In brief: Council swearing-in to be Wednesday

SPOKANE VALLEY – Four newly elected Spokane Valley City Council members will be sworn into office on Wednesday during a special ceremony at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 11707 E. Sprague Ave.

Councilman Dean Grafos, who was sworn into office on Dec. 1 to fill a vacated term through 2011, will swear in Bob McCaslin, Tom Towey and newly re-elected Councilman Gary Schimmels, who will perform the honors for Brenda Grassel.

Grassel, McCaslin, Schimmels and Towey will serve four-year terms from Jan. 1, 2010, through Dec. 31, 2013. The first regular council meeting will be Jan. 5, at which the council will choose the two among them who will serve as mayor and deputy mayor for 2010 and 2011.

The swearing-in ceremony at City Hall, 11707 E. Sprague Ave., is open to the public.

For more information, call (509) 720-5411.

Valley city offices closed on holidays

SPOKANE VALLEY – Spokane Valley city offices will be closed in observance of the upcoming Christmas and New Year’s holidays.

Offices will close at noon Thursday and will reopen on Dec. 28. There will be no council meeting on Dec. 29.

City offices also will be closed Jan. 1 and will reopen on Jan. 4.

For more information, call (509) 688-0232.

Blanket drive seeks donations

SPOKANE VALLEY – Jennifer’s Auto Sales and the Spokane Valley Fire Department are asking the community to help keep those in need stay warm this winter.

Jennifer’s and SVFD have collected 313 blankets in their 2009 blanket drive, but local shelters need more blankets as temperatures continue to drop.

Donations of new and gently used blankets may be dropped off at Jennifer’s, 15020 E. Sprague Ave., or at any of the Spokane Valley fire stations.

Spokane Valley fire station locations include: Station No. 1, 10319 E. Sprague Ave.; Station No. 2, Millwood, 9111 E. Frederick Ave.; Station No. 3, Liberty Lake, 2218 N. Harvard Road; Station No. 4, Otis Orchards, 22406 E. Wellesley Ave.; Station No. 5, 15510 E. Marietta Ave.; Station No. 6; 6306 E. Sprague Ave.; Station No. 7, 1121 S. Evergreen Road; Station No. 8, 2110 N. Wilbur Road; Station No. 9, 12121 E. 32nd Ave.; and Station No. 10, 17217 E. Sprague Ave.

For more information, call Jennifer Johnson at (509) 926-5393 or Fire Marshall Bill Clifford at (509) 892-4126.

Share your photos on Picture Perfect

We would like to see your best seasonal photographs for Picture Perfect, our community scrapbook of photos from Spokane Valley readers.

Share photos of family celebrations and winter outings. Think of holiday gatherings, special milestones and outdoor fun. Send us your party pictures and candid photos.

The Valley Voice will publish your slice-of-life photographs for free. Just send via e-mail to pictureperfect@ spokesman.com. Please include a few sentences giving a detailed description of the photograph, where it was taken and what the occasion was. Include names, ages and hometowns of everyone in the shot.