98118 Issue

A forum

Special

Edition

of stud ent exp ression

ARROW Renton High School 400 South 2nd Street Renton, Wash. 98057

THE MOST DIVERSE ZIP CODE IN THE NATION I S R I G H T U P T H E S T R E E T CAP-SIZED PRIDE: When ARROW explored the most diverse zip code in the nation, they noticed a disturbing lack of regional swag. Sure, they found two-oh-six gear representing the Seattle area code, but still, 98118 warranted its own fitted, signature apparel. ARROW comissioned Lids to custom make this hat for the 98118 community for a price of $29.55, including tax.

UNDER THE BRIM: Reporters visit three congregations, including a journey for Catholic Vanessa Abenojar and Buddhist Tony Nguyen into a temple (page 10). Three staff members sit in a metro for three hours while one scours the streets after the sun comes down. A park, a library, the Seattle mayor, a teacher, an elderly couple and more, all featured in this issue.

FITTED: This publication is made for the people of 98118, and ARROW hopes the next eleven pages will do justice in representing the nuance and new age of the area. As local artist Blue Scholars rap in their hit “North by Northwest”: “Nine eight double-one eight / the alphabetically 2nd-to-last state, never finished in last place / Like the Mariners for 3 years straight.”

compass

FROM OUR EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, QUEENELLE GAZMEN: I’m the type of person who doesn’t believe things until I see it.

According to the 2010 Census, 98118 is the most diverse zip code. I once lived here and didn’t think much of it, but now I wonder: Is this proclaimed area from the Mount Baker neighborhood to the Rainier Beach shores populated with so many different races, ethnicities, religions, languages, cuisines and sexual orientations? What does it mean to live in an area this diverse, and what is diversity anyway?

I decided to find out.

First I looked up statistics. The area is 26.92 percent White, 25.97 percent African-American, 7.21 percent Hispanic, 34.14 percent Asian, and 2.59 percent Native American (American Indian, Alaska Native, Hawaiian Native, etc.). The rest is made up of “other” races.

Let’s look at the area as if it were a classroom full of 25 students. Six of the students are Caucasian, six are African-American, two are Hispanic, nine are Asian, one is Native-American, and one student represents “other.”

It looks kind of like an RHS gym class.

I rode a public city bus to the University of Washington in order to help my father find a job.

I’m sure I heard four different languages from the surrounding couples and families in front and sitting to the side of me.

SPEAKING IS BELIEVING On Aug. 2, 2010, King 5 News, a local NBC affiliate, ran a story about 98118 and hooked the clip with this statistic: “Around 59 languages are spoken in this area.” That’s what they found in the Census report. Who knows how many other languages could be spoken in the area?

RAINIER AVENUE In the comfort of their own homes, families I call my dad when he gets off work, and we take speak a variety of dialects not easily recorded or a short road trip through the area. reported. According to City-Data, an online profiling Coasting down Rainier system, about 43 percent of 98118 Avenue towards downtown residents do not speak English at Seattle, looking outside the home. Compare this 48 percent to a car window. My eyes adjust to national average of 20 percent and the blur of light and objects in there’s a good chance two families Southeast Seattle. next door to each other in 98118 A quad of bicyclists in may not be able to communicate or orange neon jump suits zooms communicate well. by, their ears cherry red and the Maybe, I thought as I stared wind whipping their hair. One of their faces drips at the brunette news anchor on the screen in front sweat and another is distorted from the wind. of me, people in the area find solace and harmony A group of teenagers walks towards the route in hearing the different sounds and in the beauty of 140 bus stop. Holding tight onto their backpacks and language in general.

North Face jackets, they laugh, mouths open wide.

My dad turns left on S. Henderson St. OTHELLO AND BEACON The three-year old Central Link light rail on My dad takes a left turn on Othello Street.

Martin Luther King Way stops the rush hour traffic. A family of six loads paper bags of cereals and The passengers lean their beanie and hood-covered vegetables into their maroon minivan outside of the heads on the rail’s foggy windows.

Safeway on Martin Luther King Way. The youngest We pass by Chicago Place. sucks on a rainbow lollipop and totters his way to the van door, too busy enjoying the candy to help put LIVING IS BELIEVING groceries away.

When I was in 6th grade, I lived on Chicago A man in a crème, casual business suit folds up Place, a one-story rental house wedged between two his paycheck into his back pocket outside Bank of three floor apartment complexes.

America right next to it.

It was there I ate phò or Vietnamese noodle The road turns into a hill and there’s a shallow soup for the first time. After three hours playing valley on my right side. Though it’s sprinkling out, Runescape, it was dark outside and my parents didn’t seventeen kids play soccer at Van Asselt Playground. have time to cook. My parents took me to PhòVan Their bundled up mothers sit criss-cross on checkered across from the Rainier Beach Library for dinner, picnic blankets, their eyes darting back and forth as the closest establishment to our house. Maybe I they follow the game. A few mothers rub the heads shouldn’t have put that much sriracha sauce in it; my of sons who just scored goals. face reddened after four bites and I glugged down my At almost every sixth house on Beacon Avenue, glass of water right after. there is a melting snowman, each a faceless refugee Once, walking home from my uncle’s house with from the storm the week before. Children pass the my grandmother, I saw truly beautiful graffiti on a melting figures as their high-pitched voices penetrate ramshackle concrete highway divider. I stood there the air. with my head resting at an angle on my shoulder so I One girl sports a white button-up, red cardigan, could figure out what the black, blue, and purple text and plaid skirt. The style reminds me of a uniform I read. It looked like advanced cursive. used to wear five days a week.

