all.”

A modest proposal: “February 29 is fast approaching,” wrote Big Al Olsen. “Through the ages this leap year day has generated some serious partying. We must continue the tradition and add to the legends. I suggest a midnight rendezvous at the Riverfront Park Clock Tower. We will cover ourselves with colorful paints, oils, and several components of the food pyramid. We will then dance naked around the Clock Tower, howl at the stars and become one with our ancestors.

“Of course, in case of inclement weather, we will stay home, eat Ding Dongs and watch ‘Seinfeld’ reruns.”

You read it here: Everybody knows aversion to cigarette smoke keeps some people out of taverns. But another, less widely known issue is the hidden fear some individuals harbor that once inside a bar they won’t be able to resist shouting “A round for the house!” - even if they can’t really afford such a gesture.

Customer for life: Spokane’s Judy Reeder sang the praises of practically everybody who works at the Indian Trail Service Center (Exxon). “They are the best bunch of employees you’d ever want to run into,” she said.

Today’s Slice question: If an earthquake tragically dumped all of Washington west of Airway Heights into the Pacific, how many years would it take before Spokane started to feel like a real port city?

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Drawing

MEMO: The Slice appears Monday, Tuesday, Friday and Saturday. Write The Slice at P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509) 459-5470; fax (509) 459-5098.

The Slice appears Monday, Tuesday, Friday and Saturday. Write The Slice at P.O. Box 2160, Spokane, WA 99210; call (509) 459-5470; fax (509) 459-5098.