Methow Valley News, Jan. 28, 2015

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LBHS boys in three tight games last week

Methow Valley News

ARTS Page A5

SPORTS Page B1

PUBLISHED WEEKLY SINCE 1903

TWISP, WASHINGTON

VOL. 112 NO. 38

WWW.METHOWVALLEYNEWS.COM

JANUARY 28, 2015

$1

Cancelled hockey tournament causes economic ripples Concerns about ice conditions kept potential visitors at home

By Laurelle Walsh

The last-minute cancellation of a youth hockey tournament dampened the spirits of Winthrop lodging and business owners who had planned for an influx of visitors last weekend.

Six youth hockey teams from both sides of the Cascades and British

Photo by Don Nelson Dr. Teresa Castner, who lives in Mazama, will provide dental services at a new clinic in Twisp.

Columbia were scheduled to play a three-day tournament at the Winthrop Ice & Sports Rink (WISR) on Friday, Saturday and Sunday (Jan. 23-25).

When the forecast earlier in the week called for rain and temperatures in the high 30s, the organizers cancelled the tournament, according to WISR board president Jill Calvert. “The warm temperatures spooked them,” said Calvert, who had begun talking to the organizers in August about the January event.

“There’s nothing we could have done differently. We’re at the mercy of the weather.”

Winthrop’s unrefrigerated outdoor rink depends on cold temperatures

to maintain a skate-able ice surface.

Because the facility can’t guarantee ice, it can’t ask for money up front, and the only contract is verbal — “a gentleman’s agreement,” said Calvert. “That’s just the way it’s set up.”

“Truthfully, at these temperatures [the tournament] would have destroyed the ice probably beyond repair,” said Calvert after participating in an open hockey session Saturday morning. In fact, the rink closed shortly thereafter for the remainder of the weekend as the condition of the ice deteriorated. With refrigeration, that would not have been

See SKATING, A2

Ski day is fun day

New dental clinic opens in Twisp next week Family Health Centers expands its presence in Methow Valley

By Don Nelson

Family Health Centers’ new dental clinic in Twisp will open for business on Feb. 5, with Mazama resident Dr. Teresa Castner providing dental services.

The clinic will be in the former offices of Dr. John Nickell at 110 E. Second Ave. The grand opening on Feb. 5 will include a ceremony at 10 a.m. followed by tours of the offices.

The clinic will be open on Thursday and Friday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day. “If we get a lot of people, we may need to expand eventually,” Castner said.

Family Health Centers (FHC), a nonprofit established in 1985, provides health care services for all Okanogan County residents, including dental care and some pharmacies. It has locations in Omak, Okanogan, Brewster, Oroville, Tonasket and Bridgeport.

FHC clinics serve anyone regardless

of their ability to pay, and work with uninsured and underinsured clients, some of whom pay on a sliding scale.

Castner said she expects most of her patients will be children or adults with disabilities.

Castner recently returned from Tanzania, where she volunteers at a dental clinic that mostly serves children. Castner, who has made eight trips to Tanzania over the past several years, started working there with a mobile clinic and helped raised funds for a permanent clinic, supplies and equipment. Methow Valley resident Jill Calvert accompanied Castner on her most-recent trip.

Castner said the idea of a Methow Valley clinic was born a couple of years ago when a community needs assessment by Room One identified affordable and accessible health care as a high priority.

At the time, Castner — who earned her Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from the University of Washington in 1990 and owned a dental practice in Lynnwood and then Edmonds for many years — was taking time off from full-time dentistry. She had heard a lot

Preschoolers Jennifer Rodrigues, Luke

See CLINIC, A3

Photos by Laurelle Walsh

Gatlin, Bailey Gatlin, Violet Darwood, Finnbarr Humling and Forest Ashford from Little Star Montessori School sampled hot cocoa provided free from Rocking Horse Bakery at Methow Trails’ Backyard Ski Day last Friday. Fat bike rides, gear rentals and beginner ski lessons were also provided free from local vendors. Right, Don Portman from Methow Valley Ski School takes a group out for a lesson at the Winthrop Town Trailhead.

Transportation authority on track for July 1 launch with Methow Valley service

By Ann McCreary

File photo by Marcy Stamper Guy Gifford, a fire prevention coordinator for DNR, explained fuels reduction at a site on French Creek. While DNR still has money for fire prevention, high interest has already depleted all the funding for the Firewise program, funded in part by SRS, this year.

County awaiting federal decision on $1.5 million to replace lost timber revenue

By Marcy Stamper

One and a half million dollars for county roads, schools and fire prevention — to compensate counties for a loss of income from logging on federal lands — is hanging in the balance, since Congress did not reauthorize money for the program last year and has yet to take up the matter since the congressional session resumed.

Okanogan County — like more than

700 other counties around the nation that have federal timber lands — has received this compensation every year since 2000. The last payment from the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act (SRS), in 2014 (for fiscal year 2013) provided $757,000 for schools and the same amount for roads, plus $71,000 for wildfire protection and search and rescue, according to

See TIMBER, A2

Building a new public transportation system from the ground up is a slow process, but the fledgling Okanogan County Transit Authority (OCTA) is moving steadily forward and expects wheels on the ground in July.

“It seems like a snail’s pace sometimes,” said OCTA’s manager, Kelly Scalf. “But we’re moving ahead. We’re doing what needs to be done.”