43 percent do not speak English at home.

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234 arrow UNIFORMED FRIENDSHIPS I attended St. Edward’s, one of the few Catholic public schools in Rainier Beach. On both sides of the school, two story houses descended a slope, looking like a broken escalator. The school’s student population never reached 150.

Sixth to 8th grade students play kickball, avoiding elementary kids running in multiple directions. The penalty for hitting one of these kids in the face was an automatic detention.

I wore a blue and white uniform. Going to school with a small population was not intimidating because making friends was relatively easy in a such a small school.

COLUMBIA CITY We continue down Beacon Avenue.

The sidewalks are dusty, chipped, and blotted with gray and purple. Sneakers and Crocs pick up the dust. A Jamaican flag waves outside a house in Columbia City, blocking the house number but waving in the direction of the storm clouds overhead.

Eateries represent so many countries: Sub Shop 7 for casual American, Tutta Bella Neapolitan Pizza for Italian, and Wabi-Sabi for an oriental taste. The shops crowd close and distinct smells intermingle; a hair salon smells like noodles and avocado bubble tea. Above these restaurants, some entrepreneurs reside in studio apartments above their places of work.

The website represent98118.org has more information about the organization’s future plans.

ORCAS, KING AND ALASKA My father turns right on South Orcas Street, left on Martin Luther King Way and right on South Alaska Street. We stop outside my cousin’s friend’s house. It was getting dark and the roaring of V8 engines and the pitter-patter of rain died down.

A few doors away, someone blasts Bachata music from car speakers. According to my friend who lives in the area, the music is never a reason to complain about neighbors. To him, it’s actually nice to have different “cultural playlists turned up.”

A PROTECTIVE ELDERLY MAN Fort-five minutes into the interview, Rawles described several stories that came from the project.

“There were two African-American lesbians who lived next door to an elderly white survivalist by Aki Kurose [Middle School],” Rawles said. “He kept an arsenal in his basement. He informed them that he did not like gay people.”

After living by the couple for a while, the man had a change of heart.

“He went up to them later and said he would use the weapons he was storing to protect them. It shows that this man lived in a very old, tribal way of thinking, where he saw himself in a straight, white, male tribe and had to protect it. But when he’s confronted in the flesh, he ends up reacting in this unexpected way.”

A potential culture clash became a neighborhood connection.

A Jamaican flag waves in the direction of storm clouds.

NINE TO FIVE Around 95.5 percent of residents have a job inside King County. Many work in the manufacturing industry running machines and equipment for Boeing or supplying building materials like wood ceilings and vinyl tiles to the Armstrong World Industries Inc. About 17 percent take the Metro to work. That’s the same percentage as the bus ridership in St. Paul, Minn.

Despite all my research, I needed to find out more. I contacted Nancy Rawles, founder of a project with the zip code in the name: Represent! 98118.

SEEING IS BELIEVING Rawles hopes that this zip code won’t be the only place praised for its multicultural, multilingual, multireligious differences.

“More and more places are looking like 98118.

The American idea of duality where I was taught black and white, rich and poor, gay and straight, is not real. In order to understand the world, you have to think with greater complexity than that. Be able to honor traditional cultures and be open to the creation of nontraditional experiences.”

Represent! 98118 isn’t just a project to Rawles; it’s REPRESENT! 98118 a lesson.

“Think of it as a documentary,” Rawles said.

“For some people, globalization equals disaster,” Rawles is a black and white woman who almost Rawles said. “This goes back to European exploration, left Washington because of how uncomfortable it was. the Atlantic slave trade and the start of corporations.

Her family is from Louisiana. She has lived in Los To me, globalization is some form of conquest, but it Angeles and Chicago; she now has to mean something else.” lives in Genessee between Rainier She hopes people take and Lake Washington. initiative.

“If it wasn’t for this area, “With the diversity of 98118 I couldn’t imagine staying in and the project itself, I see people differently. I notice the beauty of Seattle,” Rawles said, “but it’s humans. This area is a vast area of knowledge and this area that inspired this project.” possibilities that is interesting. People just need the Represent! 98118 is a community-funded project willingness to venture out.” that records what the Southeast Seattle region looks and sounds like and explores places where cultures JUST ANOTHER NEIGHBORHOOD clash and meet.

At night, sitting on top a rooftop in Columbia Rawles started the organization with neighbors City of my cousin’s friend’s house, I see the peaks of and friends last Oct. Some of the organization’s the towers in downtown Seattle and on the other side money comes from a grant from the City of Seattle the regal waters of Lake Washington.

Department of Neighborhoods but a majority of it As the Bachata music dies down, house lights comes from spontaneous donations from a variety of turn off and streetlights turn on. I wonder if I would community members. get tired of this view if my family still lived here.

