Whidbey News-Times, December 24, 2011

NEWS-TIMESWHIDBEY

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2011 | Vol. 112, No. 103 | WWW.WHIDBEYNEWSTIMES.COM | 75¢

Ornamenttradition unites friendsA10

WHIDBEY PRESBYTER-IAN CHURCH will conduct two candlelight services Christmas Eve, Saturday, Dec. 24. The fam-ily service will be held at 5:30 p.m. and the traditional service at 9 p.m. The church is located at 1148 SE 8th Ave., Oak Harbor. Call 679-3579.

CONCORDIA LUTHERAN CHURCH will have two ser-vices Christmas Eve, Dec. 24. At 7 p.m. is the candlelight service and carol sing with choir and at 10:30 p.m., the late worship service. Christmas Day, Sunday, Dec. 25, the worship celebration service with choir is at 10 a.m. The church is located at 590 N. Oak Harbor St., Oak Harbor. Call 675-2548.

OAK HARBOR LUTH-ERAN CHURCH will host Christmas worship services on Dec. 24, with family worship at 4 p.m. featuring the Sunday school Christmas program. Traditional Christmas Eve services are at 7 and 10 p.m. with music from the Senior Choir. Dec. 25 service is at 10:30 a.m. Nursery care is provided at the Christmas Eve services. The church is located at 1253 NW 2nd Ave., across the street from the football stadium. Call 679-1561.

FAMILY BIBLE CHURCH will hold their Christmas Cantata, “Searching for the King,” Dec. 24 at 7 p.m. The church is located at 2760 Heller Road, Oak Harbor. Call 679-1585.

ST. STEPHEN’S EPI-SCOPAL CHURCH plans a Christmas Eve service Dec. 24 at 3 p.m., featuring a Christmas pageant and Holy Eucharist

SEE CHURCH, A4

By JUSTIN BURNETTStaff reporter

Oak Harbor Mayor-elect Scott Dudley may be out of the office for a few weeks this summer because he’ll be busy donating one of his kidneys.

And not to a needy family mem-ber, but a man from a small suburb of Vancouver, B.C., who he’s never even met. Admittedly, his first six months in office is not the most opportune time for a major surgery, but Dudley said the opportunity came up and he just couldn’t say no.

“It’s something that’s been in the back of my mind for a while,” said Dudley, during a phone interview from Vancouver General Hospital.

Contacted for a separate issue, Dudley only revealed where he was when specifically asked by a Whidbey News-Times reporter. Dudley has been undergoing test-ing to insure he’s a qualified can-didate for months but decided to

keep it under wraps while on the campaign trail.

Dudley, a city councilman, won a hard-fought battle for the mayor’s seat with incumbent Jim Slowik this past November. He said he just didn’t feel the need to announce the procedure, which is still not guaran-teed to happen, while running for Oak Harbor’s top seat.

“It’s not a situation where I’m doing it for votes,” Dudley said.

Rather, his family has a history of polycystic kidney disease. The

Mayor-elect offers kidney to stranger

British Columbia residents Philip and Keesha Rosario, above, pose for a picture. Philip has polycystic kidney disease and may receive one of Oak Harbor Mayor-elect Scott Dudley’s kidneys. At left is a picture of Dudley.

Christmasservices

“I just think he’s one of a kind. I wish there were more people like him. In my eyes, he’s a hero.”

-- Philip Rosario, possible kidney recipient

By JESSIE STENSLANDStaff reporter

A bundle of paper known as the Island County parks plan could have a wide impact on how Whidbey Islanders recreate in the future.

Among the highlights of the plan is a policy to phase out the county’s investment in traditional recreation facilities, such as ball parks, and encourage hiking, bicy-cling and other low-impact activi-ties. The policy guide suggests that hunting should be allowed in three large parks, but the areas should be closed to non-hunters during

the season.The Parks and Recreation

Element on the county’s compre-hensive plan was adopted by the county commissioners this week in a 2-1 vote. It allows the county to once again apply for park-related grant opportunities and replaces an older documents that long ago expired.

The county hired a consulting firm, MIG, Inc. of Portland, to help write the plan; it cost nearly $90,000. The Whidbey Camano Land Trust pledged to pay $30,000 of the fee in order to help the county manage its

resources.Joantha Guthrie, project manager

in public works, said work started on the plan three years ago, when it was first placed on the annual review docket. One of the first steps in creating the plan, she said, was to inventory and classify all the prop-erty that the county owns. It turned out that the county has a lot more parkland than anyone realized.

“I was quite amazed that we have over 3,000 acres of park and habitat property,” Guthrie said.

She said a great deal of empha-sis was placed in public outreach.

There were stakeholder interviews, online surveys, focus groups and community intercept interviews; over 950 people participated. The participants identified “provid-ing recreational activities” and

County parks plan goes nontraditionalSEE KIDNEY, A7

SEE PARKS, A7

Merry Christmas

By NEWS-TIMES STAFF

Washington’s higher-than-usual winter tides hit their high mark in the next few days and the state Department of Ecology is inviting the public to share their photos of this

naturally occurring event.These high tides are some-

times called “king tides” and occur when the sun and moon’s gravitational pull reinforce one another. King tides offer a glimpse of how rising sea levels from global

climate change could affect the state’s coastal areas.

According to an Ecology news release, as global tem-peratures rise, the oceans warm slightly and expand, ice caps and glaciers melt, and more precipitation falls

as rain instead of snow. This causes sea levels to rise and could affect Washington’s marine areas by:

especially during high tides and major storms.

inland.

erosion.

and other structures such as roads, seawalls and utilities that are built near the shore.

freshwater and connected underground water supplies.

regions, including Puget

Fuca and the outer coast, this season’s king tides will hap-

pen from late December 2011

Dates vary slightly depend-ing on location.

Along Washington’s outer coast, king tides will occur

19 to 24, 2012.

Fuca, they occur Dec. 24 and

2012.

king tides are Dec. 27 to 29,

Follow these steps to par-ticipate:

map and schedule to find when and where the high-est tides will occur. Go to

/climatechange/ipa_hight-

ide_map.htm.

by checking out Ecology’s Coastal Atlas at https://for-tress.wa.gov/ecy/coastalat-las/.

king tide, preferably where the high water levels can be gauged against familiar landmarks such as sea walls, jetties, bridge supports or buildings.

and location of your photo, then upload your images on the Washington King

Group at www.flickr.com/

During winter 2010-11, Ecology collected more than 250 king tide photos.

Page A2 WWW.WHIDBEYNEWSTIMES.COM

Whidbey General Hospital welcomes Matthew J. Marquart, DO

Dr. Marquart is a graduate of Western University of Health Sciences’ College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific. He completed his internship and Orthopedic Surgery residency at Genesys Regional Medical Center.

Dr. Marquart will be joining the staff atWhidbey Orthopedic Surgeons80 N. Main Street, Coupeville360-678-4424360-321-1226

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State department of ecology seeks ‘king tide’ photos


Park ranger who may be out of a job next month made an important arrest this week.

when he came across a man who appeared to be illegal-ly taking natural resources from the area. After checking his identification and doing

a quick background check, it turned out he had a felony warrant out for his arrest.

-up and with the assistance of Park Manager Ken Hageman, also a ranger, the man was taken into custody. He was later transported to the jail in

arrests of wanted felons is not common among rangers

though park rangers are fully commissioned law enforce-ment officers with the power to make arrests and carry a firearm.

charge includes fighting crime and keeping the public safe. And Keystone spit can be a wild place at times, he said.

“All kind of crazy things happen on that spit and rang-ers are often there to handle

Parks self supporting by 2012 through the implemen-tation of the Discovery Pass. But the pay pass isn’t bring-ing in the revenue that had been hoped for and the state agency recently announced significant staff cuts.

received notices that their

jobs are at risk. That works out to about 120 park person-nel --- about 100 rangers --- and about 40 agency administra-

been a ranger for 21 years, 12 of which have been spent at Fort Casey, he’s one of the rangers who received a notice.

Given his recent arrest of a

Hageman worry how the loss of officers at state parks

will affect the safety of both the public and fellow rang-ers. With one less person on patrol, people like the man arrested Monday might be missed. Officers may also find themselves in dangerous situ-ations by themselves.

wouldn’t have had anyone for backup,” Hageman said.

problem.”

Coupeville Planning ●Commission: Tuesday, Jan. 3, 6:30 p.m., Com-missioners’ Hearing Room, Courthouse Annex Building.

Oak Harbor Finance ●Standing Committee:

Wednesday, Jan. 4, 3:30

p.m., City Hall, 865 SE

Barrington Dr.

Oak Harbor Arts Com- ●mission: Monday, Jan. 9,

6 p.m., City Hall, 865 SE

Barrington Dr.

Island County Commis- ●sioners: Monday, Jan. 9, 10 a.m., Commissioners’ Hearing Room, County Annex Building.

Whidbey General Hos- ●pital Board: Monday, Jan. 9, 6 p.m., Conference

Room A, Whidbey Gen-

eral Hospital, Coupeville.

Oak Harbor Marina ●

Committee: Monday, Jan.

9, 7 p.m., City Hall, 865

SE Barrington Dr.


The bronze “Stumbly Ducklings” art work for downtown Oak Harbor will waddle on SE Pioneer Way after all.

The Oak Harbor City Council approved the $33,000 piece in a 4-2 deci-sion Tuesday. City Council members Bob Severns, Jim Campbell, Danny Paggao and Beth Munns voted for the piece’s commission while Jim Palmer and Mayor-elect Scott Dudley voted against.

