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Cindy Hval

Cindy Hval

Current Position: freelancer

Cindy Hval is a freelance columnist and correspondent. Her "Front Porch" column appears on alternate Thursdays in the Voices section. Her articles appear in the Features section and throughout the newspaper. Visit her at www.cindyhval.com

Email
dchval@juno.com

All Stories

News >  Washington Voices

Daughter’s birthing story is similar to her mom’s

Thirty years ago Meghan Slick’s birth made the newspaper. Now, it’s her newborn son’s turn to shine. In this tangled tale of moms, babies and doctors, Payton Slick seemed a bit bored by all the fuss. Eight days old at the time of this interview, he yawned, hiccupped and declined further comment.
News >  Washington Voices

Flying Tiger recounts memorable missions, care packages

World War II veteran Kirk Kirkpatrick enthralled dozens of guests at the Touchmark retirement community’s Men’s Club meeting on May 1. The 89-year-old Flying Tiger presented an oral history of the famed fighting force, stationed in China during the war. Wearing his bomber jacket, Kirkpatrick traced the evolution of the Flying Tigers from volunteer organization to its assimilation into the Army Air Corps 23rd Fighter Group.
Cindy Hval
Opinion >  Column

Front Porch: The gift every mom wishes for

Another Mother’s Day has come and gone. As always my husband and sons pampered me with a sumptuous breakfast and thoughtful presents. But the gift I want most can’t be wrapped in tissue or tied up with a bow. I’ve wanted it since I gave birth to my first son, 22 years ago. I want it so much sometimes the wanting keeps me awake at night.
News >  Washington Voices

Flying Tiger recounts memorable missions, care packages

World War II veteran Kirk Kirkpatrick enthralled dozens of guests at the Touchmark retirement community’s Men’s Club meeting on May 1. The 89-year-old Flying Tiger presented an oral history of the famed fighting force, stationed in China during the war. Wearing his bomber jacket, Kirkpatrick traced the evolution of the Flying Tigers from volunteer organization to its assimilation into the Army Air Corps 23rd Fighter Group.
A&E >  Entertainment

Music and parachuting show scheduled for Navy Week

Next week, May 14-20, landlocked Spokane will be awash in sailors. Spokane is one of 15 cities selected to host Navy Week. The U.S. Navy conducts the events across the country to show Americans the return they receive for their investment in America’s Navy.
News >  Washington Voices

Blind date, ball game brought them together

Patricia “Peacha” McFaul first glimpsed her future husband on a basketball court in January 1951. This comes as no surprise to those who know lifelong athlete Ted McFaul. A mutual friend had arranged a blind date for Peacha and the lanky former sailor. “It was a double date, but Ted had to play ball and said he couldn’t make it,” she recalled.
News >  Washington Voices

Blind date, ball game brought them together

Patricia “Peacha” McFaul first glimpsed her future husband on a basketball court in January 1951. This comes as no surprise to those who know lifelong athlete Ted McFaul. A mutual friend had arranged a blind date for Peacha and the lanky former sailor. “It was a double date, but Ted had to play ball and said he couldn’t make it,” she recalled.
Cindy Hval
Opinion >  Column

Front Porch: Who knew ox lips could taste so good?

With barbecue and picnic season just around the corner, I decided it’s time to conquer my pathological fear of tubular meat. That’s right. I’m giving hot dogs another chance. At 9, I turned my back on the iconic American food. That’s because one afternoon as my mom boiled wieners on the stove, my sister picked up the package and read the ingredients aloud.
News >  Washington Voices

Diagnosis devastates families

Keeping track of hundreds of details was all in a day’s work for Amy Shives. For 27 years she served at Spokane Community College as a nursing/allied health counselor. She juggled student appointments, class schedules and financial information with ease – until suddenly it was no longer easy. Names and numbers slipped her mind. Her forgetfulness alarmed her. She thought it must be stress, or maybe she just needed a vacation. But last summer, Shives received a devastating diagnosis: early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. “I’m 54,” she said. “People look at me and say, ‘You’ve got to be kidding. You’re too young.’ ”
News >  Washington Voices

Tree becomes part of The Susie Forest

It’s not every day you get to see Batman help plant a tree. But on April 10, Batman – aka Jack Kelnhofer, age 4 – hefted a shovel and scattered some dirt over a newly planted tree at the Shadle Library. It was the 199th tree in The Susie Forest in Spokane County. He carefully printed his name, BATMAN, on a biodegradable tree-gram. He would have stayed longer, but preschool beckoned.
News >  Washington Voices

