The Issaquah Press
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COMMUNITY
Wednesday September 19, 2012
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Your items are needed at senior center for annual sale By Katie Larsen news@isspress.com
BY MCSSA BRIAN H. ABEL
Fireman Thomas Timmons, of Issaquah, poses for a photograph in the machine shop aboard the U.S. Navy’s forward-deployed aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73).
MAN OF STEEL
USS George Washington is Issaquah native’s ‘home away from home’ By Christina Corrales-Toy newcastle@isspress.com Issaquah native Thomas Timmons spends his day doing what most welders do. He welds, grinds, brazes
and fabricates different metal pieces to make something new. The difference is that Timmons does his work aboard a mammoth aircraft carrier that is
BY MCSSA BRIAN H. ABEL
Timmons, a hull maintenance technician, welds a piece of steel in the machine shop.
made up of 60,000 tons of structural steel and travels across the Pacific Ocean protecting the collective maritime interests of the United States and its allies. In a call from the USS George Washington, as it traveled somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, Timmons spoke about his life on the ship. Timmons joined the U.S. Navy in 2009 and for the past two years he has called the USS George Washington his home. Aboard the ship, the 2008 Liberty High School graduate, a hull maintenance technician, is known as Fireman Thomas Timmons. As a student at Liberty, Timmons was a member of the school’s Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps. But he knew long before then that a career in the Navy, and work in engineering, was something he wanted to pursue.
BY U.S. NAVY
The aircraft carrier USS George Washington gets underway with Mount Fuji as its backdrop. “I made my mind up pretty early on, almost even before high school, that the Navy was something that I wanted to do,” he said. “The thing that attracted me to engineering is that I wanted to get into welding, and the Navy definitely has that covered.” Timmons spends most of his day in the machine See SAILOR, Page B3
Teens learn life lessons from canine pals
By Sebastian Moraga smoraga@snovalleystar.com The fellows behind the fences arrived at Echo Glen Children’s Center two weeks ago and they hate the place. Their complaints are deafening, their looks threatening. Furthermore, in about eight weeks, they’ll be gone from this juvenile rehabilitation center and inside someone‘s home. By then, Echo Glen Recreation Director Jo Simpson promised, they will be very different dogs. From Chihuahuas to bulldogs, dogs with traumatic pasts and children at the facility help each other overcome their struggles. The program, Canine Connections, is a joint project between Echo Glen and the Issaquah School District, which runs the school inside the facility. With the help of Simpson, who has trained, showed and owned dogs for decades, 10 Echo Glen children reverse the ageold saying and become a dog’s best friend every three months. “Each child becomes the dog’s case manager,” said Patti Berntsen, Echo Glen’s associate superintendent. This is only week two of the fall quarter, which
IF YOU GO Canine Connections fundraiser 46 p.m. Sept. 21 4Dinner starts at 6 p.m.; music begins at 7 p.m. 4The Black Dog 48062 Railroad Ave. S.E. 4Snoqualmie 4831-DOGS
explains the snarls from the dogs. In a few weeks, these wild dogs that sat in a shelter almost ready to be put to sleep before Echo Glen brought them in will be ready for adoption instead. The therapy the children learn to teach dogs resembles in many ways the therapy the children receive from the staff, Berntsen said. “Recognition, validation, teaching moments, positive reinforcement — they are strong components of behavioral therapy,” she said. Students have to apply to be in the Canine Connections program. Some want to be in it. Some need to be in it, Berntsen said. “Sometimes,” she said, “it can be very therapeutic for the kids.” The dogs come to enjoy it and grow attached to
BY SEBASTIAN MORAGA
Jo Simpson, recreation director at Echo Glen Children’s Center and the director of its Canine Connections program, plays with her dog Tux. Troubled children staying at the center spend time with dogs that, unlike Tux, have suffered neglect. their case managers. “The dogs just love their kids,” Berntsen said. At the beginning of the 10 weeks, love is in short supply, with troubled children learning how to control troubled dogs. “The life of the dogs sometimes is similar to some of the kids,” Berntsen said. “They’ve been
abused, abandoned, delinquent, they are aggressive and violent, and their families can’t take care of them,” Children learn through videos, classroom talks and hands-on experience how to treat a dog. They can’t yank, jerk, hit or tell dogs no. Sometimes they can’t even use the dogs’
names, as some dogs have associated their names to a sign that punishment is coming, said Simpson, director of the Canine Connections program. Instead, the children have to learn how to communicate, and find other methods to get what they need by not being aggressive, Simpson said. “The really remarkable thing,” said Curtis VonTrapp, one of the teachers at Echo Glen, “is that it teaches these children compassion. They both have had trauma and once they can identify with the dogs, they can start feeling compassion.” What follows, Berntsen said, is an “a-ha” moment for the children, when they realize that the way the staff at Echo Glen tries to help them is the same way they try to help the dogs. “They go, ‘Hey, this is the same thing they were teaching me at the cottage,’” Simpson said. “And we go, ‘Yup.’” At the end of the 10 weeks, the program finds homes for the reformed dogs. The dogs go, the children stay, but so do the lessons learned in the two months. Some children, once released, have won “Best in Show” with their dogs at county fairs, See CANINES, Page B3
If spring cleaning has turned into summer cleaning, consider donating items to the Issaquah Valley Senior Center, which will host a White Elephant Sale during the Salmon Days Festival on Oct. 6-7. The center is accepting any items except clothing and shoes. Items donated in the past included home furnishings, jewelry, collectibles and antiques. “It’s like one big flea market,” center Director Courtney Jaren said.