The piece, which depicts walking ducklings and will be built by South Whidbey artist Georgia Gerber, is the third and final art work approved as part of the SE Pioneer Way Improvement Project. Its con-struction is expected to take from six to eight months.

“It’s received popular comments and I think it’s a real good piece,” said Skip Pohtilla, a member of the Oak

Harbor Arts Commission during Tuesday’s meeting.

Last year, the city coun-cil green-lighted an effort to spend up to $80,000 on art to complement the project. The arts commission, which serves as an advisory group, spent six months coming up with a list of five pieces to present to the council for approval.

Much of their efforts were in vain, however. At the last minute, it was learned that the city’s planned funding source could not be legally used to fund art so the com-mission scrambled to come up with two top picks. But only one of their choices, a bronze mermaid, was select-ed by the city council.

The other piece chosen was Moon Waves, a two-dimen-sional large silver-colored statue of waves going over a moon. Gerber’s Stumbly Ducklings was also condi-tionally approved. It required

public vetting so was sent back to the art’s commission for further review.

Three art commissioners resigned following the deci-sion.

The city council meeting this week made it clear that the downtown art work is still controversial. Oak Harbor resident Shane Hoffmire said it may have been better if the project had been fund-ed with donations and Mel Vance, who was not opposed to the Stumbly Ducklings, said something is needed at City Beach Street to act as a gateway to the revitalized downtown.

The money for all three projects will come from the Arts Acquisition and Maintenance Fund, a special pot of money that can only be used for art. The first two pieces approved tab out to about $65,000.

Dudley said he wouldn’t support spending another

$33,000 when the art fund doesn’t yet have all the money needed to pay for the third piece even though it’s expected to have enough by the time the project is done.

Also, it’s unclear where the duckling piece will be located. It had been desig-nated for the intersection of SE Ireland Street but that’s right next to the site where Native American remains were found this summer.

Palmer said he’d be “about as frustrated as you can get at this point” if he was a mem-ber of the arts commission but agreed that downtown needs a gateway piece.

Although some mentioned financial and locational con-cerns, Munns, Campbell, Paggao and Severns all sup-ported moving ahead with the beautification effort.

“There will be sometime down the road where we’re going to be happy we did this,” Severns said.

City council funds Stumbly DucklingsPage A3

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152 NE Midway Blvd • Mon-Fri 8 am-5 pm • (360) 675-2754

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Mechanics

AUTO ELECTRIC, L.L.C.Martin’sMartin’s

By BRIAN KELLYSouth Whidbey Record

Glenn Perkins said it was hard to tell who was more surprised: The burglar who was caught red-handed, or Perkins, who discovered the intruder who slipped into his home Wednesday and interrupted his morn-ing coffee.

The Island County Sheriff’s Office is still searching for the burglar, who escaped from Perkins’ home on Kolia Place near South Whidbey State Park after assaulting the homeowner and running off into the woods nearby.

The break-in, which fol-lows a series of residential burglaries across Whidbey Island, prompted a frenzied but unsuccessful search for the burglar Wednesday. The prowler was described as a thin white man, with long reddish hair in a ponytail.

The break-in happened just after 10:30 a.m.

Perkins said he was sitting with his wife in a sunroom at one end of the house, having coffee and reading the local newspa-per, when he heard a noise in another room.

He thought one of the couple’s cats, Ricky or Sissy, had knocked something over.

Then Perkins heard another noise, and got up to investigate.

Walking toward the mas-ter bedroom, he came face to face with a burglar.

“I hollered at him; I said, ‘What are you doing in my house?’”

Perkins said the man turned around and ran to the front door, with Perkins also making a dash to the

entryway.The intruder found

the front door locked and struggled to get it open. He quickly gave up and turned back the other way.

“He rushed by me and went around into our hobby room and the next thing he ends back up in the sun-room,” Perkins recalled.

Meanwhile, the home-owner’s wife, who was still in the sunroom, had picked up the telephone and was talking to a 911 dispatcher.

Perkins confronted the man as he stood there, again trapped.

“I said something like, ‘Who are you?’ He said, ‘I’m Jeff, now let me out of here!”

The burglar reached for the handle of a glass door that led outside, but the man couldn’t figure out how to undo the compli-cated lock. Perkins’ wife — still on the phone with a 911 dispatcher --- reached over to try to unlock it, but backed away as the man then tried to kick the glass out of the door.

“My wife had left the room, and he swung and hit me on the lip, got by me and … ran back to the front door and was gone,” he said.

Perkins said the incident lasted maybe five minutes.

The intruder apparently got into the home by crawl-ing through a cat window in a bathroom, but knocked over a vase holding artificial flowers when he squeezed through the small opening.

The sheriff’s office is advising residents to keep their garages, vehicles and homes locked, and to call 911 to report any suspicious activity.

Burglar escapes from homeowner

YOUR GOVERNMENT


TrinityLutheran

Church

www.trinitylutheranfreeland.comWoodard Road, Hwy. 525,

Freeland

Sunday Worship 8:00, 9:30 & 11:00Nursery provided

James Lindus, PastorDennis Hanson, PastorGeorge Brunjes, Pastor

Eric Ottum, PastorKarl Olsen, Minister of Music

St. Stephen’sEpiscopalChurch

Worship Services held in All Saint’s Chapel (Building across from large church)

SUNDAY SERVICES9:30AM

SUNDAY SCHOOL BEGINS AT 9:30AM

360-279-0715www.ststephensofoakharbor.org

555 SE Regatta Dr. • Oak HarborThe Rev. Patricia Eustis, Rector

Oak HarborUnited Pentecostal Church

Sunday Service - NoonWednesday Bible Study 7pm

Pastor Mark Dillon404-661-4653

[email protected]

Mailing Address:41 NE Midway Blvd Suite 103

Oak Harbor, WA 98277

WhidbeyPresbyterian

Church1148 SE 8th Ave

Oak Harbor11:00 a.m. Traditional Worship

9:30 a.m. Contemporary Worship Dave Templin, Pastor

Bethany Popkes, Youth DirectorKurt Imbach, Adult Facilitator www.whidbeypres.org

679-3579Child Care is available and Everyone Welcome

Sunday Services8:00, 9:30 & 11:00 am

(“Kids on the Rock” Ministry for Children

ages 3mos.-5th grade meets at all services)

“Amped” Jr. High Youth: Sun., 5:00 pm“Legacy” High School Youth: Sun., 7:15 pm

Small GroupsWomen’s Ministry • Men’s Ministry

Russ Schlecht ~ Senior Pastorwww.elivingword.org

490 NW Crosby Ave., Oak Harbor 675-5008

Whidbey IslandMessianic Fellowship

Where Yeshua is LordWe welcome you to join us

for worship and celebration

Erev Shabbat Friday 7-9 pmShabbat Service Saturday 10:30 amLunch Fellowship Saturday 12-1 pmBible Study Saturday 1-3 pm

Oak Harbor 360-675-7189

Sunday Worship ...8:30 am & 10:45 amClasses For All Ages ..................9:45 am

Youth Ministries-Choirs-Bible StudiesDave Johnson, Pastor

675-2441 • www.ohfumc.org1050 SE Ireland St • Oak Harbor

FirstUnitedMethodistChurch

Oak HarborSouthernBaptistChurch50 SW 6th Avenue

Bible Study For All Ages.....9:15 a.m.Worship Services.....10:45 a.m. & 6 p.m.Wednesday Services..................6 p.m.Prayer Meeting & Student Ministries

Child care for all services.Pastor Grafton Robinson

Associate Pastor Lemuel B. Villano675-6686

www.ohsbc.org

God-Centered Worship Christ-Centered Preaching Verse-by-Verse Teaching

Worship: 1 PM 1411 Wieldraayer Road (off of Swantown Road)

Pastor Keith McFaul360-279-9713

www.GraceEvangelical.org

874 Plantation DriveGreenbank, WA

(Just two miles south of the Greenbank Farm)

Sunday School9:15am

Worship Service10:30 am

(360) 678-4612www.whidbey-efc.com

WHIDBEY EVANGELICAL FREE CHURCH

House of Prayer FaithTabernacle of Praise

Monday Prayer Meeting - 6:00 P.M.Tuesday Night Bible Study- 6:30 P.M.Friday High Praise Service- 6:30 P.M.

Sunday Celebration/Children’s Ministry – 9:30 A.M.Sunday Morning Worship Service – 11:00 A.M.

Church Telephone Number (360)679-1003Bishop Charles And Pastor Effi e Boyles (360)929-3127

620 A/B Erin Park DriveOak Harbor, WA 98277

(NEXT TO U-HAUL BLDG.)

Unitarian UniversalistCongregation

of Whidbey Island

20103 State Route 525Freeland

Sunday Service at 10:00 am

Minister: Rev. Elizabeth “Kit” KetchamChildcare Year-Round

Religious Education Sept-JuneAll are welcome360-321-8656

www.whidbey.com/[email protected]

(Behind K-Mart)Sunday Morning Services

Children and Worship675-4837

www.frcoh.org [email protected]

CALVARY APOSTOLIC TABERNACLE(The Pentecostals of Island County)

(behind Precision Tire)

SOULS HARBORA SAFE PLACE TO CALL HOME

Sunday Morning...............10amSunday Evening ............ 6:30pmWednesday ..........................7pm

632-7243Pastor Greg Adkins

Oak HarborChurch of Christ

1000 NE Koetje Street(Just North of Offi ce Max)

“To Know Christ & Make Him Known”Sunday Morning:

Worship Assembly .......................9:30 amBible Classes for all ages............11:00amWed. Classes for all ages ..............6:30pm

Joe Cook, Preaching Ministerwww.churchofchrist-oh.org

[email protected]

Sunday MorningWorship Service

8:30 A.M. & 10:30 A.M.Wednesday Midweek

Worship Service 7:00 P.M.

