Monthly Archives: October 2011

Olympia World Affairs Council Presentation on Slovakia, November 3

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Slovakia, 2011
Slovakia’s Transition from Socialism to Democracy: Effects on Daily Life, Family and Culture Thursday, November 3, 12:00 – 1:00 pm, in the Community Room of the Olympian, 111 East Bethel Street
Much as Americans can remember where they were and what they were doing on September 9, 2001, Slovaks and other Eastern Europeans remember how their lives were about to change in the late summer and fall of 1989, when growing protests in East Germany led to the removal of prohibitions on travel to the West, the physical removal of the Berlin Wall and the ensuring collapse of the Soviet Empire in Eastern Europe. For Czechoslovaks, the decisive period was from November 17 to December 29, 1989: in just 33 days over 40 years of Communist Party rule can to an abrupt, peaceful end in what Slovaks called their “Gentle Revolution.”
One tends to think of these events in largely political terms of shifting lines and coloration on maps, the fate of empires and within the context of the East-West struggle of competing economic and political systems. But what was this cataclysmic change like for the people? What did it mean for individual lives and the effort to raise and support a family? What were the consequences for daily life, the effects on culture?
The Olympia World Affairs Council is proud to sponsor Dr. Marta Botikova, a visiting Fulbright Scholar at the Evergreen State College, to address this subject. Dr. Botikova is a full professor of Ethnology and Chairperson of the Department of Ethnology at Comenius University in Bratislava, Slovak Republic, where she studied and has taught since 1978. She is a member of a half dozen professional associations, is widely published and has taught in short programs at universities throughout Western and Eastern Europe. One of her most recent publications treats Culture and Way of Life through the Eyes of Women in Slovakia.

Steamboat Island Cooperative Preschool Openings for Children Ages 2 through 4

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The Steamboat Island Cooperative Preschool has openings in both the Otter Class, for ages 2-3, and the Orca Class, ages 3-4. This is an excellent program at a preschool with a long history in the Griffin area.

SICP is a small non-profit preschool located near the corner of Steamboat Island Rd. and 41st, in a calm wooded setting. Families gain a strong community connection and benefit from the preschool’s parent education opportunities. Children gain social skills while learning through play.

For more information, call 866-1819 or see their web site at http://www.steamboatpreschool.org/
 

Sheriff’s Department Releases Community Alert

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Local residents recently noted an increase in the numbers of daylight burglaries being reported in our area. A burglary on Oyster Bay Road precipitated a brief email exchange, during which one neighbor wrote that someone had seen “a bearded man walking the road about that time of day of the burglary. Perhaps this perp is walking or bicycling into these breakins and that is why none of us see or hear anything suspicious.” Indeed, a quick review of the Thurston County Sheriff’s Department crime mapping system seems to indicate that was an increase, in September, in the number of reported burglaries in our area.

Now we have received the Community Alert below. Although the alert is specific to the Delphi area, and not ours, it is possible the same thieves are in our area. In any case, it does seem as though there’s been an increase in burglaries – particularly burglaries during the day time – and it makes sense for forlks who are at home weekdays to keep an eye on the homes of those neighbors who are not.

COMMUNITY ALERT 

Date: October 13, 2011 

Neighborhood/Area: Delphi area 

Nature of alert: Increase in burglary activity 

Details: Since mid September 2011, there were five burglaries between the 7400 block and 10,500 of Delphi Road SW. Additionally, crime mapping appeared to be showing an increasing trend in burglaries and thefts in the NW portion of the county. 

Two vehicles in the area of these burglaries were noted in one or more of the reports. They included a 1990’s greenish / bluish 2 door and a white Ford Ranger or F-150 type pick up– possibly with a rack and or canopy. Additionally, a resident on Delphi Road reported seeing a white 1996 GMC PU in the area during the dates / times of the burglaries. This truck also had tool type racks on it. 