Recent projects include a “Day in the Life” series, My parents bought a house in Renton four “Faces” (a collection of portraits of people who live months after I moved to 98118. Moving didn’t give in the area), and a film of the Columbia City Farmers’ me a different feel. I often get the feeling of 98118 Market produced by six high school students. The film walking through the commons at school, and I’m glad is almost ready for the Columbia City Gallery exhibit to feel so at home. in May. Surrounded by so many different people where no “This exhibit will be our first huge release and real majority exists, I never had the urge to “fit in.” I we’ll see where it goes from there,” Rawles said. just did. I still do.

“I notice the beauty of humans.”

Alex Kalanin art

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When Words Don’t Match |Abigail Cetino and Phyllis Noester |Residents Editors

Science teacher Melissa Barga moved to Columbia City after her first year of teaching in Renton three years ago. Whenever someone new moved into the neighborhood she would try to talk to them to create a sense of community.

“I’d say ‘hi,’ and they’d kind of smile and nod. The biggest issue is the language barrier,” Barga said.

It prevents her from getting close to other cultures and forming connections. She doesn’t always know the best way to interact with her

neighbors, but because of her experiences at RHS, she’s grown comfortable with people of different cultures.

“There’s a large traditional Jewish community,” Barga said. “They wear yamika’s and have beards. Some even have the long curls and hair. I see some women wearing the traditional head gear along with the long robes. There are also some gentlemen who wear traditional head gear on Fridays.”

Barga is surprised that people of her neighborhood do not always want to know each other.

“You wouldn’t see someone from Somalia hang out with like a Jewish person,” Barga said. “The people aren’t comfortable with each other yet.”

During the spring and summer time Barga enjoys sitting on her balcony observing people chat and interact by the sports bar in front of her apartment.

“A lot of guys would get into heated arguments about the game,” Barga said.

“Whenever there’s a game the speakers

outside would blast it. I remember seeing people gather outside and listen.”

Along with the difference in people there’s also a difference in the buildings.

“There’s a good mix of commercial and residential: restaurants, dog parks, stores, and things like that. It’s a very walkable place,” Barga said.

She loves Empire, a coffee shop that opened around the time she moved there.

“Everyone knows your name,” Barga said. “You make friends with people through business.”

That variety can be seen in what people do for work too.

“You might see someone working at Boeing, but then there’s people pan handling and advocating for change.”

Barga enjoys witnessing and being a part of the developing connection between cultures in Columbia City.

Abigail Cetino photo

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ONE QUESTION FOR THE SEATTLE MAYOR

Katie Reynolds photo

Mayor Mike McGinn speaks at a town hall meeting at the Royal Esquire Club in Columbia City on Feb. 11. Many attendees asked McGinn questions about problems they faced in the 98118 area, everything from police response issues to the closing of a local community center. ARROW reporter Katie Reynolds asked McGinn one question: How does it feel to be the mayor of the city that has the most diverse zip code in the U.S.? McGinn’s response: “We have a lot to be proud of in this town. We’ve got issues, sure: budget cuts, bad economy, a school district in distress... We’ve got issues. We know that. But we live in a great city. People from all over the world want to be here. They want to go to our educational institutions. They want to be here because they want to be part of some thriving entrepreneurial community. They want to be here sometimes because they are leaving a place that has had hardship and strife. The promise of America is here.”

While memories of the days before the official zip code fade, sharing them keeps them alive. Here, the story of a kind woman from a town that became a major city |Joseph Varnadore |Managing Editor In 1963, 98118 gained a zip code. Beverly Almoslino, eighty-seven, has lived there since 1925.

“This whole area used to be a big guile,” Beverly said. “Before the land was filled, after they lowered lake Washington.”

Beverly lives in the 98118 area with her husband Easy Almoslino, ninety-two years old.

“We bought our house for twenty-three thousand dollars in the seventies,” Beverly said.

“Now it’s worth four hundred thousand. It just boggles my mind how times have changed.”

Her grandfather had built their family’s first house in 1900. The city has changed from what she had remembered.

“Seattle used to be called a ‘big little town.’

There were no cars in the street; we would go and play baseball in the streets. When a car did come, we would just get out of the way and start playing again once it passed,” Beverly said. “We were the first family on the street to own a phone.”

She doesn’t like it now.

“Greed is one thing, but you see people being shot and attacked for nothing. We used to be able to walk across town to the movies, and no one would bother us. People were friendlier; life was simpler.”

It was the second World War when things began to change.

“All the boys entered service, and we got a jillion troops coming in because of the port. Just up

the road was Chink Hill. Looked like all trees, but they had an anti-air unit stationed under the trees.”

Beverly watched as Seattle went from a rural town to a metropolitan city. She can remember a time when her family was the only one for miles to own a car, a Model-T kept together with “chewing gum and tape.”

“On the west side of the street was my family’s house and my best friends house, and for two or three blocks, there were only six other houses. There were two movie theaters on different sides of town.”

There are now fourteen-thousand, five hundred seventy-four houses and five thousand, two hundred and eighty-eight apartments in 98118. The population isn’t just bigger, the people have changed too.

“The abuse some people put on others just because they might be black or gay or a different religion is just wicked” Beverly doesn’t feel everything is worse. Some things stick out as improvements.