1560 S.E. 9th Ave • 679-6959“It’s By Grace!”

Calvary ChapelOak Harbor

The Catholic Church Invites You….St. Augustine’s Parish • 675-2303

185 N Oak Harbor St. ~ Oak Harbor Masses:Saturday 5:00 pmSunday 8:00am & 9:30 amWed & Fri 9:00 am

On the web: www.staugustineoh.org

St. Mary’s Parish 678-6536207 Main St. ~ Coupeville

Masses:Sunday 11:15 amThurs 12:00 noon

Word OfEverlastingLife & FaithChurch

721 S.E. Barrington • Oak Harbor360-632-3642

SundayBible Study 9:00am

Worship Service 10:00amEvening Service 6:00pm

Come Worship With Us!Thursday Bible Study 7:00p.m.950 S.W. Upland Ct • Oak HarborPastor Dr. Thomas Stoneham Sr.,

Minister Donald Cole

Oak HarborAssembly of God

Brent Sorlien, Senior Pastor

Sunday Service 10 amCelebration Service/Kids’ Ministry 10 am

Mission Emanuel Spanish Services

Sunday Evening at 6pmChild Care Provided

319 SW 3rd Avenuewww.oakharborag.org

360-675-4852

Oak HarborLutheran ChurchNW 2nd Avenue & Heller RoadAcross the street from OHHS Staadium

Nursery Available Sunday Evening Prayer 6:30 PM at

St. Mary Catholic Church in CoupevillePastor Jeffrey Spencer

Pastor Marc Stroud, Caring MinstryLynne Ogren, Music & Children Ministry

679-1561

Saturday Worship ................. 5:30 p.m.

Sunday Worship ....8:00 & 10:30 a.m.Sunday School .........................9:15 a.m.

Whidbey IslandChurch of Christ

3143-G North Goldie RdOak Harbor

Sunday Worship ........9:00 a.m.Sunday Bible Study 10:00 a.m.Sunday Evening ........5:00 p.m.Wednesday Evening .6:00 p.m.

For more information call:Gary 675-5569Jerry 679-3986

Matthew 28:18-20

Come worship with us!Worship Services Sunday 9:30 & 11:00 a.m.

• Nursery All Services• Sunday School• AWANA

• Small Groups• MOPS• Youth Groups

2760 N Heller Rd • Oak Harbor www.oakharborfamilybible.org679-1585

St. Stephen’s AnglicanThe Rev. Paul Orritt

SUNDAY SERVICE8:00 AM

SOLEMN EUCHARIST

9:30 AMSUNG EUCHARIST

11:11 AMEUCHARIST CELEBRATIONwww.ststephensanglicans.org

2 CHURCHES - 1 BUILDING555 SE Regatta Dr.

Oak Harbor679-3431

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A Church, A FamilyA Spiritual Home

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Island Vineyard Community ChurchPastor James Gallagher

6:00-7:30 PMSUNDAY NIGHTS

www.islandvineyard.org

ConcordiaLutheranChurch

Missouri SynodWorship Service ......................Sunday 10:00amAdult Bible Study & Sunday School ...11:15amEvening Service ................Wednesday 6:30pm

Nursery Available

Pastor Juan Palm360-675-2548

Preschool 360-679-1697590 N. Oak Harbor St • Oak Harbor

www.concordialutheranwhidbey.org

Promote Your Place Of Worship In The Whidbey News-Times For Only $11.25/week For A Single Size Ad. Please call 360-675-6611

Come Worship With Us!

679-1288

with Bishop Sandy Hampton pre-siding. The church is on Regatta Drive in Oak Harbor.

OAK HARBOR CHRISTIAN REFORMED CHURCH will hold Christmas Day Service Dec. 25 at 10 a.m. The church is located at 1411 Wieldraayer Road.

ST. AUGUSTINE CATHOLIC CHURCH will hold masses Dec. 24 at 5 and 10 p.m. and Dec. 25 at 8 and 9:30 a.m. The church is located at 185 N. Oak Harbor St. Call 675-2303.

OAK HARBOR CHURCH OF CHRIST will hold a Christmas

Celebration Sunday, Dec. 25 at 10 a.m. There will be no Bible classes. The church is located at 1000 NE Koetje St., behind Office Max. Call 675-3441.

THE COUPEVILLE UNITED METHODIST CHURCH plans two services on Christmas Eve. At 5:30 p.m. families with young chil-dren are the focus of the “Come to the Manger” service. A celebration of songs concludes with the church entirely lit by candles during the

traditional Candlelight Service which starts at 7 p.m. Christmas Day service begins at 11 a.m. The church is located on the corner of North Main and Sixth Avenue in Coupeville. Call 678-4256.

LIVING HOPE FOUR-SQUARE CHURCH will hold a Christmas Eve candlelight service Dec. 24 at 7 p.m. Christmas Day ser-vice is at 11 a.m. Children’s church will not be available. The church is located at 105 NW Broadway in

Coupeville. Call 678-6692.

UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST CONGREGATION will hold service Christmas Eve at 4 p.m. Service will include carols, stories, and reflections. Christmas Day, Dec. 25, at 10 a.m., an informal ser-vice will feature impromptu sharing of Christmas memories and songs followed by a potluck lunch. The church is located at 20103 Highway 525, Freeland. Call 360-321-8656.

CHURCHCONTINUED FROM A1

By NATHAN WHALENStaff reporter

The incoming commission-er for the Port of Coupeville asked without success that work to add further protec-tions for the Greenbank Farm be suspended for sev-eral weeks.

Laura Blankenship, who won the vacant port com-missioner seat during November’s election, want-ed talks to hash out a con-servation easement for the Greenbank Farm to cease until January, which is when she will be sworn in and can better participate in the pro-cess.

She made the request during Wednesday’s Port of Coupeville meeting.

Blankenship said after the meeting that she agrees with the need for a conservation easement for the farm, but she has concerns about the process leading up to that easement. She didn’t go into detail about what those concerns are. She wanted to share them with the other two commissioners first.

The Port of Coupeville has asked the help of the Whidbey Camano Land Trust to resolve an impasse with Island County over the easement. The port wants to give up the development rights on the agriculture and environmentally sensitive land on the publicly owned facility. The Island County commissioners approved giv-ing the Port of Coupeville $400,000 in Conservation Futures tax funds, which would be dispersed over an eight-year period. Since the

port purchased a portion of the farm, leaders have seen its cash reserves disappear while making the $100,000 annual payments.

Negotiations on the com-plicated legal document stalled over a park and ride lot the county wants.

Commissioner Benye Weber noted that commis-sioner Marshall Bronson was absent from the meet-ing and the port had already committed to the current process.

“I am not in favor of suspending anything at this point,” Weber told Blankenship.

Michael Stansbury, an attorney with the Greenbank Farm Management which runs the farm, said it’s

unlikely any substantial work on the easement will take place before Blankenship is sworn in.

Jim Patton, port execu-tive director, said the land trust was asked to resolve the “misunderstanding” between the port and county. The Land Trust’s executive director, Pat Powell, will work to find common ground between the two entities, get an appraisal for the value of the development rights and then write a new easement.

Despite the Conservation Futures money having been awarded, the port leaders fig-ured they wouldn’t receive a payment in 2012 when they developed the port’s budget.

Blankenship is scheduled to be sworn in Jan. 11.

Greenbank Farm easement talks to continue next month

Page A5

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The state chapter of a national planning organiza-tion is honoring SE Pioneer Way in Oak Harbor as being one of the best transporta-tion projects in Washington.

Richard Hart with the Washington Chapter of the American Planning Association presented city staff, namely Development Services Director Steve Powers, with an award at a city council meeting earlier this month.

The association has been honoring outstanding city and county projects for the past 25 years and the redesign of Oak Harbor’s SE Pioneer Way won in the transportation category. Hart said the panel of judges thought it also could have won for sustainability due to its merits as a Green Roads project.

“They found this to be a unique project and one of the first such efforts by a small city in the state of Washington,” he said.

According to the associa-tion’s website, judges said it was a “well-defined use of the concept of sustainability in transportation improve-ments,” and was “an out-standing effort in the use of planning resources in a small community.”

Hart also told the city council that this was the third year in a row that he’s come to Oak Harbor to present the city with such an award. Hart said he did some checking and learned

it was the first time any city has been honored three times consecutively.

“You are to be congratu-lated,” he said. “You’ve real-ly set the bar for every other community, big and small, city and county, across the state.”

The Oak Harbor sub-divi-sion code update won in the implementation category in 2010 and the Windjammer Water front/Downtown Redevelopment Program won in 2009, also in the implementation category.

Although Powers accept-ed the award, he deferred honors to a host of city staff. Public Works employees, engineers, planners, the city council and the public par-ticipated, he said.

“Truly, this is an award for the entire city staff and

not just planning,” Powers said.

SE Pioneer Way has been a challenging project, both in terms of public contro-versy over the one-way street design and concern-ing the discovery of Native American remains, which has delayed it completion.