Spokane couple providing learning foundation in Malawi

Most classrooms in Spokane County look the same. Walk in and you’ll see rows of desks and chairs, a whiteboard, stacks of textbooks and cups filled with pencils. But when Joel and Jackie Wells visited schools in Malawi while serving as missionaries, they were dismayed at what they found.
News >  Washington Voices

Beloved coach, teacher touched many with passion for life

When Pat Fiorillo, 48, died on March 9, he didn’t just leave behind a wife and two daughters. He also left an estimated 10,000 students – lives he’d touched during his 23-year career at Sacajawea Middle School. On Friday evening, scores of those students, along with friends and family, overflowed the commons at Rogers High School at a memorial, honoring the beloved teacher and coach. Many students wore T-shirts with the family motto “Never Lose Hope” on the front and a picture of the Fiorillo family on the back.
Cindy Hval
Opinion >  Column

Front Porch: Gunslinging girls’ night out a blast

I have a confession to make. I’m a girl. A girly-girl. I don’t like playing team sports, sweating, getting dirt on my hands or fishing. Well, I’ve never actually gone fishing, but it involves bait and bad smells, so I’m confident it’s not for me. I like pretty china, pink and smelling good. The irony of course, is that I have four sons, a husband and two male cats. My menfolk don’t mind me smelling good or wearing pink, but pretty china is wasted on them. They’re not interested in the plates – just what’s on them.
News >  Washington Voices

Storytime readers keep library program thriving

In recent years budget cuts have sent Spokane Public Library staffers scrambling. Reductions in branch hours and personnel threatened one of the most popular services the libraries offer: storytime. “We have one children’s librarian for three branches,” said Sally Chilson, youth services coordinator. “So, in 2006, we decided to take the leap and train storytime volunteers.”
News >  Washington Voices

Watercolor society members exhibit at Chase

Paintings of cake pops, tea cups, thimbles and ski boots line the walls of the Chase Gallery in Spokane City Hall. The rich russets of a Southwestern landscape glow and the soft pastels of a blue-and-white china still life invite a closer look. The exhibition features the work of the Spokane Watercolor Society. Founded in 1952 by a group of professional artists, the early membership was limited to 12 men.
News >  Washington Voices

Survivors of 1941 attack bring history to life at SFCC

The challenge for history teachers has always been to make events of the past come alive to their students. Last week, Spokane Falls Community College instructor Nicole Montgomery received help with that task. As she covered World War II in one of her classes, student Amanda Ruggles mentioned her great uncle, Warren Schott, was a Pearl Harbor survivor, and asked if Montgomery would like him to talk to the class. She agreed and was put in touch with local historian and author Carol Hipperson.
News >  Washington Voices

Disease spurs return to Spokane: ‘I’m dying’

It was the cold she noticed first. Two years ago, when Cat Davis returned to Spokane, she couldn’t seem to get warm. She thought maybe living in Arizona had left her unaccustomed to Spokane’s October chill. But days went by and she grew more miserable.
News >  Washington Voices

Taking time out for fun at East Central

Parents of young children often feel there simply aren’t enough hours in the day. The demands of work and home can squeeze out time for fun. But a new program at the East Central Community Center offers parents and caregivers an opportunity to enjoy what kids do best – play. On Monday evenings, the center hosts the Play and Learn program. “Parents learn about child development and how to help their kids learn through play,” said community center acting director Kathy Armstrong. “The children learn math and literacy skills as well as social skills, while having fun playing with their parents.”
Cindy Hval
Opinion >  Column

Front Porch: These pages of history are priceless

The spine is broken, the pages yellowed, and one corner has been gnawed on by tiny teeth. It’s been literally loved to shreds. Twenty-two years ago, on my oldest son’s first Christmas, he cuddled with me in our rocking chair as I read “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.”
News >  Washington Voices

Teen authors have plenty of stories to tell

An assignment at Mt. Spokane High School has taken senior Nikki Ziegler on an unexpected journey. “We were supposed to write a short children’s book based on a biblical character in my Bible as literature class,” Ziegler said. “The assignment was to write eight to 10 pages, but I just kept going. I love to write.”