“It’s the convenience of things today. It’s irritating to have people spend all their time on the phone, but phones, and computers too, are just wonderful machines. When Easy was in the hospital, the computers had all the information they need. All the EMTs, all the records; tests were done almost immediately.”

Easy shifted at the mention of his name.

“I guess people are imaginative in their own ways; it’s different then before, but it’s still there.”

Joseph Varnadore photo

567arrow A voluptuous gentleman rides a horse and guards the outskirts of Clay Art Studio in Seward Park. Established in 1986, the studio receives multiple visitors year round. It stands on the North Western edge of the park nearby a trail and the boat landing.

Artful Demise

crossroads

arrow678 Metro Headshot A man rushes off the Route 7 Metro bus sporting purple dyed roots, blue tips, and neon pink sideburns. A needle mohawk rests above his thin eyebrows.

A trail of black star tattoos graze the nape of his neck.

Lucky Number Bus

Born to be Wild Seward Park is an important habitat to wildlife such as these birds (seagulls, Mallard ducks, Canada geese).

Surrounded by two bodies of water Andrews Bay and Lake Washington - it’s also a place where park dwellers visit daily.

One woman does not hear the laughter in the back as a passenger asks about a murky mixture in her Arrowhead water bottle. “We put sugar in them,” a fellow passenger said.

Writing of the Past

Toddler Party Children frolic on Seward Park’s big toy. The park has a playground as well as trails which allow access to many views of the area.

People of all ages take advantage of the recreational opportunity available to the general public.

“Don’t feed me,” reads a sticky note stuck on the back of Lumpy’s shell.

Resting in the library near his room, he warms himself on the heating vent.

Lumpy resides on the second floor of Seward Park Environmental and Audubon Center.

The 106 passes by a wall of graffiti art on its way to downtown Seattle.

This industrial area, commonly known as Sodo, is where many of 98118 artists master their craft of tagging.

A young teen bridges his red back Bicycle playing cards on the 106. Sitting on the plush seats at the entrance side of the Metro, he listened to music and showed little awareness of the curious gazes aimed his way.

Ksenia Ivanova, Alex Kalinin, Dauvee Keith photos

Pine Colony Seward Park is the only part of Seattle filled with old growth forest; Western Red Cedars, Big-leaf Maples, Western Hemlock, Douglas Fir, and Red Alder are only some of the trees and plants.

Tricks of a Trade

Boxtop Tortoise

By land and by bus, five ARROWHEADS explore Seward Park and King County Metro in 98118, encountering everything from chains creaking on playground swings to wallet chains swinging against blue Levi denim. Here, Amina Mugola looks to the back of “the 7,” the bus that passes through the area. On the same bus, an Asian woman grips a green bubble tea, perhaps apple, cantaloupe or jasmine flavor, and sits planted on her pink backpack. Outside on the beach of Andrew’s Bay, a worried Latina woman breathes sighs of relief on her phone, and an aged African-American man grips his cane taking each step slowly as he staggers down the street.

Windshield View This Metro driver for the 106 drives down a scarcely populated road to Rainer Beach at 2:30 p.m.

Passengers rave down the round to the distant sound of DRE Beats and conflicting teenagers yelling.

eateries

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The Rainer Beach Feast Japanese food served with a Seattle twist

|Eli De Los Santos and Annie Kwan |Photography Editor & Eateries Editor A sandwich board sign reading “Wabi Sabi Sushi” rests on wet concrete on Columbia City Boulevard.

Inside the restaurant, yellow and salmon colored Japanese lights hang from a chocolatecolored ceiling by thin black wires.

The figure of a salmon emanates from inside the lights. Square, caramel-colored wooden tables, each with four or more wooden chairs, lay low on the ground. The setting feels like jazz music might start playing.

A man in dark blue jeans, black dress shoes and black graphic-t that says ‘Wabi Sabi Sushi’ walks over, seats us, and asks us if we’d like a drink.

An African-American woman sits on a long dark bench that leans against the left wall. She sits with two plates that have been eaten off of, two full glasses of water and a glass of tea from which she sips as she reads a magazine. To her right, two men with black bowls in front of them sit face-to-face, two empty chairs on either side. They talk in whispered tones and keep their conversation to themselves.

The menu is long, and laminated. The front of the menu is transparent; the name of the restaurant shines through.

The waiter walks out of the room with a white towel in hand and wipes tables clean.

He takes our order: takoyaki, unagi roll, yam fries, poke maki, and shrimp tempura roll.

Takoyaki – fried octopus dumpling – is a famous Japanese food. Many Japanese restaurants disappoint and don’t make them well, producing a poor, soggy copy of the crispy balls. Wabi Sabi did a great job; their takoyaki was crispy outside and soft and chewy inside, with many different favors: salty, slightly sour with a hint of sweetness.

Tutta Bella

|Annie Kwan |Eateries Editor A friendly waiter placed my companion and I at the far right of the restaurant, next to the wall-sized window in front of the kitchen.

Lively air mixes with the smell of pizza baking in the cream color oven.

Italian music plays in the background, a

playful tune close to Spanish. Despite the dark colors of the restaurant, customers create a friendly atmosphere. This is a good restaurant for groups.

We started with the signature dish: Tutta Bella pizza, $13.50 full size ($6 during happy hour) made from pomodoro, fresh mozzarella, Italian sausage, mushroom onion and basil.