While city staff has at times come under fire for some of the problems that arose, Mayor Jim Slowik said at the meeting that the award is a demonstra-tion of the city’s high-caliber employees.

“It proves we have excel-lent people working at the City of Oak Harbor, but especially people working in our planning department,” Slowik said. “Very good job, Steve.”

Oak Harbor honored for Pioneer Way makeover

Richard Hart with the Washington Chapter of the American Planning Association presents Development Services Director Steve Powers with an award on SE Pioneer Way at a recent city council meeting.

American Association of University Women, Whidbey Island Branch will join the League of Women Voters Legislative Brunch on Jan. 7, from 9 to 11:30 a.m. at the Whidbey Golf & Country Club, 2430 SW Fairway Lane, Oak Harbor. Reservations must be made by Dec 30. Contact Teri Jones at 678-4197 or [email protected]. Mail a $20 check to LWVWI, PO Box 1933, Oak Harbor, WA 98277. You may also pay at the door.

WRITE TO US: The News-Times welcomes letters from its readers. We reserve the right to edit all submissions. Letters should be typewritten and not exceed 250 words. They must be signed and include a daytime phone number.

Send items to P.O. Box 1200, Coupeville WA 98239, or email [email protected].


OPINIONWhidbey

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

I just wanted to put in a plug for Island Cleaners (1080 SE Pioneer Way, Oak Harbor). Yesterday, I helped my wife, Rae, pick up a full van load of 250-plus donat-ed jackets for the needy; a rather immense project that she has been working on for the last month with the Oak Harbor High School fresh-men. Impressed as I was by my wife’s many extra hours of hard work, I was truly astounded by the work that Island Cleaners had put in to project. Island Cleaners had laundered two-thirds of the donated coats, for free, in just one day, with only the owner (Christine Westman) and her daughter at the helm.

It was an amazing effort and one that I thought deserved recognition. So if you have a favorite retro,

wool, Campangnolo jersey that is just too good for the home washer, Island Cleaners deserves your business.

Brian WoodOak Harbor

Much thanks to the parish-ioners of the NAS Whidbey base chapel through Hand-in-Hand / Head Start School, the Family Bible Church, Soroptimist International of North Whidbey, and the Oak Harbor firefighters for their good work to brighten the lives of children in need during the holiday season. God bless you all!

Angela and Aida MartinOak Harbor

The latest fallout of the Great Recession is the

decimation of Washington State Parks personnel. Let’s review: Lenders abandoned decades of safe loan practic-es and made millions of bad loans so their big shots could get mammoth bonuses. A Republican bill got deriva-tives exempted from regula-tory oversight in 2000. The two caused massive over-leverage in the financial sec-tor, resulting in worldwide economic collapse.

Millions lost their jobs, homes and huge chunks of their life savings. None of the culprits have suffered any consequences. The national debt, ballooned by the tax-cutting, deficit spend-ing, regulation-gutting, Wall Street-stroking policies of George Bush, has made it difficult for the federal gov-ernment to do the prolonged stimulus spending govern-ment normally must do to end a serious recession.

The Republicans have blocked every attempt to

improve the economy and tighten financial regulations, instead using the situation as an excuse to extend their failed ideology of cut-ting taxes on the extremely wealthy and slashing gov-ernment programs for the middle class.

After people stopped spending, state and local tax revenues imploded. Public school teachers, police and state employees who pro-vide services to ordinary people continue to lose their jobs. The Republican lead-ership couldn’t care less. They rigidly cling to the long-disproved idea that cut-ting taxes on the wealthiest Americans creates jobs in America and trickles down, when that is precisely what got us into this mess.

We need to finally repudi-ate this lie and return to fair and responsible citizenship by everyone.

Bill ViertelCoupeville

IN OUR OPINION

This being Christmas Eve, Whidbey Islanders might take a few minutes to reflect on what an outstanding holiday sea-son we have enjoyed.

It started Thanksgiving Day with the Community Harvest, a free dinner that literally serves thousands in Oak Harbor. Coupeville’s potluck-version isn’t so expansive, but hundreds gather in the warm confines of the Recreation Hall to enjoy dinner together and talk with old friends.

Then consider the contributions of our outstanding arts community, staging both North Whidbey and South Whidbey versions of “The Nutcracker,” and orchestral, choral and flute groups bringing sounds of the season to venues throughout the island.

Consider too the massive efforts made to assure that no child goes without a gift under his or her tree tomorrow morning. Toys for Tots is still a tradition, the Soroptimists work hard on their Tree of Hope, the Kiwanis have a won-derful tradition of Santa handing out fat oranges to school children, and numerous other clubs and organization help children in their own way.

More impressive even is the effort made by school chil-dren, from elementary to high school, to reach out and help their community during the holidays. Food is collected to donate to Help House and Gifts from the Heart and clothing is donated to those in need. A group of high school students made an effort this year to keep the needy warm during the winter months and came up with a donation of 300 coats.

We sometimes get cynical about the commercial aspects of Christmas, but that’s not true on Whidbey Island. The merchants decorate their stores which are the heart of the community in Coupeville and Oak Harbor. The Greening of Coupeville with its parade is a tradition in the county seat, and Oak Harbor merchants were able to show off their sparkling new downtown with a Christmas tree ceremony and regular visits from Santa. Without our business commu-nity, Christmas would not be nearly so bright and cheerful on Whidbey.

This is just the tip of the holiday season iceberg on Whidbey Island. There are simply too many groups, organi-zations and individuals dedicated to making the holidays a joy for everyone to list individually.

Tonight and tomorrow present outstanding opportuni-ties to give thanks, however. Attend a Christmas Eve or Christmas Day church service. Enjoy the special music, solemn and joyful services, and give some time to enjoy the real meaning of the season, which expresses itself every day on Whidbey Island.

A special holiday season

ADMINISTRATIVE: The Whidbey News-Times is a publication of Sound Publishing, and is a member of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association, the National Newspaper Association and Suburban Newspapers of America. Advertising rates are available at the News-Times office. While the News-Times endeavors to ac-

IDENTIFICATION STATEMENT AND SUBSCRIPTION RATESThe Whidbey News-Times (ISSN 1060-7161) is published semi-weekly by Sound

Publishing on Wednesdays and Saturdays for $19 for 3 months, $29 for 6 months, $45 per year and $75 for 2 years delivered by carrier in island county from North Whidbey Island to

year mailed out of county. Payment in advance is required. It is published by The Whidbey News-Times PO Box 1200, Coupeville, WA 98239. Periodicals rate postage paid at Coupe-ville, WA and at additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Whidbey News-Times, PO Box 1200, Coupeville, WA 98239. Copyright © 2011, Sound Publishing

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Page A7

The following items were selected from reports made to the Oak Harbor Police Department:

TUESDAY, DEC. 20At 7:50 p.m., a NE Barron

Drive resident reported her bicycle was stolen.

At 2:01 p.m., a caller reported tires slashed on a car at a SW Harrier Circle location.

At 11:39 a.m., a SW Kim-ball Drive resident reported she believes someone is using her identity.

At 1:52 a.m., a caller re-ported she was assaulted at a NE Ernst Street location.

At 12:41 a.m., a caller reported people fighting at a SE Pioneer Way location.

MONDAY, DEC. 19At 3:14 p.m., a caller

reported someone kicked in the garage door of a SE Fourth Avenue home. It ap-peared someone entered the house as well.

At 6:07 a.m., a caller reported a man, wearing a beanie and green coat, was harassing customers at a NE Midway Boulevard location.

At 12:09 a.m., a caller reported a man harassing customers at the gas pumps of a Highway 20 business.

SUNDAY, DEC. 18At 10:30 p.m., a caller

reported a “huge fight” at a NE Barron Drive residence.

At 6:30 p.m., a caller re-ported a homeless person was standing outside talking to people at a Highway 20 location.

At 10:24 a.m., a caller reported she believes a neighbor with mental health issues burglarized her home.

SATURDAY, DEC. 17At 10:35 p.m., a SE Eighth

Avenue resident reported her dad pushed her and locked her out of the house.

At 10:06 p.m., a caller reported people were spray painting on the tennis courts at a Highway 20 location.

At 9:53 p.m., a caller re-ported a man threw a toy at a child while at a SW Erie Street business.

At 5:49 p.m., a caller re-ported people fighting inside a car at a parking lot on Highway 20.

At 10:03 a.m., a SW 10th Court Resident reported a woman came to the door trying to sell vacuum clean-ers, but she was asking very odd questions.

At 8:01 a.m., a SW Har-bor Vista Circle resident reported one of the city’s storm drain cleaning trucks backed into her mailbox.

At 7:38 a.m., a SW Sixth Avenue resident reported his blue Diamondback mountain bike was stolen.

ISLAND SCANNER

By NATHAN WHALENStaff reporter

Concern expressed by the sheriff about vehicle visibil-ity is prompting the delay of regulations that would allow golf carts to be driven legally on Coupeville roads.

The Coupeville Town Council decided last Tuesday evening to continue a public hearing until January regard-ing a golf cart ordinance.

The ordinance outlines that applicable golf carts be electrically powered, specifi-cally designed for the golf course, have four wheels, be able to reach a speed of 20 miles per hour in one mile and have reflectors placed on the front and rear of the vehicle. Carts would be pro-

hibited on the town’s side-walks, biking trails and path-ways. People wishing to use golf carts would have to pay the town a $25 annual fee.

Island County Sheriff Mark Brown expressed concern over the safety of slower vehicles on the road, and particularly the reflector requirement.