While none of these vehicles can be tied directly to the increased activity in the area, residents should be aware of them if they see them in areas where they don’t belong. Residents are encouraged to contact the dispatch center at (360) 704-2740 to report suspicious persons / vehicles. Anyone with information related to the burglaries are asked to contact the TCSO Investigative Services Division at (360) 786-5530.

Burglaries Reported in September and
October (to-date)

“Fair Trade Around the World” a Presentation by Olympia World Affairs Council

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THURSDAY, October 20, Olympia Center, 7:30 PM, Room 101
TOPIC: Fair Trade Around the World
SPEAKERS: Matt Warning, “African Farmers: Primary Products and Sustainable Livelihoods”
Cherie Fontenot, “How sweet it is! Fair Trade and Theo Chocolate”
Fair Trade implies the practice of using only pure ingredients that are grown sustainably, partnering with growers to ensure they earn a living wage and having access to education for their families, honoring and respecting employees and suppliers, and using green energy power sources whenever possible. The following chart depicts the contrast between a conventional supply chain and a fair trade supply chain:

Matt Warning is a professor of economics at the University of Puget Sound. He has spent 25 years studying rural communities in Africa and Latin America. An authority on the economics of fair trade coffee, he has often been interviewed for articles in a variety of publications. He served as consulting producer for the PBS documentary “Buyer Be Fair” concerning fair trade coffee and certified wood. Professor Warning, who holds a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley,will speak about the conflicts in the African Great Lakes region, fair trade and its limitations, and quality as a necessary focus for sustainability.
Cherie Fontenot has worked for Theo Chocolate in Seattle for a number of years focusing on outreach work to bring the Theo message of Fair Trade to the public. Theo is the first and currently the only organic Fair Trade certified roaster of cacao in the United States, sourcing cacao from small farmers in the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Panama, Ghana, Madagascar, Venezuela and the Ivory Coast. Ms. Fontenot will relate how Theo’s small team is guided by a passion forchocolate, care for the environment, and dedication to enriching the lives of everyone involved, including cacao farmers and chocolate lovers.
As an added incentive to attend, chocolate samples will be provided.

Redistricting Could Place Griffin Area Among a Different Group of Voters

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“The U.S. Constitution requires that all states evaluate electoral district boundaries every ten years following the U.S. Census. In 1983, Washington voters established the Washington State Redistricting Commission to ensure district boundaries are redrawn through a fair and bipartisan process. The Redistricting Commission includes two Democrats and two Republicans as voting members and a non-voting, nonpartisan chair.

The commissioners’ draft redistricting proposals are now posted online. Also online are links you may use to comment on these proposals. Public input to the drafts will wrap up with a meeting in Olympia on October 11. The meeting will be webcast on TVW and broadcast on TV. Public comments will be taken during the meeting by phoning in or joining the interactive webcast.

After the meeting on October 11, the Redistricting Commissioners will meet as often as needed to hammer out a final plan for congressional and legislative districts. Their meetings will be open to the public and announced at least 24 hours in advance. The Commissioners have set a goal of November 1st to agree on a final plan, providing time to correct minor errors before the Constitutional deadline for submitting the plans to the Legislature on January 1, 2012.

Presently, Griffin area voters find themselves not quite in Thurston County, as ours is the small sliver of this county within the 35th Legislative District, and not in Olympia. At least, that is, when it comes to voting. The 35th LD encompasses all of Mason County and portions of Grays Harbor and Kitsap counties. As part of the 3rd Congressional District, we vote with a largely rural region south to Vancouver and west to the Pacific Ocean, at Long Beach. While many of us work in Olympia and travel frequently to Olympia to shop and to visit with friends, we are not in the same Legislative or Congressional district as Olympia.

Four redistricting plans are now subject to public review and comment. Where does the Griffin area fall, in each of these?

Click here to view each of the four redistricting plans. Click here to install Google Earth on your PC or Mac, to take advantage of the links to Google Earth layers.