The pizza was amazing, thin with a taste of each ingredient with each bite.

First bite: cheese, lots of tomato sauce and a tiny piece of Italian sausage.

Another bite: a hint of basil with some soft chewy mushrooms. The best part was the crust, crispy and slightly burnt around the edges. No wonder why the pizza and the restaurant share a name; it was the best pizza I’ve ever had.

I definitely recommend this place over Ceaser’s.

Unfortunately, it had four dumplings instead of the traditional six or eight. Not to mention it was $4, $1 per takoyaki. Yikes! Pricey, even given the quality.

Another great appetizer was the yam fries with aioli: $7, it could probably feed a hungry teenager. The fries were perfect, crispy but not hard or soft, sweet with a bit of salt without the aioli. And with aioli, it had a sour, ranch-like taste combined with the sweetness of yam.

The shrimp tempura rolls were $6 and made with tempura shrimp, cucumber, avocado and Japanese mayonnaise. While the tempura was good – crunchy without being too oily or hard – the middle was less than satisfying. Biting into the shrimp tempura you’d expect shrimp but instead end up getting fried tempura batter. You’re left wondering if that was good or not.

Unagi sushi roll: five dollars and fifty cents, with broiled eel, cucumber, shiso and avocado. Eel is a favorite type of sushi and it was sweet enough but too warm.

Poke maki roll – $9.50 – was a special sushi with tuna wrapped around a rice roll filled with avocado, tempura scallion, cucumber and chili sesame sauce, topped with cilantro. The warm feeling of the sushi made it seem like the tuna was not fresh, but the flavor was nice. Though “spicy” might be hated, the chili sauce makes the sushi better in a way.

The meal was delicious. The yam fries and takoyaki are a must try, and better than the actual main dishes. For sushi, maybe stick with nigiri, instead of having rolls. Or tell the waiters you like your sushi extra cold.

Wabi Sabi is open Tuesday – Saturday; lunch is from 12 PM to 2:30 PM (no lunch on Sundays and Mondays) and dinner is from 4:30 PM to 9:00 PM.

Subshop#7

|Kevin Chung |Eateries Editor Subshop#7, a tiny stepping stone. I’ve never personally stepped into this fine deli/sub shop establishment until I just so happened to get off the 106 route to Rainer Station and was looking for a quick sandwich fix next to Safeway and Rainer Beach High School. A nice old Asian couple

Kevin Chung and Eli De Los Santos photos

runs this cozy sub-shop.

She smiled and suggested the “full number four,” the standard sub sandwich, French bread, and the Fix. (The Fix: lettuce, mayo, tomatoes, peppers, salt, vinegar, onions, provolone cheese, ham and mustard).

I bought something not too expensive, but it was worth it compared to Subway or Quizno’s quality. The sub came out in a matter of under three minutes and it looked wonderful wrapped in its white sheet. The food unravels a splendid sub, which oozes out with juices. I’m not sure if it’s the meat’s juices, or the sauces, but I stared at it in awe. The sub was a simple foot long.

Biting into it, my initial thought was that it was sweet. The bread was soft, and the ham added a bit of sweet/sour taste.

The presentation wasn’t pretty, but the taste sure was on point.

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It’s Not What’s on the Outside, but the Inside

FIRST GLANCE: While surrounded by screaming people and noisy traffic, the Columbia City Library is a quiet place to stay and catch up on work. It was built in 1909 and was remodeled in 2004.

Meaning

“Honestly it’s the closest library to my house,” 21-year-old student assistant Van Le said. “I spend about five days here in a week.”

Marisol Mora photo

The Columbia City Library is more than a library, it’s a community | Andrea Dyer | Library Editor The Columbia City Library is frozen in time. Back when community wasn’t seen through a computer screen and reading was an important and daily pastime.

All generations respect the library’s old fashioned nature.

VIETNAMESE STORY TIME “Bring your child to the library to celebrate stories, songs and rhythms.”

This is a time for children to reads books in a different language.

“Before summer reading my family would have a reading contest,” Tuwalole Mawmbe said. Holding her eight-month-old daughter, Mawmbe was reading a book to her daughter: “Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears” by Verna Ardema.

“All my kids have gone,” Mawmbe said, referring to the library. She has read to all three of her children at this library; she was even brought here as a child herself by her own parents. Now, it is her newest child’s turn.

TEEN ADVISORY GROUP “Ages: 14-18 earn service learning hours while being creative at the library! Plan library programs, create library posters, and create displays, record podcasts and more.” Another poster from the board reads.

Sitting on a window couch is a teenage girl, not blasting music in her headphones or checking her status on Facebook. “[I’m doing] just homework,” 18-year-old Latreen Garner said.

She knew that 9818 was the most diverse zip code.

“I Love the diversity because you get to learn about their culture” Garner says.

But there was one thing that she didn’t feel comfortable about.

“When people you don’t know just stare,” Garner say, “like you’re the weirdest thing ever.

Garner has lived in 98118 since she was a baby. “I like to go to the park because I grew up there and that’s where I have played basketball all my life,” Garner said.

EVENING BOOK GROUP “Everyone is welcome. This month’s title is ‘Catch 22’ by Joseph Heller,” the last posted bulletin reads.

