(Katie Wade, 17 years old, moved to Wallingford in 2003. She's embarking on an adventure, and wanted to let her neighbors know as well as ask their support.) My whole life, I have been taught by my family that my life should my own. It should be whatever I make of it, and I shouldn’t be afraid to shape it the way I want. When I was 15 years old, I made a decision that very much changed my life. I…
Wallingford is fortunate to have some excellent public elementary schools, although they are unfortunately fractured in their attendance areas. Just last year the decision was made to make both John Stanford and McDonald school "option schools", meaning nobody in Wallingford is guaranteed entrance. There's a complicated lottery system that assigns a certain number of slots to students in the walk zone and then to other buckets as well, so nobody is guaranteed a slot. The primary reason Sherry Carr (our school board…
Open Enrollment for choosing a school in Seattle Public Schools closes on March 6th, and school tours wrapped up last week. My family is choosing a middle school for our daughter. We toured Hamilton, where my son went, Hazel Wolf K-8 (formely Jane Addams), Licton Springs K-8 (formerly Pinehurst), and Lake Washington Girls' Middle School (private). Lake Washington Girls' Middle School had the best presentation- they had all the girls in the school either give tours or get up during the…
Back in January, I announced that after 6 years, I would be taking a break from Wallyhood. My family and I will be leaving on Monday, March 9th to spend several months living in Europe, and, while the Internet can make distances dwindle, I don't think it would serve the community well for me to carry on remotely (not to mention the effect on my mental reset). Fortunately, Eric Fisk, past President of the Wallingford Community Council and long-time Wallingford resident, has…
(Back in January, David Perk announced a Legislative Climate Action Forum. He recently sent in this report of what happened, written up by Arvia Morris) The Legislative Climate Action Forum on Saturday January 31st was engaging and well attended at Keystone Church. Approximately 100 voters learned the details of Governor Inslee’s Carbon Pollution Accountability Act (HB1314, SB5283), the Oil Safety Bill (HB1449, SB5087) and the low carbon fuel standard (executive order). Elected officials present included Speaker of the House Frank Chopp,…
Hey, remember how Ed Phippen said BikeWorks was collecting bikes for their program that teaches primarily disadvantaged kids through bike repair. Sounds like they did alright: Hey! We collected over 50 bikes and bike frames. Plus 6 boxes of parts and accessories. Thanks SO MUCH for your help! Ed (and my dog Loki)
Carly writes: Hi Neighbors. My name is Carly. I'm nearly 11 years old and have been taking playing piano for about 5 years. I have a great teacher at UW and have progressed to level Medium Difficulty 3 (MD 3). I love playing piano because it feels good and learning the language of music will last a lifetime. I'm comfortable teaching kids 6-9 years old who wants to learn from someone who gets that you are a kid, too. I'm new…