Scalf said the transit authority will begin providing transportation July 1, when it takes over a busy shuttle route between Omak and Okanogan that is now operated by the private, nonprofit Okanogan County Transportation and Nutrition (OCTN) service. The route carries about 18,000 passengers annually, according to OCTN. The transportation authority was created a little over a year ago after voters approved a countywide sales tax increase to fund a public bus system.

Scalf was hired three months ago to lead the transit authority.

OCTA received its first buses in December, purchased with funding from a federal Department of Transportation grant for rural areas. The buses carry up to 12 passengers and two wheelchairs, and will be used on the Omak-Okanogan shuttle route in July, Scalf said.

The transit authority’s board of direc-

tors has been working on the nuts and bolts of building a transportation business, including developing and adopting policies and procedures that will govern hiring employees.

For instance, Scalf said, OCTA will be required to conduct drug testing of employees before hiring them for “safety sensitive positions” such as drivers. “We have to have all that in place before we can hire someone,” she said.

In collaboration with OCTN, the transit authority has applied to the state Department of Transportation for a grant for signage, bus shelters and dispatch software “so we can dispatch jointly,” Scalf said.

The new transit authority is expected to adopt a new name and logo within the next two months, changing its name to something that is easier for customers to identify and not as likely to be confused with OCTN, Scalf said.

“We’re working with a marketing group out of Spokane that his helping develop a name and logo,” she said.

More buses coming

In preparation for hiring bus drivers who will begin work in July, OCTA will soon be hiring a person to supervise drivers and dispatchers, and to lead the process of hiring drivers, Scalf said.

In addition, OCTA plans to purchase at least two additional buses this spring

before beginning its first routes.

All buses will be equipped with data terminals that provide automated notification to waiting passengers, letting them know the anticipated arrival time of their bus.

Scalf said these data terminals are especially useful for “demand-response” transportation services, which provide flexible times and places for passenger pick-up and drop-off in cases where regular bus routes aren’t feasible or where transportation is needed for people with disabilities.

“It will help with efficiency with picking up door-to-door,” Scalf said.

The data terminals also help with fixed-route systems, because riders can access an application called “Where’s My Bus?” that is used by many large city transit systems and provides current locations and arrival times for buses en route, Scalf said.

“It will show graphically on a map or be able to tell you when it will be at your location,” she said.

First though, the new transit authority must determine which routes are needed, and Scalf is working to gather public feedback to help identify where the needs are, and what combination of fixed routes and door-to-door services will best serve county residents.

OCTA is asking county residents to

See TRANSIT, A3

Page A2

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Methow Valley News

Winthrop awards contract for Bluff Street project

By Don Nelson

A contract to complete a substantial street and water improvement project on upper Bluff Street was approved last week by the Winthrop Town Council.

The lowest qualified bidder on the long-awaited project was Hurst Construction of Wenatchee at $1.02 million. Bids by six other contractors ranged up to $1.22 million. Bids were opened on Jan. 7.

Rick Karro, the town’s public works superintendent, said

SKATiNG

From Page A1

an issue, Calvert said.

Several local lodging establishments that had been full were faced with empty rooms when they learned three days earlier that the group was pulling out, according to Central Reservations co-owner Kyrie Jardin. “Monday night [Jan. 19] one of the coaches called us and said, ‘I was told that the tournament was cancelled, so we have to cancel our reser-

TiMBER

From Page A1

County Treasurer Leah McCormack.

Although Pres. Obama’s preliminary budget for fiscal year 2015 included a five-year allocation for the SRS program, the 113th Congress did not reauthorize it, so the program expired at the end of September 2014.

Without a specific authorization for these supplemental funds (SRS started in 2000, after logging on federal lands had declined substantially), the program reverts to a 1908 law that bases payments on actual timber income.

The 1908 law uses a formula that takes the average of seven years of timber revenue from national forests in each state and gives the state one-quarter of that amount.

As a result — without additional Congressional action — the entire state of Washington will receive $2.14 million in 2015, as opposed to almost $19 million last year, according to the letter sent to Gov. Jay Inslee in midJanuary by the chief of the U.S. Forest Service. These funds are split 50-50 between schools and roads, but the county has not been notified how much of that money to expect, said Mc Cormack.

“The numbers are pretty

the 5-year-old original estimate for the project was just under $1 million.

About 80 percent of the project will be for street improvements, with the rest designated for water system improvements, Karro said.

Council member Vern Herrst questioned some line items in the lengthy bid, saying they seemed extravagant.

Karro said that the town is required to accept the entire bid as is, and can’t make changes in individual line items. “We have

to take the lowest responsible bidder,” he said, or re-open the bidding process — which would be costly.

In other business, the council chose not to act on a recommendation by Herrst that town vehicles, including those in public works and the marshal’s office, be equipped with GPS monitors that would track the vehicles’ movements and other things such as fuel usage.

Herrst said that his research indicated that the GPS devices could be installed on six vehicles

at a cost of about $30 per month for each vehicle. He said that, in the long run, the devices could save the town money by cutting down on unnecessary usage and keeping track of service and maintenance needs.

Council member Rick Northcott agreed that the town’s vehicles need to be on regular maintenance schedules, but questioned the cost of the GPS monitors. Karro said that most of his department’s vehicles are so old that the monitors wouldn’t be of much help. Marshal Rikki

Schwab said her department’s two new vehicles are on a regular maintenance schedule.