Roughly two whole shelves of books were put on hold. There were certainly many more books on hold compared to the Renton Public Library.

An older gentleman sits across from the books.

“Oh! I like the library very much. I come here about every day and stay for about two hours after riding my bicycle,” 76-year-old Bud Ricketts said.

“I ride about 5 miles a day.”

The library is the key to Ricketts’ past.

“I am a Neanderthal. I grew up before there was television, so we learned to read for entertainment,” Ricketts said, “See, we didn’t have TV or DVD’s. Even now I don’t own a TV because I think some of the shows are silly nonsense.”

He moved to Seattle about 40 years ago and moved to 98118 about twenty years later. Ricketts wasn’t very happy when he moved to 98118.

“When I came here twenty years ago it wasn’t that diverse. It was mostly blacks and Asians,” Ricketts said. “When I moved here I thought it was a terrible place to live. I came in November. I said ‘Who would want to live in a place like this?’ But now I’ve gotten used to it.”

INSIDE LOOK The first thing shown in the library is the display of books relating to the upcoming holiday which at this point would have been Valentine’s Day. “It’s a real community feel,” library manager Shadee Burger said, “You see neighbors come and say ‘hi’ to each other. They don’t just grab their book and leave.”

Burger loves the library for its diversity; it reminds her of her last home; Queens, New York.

“When I first came here I thought this was a terrible place,” 76 yearold Bud Ricketts said.

“I came in November on the rainy days. I said ‘Who would want to live in this place?’ But it’s alright, I got used to it.”

“I’ve worked in a lot of different libraries, and the people here are great,” library manager Shadee Burger said.

“You can tell that people put their heart into something.”

congregation

ARROW 91011

BUDDHIST BOY, CATHOLIC GIRL VISIT ENORMOUS VIETNAMESE TEMPLE

Vanessa Abenojar photos

|Tony Nguyen |Congregation Editor

|Vanessa Abenojar |Copy Editor

BUDDHIST MEMORIES Going back to the temple after seven years brought back so many memories. Seeing my partner, Vanessa, experience my religion was exciting. Thick clouds surrounded the sky, turning Martin Luther King Way South a gloomy grey. The cold, crisp air caressed my face.

A fire occurred about three or four years ago burning the roof; since then the temple has changed. A new chandelier was plugged on the ceiling and a new rug was planted on the hardwood floor. I knew much about this place.

When I entered the temple, I was on the verge of crying. I compared the temple before and after there used to be a basketball court behind the temple, where I sat on the concrete bricks talking with my cousin and family friends.

My friend would sit next to me by the court near the small statues. The statues – painted in red, blue, orange, yellow and green – were placed close to each other with a couple of large statues looking over the smaller ones. The facial expressions were blank and had no emotion, like a rag doll. Why not put human expressions on them?

As a child, I rarely looked at them because I knew they were used for decoration. I was usually busy with my lessons for the day anyway.

Before going to class, one teacher would tell the students to get ready. They knew where to go according to their level of Vietnamese.

Back exploring the temple with Vanessa, I walk to my class in the back and notice a familiar statue that looks like the God of War suited in armor, holding a spear in his hands, on a black tiger’s back. He looked like he was attacking an enemy.

The room itself used to be longer. We saw a wall with small photos of people with gold Vietnamese writing above them, and a newly lit incense stick on the wooden counter. Yellow flowers lined the thick, dark red carpet.

The temple doesn’t have desks like a normal classroom. When I was little, we sat on the floor with our notebooks and learned Vietnamese while reviewing.

When class was over, a teacher used a whistle to summon the students back to the front of the temple.

We would form a circle and sing a couple songs while walking at the same time. I would sing-a-long with the words because I knew the song. We would then stop and hold hands, right over left, to sing a goodbye song about how we shouldn’t venture to off-limits zones from the parents and instead take care of our siblings.

CATHOLIC CURIOSITIES Lotus flowers paint the ground as I try to take in the beauty of this place. Every direction I turn, I see statues. To my left, there’s mean lions, to the right of me is this huge statue sitting on top of rocks with more flowers everywhere.

As we look around trying to figure out where we should start, we spot a woman dinging chimes outside the temple doors. I wasn’t sure where we were allowed to be in fear of getting in trouble.

We walk up a bunch of stairs and I take in the incense. My headache went away.

I compared Buddhism to Catholicism. We don’t have incense, oranges or apples; we have candles and holy water. We don’t have chimes or bells, we have a choir. We don’t have monks, we have priests.

The second I walk into the temple, my partner stops me and I feel his eyes burn through my UGG boots. He wanted me to take off my shoes. I got so terrified because I thought I disturbed a bunch of Buddhism spirits or something for stepping onto a clean floor with my wet shoes.

There were shoe cubbies on both sides of the stairs. We take our shoes off awkwardly because I’m not completely used to this sort of thing.

The inside had so much more, inside. There are trees in every corner and instruments lined up neatly on the carpet next to the shrine. There are so many statues, flowers and a lot of red and gold everywhere.

It feels welcoming even though there aren’t any people present. I follow my partner as he shares with me what he knows.

Being Catholic, I’m not used to the temple so the more I learn about the place, the more excited I get because the information seems so amazing.