The sheriff said the town should change the ordi-nance to require stoplights and blinkers on carts that would be used on the road. Electric lights would make motorists more aware of the slower moving carts driving through town, he said.

“We’re not habitually in tune to looking at these type of things,” Brown told

the town council. He said deputies recently covered a collision on Camano Island where a golf cart turned in front of a car.

Coupeville resident Dan Miranda agreed with Brown’s safety concerns but he’s still eager for the ordi-nance to become a reality. He said it cost him $275 to install lights and mirrors on his golf cart in anticipation of driving on town roads.

Councilwoman Molly Hughes questioned wheth-er golf carts could legally cross Highway 20. Mayor Nancy Conard said carts could cross the highway at the lighted intersection with Main Street. It would be ille-gal for golf carts to cross

the highway on Broadway, which is located outside town limits and therefore outside the boundary of the proposed golf cart zone.

Jack Tingstad, who lives on Broadway, was con-cerned about the slow-mov-ing carts on busy streets. He encouraged the town to work with potential golf cart users to plot routes through town that avoid arterials.

Resident Al Bowers ques-tioned how the town will enforce the regulations and administer the permits. He also questioned whether the town would have to hire additional staff to deal with the golf carts.

Town Marshal Dave Penrod said he called other

towns in the state and found few people have been tak-ing advantage of driving golf carts; La Conner had two reg-istered carts, Orting had five and Mill Creek had three, he said during the meeting.

Conard recommended that the Town Council con-tinue the public hearing until next month to allow time to change the proposed ordinance to account for lights and blinkers instead of reflective tape.

The hearing is expect-ed to continue during the Coupeville Town Council meeting scheduled for Tuesday, Jan 10, 6:30 p.m. in the Commissioners’ Hearing Room in the basement of the Annex Building.

Sheriff stalls golf carts in Coupeville

genetic disorder results in the formation of cysts that can lead to kidney failure. It claimed both his grand-mother and aunt and also afflicted his uncle.

Tests have shown that Dudley does not have the dis-ease, nor is there a chance that he will contract it in the future. However, watch-ing two of his relatives lose their struggle with the illness caused him to want to some-day donate one of his own kidneys to someone in need.

That chance came along this spring. Dudley had been planning to go to Haiti on a humanitarian mission in February with his church, Living Word, but the trip was canceled last minute due to political upheavals in the small country.

As assistant governor for the Rotary Club’s district 5050, Dudley instead decid-ed to visit chapters through-out the district including those in British Columbia. The decision would inter-

twine his fate with Keesha and Philip Rosario, residents of Haney in the district of Maple Ridge.

Philip, a 37-year-old small business owner, had just been diagnosed with polycys-tic kidney disease. He had no known prior family history with the disorder and only learned he was sick because he hadn’t been able to sleep for three days and begrudg-ingly went to see a doctor.

“I’m pretty stubborn,” Philip said. “I hadn’t been to the doctor for a while.”

You can imagine his shock when he and his wife Keesha were told that he had a fatal illness. Even worse, they learned that the waiting time for a kidney from a donor was eight to 10 years.

Keesha, who quickly became an expert on the condition, is a member of her local Rotary Club and was at a meeting and shared the news with other members. Dudley just happened to be sitting at the very same table.

He approached her after-ward and Keesha said his face nearly “turned white” when she told him about

the particular kidney dis-ease afflicting Philip. But Dudley turned the tables on her when he said he was already looking to get on an anonymous donor list and would like to give Philip one of his kidneys.

“I’m tearing up just think-ing about it,” Keesha said. “It’s unbelievable how the universe pans out. Through Rotary Club, a lot of amaz-ing things happen.”

Months have since passed, and although Dudley and Philip have yet to meet or even talk by telephone, both have undergone a litany of tests to insure they are com-patible matches.

At the time of the inter-view, Dudley had just underwent a CAT scan and a nuclear renogram, a test in which radionuclides are injected into the blood. They are monitored as they flow through the kidneys to gauge the organ’s health and function.

Dudley joked that he was feeling a little radioactive and wondered if he might set off a few alarms on his way back into the United States. Despite his humor,

that’s actually happened, according to Dr. Christopher Nguan.

A urologic surgeon spe-cializing in transplants, Nguan will perform Dudley’s operation. He said there have been cases where patients who have undergone renograms were stopped by border patrol agents for setting off radia-tion detection devices.

Although the test sounds invasive and uncomfortable, Nguan said it’s really rather benign. Even so, Philip said he is still trying to wrap his head around the idea of someone he’s never met doing so much for him.

“It’s amazing to me that some random stranger ... I have family that wouldn’t do this,” Philip said.

Additional testing is still needed and whether the transplant procedure will move forward is by no means guaranteed. If it does, and Dudley said things look good so far, the surgery would be done sometime in spring or early summer.

But if some unforeseen complication arises and things don’t work out with

Philip, Dudley said that doesn’t mean it won’t with someone else. He would remain on the donor list, he said.

“The fact is somebody needs my second kidney more than I do,” Dudley said.

According to Nguan, removing a kidney is a major operation and not without some risk. But Dudley said he’s not worried. Today’s technology --- laptops and cellphones --- will help insure that he doesn’t miss much action at City Hall and he claims to be a fast healer.

“I tend to push the enve-lope,” Dudley said. “I bounce back pretty quickly.”

As for Philip, the disease is advancing and not knowing whether the procedure will really move forward is tough. But, with light at the end of the tunnel, he’s looking to the future with renewed hope, thanks to Dudley.

“I just think he’s one of a kind,” Philip said. “I wish there were more people like him. In my eyes, he’s a hero.”

“protecting the natural envi-ronment” as the top two benefits of parks and open space.

Based on the public out-reach, the parks planners decided that the county shouldn’t spend scarce resources on maintaining ballfields and tennis courts.

“Over and over again, the feedback was there are

other groups that can do the active parks and recreations program and the county should not be in that busi-ness,” Guthrie said.

As a result, the plan includes some blunt lan-guage.

“Island County Parks will phase out its investment in traditional recreation opportunities, such as those found at Dan Porter, Dave Mackie, the Rhododendron ball fields, and Camano Park, by finding other providers to assume responsibility for the properties who will oper-

ate them for public use,” the plan states.

But Guthrie cautions that the new policy doesn’t mean the county will be shutting down these parks. Under the plan, county officials will work with other entities‚ such as school districts and park districts, to persuade them to take over the parks and run programs.

In addition, Guthrie explained that the plan states hunting should continue to be allowed at Putney Woods, Greenbank South and Camano Ridge. But for safe-

ty’s sake, the parks should be closed to other uses dur-ing hunting season.

A few people complained about the plan during public hearings. The main concern is the plan’s lack of clarity about funding the parks department. The plan lays out a multi-faceted approach to funding the depart-ment, but without specifics. Officials explained that the plan is supposed to set the policy, but it will be up to commissioners to make decisions about funding.

Commissioner Kelly

Emerson voted against the plan. She cited the lack of financial planning and said the plan will create unrealistic expectations in the public.

The county’s parks department was hit hard by the budget ax over the last few years, losing two-thirds of its funding. Because of a temporary change in state law, the county was able to fund the parks department this year from real estate excise taxes.

But, as the plan points out, a stable source of fund-ing needs to be identified.

KIDNEYCONTINUED FROM A1

PARKSCONTINUED FROM A1

Jan HolmesThere are some who bring

a light so great to the world that even after they have gone, the light remains. Jan Lea (Fridlund) Holmes was one such person. She had an incredible enthusiasm for life, a playful spirit and a deep-seated drive to never stop learning.

Born on Feb. 5, 1950, to Ester M. (Ness) and Clifford W. Fridlund, she grew up in North Dakota, Utah and Texas. Her family moved to Arizona where she attended college and where she was selected by Hughes Airwest to become a flight attendant.

In that role, she once spent a week as part of a flight crew that ferried Elvis Presley to Las Vegas while his person-al plane was grounded for repairs, an enterprise that she took delight in recounting.

Jan met and married Steve Holmes while they both worked for the airlines. For 33 years they loved to travel together, play golf, enjoy the arts, work in their yard and gather with fam-ily and friends. Their family always included at least one beloved and overindulged yellow Labrador retriever. They owned Toby’s Tavern in Coupeville for 10 years and she had great fun interacting with the patrons there.

Jan was a gifted artist and belonged to Penn Cove Gallery. She loved to com-bine her passions for travel and painting. Her artwork portrayed the beauty she saw in France and Mexico in addition to that of Whidbey Island and the surrounding marine life.

Jan joined WSU/Island County Beach Watchers in 1990 and was so fascinated by her first glimpse of the ecology of the marine world that she returned to college to pursue her lifelong interest in science and to earn a mas-ter’s degree in marine biolo-gy from Western Washington

University. She worked at the Port Townsend Marine Science Center and Shannon Point Marine Laboratories and took on a leadership role in Beach Watchers.

As a Beach Watcher volun-teer, she was instrumental in setting up beach monitoring and eelgrass study programs. She had a passion for study-ing and teaching about cope-pods, marine worms, sea grasses, and other flora and fauna of the Salish Sea. For this work she was honored with Western Washington’s 2010 Cox Conserves Heroes Award. Jan was a past mem-ber of the Marine Resources Committee, was a founding member and board presi-dent of Periwinkle Press and belonged to the Central Puget Sound Marine Mammal Stranding Network.