The council also: • Turned down a request by the Friends of the Winthrop Library to hold a book sale on the lawn in front on Town Hall during ’49er Days. Town Clerk Michelle Gaines said that the town historically has rejected such requests because allowing one nonprofit to use the Town Hall site would open the door to similar requests.

“There are a lot of great nonprofit groups out there,” she said.

The council agreed with her recommendation.

• Agreed to pay up to $1,000 for service and maintenance on the backup power generator at the Winthrop Barn. The generator was rarely used before last summer but now needs attention after supplying power during the fire-related electricity outages.

• Appointed council member Jessica Sheehan as the town’s representative to the Okanogan County Transit Authority board of directors.

vations,’” Jardin recalled. “We called the rink Tuesday morning and they were surprised to hear about it [the cancelled tournament] for the first time.”

To u r n a m e n t o r g a n i z e r Vaughan Rody telephoned Methow River Lodge and Cabins on Tuesday morning (Jan. 20) to cancel 25 rooms and two cabins for three nights, according to lodge co-owner Rich Stahl. “It’s huge for us,” Stahl said. “This was our weekend.

We’re empty because of this.”

Because the Sta h ls had

worked with the group before, they offered them a special 48-hour cancellation policy, instead of the usual seven days, said Dolly Stahl. As a result, the lodge lost most of the revenue for the rooms, which had been booked since October. The Stahls didn’t expect to make it up on such short notice. “We’re not Seattle,” said Rich. “Walk-in clients don’t happen at this time of year. Winter is a different deal.”

The lodge had housekeeping staff set to work last weekend who were told to stay home, the Stahls

said. Similarly, Three Fingered Jacks Saloon & Cafe had scheduled extra staff to accommodate a group of 35 diners who never showed up, according to staff there.

Calvert estimates hockey families and coaches would have spent up to $50,000 in lodging, food and other expenses over the weekend. The cost of ice time — $2,200 — would be a minor part of the economic impact of a three-day tournament, she said. “I believe this thing is vital to the economy,” Calvert said.

WISR is set to break ground on a new refrigerated rink in May, with the goal of having the project complete in November, Calvert said. Plans for the new rink and expanded facility may be found at www.winthropicerink.com.

Funding for the project has come from the Washington Recreation and Conservation Office, with matching funds and in-kind donations coming from the community. WISR is currently within $34,000 of meeting its funding goals, Calvert said. Donations may be made on the WISR website.

“We’ve got to have a winter back-up plan,” remarked Winthrop Chamber of Commerce Marketing Director Kristen Smith, noting that in a low snow year, visitors will still be drawn to the valley for ice skating, hockey and fat biking, she said.

Just as a strong winter economy is a hedge against a summer season spoiled by wildfire, attractions other than skiing are a hedge against a dry winter, Smith said. “The community has got to get behind all the winter activities,” she said.

shocking — it underscores the need for Congress to reauthorize the program as soon as possible,” said Brian Namey, director of media relations for the National Association of Counties (NACo).

While SRS is not on the Congressional agenda yet, it was brought up in a floor speech a week ago. “It’s a priority and on their radar — there are commitments from leadership to address it,” said Namey.

The president’s last budget included money for five years of SRS, along with the law’s builtin annual reductions. Even with SRS reauthorization, it would have meant a cut from the 2013 total of $300 million nationwide to $279 million for 2014. Subsequent reductions would have been much larger, dropping to $122 million in 2017 and $101 million in 2018, according to a summary by NACo. Congress never acted on that budget, and those numbers could change when the president releases a new budget proposal next week, said Namey. The original SRS law was drafted so that the amount decreases each year, with the idea that Congress would find another solution to replace timber revenues, said Namey.

helps landowners create defensible space through education and assessments.

“I’ve expended all the Firewise money this year,” said Kirsten Cook, education and outreach coordinator for the Okanogan Conservation District, who makes site visits to advise people about fire risks and prevention.

Normally the part of SRS that pays for her time and travel would have lasted until the summer, but Cook had a huge increase in risk assessments after the Carlton Complex Fire last year. The fire prompted such interest in the program that Cook spent two 10-hour days in the Methow Valley every week for six weeks, doing four or five assessments each day.

The Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has its own landowner assistance program, which advises people and communities about fire prevention, wildlife habitat, forest health and logging, said Guy Gifford, fire prevention coordinator for DNR’s Northeast Region.

DNR still has adequate money for its program, which is supported by funds from various sources, said Gifford. “We expect to be continuing to offer this service for the next several years,” he said.

DNR also has grant money

for fuels reduction and to improve forest health, which typically require a 50-percent match — either in cash or labor — from the property owner, said Gifford.

to comply with the across-theboard budget cuts in sequestration, according to Sam Ricketts, director of the Washington, D.C., office for Gov. Inslee.

not submitting the documentation about the SRS expenditures in time, although it did not prevent the county from receiving the money, according to Jake Santistevan, assistant audit manager for the Wenatchee region for the Washington State Auditor.

The SRS program is similar to another federal program known as Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT), which compensates counties for nontaxable federal lands but is not explicitly connected with timber revenues.

That money was reauthorized last year and Okanogan County will receive $2.3 million.