When we explore the outside, I see a bunch of history. The statues help me understand the beliefs of the people who attend the temple, something like the stained glasses and paintings in my church. We explore the back of the temple, the top of the temple and speak to some of the people eating dinner in one of the smaller temples.

What really catches me is the size of it all. The temple is huge but welcoming; it seems impossible that it could scare anyone away.

Talking to people was very hard for me since I didn’t speak Vietnamese; I was lucky to have my partner with me to translate.

DUC: FROM THE BEGINNING TO END We found Duc Nguyen, an elderly man wandering around the temple.

He built the temple with the help of American builders in 1996, and finished in 2000. He explained that the building is the main temple. There are many different temples.

“Before there were stairs, there were hills,” Nguyen said. “Behind the main temple was a wasteland,” His children, now adults, grew up in this temple.

“We come here on Sundays, there are lots of kids around then,” Nguyen said. “Go to the house, and talk to the master for more information about the temple. He might have old pictures of the building.”

We took his advice, walking back down to the smaller temples; we couldn’t find the master. Eventually we went home but we know the visit wouldn’t be our last as if the temple had its arms wrapped around us. We’ll be back.

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Many Races Unite in Two Buildings, One Belief

|Mindy Saeteurn and Farid Ahmach |Congregation Editor and Art Editor Through the double doors of Saint Edward Parish Church rows of pews sit on marble flooring with a marbled stoup filled with holy water. Statues of Jesus and Mary stand across the room along with stained glass windows featuring pictures of Jesus and his disciples.

The church was built on July 21, 1907 and dedicated to the Bishop of Seattle. Before Saint Edwards was located at the Hillman Stop, it was considered the “district of agriculture” and has now become home to many immigrants from Germany, Italy and Japan.

“A lot of people who come are immigrants,” Parish office coordinator Joel Fadul said. “We have Filipinos, Vietnamese, Italian, Irish, and African American decedents.”

Rainier Avenue was once a rail lane street car that ran from Seattle to Renton, stretching through forests and log

land. The school on 42nd Avenue and Mead Street was built on December 22, 1922.

“Not everyone who attends the school attends masses at this church,” Fadul said. “The school is Catholic, Catholic right, Eastern Orthodox and etc.”

The church has masses every day where almost 200 people attend. They have also recently started a new Spanish mass on Sundays. Many people attend each mass whether they are from the area or not.

“It was the first church that we came to when we arrived in America,” Fadul said.

For many it was the first church that they went to, like Fadul and his family. It was also convenient for other families that lived in the neighborhood.

“We chose to go to St. Edwards because we used to live close to there,” church attendee Imelda Antonio said. “That was our church ever since we lived there.”

The school, which is the old church, is about to

celebrate its centennial anniversary on March 10. To honor the school, the church will hold a mass, reception, tour of the campus, dinner with performances by the St. Edward upper school students and a hosted social hour for adults only.

“During Christmas they hold a night mass called Simbáng Gabi,” Antonio said. “That’s a tradition that comes from the Philippines.”

The church holds many different events and masses including the Simbáng Gabi, which is held for nine nights.

On the last night a potluck is held for everyone whether they attended for all nine nights or just one.

“Even though it’s a Filipino tradition, many people from different ethnicities and cultures go to the masses,” Antonio said.

For years the church has been surrounded by a diverse group and it continues to provide services for everyone.

Small but mighty, church family strengthens and teaches a community to grow together |Queneshia Lee and Tristan Cawagas |Congregation Editors Reverend Darla Defrance brings a new type of worship to the 98118 community: local musicians, care for creation, weekly candlelight ceremonies and spiritual walks.

Columbia City Church of Hope has been at its current location since last Easter.

“I picked [this region] because I love this neighborhood;I lived here for 5 years and felt embraced by the community,” Defrance said.

“It took us a few years to get started.”

Before Defrance brought her leadership to 3818 South Angeline Street, the building housed Bethlehem Lutheran Church.

Bethlehem closed down a few years ago due to a lack of community connections and low offering funds.

“Bethlehem was an amazingcongregation,” Defrance said.

Many congregations or churches have some type of motto and mission. Church of Hope’s is “Awakening to the presence of God in ordinary life.” The church has about 50-75 members who show up, yet only 25 are committed and

attend each week.

Every Sunday the congregation gathers for a candle light moment of silence to acknowledge the presence of God. Columbia City Church of Hope is very involved in the community and hosts a number of different activities throughout each month.

These activities range from plays, to yoga sessions to potlucks.

“It’s a wonderful time to give families a chance to meet each other,” Defrance said.

“The city has lots of segregation but, is more willing to interact with each other,” Defrance said.

Even though they are small in numbers, the congregation has those who come on a weekly basis to hear the word.

“All we want to do is spread Gods word.,” Defrance said.

Defrance sees many good qualities in her new congregation. She likes how flexible and open-minded congregants are.

“We focus on a variety of things, one being nature,” Defrance said.

A bowl filled with water sits at the

entrance to the church. According to Defrance,the water symbolizes baptism, purity, and new life. “As humans we do not do a great job of taking care of God’s creations.,” Defrance said.

One of her main goals is to increase the leadership within the congregation.