IF YOU GO White Elephant Sale 410 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 6 and 7 4Issaquah Valley Senior Center, 75 N.E. Creek Way 4Donate items at the senior center from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday until Oct. 1. The idea for the sale came from the founding director, Tommie Troutman, and has been carried on for nearly 20 years. The concept of a white elephant sale is when a person gets rid of something and someone else wants it. “You will always find a treasure and a bargain,” Jaren said. This is the center’s biggest fundraising event of the year; it made more than $5,500 last year. The money made from the sale is put back into the center. “I think it’s a way to let the community know about the center and invite them in to see it,” Jaren said. “It really is a home away from home for the seniors in our community. We don’t want people to be lonely.” The center is a nonprofit so all donations are tax-deductible. A bake and craft sale will also be held, with homemade goods. Viola Ong has volunteered with the center for eight years and now coordinates the sale’s volunteers. “We appreciate all the donators and the workers that help with the sale in order for it to be successful,” Ong said. “It becomes successful because of the people.” Ong said many of the programs Jaren has implemented at the center make it interesting for seniors to participate in activities, rather than staying home. Jaren said there is usually something for everyone at the sale.
Compassion House needs votes in grant contest Issaquah-based Compassion House, a nonprofit provider of transitional housing for homeless families, could receive a boost in a national contest. Through the Chase Community Giving program, the banking giant is offering $5 million to charities. Chase Community Giving allows fans to help choose charities to receive grants from Chase. Participants can cast votes for Compassion House at the Chase Community Giving program Facebook page, www.facebook.com/ChaseCommunityGiving, or through the Chase website, www. chase.com/ChaseGiving. Each Facebook voter is allowed one vote. Participants voting through the Chase website can cast two votes. The voting period is open until Sept. 19.
The Issaquah Press
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SPORTS
Page B4
Wednesday September 19, 2012
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Issaquah sweeps Liberty in volleyball rivalry By Matt Carstens ip-sports@isspress.com
With pounding music in the gymnasium as the setting, the cross-district rivalry was reignited as the Issaquah High School volleyball team swept Liberty High School, 3-0, Sept. 12. The first set was point for point, ending in a 2522 Eagle victory. Two of the things Issaquah head coach Todd Parsons has been focusing his team on is communication and letting go of mistakes. “They carry all their mistakes very heavily,” Parsons said. “In the first game, they were carrying that baggage again and in game two, they finally started to let it go. In game two and three, they played like I know they can play and they were just out there having fun. That’s what we ask of them.” Since volleyball is such a mistake-driven game, usually the team that commits the most mistakes loses. When teams constantly fail 15-20 times a set, Parsons said that failure can grind on a team’s mentality. “Most of the time they carry it themselves more than I carry it,” Parsons said. “They did a much BY GREG FARRAR better job in game two and Leanne Scott (left), Issaquah High School senior offensive hitter, puts the ball over the net for three of just shaking it off.” set and match point Sept. 12 as Melia Parilla jumps up to defend for Liberty. Issaquah has 12 of its
14 varsity players from last season returning this year. After a slow start to last season, they got hot toward the end, missing the state tournament by only one match. “They learned a lot of lessons last year and they’re finding their identity,” Parsons said. “They’re learning how to have fun on the courts.” On the Liberty side of the net, new coach Trina Christensen’s girls are still settling in with the new coaching staff. “I think we just need to gel together and become comfortable and confident with the people that you’re playing with,” Christensen said.
BY GREG FARRAR
The Liberty High School football team won its 3A/2A KingCo Conference opener by a score of 14-7 when it hosted Interlake Sept. 14. Scott Dean and Robbie Thomas each had rushing touchdowns for the Patriots. The team had an effective day on the ground, compiling more than 250 rushing yards.