Legislative District Proposals Split Down the Middle

Proposals from Slade Gorton and Tom Huff would move the Steamboat Island peninsula into the same Legislative district (District 22) in which Olympia and portions of north Thurston County are located.

However, Slade Gorton’s proposal would put the portion of the Griffin area north of US 101 in Olympia’s legislative district, but parcels to the south of US 101 in Mason County’s legislative district (District 35). Huff’s proposal, too, would put Summit Lake in one LD and the rest of the Griffin area in another LD.

The proposals of Tim Ceis and Dean Foster would keep the Griffin area in the same legislative district as Mason County (District 35).

Congressional District Proposals Vary Widely as to Boundaries

All four proposals would place the Griffin area in the same congressional district as the city of Olympia. However, the proposals vary widely as to the boundaries and size of that district.

Gorton’s proposal is for a modestly-sized congressional district (District 9) covering all of Thurston County and then extending north into Pierce County, just east of Tacoma and west of Puyallup.

Ceis would create a congressional district (District 10) extending from Shelton across north Thurston County and then into Pierce County, but extending not as far north into Pierce County as Gorton’s proposal.

Foster’s proposal would create a single vast congressional district (District 10) covering the entire Olympic Peninsula and south to the Oregon border, including Pacific County (but not Wahkiakum). This district would extend across north Thurston County and to a point north of South Hill. It is notable, whowever, that Foster’s proposal places Shelton – actually, the eastern half of Mason County – in a different district than District 10.

Huff’s proposal is for a large congressional district (District 6) that covers the entire Olympic Peninsula, to the southern boundary of Grays Harbor County. Then east to Interstate 5, including Olympia but ending at the Nisqually River. This district would include Bainbridge Island.

Miles to Go Before Completion

Although the public comment period ends soon – October 11 – there is much work left to complete redistricting. A decade ago, there were big differences between the districts proposed and those which were eventually set.

On October 20, Thurston County will host a public meeting on the redistricting proposals. Click here for information about that event, which takes place in the Tenino High School.

Click here to review the proposals and to make comments to each of the four voting members on the Redistricting Commission.
 
 

Emergency Preparedness Expo – October 29

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Emergency Preparedness Expo
Saturday, October 29, 2011
10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Saint Martin’s University
Marcus Pavilion & Worthington Conference Center
5300 Pacific Ave. SE, Lacey

Wheelchair Accessible • ASL Interpreter Available

Vendors, Information & Displays:

  • American Red Cross – Emergency Preparedness Information & Supplies
  • CERT – Community Emergency Response Team
  • Crisis Clinic Resource Network (Thurston/Mason Counties)
  • Department of Ecology Flood Program
  • Hearing, Speech & Deafness Center
  • Home Depot
  • J & I Power Equipment
  • KGY Radio
  • Lacey Fire District #3
  • LDS Church – Food Storage/Prep Cooking with Emergency Provisions
  • National Weather Service
  • Office of the Insurance Commissioner
  • Olympia Fire Department Tiller Truck and Jaws of Life
  • Puget Sound Energy – Electrical Safety
  • Quake Ready
  • Rescue Tape NW
  • ServiceMaster of Greater Tacoma
  • Shelf Reliance
  • South Sound 2-1-1
  • Thurston County ARES/RACES
  • Thurston County Emergency Management Council – Local Preparedness & Hazards
  • Thurston County Environmental Health – Water Purification & Storage
  • Thurston County Public Health & Social Services – Medical Reserve Corps
  • Thurston County Search & Rescue Council
  • Thurston County Sheriff’s Office – Child Identification, Iris Scanning
  • Thurston County Sheriff’s Office – Dive Team
  • Tumwater Fire Department – Fire Extinguisher Training
  • Washington State Animal Response Team (WASART)
  • West Thurston Regional Fire Authority
  • WSU Germ City
  • Fun, Family-friendly Exhibits

For More Information Contact:  Vivian Eason, Thurston County Emergency Management at 360-786-5243 or email easonv@co.thurston.wa.us