The Columbia City Church of Hope meets every Sunday at 10:30 a.m. Christians and nonChristians are welcome. Feel free to show up and come as you are.

Farid Ahmach and Queneshia Lee photos

streetlights

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Reporter travels down Rainier Avenue, observing local night life |Amanda Dyer |Streetlights Editor The blackberry sky hangs over the streetlights. It is about 8:30 p.m. Businesses counteract the darkness with pink, blue, and yellow neon signs, welcoming customers and informing them of operating hours.

Tattoo parlors and barber shops lock up. Several workplaces, such as convenience stores and an art gallery, remain open prepared to receive patrons.

As I look at the street lights I notice several different shapes and sizes; drops of rain sparkle on the sidewalk after an average Washington day. Once in a while I see the occasional Christmas lights that have not yet been taken down.

The effects of night combined with artificial light change the moods of various buildings; some places seem sad.

A large mural painted on the side of a dairy factory gives off an unfamiliar feeling in the icy night scene.

During the day, the picture shows a large and diverse group of people in bright clothing, laughing and playing together.

The background of the mural is purple, green, and sky blue.

At night, the shadows darken the bright colors and make the faces look tired and wrinkled, even lost.

The buildings turn yellow in the evening glow as if part of a backdrop in an old western movie. Their discoloration looks as if they went through a battle to become this area so filled with life.

Like dark protectors, two gray lion statues line the entrance to the parking lot of a restaurant. The statues stand on their pedestals roaring into the night unafraid, as if the battle has been won.

Two Hispanic women take a night walk with their white Labrador.

A few blocks away two Caucasian women walk a black retriever in the opposite direction. It’s almost as if nightly dog walking is a common trend.

A group of African American men emerge from a grocery store and an Asian couple drinks coffee at a late night cafe.

Four teens pass two others walking along the town sidewalk. They stop, wave, smile, share a laugh, and go their separate ways.

All these people seem happy and safe in the chilly air. I pass the fire station. Lights gleam as bright as the courage of the men and women inside.

Traveling through neighborhoods of the area it is very peaceful. Occasionally I see the silhouette of a family sitting down for dinner through a well lit window.

As the sun goes down, the lights flicker to life as well as the lion. It stands guarding it’s building a few blocks away from the dairy gold factory.

Coming awake in the night while children are at play in their dreams, this lion never sleeps.

Queenelle Gazmen almost confessed on Valentine’s Day but chickened out.......................................................................................Editor-in-Chief Joseph Varnadore likes all the artists we recorded this week...................................................................................................................Managing Editor Vanessa Abenojar will change the world....................................................................................................................................................................Copy Editor Eli De Los Santos thinks he likes #oomf........................................................................................................................................................Photography Editor Farid Ahmach is very cool and awesome and likes you...............................................................................................................................................Art Editor Brittney Nguyen is a great dancer and she loves to do it..................................................................................................................................Ads Manager Andrea Buenbrazo fell asleep on the floor and woke up on her bed. What even?!.........................................................................Online Manager Abigail Cetino thinks her dog is ugly.....................................................................................................................................................................Residents Editor Fernando Perez is joining the school soccer team..........................................................................................................................................Residents Editor Phyllis Noester loves her exchange semester so far! USA <3......................................................................................................................Residents Editor Alyssa Antonio is going to nationals!....................................................................................................................................................................Residents Editor Katie Reynolds is definitely on the edge.............................................................................................................................................................Residents Editor Ksenia Ivanova uses Twitter to post statuses instead of Facebook.......................................................................................................Crossroads Editor Rafael Agas likes Skittles...........................................................................................................................................................................................Crossroads Editor FINE PRINT ARROW is an open forum produced by rolling chair racing, snapback wearing, earphone ripping, emoticon producing, Shakespeare reciting, food hoarding moochers. They all go to Renton High School at 400 S. 2nd St., Renton, WA, 98057, famous for its $1 cookies from the student store and the unavoidable senior presentations. The editorin-chief is Queenelle Gazmen. You can contact her at 206-554-1692, no text messages, please.

Vanessa Abenojar art

Dauvee Keith chills and eats chicken in the rain................................................................................................................................................Crossroads Editor Annie Kwan plays Zelda all the time..............................................................................................................................................................................Eateries Editor Kevin Chung cash money rack money, trill lif3.........................................................................................................................................................Eateries Editor Marisol Mora ate so much food in ARROW..................................................................................................................................................................Library Editor Naje Bryant likes riding the Metro to random places...............................................................................................................................................Library Editor Andrea Dyer likes being a newbie in ARROW..............................................................................................................................................................Library Editor VyVy Nguyen is currently not here..................................................................................................................................................................................Library Editor Queneshia Lee is thinking about her other half like crazy right now...................................................................................................Congregation Editor Tristan Cawagas just got Abied to the fullest...............................................................................................................................................Congregation Editor Tony Nguyen loves bubble tea............................................................................................................................................................................Congregation Editor Mindy Saeteurn wants food.................................................................................................................................................................................Congregation Editor Amanda Dyer loves the starry sky............................................................................................................................................................................Streetlights Editor Alex Kalinin MADE IT TO STATE BABY!...........................................................................................................................................................................Compass Staff Derek Smith should not have eaten the jalepeno Cheetos................................................................................................................................................Adviser

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