Jan passed away in her home on Dec. 15, 2011, after a lengthy battle with cancer. She is survived by her lov-ing husband Steve, stepsons Brad, Bret, and Todd Holmes, her canine child Chester, brothers Mark Fridlund and Roger Burns, nieces Ria Kaelin and Stacy Loken, “nieceletts” Grey and Chalyce Kaelin, and many friends. Jan’s remarkable charisma and energy will continue to inspire her family, friends and her extended communi-

ty. The sparkle she added to everything she touched will be missed by all. A memo-rial service is pending. Her family requests that in lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be directed to LEP-Beach Watchers, WEAN, or to a scholarship fund being set up in Jan’s name at Whidbey Island Bank.

Goldie M. Beard

Goldie M. Beard, 96, passed away peacefully on Sunday, Dec. 18, 2011, in Oak Harbor.

Mrs. Beard was born in Lebanon, Mo., on Dec. 17, 1915, to Ernest and Myrtle (Charlton) Van Hooser. She was raised in Lebanon. On Oct. 13, 1934, Goldie married Joseph Beard. They lived in Klamath Falls, Canyon City,

Ore., Ukiah and Orangevale, Caif. (near Sacramento). Goldie moved to Oak Harbor in 2003.

Goldie had a passion for music. She also loved to cook, bake and crochet, and she had a very strong love for her family. She had been a member of the Orangevale Baptist Church.

Goldie is survived by her four children: Jimmie Dale Beard of Graham, Donald Paul Beard (Joanne) of Sedona, Ariz., Kenneth Roy Beard (Mieko) and Mary Sittner (Harley), all of Oak Harbor; eight grandchildren; 11 great-grandchildren; two great-great-grandchildren and one on the way; two brothers, Harold Van Hooser (Arlene) of Yuma, Ariz., and Wallace Van Hooser of Boise, Idaho; brother-in-law Melvin Robinson of Ind.; also, numerous nieces, nephews and other relatives. She was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Joseph Beard (whom she affection-ately referred to as “Daddy Joe”) in September 1982; a daughter-in-law, Ardis Beard; two sisters, Lillie May Martin and Jean Robinson; and two brothers, Carl and Earl Van Hooser.

Goldie’s family would like to express their sincere appreciation to Ohana Villa for their loving care and friendship in Goldie’s final years.

A memorial service was held Dec. 21 at Living Hope Foursquare Church, Pastor Garrett Arnold officiat-ing. Family and friends are encouraged to share memo-ries and condolences at www.whidbeymemorial.com.

Richard Bund Richard Bund, 91, a

retired Air Force Lt. Colonel and 25-year resident of Oak Harbor, passed away Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011. Mr. Bund leaves many friends and family. A memorial ser-vice is planned after the holi-days both in Oak Harbor and Southern California. A full history of his life will follow. Arrangements entrusted to Burley Funeral Chapel.

Barbara Jean Benedict

Barbara Jean Benedict, age 69, of Oak Harbor, passed away unexpectedly at Skagit Valley Hospital on Tuesday, Dec. 20, 2011.

A memorial service will be Thursday, Dec. 29, at 1 p.m. at the Oak Harbor Yacht Club. A complete obitu-ary will appear in the Dec. 28 edition. Additional infor-mation may be obtained at www.whidbeymemorial.com, where family and friends are encouraged to share their memories and condolences.


From the City of Oak HarborCONSTRUCTION UPDATE

KEY CITY CONTACT PEOPLEThese are your go-to City staff for issues connected to the construction project:

Larry Cort, Project Manager

Joe Stowell, Project Engineer

Rhonda Severns, City Utilities

Just aft er 10:00 am on Tuesday, December 20, the last section of new sidewalk paving was fi nished. Eff ectively, this milestone brings to a close the installation of hard surfaces on Pioneer Way and literally “paves” the way toward fi nal completion. Obviously, some work remains to dress up the Ireland to Ilwaco block consistent with the rest of the street (railing, landscaping, benches, sidewalk grid, planter pots, etc.). Strider will also be busy starting January 3 checking off the remaining punchlist items. Plus, everyone seems to be looking forward to the day when the private utility conversions are complete and the wires and poles can be removed, very likely within the fi rst three months of 2012. Bringing the wires down will also allow the contractor to install the rest of the streetlights. Bottom line, a signifi cant

threshold crossed in completing the paving and sidewalks, but some work still to accomplish early next year.

Please note that starting on Th ursday, December 22, and continuing until Tuesday, January 3, neither Strider nor any of their subcontractors will be working. However, you may see one or more of the utility companies (PSE, Frontier, Comcast) or private electrical contractors working on the underground conversion work during this period.

SIDEWALKS, PAVING & PARKING NOW COMPLETE!

Businesses are open

Shop Local!

Trusted by the Whidbey Island Community

for nearly 49 years.

www.BurleyFuneralChapel.com

OAK HARBOR

Providing burial and cremation choices that are

affordable for every

family!Jim Haddon, Manager

Contact us today to learn more about our services.

Serving Families Since 1962.360-675-1112

1020 N.E. 7th Ave. #1Oak Harbor, WA 98277

Learn to SCUBA Dive

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We offer retail sales and service,instruction at all levels and

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Happy Holidays!

OBITUARIES

Jan Holmes

Goldie M. Beard

Richard Bund

Page A9

Call us at (360) 675-6611, or email scores to [email protected].

GAME OF THE WEEK The race to your Christmas tree Sunday, Dec. 25, at 7 a.m.SPORTS

Whidbey

Raising its dual meet record to 7-1, the Oak Harbor High School wrestling team rolled through the Anacortes Duals Wednesday, Dec. 21.

After defeating Mount Vernon 34-25 in the opening round, the Wildcats received little resistance as they thumped Anacortes 69-6, the JV all-stars 77-0 and Sehome 63-15.

Seven Oak Harbor wrestlers won all four of their matches: Jahl-eel Vester (120 pounds), Cody Fak-kema (126), Mark Johnston (132), Joshua Crebbin (152), Collin Hig-ingbotham (170), Hunter Vail (220) and Jackson Constant (285).

Jeremy Vester (113), Nathanael Stanford (145), David Payne (160) and Jeremy Alonzo picked up three wins.

Ryuta Meany (138) and Josh Orritt (182) each earned two vic-tories.

Oak Harbor returns to Western Conference action Tuesday, Jan. 3, when Glacier Peak comes to town at 7 p.m.

After a sluggish performance in a 73-20 loss to visiting Friday Har-bor Tuesday, the Coupeville boys basketball team picked up its play in a 69-25 loss to visiting Bellevue Christian Wednesday.

Coupeville coach Anthony Smith said his team “was a little flat” in its loss to Friday Harbor, but played “probably its best game of the year” against the Vikings.

Friday Harbor (5-1) came out on fire and never cooled as it shot a

remarkable 72 percent (31-for-42) for the game.

The Wolverines hit six of their first seven shots and led 23-4 after one period, 47-9 after two and 64-15 after three.

Coupeville was as cold as Friday Harbor was hot. The Wolves sank only six of 33 attempts, 18 percent.

The Wolves helped feed the Wolverine fire early by committing 15 first-half turnovers. The Wolves had only eight miscues after the break.

Nick Streubel led Coupeville with six points. Carson Risner added five, Taylor Ebersole four, Gavin O’Keefe three and Drew Chan two.

A second-quarter scoring drought doomed Coupeville against Bellevue Christian.

The Vikings fought to an 18-8 first quarter lead, then put the game away in the second quarter by shutting out the Wolves and going up 35-8.

Coupeville’s offense picked up steam in the third quarter with 13 points, but the damage was done and BC led 54-21 heading into the fourth quarter.

The Wolves received strong games from Ebersole (eight points and six rebounds) and Streubel (eight points and three rebounds), according to coach Smith.

O’Keefe and Chan each tossed in three points a piece, and Risner had two and Aaron Curtin one.

Smith was pleased with his team’s performance against the 7-1 Vikings: “It was a good effort on our part -- we played hard and ex-ecuted better.”

The Wolves (0-3, 0-7) jump back into league action when they travel to rival South Whidbey (0-3, 3-5)

Tuesday, Jan. 3, at 7 p.m.

The Coupeville High School girls basketball team ran out of gas Tuesday, Dec. 20, and lost to visit-ing Friday Harbor 35-27.

Competing in its fourth game in five days, Coupeville hit a wall midway through the fourth quarter and was outscored 12-4 down the stretch as the Wolverines picked up the win and remained unde-feated in seven games.

Coupeville struggled to connect from the field and trailed the entire game. However, the Wolves were down only one, 20-19, heading into the final quarter.

Bessie Walstad and Katie Smith scored to counter a three-ball by Friday Harbor and the teams were tied at 23 with six minutes left.

Then the gas tank went dry as Coupeville committed three con-secutive turnovers that the Wol-verines turned into six points. CHS never recovered.

Walstad finished with 12 points, Smith five, Cassidi Rosenkrance four, Taya Boonstra four and Amanda Fabrizi two.

Coupeville (0-3, 1-6) plays at South Whidbey (3-0, 4-4) Tuesday, Jan. 3, at 5:15 p.m.

It was a case of too many turn-overs and not enough points as the Oak Harbor girls basketball team lost 66-24 at Meadowdale Tuesday and 48-31 to visiting Mountlake Terrace Thursday.

Three points in the first quarter and two in the fourth by the ‘Cats didn’t cut it and Meadowdale (2-3, 2-4) rolled to the win by getting at least 10 points in every quarter.

