Washington Voices

This may be the last year kids can scoop up candy at the “Hearts of Gold” parade that kicks off the three-day Valleyfest event if kids don’t stay out of the street while parade floats go by. “Kids cannot be in the streets,” said Valleyfest organizer Peggy Doering. “The big rigs can’t see them. It’s a huge safety issue.”

Newport High School Class of 1960 – Friday-Sunday. Contact Charlene Wood at (509) 447-5770; Robert Sedlacek at (208) 437-3569; or Barbara Bauer at (208) 448-1381 for more information. Rogers High School Class of 1960 – Friday-Sunday. Scheduled events include: social at the Red Lion’s Window of the Seasons at 6 p.m. on Friday; open house and mini grade school reunions, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. next Saturday; Harvest Buffet Banquet in Red Lion’s Skyline Room at 5:30 p.m. next Saturday; and a breakfast/brunch at Red Lion’s Window of the Seasons at 10 a.m. on Sept. 19. Cost is $65 per person for banquet dinner. Contact Grace (Ward) Kassa at (509) 327-4902 or grammagrace1@comcast.net or Dora-Faye (Schmidt) Hendricks at (509) 487-7726 or dora-faye@comcast.net.

For the week of Sept. 13-17 Monday – Option 1: Orange chicken, vegetable chow mein, steamed rice, dinner roll, Mandarin oranges. Option 2: Bean soup, vegetable chow mein, steamed rice, dinner roll, Mandarin oranges.

This senior appreciated Maggie Peluso’s letter to the editor (Sept. 4, Valley Voice) with the information about her accident while playing pingpong at the Spokane Senior Center. I’m with you. Would they stop line dancing or tai chi if someone turned an ankle or collapsed from fatigue or an illness. But like you say the center is only 1 ½ miles from a hospital.

Unsurprisingly, the Spokane Valley Art Council is interested in promoting public art. But in recent years the relatively new arts organization has been putting its money where its mouth is. In 2009 the group dedicated a larger-than-life bronze statue of a mountain man near what would become the new Discovery Playground. This year the organization will use the proceeds from its annual art auction to pay for a bronze statue of a Native American woman called “Berry Picker.” The new bronze could cost up to $100,000 and will probably be located a block west of the mountain man statue.

Deer Park resident Jeana Moore left for a long walk on Oct. 19, 2009. She’s been walking ever since, covering more than 3,000 miles through eight states in a cross-country journey she hopes will save lives the way her granddaughter’s life was saved. As she walks, Moore remembers how 3-year-old Jada Bascom nearly died from acute myeloid leukemia as a newborn. Six rounds of chemotherapy and countless blood transfusions kept the baby alive while she waited for a bone marrow transplant.

The Old Farmer’s Almanac 2011 hit the stands on Aug. 30. The 194-year-old publication predicted that our upcoming winter would be milder and wetter than normal. It’s also predicting a “kinder and gentler winter” for many areas that suffered through a rough winter last year.

Students at St. Patrick Catholic School, 2706 E. Queen Ave., will put on their running shoes Oct. 1 for the 32nd annual Run-a-Thon. From 10:15 a.m. to noon, St. Pat’s students will run to raise funds for their school. Kids will prepare for their challenge with a spaghetti dinner, Sept. 30 in the school cafeteria at 6 p.m.

Today Play and Learn Storytime (Otis Orchards) - For ages 2-5. Enjoy stories, songs and fingerplays that explore concepts of math, science, art and literacy. Parents and caregivers are asked to join in for the entire 60 minutes. 10:30 a.m. Otis Orchards Library, 22324 E. Wellesley Ave., Otis Orchards. Free. (509) 893-8390.

Rowdy is a neutered 7-year-old. He’s smart, gentle and loves to go for walks. He knows “sit” and “shake” and enjoys being brushed. He is gentle on the leash and gets along well with other dogs and cats. When contacting SCRAPS with questions about one of the adoptable pets, refer to the pet’s identification number. If you are interested in this dog or any animal at SCRAPS, call (509) 477-2532 or come by the shelter 2421 N. Flora Road, Spokane Valley. Dog adoptions are $82.04 and include spay or neuter, first set of vaccinations, health check, microchip and first year’s license.

A chicken is a humble bird. For ages it has scoured barnyards and gardens for spills of grain and a few insects here and there. It has dined on kitchen scraps and bruised fruit, pecked at worms and yard waste, all to produce a daily egg and often end its days in the soup pot. So it’s about time it gets its own celebration. On Saturday One World Spokane and PEACH Community Farm are putting on a chicken festival, and it’s an urban one at that; it will be held just off Sprague Avenue at the heart of the International District.

EMERSON/GARFIELD – The Sage Players will perform “Caucasian Chalk Circle,” beginning Friday at 7 p.m. at the Corbin Senior Activity Center, 827 W. Cleveland St. The staged reading will continue on Saturday and also will be performed Sept. 17 and Sept. 18 at 7 p.m. and Sunday and Sept. 19 at 2 p.m. Tickets will be available at the door for a $10 donation for adults and an $8 donation for military, senior citizens and students with ID.

LIBERTY LAKE – The Liberty Lake Kiwanis will have a wine tasting at the historic Zephyr Lodge, 1900 S. Zephyr Road, on Sunday, from 3 to 6 p.m. Tickets are $25 per person and include food, wine and music. Tickets may be purchased online at www.Libertylakekiwanis.org or by calling (509) 995-4043.

RIVERSIDE – Project Beauty Share will have a toilet paper drive on Friday and Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., to benefit Anna Ogden Hall, Our Place Community Ministries, Our Sister’s Closet, Hope House, Transitions and Catholic Charities of Spokane’s St. Margaret’s Shelter and Childbirth and Parenting Assistance program. While the household item is a necessity, it is not covered by food stamps and is one of the most requested, yet least donated items to local shelters.

This is in response to the scathing article about local law enforcement by David Teller,