Your locally-owned newspaper, serving North Bend and Snoqualmie, Washington
August 8, 2013 VOL. 5, NO. 31
Festival guide Inside
Local arborists rescue cats By Erin Hoffman
Buy booster tickets Tickets for sale for Wildcat football Page 2
People think Shaun Sears and Tom Otto are kidding when they tell them they rescue cats out of trees in their spare time.
However, Canopy Cat Rescue is no joke for panicked pet owners who call Sears and Otto when their cat is stuck in a tree. “You can hear the desperation in their phone call,” Otto,
Dog days Bring your pooch to the dog festival Page 3
Summertime desserts Recipe of the month features blackberries Page 6
Police blotter Page 11
Summer kicks Youth win soccer title. Page 14
3 choices for this year’s Tour de Peaks ride or Half Century ride sticks to country roads. The 25-mile Intermediate ride provides ridHundreds of riders are ers with breathtaking, closeexpected to up views of participate Mount Si. in the 25th All courses What to know Annual Tour begin and de Peaks bike Aug. 11 end in downride Aug. 11, Start/End Point: Main and town North part of the North Bend Way Bend and Festival at Check-in times: offer specMt. Si. 100 Mile (Century): 7-8 a.m. tacular scenic Three 50 Mile (Half Century): views of the courses are 8-9:30 a.m. Snoqualmie being offered 25 Mile: 8:30-10 a.m. Valley. this year, Registration Price: The each with Online until Aug. 11: $35 Tour de a different Day of Race: $45 cash/check Peaks began number of or $47 credit or debit card in 1988, miles. The All riders must wear a helmet when the most extenSnoqualmie sive ride is Chamber the 100 mile decided to or Century route. It covers celebrate the city’s centennial the entire Snoqualmie Valley. See PEAKS, Page 3 The second route, the 50 mile
By Mackenzie Ciesa UW News Lab
The view from here Hike of the week.
Page 14
Prsrt Std U.S. Postage PAID Kent, WA Permit No. 71 POSTAL CUSTOMER
an Olympia resident, said. “I can’t even imagine listening to my cat cry all night, or even just knowing it was off in the neighbor’s yard somewhere.” Sears and Otto are both cat owners and Contributed International Shaun Sears scales a bridge to bring a cat down to Society of safety. Arboristcertified arborists installation and, of course, cat with more than 30 years of rescues. climbing experience between Canopy Cat Rescue started them. Together, they make up with a fellow Seattle-area arborCanopy Conservation, a comist, Dan Kraus, who started www. pany that offers tree consultacatinatreerescue.com, a worldwide tions, risk assessments, pruning, directory of professional tree identification, wildlife camera climbers who will rescue cats from trees, in 2003. Otto was on By Shaun Sears the list. Sometimes, he would Shaun Sears snaps a photo midrescue of himself and the previSee CATS, Page 2 ously stuck cat.
Mt. Si Food bank receives $5,000 from Rotary Club By Sherry Grindeland When it comes to providing food for struggling families, Helen Dukich said the folks at Mt. Si Food Bank know how to pinch pennies and stretch the dollars. When possible, they go for bulk, shop sales and buy wholesale. Food bank volunteers and staff glean food from area grocery stores – QFC and Safeway – as well as Costco. But when you’re helping 400 families a week, it takes more than wise shopping to feed everyone. It takes money. The food bank received the money kind of help from the Snoqualmie Valley Rotary Club
Aug. 1. Club president Pete Bullard presented Dukich, the food bank’s executive director, with a $5,000 check. The Rotary check will be put to good use, Dukich said. “It will go into our general fund that we use for things such as fresh produce and milk,” she said. “Our goal is to not only feed needy people and families but to provide as balanced a diet as possible. And groceries are expensive.” The food bank does more than hand out groceries. An educator from Washington State University comes several times See ROTARY, Page 3