Timber counties are still waiting to see if they can include the SRS money in their budgets. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) introduced two amendments to the Keystone Pipeline Act that would provide a one-year retroactive reauthorization of SRS and a permanent mandatory authorization for PILT, although it is unclear whether these amendments will receive consideration, said Namey.

“I asked House and Senate Democratic leadership staff this morning if they had heard from their GOP majority counterparts about movement on a [SRS] bill in either chamber soon. Neither of them had heard anything.

We’ll keep urging,” said Ricketts.

Cuts for fire prevention

Some of the SRS money goes to the Firewise program, which

Winthrop Gallery

Counties have the opportunity to decide how to use some of the SRS funds, and have an obligation to tell the Forest Service, by the beginning of February each year, how they plan to spend the money. A Forest Service committee decides how to allocate all funding requests, according to Laura Merrill, policy director and timber coordinator for the Washington Association of Counties.

If counties do not show how they will use the funds, the county receives only the baseline 25-percent payments, the same amount the county is getting this year because the SRS program was discontinued.

In 2014, Okanogan County obligated $125,000 for the Firewise Communities program, $19,500 to develop community wildfire protection plans, and another $335 for search and rescue services on federal land.

These allocations were for funds from fiscal year 2013.

Okanogan County has been cited twice by state auditors for

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Even when the SRS program does get funded, advocates for the counties that rely on the money are accustomed to a struggle to ensure the appropriation.

“We urge you to work together to find a permanent funding solution for these programs and end the annual authorization and appropriations uncertainty that unnecessarily interferes with planning and budgeting in these small communities,” wrote the Western Governors’ Association in a letter to Congressional leaders in November.

“Failing to renew the SRS program will cause significant harm to the ability of rural and timber communities to provide basic services to their residents,” wrote Rep. Derek Kilmer.

Thirty-four other representatives from western states also signed the December letter to congressional leaders.

Another blow to counties that rely on these funds came in 2013, when Washington had to return about $2 million from the SRS funds to the Forest Service

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CLINIC

From Page A1

about FHC, she said, and began learning more.

The idea has gained momentum during the past year, Castner said. Earlier, there was talk of opening the dental clinic in 2014 but FHC was busy opening another new clinic and new headquarters building.

“I’m new in the community health arena,” Castner said.

“But I’ve done a lot of volunteer work” — including in places like

TRANSIT

From Page A1

participate in a brief on-line survey that will provide information that the transit authority can use to develop its services. The survey asks where people live and work, and where they go for school, medical and social services.

In the future, for instance, OCTA may be able to provide vanpools to Wenatchee, if the demand is there, Scalf said. “We know anecdotally that people go to Wenatchee for higher level health care,” she said.

The survey can be found on the OCTA website at www.okanogantransit.com or people can call the office to provide comments by phone at (509) 557-6177.

Scalf is also planning to establish a citizen advisory committee to advise “on everything we do — schedules, materials, timetables.” She said she is hoping to structure the group in a way that allows them to do much of their committee work from home via email, rather than having to travel to meetings.

Wednesday, January 28, 2015 New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

“I’m super-excited to get going,” she said. “The timing is perfect.”

Castner said much of the equipment and supplies in the clinic can still be used, including the basic dental equipment in three “operatories.” However, the clinic will feature a new, sophisticated computer system with links to FHC, and digital x-rays.

Four employees will be hired in addition to Castner: three dental assistants (but no hygien-

ist yet) and a front-desk person.

The employees will be crosstrained to handle a variety of tasks, she said.

The clinic’s office number is 997-0922. For more information, visit www.myfamilyhealth. org.

Last year, FHC reached an agreement to buy the practice of longtime local physician Dr. Joe Jensen, owner of Methow Valley Family Practice in Twisp. The transaction will be completed in May. Jensen will continue to work under contract for two more years beyond that.

People interested in participating can contact Scalf by email at kscalf@okanogantransit.com or by calling (509) 5576177 or (509) 710-8324.

available due to the creation of a public transportation system. So, OCTA is providing $14,000 per month to help maintain current transportation services, Scalf said.

“If OCTA had not stepped in with funding, transportation service would have been negatively impacted,” she said.

The two transit agencies are working together to strategically apply for state grants to maintain and expand transportation services in the county, Scalf said.

By taking on operation of the busy Omak-Okanogan shuttle, OCTA can support through sales taxes an important service “that would otherwise have competed statewide with other projects” for grant funding, Scalf said.

OCTN now runs bus routes three days a week in the Methow Valley, and has asked to expand to five days a week, Scalf said.

She suspects that there are people in the Methow Valley who would like to use public transportation to commute to work or school in other communities.

“It seems logical those would be the routes we would expand to,” Scalf said.

Working together

The sales tax levy approved by voters in November 2013 provides about $175,000 per month for the transit operations, although the amount varies based on sales, Scalf said.

While the authority is moving toward providing service, some revenues are being placed in equipment and operating reserves, she said.

OCTA is funding a portion of the transportation services provided by OCTN, which is sometimes known as the “senior bus” because it provides transportation to senior centers and provides meals to seniors as part of the services it offers. The majority of funding for OCTN’s services comes from federal and state grants.

