Cheney ready to handle EWU graduation traffic

Graduation day at EWU is a time for praise, celebration and an influx of traffic to the city of Cheney. This Saturday will see multitudes of eager students and proud relatives descend on the campus for the 2009 commencement ceremony starting at 8:30 a.m. with a graduate line-up in the central mall.

EWU Campus Police Det. Quincy Burns, who has coordinated traffic since 2005, said he estimates from 8,000 to 10,000 people will be in the stands at Woodward Field this weekend. “When I first got here, traffic was a nightmare, but now it runs pretty smoothly,” he said. A command center and assistance from other agencies helps move motorcades from the freeway, into parking lots and, afterward, out the backdoor down Salnave through Tyler in order to alleviate bottlenecks.

Graduation evaluator Dale Smith said those wishing to avoid delays might arrive by alternate routes such as the Cheney Spokane Road from U.S. Highway 195 and should keep moving through the city to find parking. “There’s tons of parking on the campus, but seating is first-come, first-served, so come early,” she said.

For directions, parking information and a line-up of events, visit www.ewu.edu/x865.xml.

Moonlight film series begins with ‘Hotel for Dogs’ Friday

The family hit, “Hotel for Dogs,” kicks off the city of Airway Heights’ 2009 Summer Moonlight Movie Series, beginning Friday and running every other Friday through Aug. 21. Show times start when the sun goes down at Sunset Park on the outfield of Martella Field.

J.C. Kennedy, director of the city’s parks and recreation department, said movies for this year’s lineup were voted in by residents over the past several months. The next movie in the series, sponsored by Motion Auto Supply, will be Brendan Fraser’s “Journey to the Center of the Earth” June 26.

For a complete list of films, visit www.cawh.org.

Medical Lake marks founders day

Medical Lake founders Andrew Lefevre and Stanley Hallett might be likely to kick up their heels during Founder’s Day celebrations, coming up June 20.

A Kiwanis craft bazaar will kick off the festivities at 8 a.m., followed by 3-on-3 basketball and slowpitch softball tournaments, a parade, car show, barbecue, trolley tour and triathlon. Many other events will take place around town throughout the day.

Leslie Smith, a coordinator for the past four years, said the event has been running since the early 1970s. She said more people are expected this year than in the past judging by the number of parade entries, but usually from 3,000 to 5,000 attend. “That’s pretty much the whole town,” she said. “It’s funny how you don’t see a kid all year and then you have a parade and free candy and there they are.”

Smith said she loves Medical Lake because, “You can see all the good people do here and that’s something you can’t see in bigger cities.”

For a listing of events, visit www.medical-lake.org.

Donate unsold yard-sale items to Dollars for Scholars

Summer garage sales are a great way to earn extra cash while cleaning out the storage closets, but what to do with all those unsold gems at the end of the day? Medical Lake’s Dollars for Scholars program accepts useable, surplus goods such as appliances, furniture, clothing and kitchenware to benefit high school graduates.

Dan Dorshorst, who coordinates the program, said items collected will be sold at an annual sale in mid-May. The last rummage sale brought in about $5,000, which went toward scholarships for the seniors of Medical Lake High School. With the help of a number of organizations and individuals, Dorshorst said the program gave away more than $30,000 in grants this year.

Call (509) 299-5478 for more information.