The Mavericks established domi-nance early by sprinting to a 16-3

first-quarter lead, then piled on 21 more points to go up 37-12 at half-time. They led 56-22 after three.

No Wildcat scored more than the four points put up by Kelsey Rankin and Tatiana Cumming. Jalani Bobo and Marissa Lewis each scored three; and Lia Pantoleon, Kaileen Burleson, Annie Leete, Do-minique Jackson and Natalie Fiallos each had two. Jackson collected seven rebounds.

Oak Harbor shot only 20 per-cent (9-for-45) from the field while the Mavericks hit at a 47 percent clip (26-for-55). The Wildcats were also hurt by turnovers, committing 31 to 16 for Meadowdale.

All but one Mountlake Terrace basket in the first half was a direct result of an Oak Harbor turnover (five led to breakaway lay-ins), and the Hawks led 11-9 and 31-14 after the first two quarters.

The Wildcats committed 24 first half mistakes and 39 for the game.

The difference in the game was the second quarter where Terrace (2-5, 2-6) outscored the Wildcats 20-5. Both teams scored 17 points in the second half.

Coach Trisha Clayville said, “We played three decent quarters with the players we had. These kids played hard.”

Oak Harbor was missing two starters, posts Ciera Wiser (vaca-tion) and Dominique Jackson (inju-ry), and top reserve Marissa Lewis (concussion).

Leete and Rankin scored 10 each, Rayan Russell added seven, and Morgan Young and Fiallos had two each.

Oak Harbor hosts its annual Santa Slam Tournament next week. The Wildcats (0-6, 1-7) play win-less Pullman (0-5) Thursday, Dec. 29, at 4 p.m., then face Idaho’s No. 1 team, Lewiston (6-1), Friday at noon. Bear Creek (4-3) rounds out the field.

PREP ROUNDUP

Kaida added another title to her long list of accom-plishments by winning at the AKC/Eukanuba National Championships in Orlando, Fla., Dec. 17.

Kaida, owned by John Schisel of Coupeville, won Best of Breed over 21 other grand champion Shibas.

Later in the day, Kaida competed in the non-sporting group and lost to a standard poodle who went on to win Best of Show.

The group competition will be televised in January on Animal Planet.

The North Whidbey Aquatic Club placed 15th in the 50-team Washington State Senior Championships in Federal Way Dec. 15 to 18.

Laura Rosen guided the NWAC effort with five team records and earned the club’s Swimmer of the Meet honor, scoring points in all six of her individual races and reaching the finals in three: 400 individual med-ley (4:26.39), 500 freestyle (5:05.54) and the 1,650 free (17:46.08).

Her 200 free and 400 IM times qualified her for NCSA Junior Nationals in Florida in March.

Rosen’s 400 IM and 200 butterfly times qualified her for USA Swimming’s Scholastic All-America con-sideration.

Rosen also swam on five senior-sectional qualifying relays with Emily Huffer, Ciara Hu and Lauren Vagt.

Cole Weinstein joined Rosen in finishing among the top eight and earned a spot on the podium.

Finishing in the top 16 and receiving team points were Hu, Huffer, Jacob Jepsen, Josh Jepsen, Rosen and Weinstein.

Registration for the 2012 North Whidbey Little League baseball and softball seasons are under way.

Forms are available at Big 5, McDonald’s, Wendy’s, Burger King and Dairy Queen. The forms can also be found on the NWLL website: eteamz.active.com/NWLLOH/ and mailed to the league address.

Registration days will also be held at the Navy Ex-change and North Whidbey Middle School in January and February.

For more information, call the league at 679-1522.

SPORTS IN BRIEFBy JIM WALLER

Sports editor

The Oak Harbor High School boys basketball team gathered a critical 52-46 win over visiting Meadowdale Tuesday and then fell 74-43 at first-place Mountlake Terrace Thursday.

Oak Harbor defeated Meadowdale by shooting 51.4 percent (19-for-37) while limiting the Mavericks to 30 percent (18-for-60).

The ‘Cats sat in a 2-3 zone and let Meadowdale (3-2, 4-5) live or die by the three-ball. The Mavericks died by hitting only seven of 30 (23.3 percent).

One of the keys to the win was the all-around play of Matt Burgoyne, who had 11 points, eight rebounds and two assists.

Mike Washington Jr. col-lected 19 points and brother Drew added 10 points. Both

hit several threes during crit-ical stretches of the game to thwart Meadowdale rallies.

Jamacio Webster chipped in with six points, Chris Hailer four and Dayne Herron two (and six rebounds).

Coach Mike Washington Sr. said, “I think the defense played a key in this game.”

He added, “Matt played an excellent game, Drew hit some big shots and JoJo (Webster) was solid.”

Oak Harbor held a slight lead throughout the night, leading 14-10, 24-22 and 38-35 at the quarters.

Undefeated and 10th-ranked Mountlake Terrace controlled the boards and the game.

The Hawks own a front line of 6-7, 6-7, 6-5, and the Wildcats, with no player tall-er than 6-3, couldn’t protect the glass.

Mountlake Terrace’s

dominance on the offen-sive boards allowed it to fire up 20 more shots than Oak Harbor and control the game from the outset.

The Hawks (7-0, 8-0) led 19-9, 39-20 and 58-28 at the quarter breaks.

In a phone interview after the game, coach Washington said he didn’t know how many offensive rebounds his club surrendered, but it was “too many.”

He said, “Our flaw was rebounding; we need to do a much better job on the boards. They beat us by 30, but they are not 30 points better than us.”

Mike Washington Jr. tallied 18 points for the Wildcats. Burgoyne had nine, Webster eight, Drew Washington six and Cameron Faulkner two.

Oak Harbor (3-3, 3-4) trav-els to the Bellevue Holiday Tournament Dec. 28 to 30.

‘Cats split league games

Matt Burgoyne shoots a jumper for Oak Harbor. The senior’s strong all-around game helped the ‘Cats top Meadowdale.


ISLAND LIVINGWhidbey

Christmas 2011 has arrived and I’m one happy mother. Our kids, their pets and friends are joining us and the busyness brings me utter happiness.

This year I set up a collection of nativ-ity scenes along the tops of my kitchen

cabinets and with all the time I’ve spent cooking I’ve looked up often, giving thought to the people of ancient Israel and what their lives must have been like. Forever, it seemed, they had been waiting for their Messiah. He had been promised in the scriptures and they desperately needed him, as the political scenery was nearly unbear-able for most people. The Roman government occupied their sacred city of Jerusalem, taxed them beyond reason and kept physical order using legions of Roman guards and soldiers.

While the general citizenry played by Roman rules, Jewish underground guerrillas, known as Zealots, frequently confronted the soldiers at night. This unrest, under the cloak of darkness, must have troubled Jewish mothers and fathers trying to create atmospheres of safety and peace in their homes. Over time the Messiah was viewed as a political player who would rise and deliver his people from the oppressors.

It is here that language plays a fascinating and important role in our understanding today. “God” in the Hebrew scriptures (today’s Old Testament in the Bible) is Yahweh. It means, “The Holy One of Israel” and is considered so holy and sacred that a practicing Jew would never have uttered God’s name out loud. The term, “holy” in Hebrew is “kakosh” and it means, “That which is far above (man and woman), distant and beyond our understanding.” The term “of Israel” means, “Right here in town.” In other words, “The dis-tant, holy one is here in town, with us, always.”

The language and imagery of the Christmas story is what touches me deeply, stirring my heart in a soulful way that is quiet and private, even while the energy and activity increases as each family member walks through the door to join the growing crowd. The Messiah, called “Emmanuel” later in the Bible, and translated “God with us” continues to stir the hearts of modern believers like me, asking us to look past the seasonal hubbub and respond with trust and wonder—not just in our words but in tangible ways as we live our daily lives.

God came to town two millennia ago. He came not only for the Jewish people but for all people, for all time. He came to demonstrate peace and hope and to give us life eternal. Tomorrow morn-ing I watch with pleasure as the kids open their gifts and enjoy our traditional Christmas morn-ing brunch foods. Tonight I will participate in a Christmas Eve service, giving voice to my need for a few moments of sacredness and holiness.

There are churches all over town offering such celebrations and you are welcome at them all. You won’t stand out, as there will be many visiting friends and family members. Joy and candlelight, music and warm greetings await.

Experiencethe joy tonightFAITHFUL LIVINGBy Joan Bay Klope

Ornament tradition brings women together

Robin Gohn hangs ornaments on her tree adorned with 25 years of handmade treasures.

By REBECCA OLSONStaff reporter

Of all the surprising materials in the hundreds of unique orna-ments on Robin Gohn’s Christmas tree, one is common among them all. From a duck made of cotton balls to a noodle angel to a decon-structed pinecone flower, every ornament is made of memories.

For the past 25 years, the Christmas tree has been collect-ing the handiwork of approxi-mately 20 women per year. Gohn, the head cheer coach at Oak Harbor High School, has been holding the annual get-together at her home for 23 of those years. Her neighbor started the tradition and Gohn took over when the neighbor moved away.

Each woman is asked to make 20 ornaments using any materials she can imagine. Then they come to Gohn’s house for an evening of fun, food and fellowship -- no kids or calorie-counting allowed. Some drive in from as far as Bonney Lake and Stanwood.

For two hours, 20 women get together and put all the stress of the holidays, family and life’s chal-lenges behind them.

