Voices

For 05-31-2008

Attendant Care Registry – Free service matching disabled adults and children with personal-care providers; sponsored by Coalition of Responsible Disabled; 326-6355. Change Point! program – Ideal for women who are separated, divorced, or widowed, have a disability, or who have been incarcerated; provides free training in computers, resume preparation, job interviewing, communication skills, and conflict resolution techniques; sponsored by the Washington State Displaced Homemaker Program; contact Denise McKinnon at 279-6065.

A Spokane Valley man and woman picked the wrong store to conduct a "beer rip" early Tuesday, apparently not noticing the Spokane County Sheriff's deputies parked across the street finishing paperwork. As deputies Daryl Smith and Andy Stockman watched, 21-year-old Jessica D. Treichel got out of a gray Oldsmobile and went inside the Millwood 7-Eleven shortly after midnight. She hurriedly exited the store with a case of beer and got into the passenger side of the car which sped away, said Sheriff's Office spokesman Sgt. Dave Reagan.

Nothing perks up a morning commute like coffee. For those driving the Sprague Avenue side of the couplet, that hot java just got more convenient with Breakaway Espresso's recent move to the parking lot at Empire Cycle and Power Sports. Breakaway Espresso owner Becky Schweikert, who relocated from across the couplet on Appleway, said she anticipated increased business capitalizing on morning commuters and hopes to double her business by summer.

Avista Corp. followed its own advice about calling before digging, but still ruptured one of its own natural gas mains Tuesday, creating one of the Spokane Valley Fire Department's bigger challenges in the past two weeks. Deputy Fire Marshal Bill Clifford said firefighters were called to 11504 E. Frederick Ave. shortly after 11 a.m. Tuesday when an Avista backhoe operator broke a small stub line protruding from an 8-inch, high-pressure gas main.

The bug season may get really interesting this year. We've had a cold spring, and it is likely that we will get more weather hot flashes before it really warms up. When it does, the plant-chomping and sucking bugs are going to be out in full force. There are allies, though, that are already in the garden that can help out, if you give some help now. Beneficial predator insects are already hunting through your plants for an easy meal or a host for their egg-laying. All you need to do is provide a little shelter, blooming flowers and shady corners for egg-laying.

Perhaps it was just a matter of bad timing, but as I sat staring at the colorfully folksy wall murals for what seemed like an eternity waiting for the waitress to deliver water and chips, I began to wonder what in the heck was going on. The hostess had seated us in the back room, the only two stragglers tucked away with a huge and boisterous family reunion that had just gotten under way. Favorite aunties shrieked with delight at relatives they hadn't seen in years. Bear hugs flew left and right between long-lost cousins, second cousins, and ex-stepcousins thrice removed. Floppy-haired emo teens rolled their black-lined eyes and pouted at the over-excited grannies pinching their cheeks and saying "Oh goodness, how you've grown into such a big, um … boy? Girl?"

Missi Baker believes in seizing every opportunity she can to help enrich the lives of her students. So when she learned of a two-week study program in Germany that educates American teachers on the history of Germany and how it has evolved since the Holocaust, she jumped at the opportunity to be a part of it.

Monday Millwood City Council – 7 p.m. at City Hall, 9103 E. Frederick.

RiverView Tower is a prime case of the real estate adage of "location, location, location" done right. Actually, it's much more than that. It's the building being done right by the right people in the special location. This five-level, 46,203-square-foot glass-and-brick showcase at 2100 Northwest Boulevard looks from above the thoroughfare to Lake Coeur d'Alene and the outlet to the Spokane River to the southeast and over the Riverstone development and down the river to the northwest. Even the uphill, nonview side is done right as treed open space separates it from the neighbors. But every occupant will look toward the view.

An 1,800-home housing development turned away two years ago by the city of Hayden is back for consideration. Hayden Canyon developers are seeking to have their 618-acre site north of the city annexed into Hayden. Hayden Planning and Zoning commissioners will hold a hearing early next month to consider the request.

The Idaho Distance Education Academy, a kindergarten through grade 12 statewide charter school that delivers public school curriculum, along with professional guidance to students who learn at home, will host high school graduation ceremony today at the Coeur d'Alene Inn. The following North Idaho graduates will be receiving their diplomas: Scott Beyer, Hayden Lake; Thomas Raybell, Hayden; Karen Bovencamp, Juliaetta; Kenneth Erickson and Rebekah Lily-Gay Wallace, Athol; Ashley Feist and Jessica Tilberg, Sandpoint; Joey Jenkins, Troy; Rebecca Meredith, Annette Steiner, Taylor Norbeck and Bethany Mark, Post Falls; Elizabeth Soderberg, Sagle; Joel Schaefer, Rachel Owerns, Whitney Olsen and Sarah Dunlap, Coeur d'Alene; John Clement MacPherson, Deary.

The North Idaho College Scott Hague Memorial Cardinal Classic golf tournament will be held Friday at the Avondale Golf and Tennis Club in Hayden. The event is a four-person scramble tournament, with a shotgun start at 1 p.m. Registration deadline is Wednesday, with a fee of $100 per player, or $375 per team. There is a 32-team limit to guarantee dinner and a place in the tournament.

An Otis Orchards group will present a forum Wednesday for candidates seeking the position being vacated by state Rep. Lynn Schindler, R-Spokane Valley. Candidates who have said they plan to attend include Republicans Ray Deonier, Matt Shea and Diana Wilhite, and Democrat Tim Hattenburg.