When Okanogan County voters approved the sales tax for transit, OCTN lost some state funding for services to seniors that was no longer

Naked eye

Visit the strangeness that is Jupiter in February

The two brightest planets in the heavens light up the evening sky in February. Brilliant Venus is climbing higher above the sunset in the west and is getting easier to see. Look to the east not long after dark for Jupiter rising above the hills. Once it David Ward is up, it will be visible all night long.

All of the planets in our solar system are very weird when compared to Earth, but Jupiter has got to be the strangest. First, it is big, bigger than all the other planets put together — 1,300 Earths would fit inside it. If Jupiter had been 80 times more massive, it would have become a small star, not even a planet at all.

Jupiter has the most extreme weather of all the planets. It spins very fast — its day is less than 10 hours long rather than the 24 hours we are used to on Earth. That high speed of rotation really kicks up the winds on Jupiter, which howl around the planet at 400 miles per hour. It has a storm system three times the size of Earth that has been raging for at least 300 years. That is how long we have had telescopes powerful enough to see it. If that is not strange enough for you, some astronomers think it might even be raining diamonds deep in the thick atmosphere of the giant planet.

Jupiter has been called the vacuum cleaner of the solar system. Its powerful gravitational field pulls in miscellaneous objects left over from the formation of the solar system, preventing them from slamming into the inner planets including us.

Also, Jupiter protects us from comets falling in from the depths of space at the outer edge of the solar system. Many astronomers believe that we would not be here without Jupiter shielding us from incoming objects of mass destruction. In 1994, astronomers observed a comet falling into the giant planet known as Shoemaker-Levy 9 which, if it had hit Earth, would have probably destroyed most of advanced life here, not to mention our fragile civilization.

Jupiter has 63 moons that we know about, four of which are large enough to be seen

Legislative work session on fire response The House Agriculture & Natural Resources Committee is holding a work session regarding state forest fire response and recovery through the lens of the

Carlton Complex Fire. The session is Thursday (Jan. 29) from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.

The public can sit in but there is usually no public testimony at

Page A3

work sessions.

The work session on fire response can be watched on www.tvw.org. Most sessions are available live and in the archives.

with a small telescope.

These four moons were discovered by Galileo 400 years ago and he observed them orbiting Jupiter. Galileo became convinced that Earth and the other planets are revolving around the sun, an idea that was quite radical at the time.

If you have a small telescope, try pointing it at Jupiter some clear evening and watching those four moons change position from night to night.

Here are a couple of hints for spotting Jupiter: It is very bright, and it does not twinkle like the stars but shines with a steady yellowish light.

On Tuesday (Feb. 3), look for it to the left of the full moon.

Another cool event to look for will be on the evenings of Feb. 20 and 21, when a slender crescent moon will be floating near Venus in the west in the evening dusk. Look closely to spot Mars just to the right of Venus. Venus shines over 100 times brighter than the red planet and you might have to use binoculars to see Mars.

February is a great time to look at all the bright stars of winter, which are more brilliant than at any other time of year. By 8 or 9 p.m., Orion the Hunter will be standing upright in the south. It is probably the most familiar and unmistakable constellation in the heavens.

Look for the reddish star Betelgeuse at the upper left and bright white Rigel at the lower right.

Line up the three stars in Orion’s belt and point down and to the left to Sirius, the brightest star in the sky and one of Orion’s hunting dogs.

Compare its twinkling white light with Jupiter’s steady glow. To the left of Sirius, a slightly dimmer star, Procyon, represents Orion’s other canine companion. High overhead, reddish Aldebaran is the eye of Taurus the Bull, with which Orion is in battle. Do not forget Orion’s girlfriends, the Seven Sisters, embodied in the beautiful little star cluster, the Pleiades, also high overhead.

Hopefully we will have some sparkling clear nights at the end of winter to enjoy the show up above.

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Opinion

Page A4

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

No Bad Days

Fun with the News

I swear, I had nothing to do with it.

But once Lauralee Northcott, the irrepressible, multi-talented Horse Crazy cowgirl started putting together the little shindig that will take over the Methow Valley Community Center on Saturday (Jan. 31), I had no choice but to become happily involved.

Lauralee has poured a lot of energy and personal persuasion (it’s powerful, take my word for it) into producing what’s being billed as a 113th birthday party for the Methow Valley News.

It’s essentially a variety show that Don Nelson will include music, humor and a bit of sketch comedy celebrating the newspaper’s 1.13 centuries of existence.

Quite a few local people with a lot of talent will be involved. Then there’s me. I’ll have a very small part in the proceedings. A few other Methow Valley News staffers may also make appearances.

The show has been in the works for many months, since the idea germinated last year. Lauralee promises some light-hearted fun and, indeed, we expect a few cheeky pokes at the News. We can handle it.

To be abundantly clear, the show is not a fundraiser, although donations will be accepted. Lauralee hopes to take in enough to pay for rental of the space.

The show starts at 7 p.m. Don’t expect a cake with 113 candles.

There will be a few chuckles, many at the newspaper’s expense. You don’t last that long without developing a few idiosyncrasies.

They’re walkin’ here

Our civic duty of the week is to pass along this plea from Winthrop Town Hall: please watch out for the semi-urban deer that have taken up residence in and around the town this winter.

Yes, that’s an annual admonition, but it seems that this year the deer are exercising their presumed pedestrian prerogatives with more frequency and less attention to the vehicular on-comings, especially along Highway 20 (Riverside Avenue).

