Pia Hallenberg

The downtown Westminster Congregational United Church of Christ has been supporting local nonprofit organizations with its annual Jam for Bread event for more than 10 years. This year the beneficiary is Crosswalk, the teen shelter operated by Volunteers of America.

Some churches are having a difficult time filling the pews, but that’s not the case at Crestline Baptist Church on the South Hill. The Rev. Randy Myers is sharing the church with several other congregations, so each Sunday the place is bustling from early morning to late evening.

Valley leaders discussing police staffing, economic development and city hall options

City reminding people to clear sidewalks

What began as Playhouse Project Spokane last year has morphed into the Building Dreams – Bright Futures for Our Kids campaign, but the fundraiser still has the same goal: to raise money for youth programs at West Central Community Center, Peaceful Valley Community Center and Northeast Youth Center. Playhouse Project Spokane raised $48,344 last year by auctioning off imaginative and fanciful playhouses built and donated by members of the Spokane Home Builders Association.

East Central neighbors showed up at Monday’s meeting of the Planning, Community/Economic Development Committee at City Hall for one agenda point only: an update on the Ben Burr Trail project. Engineering services operations manager Kyle Twohig brought the committee up to date on a project that continues to meet resistance in the neighborhood it’s carving through.

Voting closes Friday for movies at Mirabeau

Spokane Valley City Council takes Tuesday off

Memorial service set for Gary Schimmels

When Brian Winkler, president of Wm. Winkler Co. in Newman Lake, approached the Seabee Veterans of America group he belongs to and asked if they would volunteer to do the grading for baseball fields near Morning Star Boys Ranch, he had no idea the project has been hotly debated for years. “The Seabees do a lot of volunteer work and we wanted to do something good for the kids,” Winkler said. Together with another contractor, N. A. Degerstrom in Spokane Valley, Winkler coordinated the moving of 20,000 cubic yards of material on a site where Spokane South Little League wants to build a sports complex. The contractors donated the heavy machinery, and the Seabee veterans donated the manpower.

Think of the Community Assembly as the United Nations of Spokane’s neighborhood councils: It’s the forum where broader issues that may affect several neighborhoods are debated and explored, and each neighborhood council sends a representative to the meetings. The assembly meets on the first Friday of each month and has established several subcommittees to explore and address major neighborhood issues such as traffic planning, growth management and crime. The Assembly released its 2014 goals just before Christmas; here are some highlights:

Like many women who are leaving abusive relationships, she waited until her live-in boyfriend was out of town. Not knowing where she’d go with her children, she packed up her belongings and put them in storage. Staying at a friend’s house or with family was out of the question.