“It’s more about fellowship and touching base. Some of these peo-ple I see once a year,” Gohn said. “Some of the ladies I don’t know at all but they come with a friend and we get to know them.”

“We’re all different. She might

be religious, she might work at the school. But we all have something in common,” Gohn said. The six degrees of separa-tion theory is true at the parties as women recognize each other from years ago or as employees at schools or stores.

While it may not be the same group of women throughout the years as some move away or have life-changing moments, “One thing is consistent -- after we all get through the frustration of picking just the right ornament, finding all the supplies and finish-ing them up before the gathering, we have a great time just being together once again,” Gohn said.

At the party, the women con-ceal the handiwork they sweated, stressed and burned fingers over until the moment when each woman stands to talk about her ornaments to a chorus of “oohs.”

“It’s amazing, the imagination, especially after all the years,” Gohn said. She held up the poly-mer clay Noah she made this year and pointed out ornaments as simple as two emery boards forming skis to the more compli-cated hand-sewn snow buddy and crocheted angel.

Gohn has been making poly-mer clay ornaments for 11 years. She keeps her creations, like Buddy the Elf, Santa Claus and Snow Mom, out year round to remember the good times.

Just because these women

enjoy creative work doesn’t make this an easy task.

“We all cuss and fuss and burn ourselves,” Gohn said, laughing.

It was a moment of celebra-tion for Gohn as she finished her ornaments at 10:30 p.m. the night before the party -- but not with-out a burn from baking her clay creations. Some women get right to work in January as a way to reflect on the holidays but Gohn generally starts working on hers in October, which is no simple task as she had to roll hundreds of balls of clay to make 20 versions of Noah’s feet, heads and eyes, plus she resized her pattern after her first attempts were too small.

Gohn laughed as she recalled one lady who finished sewing her snow buddy ornaments during a past party. She was literally sew-ing them and throwing them at the ladies -- “here!” Gohn said.

“But they always pull through with fabulous, amazing, how-did-you-do-that sort of things,” Gohn said, pointing out a baby Jesus ornament made from a dowel and thread spool, and champagne in a bucket of ice made from a flower pot, beads and a push pin.

“We got such a variety this year. I was so excited when the ladies came in because you’d think after 25 years, what could you think of?” Gohn said.

This year especially the women have been using recycled materi-als and items from nature, like

acorns, pine cones and paper from old books.

“They’re really stepping outside their creativity zone and going for it,” Gohn said.

Whenever the women look at the tree, the memories of their hard work come flooding back.

“They’ll stand here and say, ‘I remember.’ ‘Oh, I was preg-nant when I did this,’ and ‘Oh, I remember when I had to throw this away,’” Gohn said, adding that it’s all about the memories.

“There’s so much Whidbey his-tory in those ornaments,” Gohn said.

Along with the time and creativ-ity, there’s a story in every orna-ment and a piece of the time the women spent together.

“It’s an inspirational tree,” Gohn said, adding that the women who attend have been through divorc-es, cancer and life changes. But when they get together for that one night out of the year, Gohn calls it a “safe zone,” where the women can let go of whatever’s happening on the outside world and just have a good time.

“It’s always very humbling and nice that they take the time out of their busy holiday schedules,” Gohn said, adding that her favor-ite part is the fact that the ladies will still do this after 25 years.

“Christmas comes and goes but I have this always,” Gohn said.

HOLIDAY CHANGES GARBAGE DAY

Oak Harbor city offices will be closed Dec. 26 for the Christmas holiday. Gar-bage and recyclables usually collected on Dec. 26 will instead be collected on Dec. 27. There is no change in regular Tuesday service.

CELEBRATE WITH MUSIC

Learn about holiday tradi-tions around the world in a musical celebration of the season with Nancy Stewart. Head to the Oak Harbor Li-brary Dec. 28 at 11 a.m. for “A Season for Singing.” The library is located at 1000 SE Regatta Dr. Call 675-5115.

TEENS CELEBRATE NEW YEAR’S

Celebrate the end of the year at the Oak Harbor Library Dec. 28 at 2 p.m. Teens enjoy gaming, crafts and food for free. The li-brary is located at 1000 SE Regatta Dr. Call 675-5115.

MAKE A LEGO MOVIE

Celebrate winter break with Lukas Allenbaugh in “Winter Extravaganza: Lego Animation Workshop” at the Oak Harbor Library. Use stop-motion animation with Lego materials to cre-ate your own movie. Space

is limited so register in ad-vance at www.sno-isle.org. Call 675-5115.

TREES CHIPPED FOR HUMANITY

Habitat for Humanity of Island County and Pioneer Tree and Landscape Inc. are partnering to offer the community an option for disposing of Christmas trees. On Dec. 30, 9 a.m. to noon, Pioneer Tree and Landscaping will be at the chamber lot, next to North Whidbey Middle School, accepting Christmas trees for chipping. Trees must be free of lights, ornaments and tinsel, as these items will break the chipper. No flock trees will be accepted. A minimum donation of $10 is suggested.

All proceeds will benefit Habitat for Humanity of Is-land County.

ELKS ROCK OUT ON NEW YEAR’S EVEThe Oak Harbor Elks

Lodge will host the Don Richards Band on New Year’s Eve. They will be playing classic rock, along with other music The Dec. 31 event will start at 8:30 p.m. and continue to 1 a.m. Heavy hors’ doeurves will be served followed by breakfast around 12:30 a.m. Party favors will be supplied.This is a membership drive and will be open to the public.

Tickets must be pur-chased in advance for $30.

Call 675-7111 or 675-1321 for information or advance tickets.

FIRST DAY HIKE AT DECEPTION PASSA “First Day Hike” will

be held New Year’s Day at Deception Pass State Park. The mile-and-a-half hike at Deception Pass will begin at 11 a.m. at the Bowman Bay parking area. The trail is moderate and children must be at least 5 to participate. Hot chocolate will be pro-vided after the hike. Visit www.parks.wa.gov/events.

POLAR BEARS AT DOUBLE BLUFF

The South Whidbey Polar Bear Dive will return to

Double Bluff beach near Freeland on New Year’s Day. Registration begins at 10:30 a.m. and the jump will be held at noon. The cost is $15 per person with $5 off for people who bring a bag of food for the food bank.

HOW TO LIVE WITH YOUR LOSS

“Living with Loss” be-reavement classes are being offered in January, February and March at Whidbey Gen-eral Hospital, with the first starting Jan. 3 in Conference Room B. To register call 678-7656, ext. 8245.

LIONS SCREEN KIDS FOR VISION, HEARINGThe Oak Harbor Lions

Club will sponsor a vision and hearing health screening for 2,600 school age chil-dren living within the Oak Harbor School District next month. On Jan. 3, 4 and 5, grades kindergarten through third and fifth will receive a vision and hearing screen-ing with results forwarded to parents. For information contact Lion Sharon Ryan, 279-2802.

PLAYHOUSE HOLDS AUDITIONS

Audition for Whidbey Playhouse’s “Wish Upon a Star.” Auditions will be Jan. 5, 6:30 p.m. for adult vocal soloists; Friday, Jan. 6, 6:30 p.m. for adult chorus and small ensembles; and Satur-day, Jan. 7, 1 p.m. for child vocal soloists and children’s chorus. Call 679-2237.

Page A11

Legos used to make a movie: The Oak Harbor Library presents a Lego animation workshop Thursday, Dec. 29 at the Oak Harbor Library. Use stop-motion animation with Legos to create a movie. Space is limited and see Activities page for more information. ACTIVITIES

Whidbey

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The Whidbey Island Conservation District election is Jan. 31, but prospec-tive candidates for the one elective posi-tion have only until Jan. 3 to decide whether to file.

An election for one of the district’s board of supervisors positions will be held Tuesday, Jan. 31, at the WICD office at 1 NE Fourth St. in Coupeville.

The board has appointed Sarah Cassatt to be the election supervisor. Polls will be open from 2 to 6 p.m. Registered voters residing on Whidbey Island are eligible to vote. Mail-in bal-

lots are available upon request; requests must be made by 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 25, by email to [email protected] or by calling 678-4708. Ballots must be returned to WICD by 6 p.m. Jan. 31.

The board of supervisors consists of five members, each serving a three-year term. District supervisors are public officials who serve without compensa-tion and set policy and direction for the conservation district.

Two positions are open in 2012: An elected position, currently held by Antonia Palkovic; and an appointed posi-

tion, currently held by Fran Einterz. Candidates must be registered voters residing on Whidbey Island, and may be required to own land or operate a farm. Elections and appointment procedures are available at the district office and at www.scc.wa.gov/. Interested individuals may contact WICD at 678-4708 or visit their website at www.whidbeycd.org for information on how to file as a candidate. Filing deadlines are 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 3 for the elected position and March 31 for the appointed position.

Conservation district gears up for election

Jaida Mcglothlin, 4, at left, finds the courage to hug the Grinch, played by James Croft, at the Christmas Village at Home Depot. Approximately 800 children have enjoyed the village since it opened Dec. 9, according to organizer Deb Alberts. At right, Baer Theisen, 4 months, prefers to meet with Santa Claus to show off his matching suit. Santa is played by Jim Croft. The village, which ended its run Friday, also featured 4-H animals and hot cocoa.

DEC. 26MON.

DEC. 28WED.

DEC. 29THURS.

DEC. 30FRI.

DEC. 31SAT. JAN. 1

SUN.

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Saturday, December 24, 2011, Whidbey Classified, PAGE 15


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Whidbey News-Times, December 24, 2011

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