Washington Voices

Dirk and Helen Parsons became artists when they were young. Helen Parsons was presented with a cigar box filled with sewing paraphernalia when she was 8 and began sewing anything and everything. Her first job was at a fabric store, and textiles became her palette.

After years of effort the East Side Little League in Liberty Lake finally has a baseball field to call its own. The new field was carved out of a corner of Pavillion Park and the first game was played May 2. On Wednesday the Spartans and the Kings, both East Side Little League teams, happily played on the field. The white chalk on the base lines was a sharp contrast against the green grass and the brown dirt brought in specifically for the field.

Backers of a drive to disincorporate Spokane Valley have turned to paid signature gatherers, including at least one with a dubious grasp of the issues. A young man stationed in front of the Trading Co. store at Sprague Avenue and McDonald Road last week asked a Spokesman-Review reporter whether he wanted to sign a petition to merge Spokane Valley with Spokane – just about the last thing most disincorporation supporters would want.

The hot trend this year is definitely vegetable gardening. Vegetable starts and seeds are flying off the shelves at plant sales and garden stores. By August, Spokane is going to be swimming in luscious sweet tomatoes, peppers, corn and beans. Nationally, the popularity of vegetable gardening has risen. The reasons are pretty obvious. With the recent vegetable contamination scares, people want to know where their food is coming from. Younger gardeners want their landscapes to give something back, so they are planting vegetables instead of ornamentals. Lastly, with the economy in a tailspin, people just want to save money. Regardless of why you are planting a vegetable garden, my bet is you are going to have more than you can use come harvest time.

Several local schools are set to receive cash for their environmental program efforts courtesy of the Terry Husseman School Awards Program run by the Washington Department of Ecology. The awards are given annually to schools for ongoing waste reduction efforts, starting new environmental programs or implementing innovative curricula. This is also the first year private schools were eligible for the awards, which range from $100 to $5,000. A Seed Award to help with start-up costs for a new program was awarded to Gonzaga Prep. The school will use its $1,630 award to purchase additional recycling collection containers and supplies to build a shelter for holding bins.

The Miller family has contributed a great deal to the Freeman High School athletic legacy. The four children of Kevin and Rose Miller, from eldest daughter Alisha (class of 2002), eldest son Dustin (2004), daughter Jennesa (2007) and youngest son Chris (2009), have helped the Scotties win state championships (state boys track), earned Most Valuable Player honors (Alisha, Northeast A League softball, 2002), and more than a dozen all-league honors in a range of sports.