A couple of weeks ago someone placed one of those sandwichboard signs on Riverside near the Methow Conservancy Office on a heavily trafficked weekend evening (I don’t know if it was official), asking drivers to be really, really, really aware of the deer activities.

Sure enough, as I was driving through, a couple of does walked right in front of the sign as though there were a crosswalk painted on the pavement.

Not overdue

Not naming names, but I was in the Winthrop library over the weekend when a patron came in asking for some help. Seems that the patron’s household had come into possession of two identical copies of the same book — one purchased, one checked out from the library — and, you guessed it, the wrong one was returned. The patron was hoping that the library system could track down the purchased copy (he brought back the library’s book). Apparently, this happens regularly enough that it’s not all that surprising to the librarians. You can always check the top ridge of a book for the “North Central Regional Library” stamp to be sure what you’re dealing with.

A good start

Don Reddington reports that the response has been “amazing” to the story we published a couple of weeks ago introducing a series of articles that Don will write over the next year about coping with Alzheimer’s. Don will have the assistance of Raleigh Bowden and News reporter Laurelle Walsh with his monthly offerings.

Our plan is to publish the articles every second Wednesday beginning in February. We hope you’ll look for them, and appreciate the candor, generosity and courage that Don is bringing to this project.

I n a p h o t o o f Ly n e t t e CORRECTIONS: Westendorf’s oratorio debut in the Jan. 21 issue, narrator Sage McFetridge was mis-identified.

In the Jan. 21 issue, the cost of dinner at the Scholastic Book Fair family night at Methow Valley Elementary School on Thursday (Jan. 29) should have been listed as $3.

The News regrets the errors.

Methow Valley News PUBLISHED WEEKLY SINCE 1903

101 N. Glover Street • P.O. Box 97, Twisp, WA 98856 (509) 997-7011 • FAX (509) 997-3277 editor@methowvalleynews.com www.methowvalleynews.com Don Nelson, PUBLISHER/EDITOR Marcy Stamper, REPORTER Ann McCreary, REPORTER Mike Maltais, SPORTS Laurelle Walsh, REPORTER•PROOFREADER Darla Hussey, PUBLICATION DESIGN Rebecca Walker, OFFICE MANAGER Sheila Ward, SALES ASSOCIATE Tyson Kellie, SALES ASSOCIATE Dana Sphar, AD DESIGN•PRODUCTION Jay Humling, DISTRIBUTION

CONTRIBUTORS:

Erik Brooks Sally Gracie Tania Gonzalez Ortega Jim & Jane Hutson Rosalie Hutson Ashley Lodato Joanna Bastian Bob Spiwak Solveig Torvik Dave Ward

Display advertising deadline for this newspaper is on the Friday previous to publication at 5 p.m. Classified advertising deadline is Monday at noon. The deadline for news items is Monday at noon.

THE METHOW VALLEY NEWS (USPS Publication No. 343480) is published weekly

by MVN Publishing, LLC, 101 N. Glover St., Twisp, WA 98856. Subscription rates: $33 inside Okanogan County, $44 outside of Okanogan County and $55 outside of Washington state per year (in advance). Periodical class postage paid at Twisp, Washington, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to THE METHOW VALLEY NEWS, P.O. Box 97, Twisp, WA 98856.

THE METHOW VALLEY NEWS does not refund subscription payments except to the extent that the newspaper might fail to meet its obligation to publish each week of the individual subscription period, in which case the prorated cost of those issues missed would be refunded.

Member of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association

Front page banner photo by Stephen Mitchell at Methow Pursuit start.

Box 97: Letters to the editor

Methow Valley News

By Tania Gonzalez Ortega

Prevent or manage?

Dear Editor: Where is the next destructive fire? As we all enter the next fire season, we must ask ourselves where the next firestorm will occur. As we continue to study, then study some more, then study to the end, what will be decided?

Let’s say that in all probability the Twisp River drainage is a fire looking for a place to happen. As we watch year after year, the quantity of standing dead material increases significantly. Should we perhaps allow the woodcutters to do something as simple as remove that material? Or, should we study the situation again? Can we selectively log the river basin?

Back in the day, you could ride a horse anywhere you chose on the Twisp River.

Today, that is completely impossible on the majority of the river. The popular saying is “do we prevent fires” as Smokey Bear always said or, as we do now, do we “manage” the fires?

Rich Millard Twisp

Water rights crucial

Dear Editor: As Twisp is “poised for spurt in residential growth,” I was glad to see the discussion of water rights issues as part of the equation. A lot of people seem to forget that we live in a near desert. There is a difference between legal water rights and actually having enough water to satisfy those rights. We all know people whose wells go dry in some years. With climate changes leading to forecasts of reduced snow pack and ever increasing demands for water, it can only get worse.

You also mention OWL (Okanogan Wilderness League) and its important role in the water debates. In addition to its state Supreme Court case it won against the town of Twisp, OWL had a parallel, water rights case in progress against the Early Winters/ Arrowleaf developers. It has also played an important role in challenging other major claims to water rights.

The precedent of OWL’s Twisp case was

Hello?

instrumental in the “end game” negotiations with those developers, a fight started by the Methow Valley Citizens Council, and later joined by Friends of the Methow. The developers settled OWL’s lawsuit in early 2000, giving up some important water rights at Arrowleaf. Soon afterwards, they agreed to a conservation buyout by the Trust for Public Lands. This ended the potential development of a mega-resort in Mazama.