F OOTBALL R OUNDUP
BY GREG FARRAR
Derek Chapman, Issaquah High School junior cornerback, runs back his interception of an O’Dea pass in the second quarter Sept. 14, setting up the Eagles’ third touchdown in the half for a 19-14 lead, en route to a 33-30 victory. play on the road at Roosevelt Sept. 21.
Skyline demolishes Coeur Jack Gellatly contind’Alene, 71-20 ues strong season in West Seattle With Washington State University head coach Mike Leach looking on to scout USC-bound Skyline High School quarterback Max Browne, Skyline defeated Coeur d’Alene, 71-20, on Sept. 15. Browne went 24 for 31 passing for 380 yards and six touchdowns in the first half alone. He ended up with 446 yards passing when the night was over. Six receivers were graced with Browne’s passes, including baseball standout Matt Sinatro, who had three touchdown catches and 126 receiving yards. Skyline returns home from its two-week world tour and opens conference
Jack Gellatly rushed for 213 yards and four touchdowns as Issaquah beat O’Dea, 33-30, in a nonleague game at West Seattle Stadium Sept. 14. Gellatly’s 54-yard touchdown burst down the right sideline with 4:53 remaining put the Eagles ahead to stay. Jack, the last of four brothers to play for Issaquah — three running backs and one receiver came before him — might be the best. Gellatly also intercepted a pass, with 2:37 left, for Issaquah (2-1), which is ranked 10th in KingCo 4A. O’Dea (2-1), ranked second in 3A, got the ball back
with 1:18 left but went four-and-out deep in its territory, and the Eagles ran out the clock. “This was a program win,” Bennett said. “We have not played good football the first three weeks, and we got in our way again tonight. It’s about getting out of our own way right now, and we can be a good team.” Issaquah opens up conference play with a visit to Newport on Sept. 21. Seattle Times reporter Matt Massey contributed to this report.
Jack Gellatly, Issaquah High School junior running back, holds off O’Dea junior defensive back Jack Murphy on the last yard of his 19-yard touchdown run late in the second quarter Sept. 14. BY GREG FARRAR
See VOLLEYBALL, Page B5
Krista Merca, Liberty High School sophomore libero, digs out a ball hit over by Issaquah during a volley as the Patriots win a point and a side-out, during the second of their three sets.
Liberty tops Interlake in conference opener
The defense, which held the Saints to only one score, was highlighted by Dean’s two interceptions and strong play from defensive lineman Max Hill. “I think it was just a good kind of team win,” Liberty coach Steve Valach said. “It wasn’t any one kid. It really was different guys stepping up making plays at different times, which is really good.” Next up, Liberty travels to Juanita High School to play the Rebels at 7 p.m. Sept. 21.
Christensen, a Liberty alum, said she loves the rivalry between Liberty and Issaquah and also thinks it’s good for her girls to play a league above before the season starts. “I’ve always liked the Issaquah versus Liberty game,” she said. “I like this cross-town rival. Good matches against teams like Issaquah that are 4A will really help us step it up.” As far as goals for the season go, Christensen is just focused on keeping it simple. “I want to just go out there and play well every single time we hit the
Bike race comes to Tiger Mountain For the first time, the Evergreen Mountain Bike Alliance will present the inaugural Evergreen Enduro Tiger Mountain Bike Race on Sept. 22. More than 150 racers will assemble in the upper Tiger Mountain Summit parking lot off highway 18 between 8 and 9 a.m.; racing will get underway at 10 a.m. All proceeds from the race will go toward building and maintaining mountain bike trails on Tiger Mountain, which have been in operation for the past 20 years, but have never served as a venue for a race. Courses like Tiger Mountain’s Iverson, Preston Railroad Grade, Northwest Timber and the brand new Summit Trail beckon 60,000 riders a year between April 15 and Oct. 15, according to the Washington State Department of Natural Resources. Entry into the races — which are broken down into groups ranging from teens to masters and include the categories of Pro Open, Sport and Novice riders — include an after-party with refreshments, food and a prize raffle sponsored by local bike shops or companies including Diamondback Bicycles, Shimano, Alpine Hut, Snoqualmie Falls Brewery, Gregg’s Cycles and Second Ascent. As a testament to the demand for this type of race at this venue, the initial 120 race spots sold out in less than five days and an additional 30 slots, made available to Evergreen members only, sold out in 24 hours. “Tiger is such a popular riding area and Enduro racing is a growing format that emphasizes a broad range of riding skills,” Evergreen’s Executive Director Glenn Glover said, “and we are very excited to be bringing Enduro racing to Seattle and Tiger Mountain.” To learn more, contact Stacy Karacostas at stacy@ evergreenmtb.org or 206524-2900.