Randy Brook Twisp

Thanks, Carlton P.O. patrons

Dear Editor: I want to thank the patrons of the Carlton Post Office for the privilege and pleasure of being their postmistress for the last 20 years or so. I have only known graciousness and wonderful friendliness in all of these years.

I appreciate all of your help (volunteer labor) of mowing and landscaping, fixing a mower, trimming trees and taking away branches, shoveling and de-icing the front walk, blading the parking lot of slush, etc., and the lovely gifts during the holidays of homemade salsa, bread, cookies, jams, chocolates and ground coffee, teas and spice. I loved each and every one! My best to all of you in the coming years, with respect and friendship.

Pat Ebbert Twisp

Justify the spending

Dear Editor: I see the tone from the Okanogan County Fire District 6 commissioners has changed to conciliatory from aggressive in hopes of enlarging the fire bureaucracy. They are no longer calling the taxpayers dumb and would prefer they be quiet and not look too close at past dealings.

All this crap aside, they fail to see other problems this area faces. One statistic that pops out is that 42 percent of the structures that were lost in last summer’s firestorm had no fire insurance. There could be varied reasons for this, one being that high taxes from multiple districts don’t leave anything for discretionary spending, which hopefully could include fire insurance. Some districts can increase their income by 1 percent per year by board action. Rarely can you find where they don’t justify an increase. This is not a metropolitan area and we don’t have a tax base to afford such services.

You are being asked to mortgage your property to provide these services. Taxpayers must inform themselves if these requests for their hard-earned dollars are justified.

Max Judd Carlton

Blasphemy is free speech

“D efen ding f ree speech m ea n s defending knuckleheads and visionaries alike.” — David Carr, New York Times media commentator.

Human beings seem to have evolved into two species: the irreligious, who can thrive in a godless universe, and the religious, who cannot.

These differences are irreconcilable.

Neither can prove the other wrong, so most of us manage a civil co-existence. But not religious terrorists.

Consumed by grievance, they worship at the altar of cruelty Solveig Torvik and promise death to disbelievers.

In the Middle East, Islamic terrorists behead people on camera in pitiful attempts to project power they don’t possess. In Africa, they deploy 10-year-old girls as suicide bombers, and kidnap and enslave hundreds of schoolgirls to keep them ignorant.

In Paris, they kill satirical cartoonists who depict forbidden images of Muhammad, all in the name of religion.

Before its cartoonists were massacred, the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo printed 60,000 copies per issue. After the massacre, 5 million copies were published in 16 languages. Thanks to the terrorists’ ill-considered strategy, this previously marginal publication now has a global audience.

Is this an unalloyed victory for free speech? Or is it just flipping off Muslims, as their ensuing worldwide rioting suggests?

Insulted people — particularly literalists who ascribe magical powers to symbols and view them as the actual things the symbols stand for — are unlikely to be enlightened by more insults.

Here’s what we’re up against: Building a snowman recently was forbidden as idolatry by an Islamic cleric in Saudi Arabia. In Israel, fundamentalist Jewish newspaper editors busied themselves erasing German Prime Minister Angela Merkel and other women from photos of world leaders march-

ing, post-cartoonist massacre, arm-in-arm for free speech in Paris. Women, it seems, cannot be visible, even if verifiable reality must be symbolically altered.

Even the editor-in-chief of Charlie Hebdo, Gerard Biard, berating editors who declined to republish the offending cartoons, succumbed to similarly confused, magical thinking when he demanded that other editors agree that a Charlie Hebdo cartoon is imbued with sacred powers: “It’s the symbol of freedom of speech, freedom of religion, of democracy and secularism ... When they refuse to publish this cartoon, they blur out democracy.” Oh, dear. Aren’t the French supposed to be the masters of irony?

The terrorists claimed to be avenging forbidden depictions of the prophet Muhammad by the magazine, which to its credit exists to challenge over-reaching religious and political authority. The cartoonists quite rightly want religion out of political life. They protest French government speech limitations by printing deliberately provocative, blasphemous, scatological images of “holy” persons and politicians.

It’s protected

Their point is that free speech cannot be limited by concerns about who it offends.

Right again. I may deplore their cartoons, but not their right to publish them.

Pope Francis disagrees. Free speech, said he, has limits. “You cannot make fun of the faith of others.”

Actually, Your Holiness, we can. The real question is: when, and how, should we?

The right to hateful speech is protected by the First Amendment to our constitution. It doesn’t require us to trouble ourselves about whether we affront anyone’s dignity, hurt someone’s feelings or insult religious beliefs.

Speech can be stupid, counter-productive or evil; it’s still protected. If speech is to be free, this cannot be otherwise.

“However, hate-crime laws often redefine hateful expressions as a criminal act,” warns Jonathan Turley, professor of public interest law at George Washington University. Oops.

If hateful speech is constitutionally protected, why then are we prosecuting people for it? Hello? Just asking.

“One cannot offend, make war, kill in the name of one’s own religion — that is, in the name of God,” added Pope Francis. Pity this man missed the crusades.

“Freedom cannot exist without obnoxious expressions of opinion, no matter who is offended,” says my former Seattle PostIntelligencer colleague, Pulitzer Prizewinning political cartoonist David Horsey on his website. The Charlie Hebdo cartoons were “crudely drawn, crass and juvenile,” adds Horsey. But editor Stephane Charbonnier “kept publishing depictions of Muhammad mostly because people kept insisting he had no right to do it.”

Nowhere does the Koran call for punishment of blasphemy, but the Christian Bible does (Leviticus 24:16), writes Washington Post columnist Fareed Zakaria. He adds: “The idea that Islam requires that insults against the prophet Muhammad be met with violence is a creation of politicians and clerics to serve a political agenda.”

Laws against blasphemy languish on the books in many European countries, but France has no blasphemy laws. However, the slain cartoonists were resisting efforts “to redefine criticism of religion as hate speech or defamation,” says Turley.

That barbaric religious terrorism is being spawned in the Middle East, once so brilliantly in the vanguard of human learning, is an unspeakable tragedy. But it’s no surprise that it flourishes in failing societies ruled by ossified authoritarian regimes propped up by fundamentalist clerics hostile to secular education.

Meanwhile, the right to laugh, in print, at power remains a non-negotiable human right. Satire is a defense against religious and political authorities everywhere, who so rarely prove able to withstand the temptation to infantilize others.

All Americans are licensed to carry the weapon of free speech. We reserve the right to fire — and reprint cartoons — at will. But there’s a time for mockery and a time for silence. Legally free to speak, we’re never morally free of responsibility for what we’ve said.

Solveig Torvik lives in Winthrop.

W W W. M E T H O W VA L L E Y N E W S . C O M

Methow Valley News

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Page A5

Arts & Culture

Headlines and headliners

By Marcy Stamper

Photo by Rodney Bursiel The Duhks, an award-winning band from Canada, perform at the Winthrop Barn on Feb. 6.

The Duhks bring a taste of neo-folk, world and blues music to the Barn The diverse musical pedigree of The Duhks offers something for just about all music lovers — melodic and rhythmic influences from traditions including old-timey, French-Canadian and Celtic, blues and soul, and Cajun and Afro-Cuban.

The award-winning Canadian band, with its distinctive vocalists and instruments including fiddle, steel guitar, bouzouki, banjo and percussion, is often described as neo-folk, worldbeat and even “neo-tradster.”

They are bringing that melange

of sounds to the Winthrop Barn on Feb. 6.

In the 13 years of its career, the band (pronounced “ducks”) has honed an original sound.

Their diverse line-up includes alluring vocal harmonies and instrumentals that show off their deft musicianship, lively numbers like upbeat Cajun gallops, and more sentimental waltzes and lullabies.

The Duhks’ most recent album, Beyond the Blue, was named one of 2014’s top-10 folk and Americana albums by Folk

How to get copies of Trial by Fire Copies of Trial by Fire, the 100-page special publication commemorating the Methow Valley’s summer of 2014, are available free in the Methow Valley News office. Donations will be accepted to the News generator fund, so we will be able to keep publishing if the lights go out again.

Copies also are available at retail outlets around the valley and select outlets in Okanogan, Omak and Pateros where our other special publications are distributed. And copies can be mailed from our office. For mailing, we will charge the cost of postage plus a $5 handling fee.

For more information, call 997-7011 or email frontdesk@ methowvalleynews.com.

Alley.

Methow Arts is bringing The Duhks to the Barn. The show starts at 7 p.m. Tickets are $27 for a reserved seat (in the first five rows, for all ages). Generaladmission tickets for those 15 and older are $18 in advance and $21 at the door. All generaladmission tickets for those 14 and under are $5.

Tickets are available at Riverside Printing in Winthrop, Methow Arts in Twisp, and online through brownpapertickets.com.

Leafing through the calendar listings in the Methow Valley News — a weekly ritual — got Lauralee Northcott musing about the value of newspapers, particularly in an increasingly digital world.

For the local musician and veteran producer of Western vaudeville shows, it was a natural progression to think about the value of celebrating, so Northcott — completely on her own, at no urging from this newspaper — decided to stage a variety show to honor the News’ 113th year. It will be staged at the Methow Valley Community Center on Saturday (Jan. 31).

Coming from the creator of the Foggy Dew Western Review and the Dollar Watch Cowboy Jamboree, the event promises to leaven any sentimentality with good-natured banter and characteristic horsing around.

“You build community by being conscious of that in numerous ways, so I want to contribute in my way — through comedy

“

There aren’t many small-town independent newspapers left — it’s a vital part of our community. Sometimes, you have to bring things to the conscious level so you don’t lose them.

— Lauralee Northcott, instigator

and music,” said Northcott, a founding member of the awardwinning Horse Crazy Cowgirl Band.

“This is really poking fun at the paper, and spoofing it and our own community as we bumble along,” said Northcott.

Northcott has rounded up a true variety of headliners for the variety show. There will be fiveminute stand-up vignettes interspersed with musical numbers, all featuring former and current members of the newspaper staff and local musicians and actors.

Northcott promises creativity and frivolity but even she doesn’t have the full scoop on what all

Hunt’s Haiku to screen at The Merc

Haiku, a full-lengath feature film written and directed

by Methow Valley musician and filmmaker Terry Hunt, will be screened on Feb. 7 at The Merc Playhouse in Twisp.

The film’s actors include local residents Danbert Nobacon, Donald McLane, Laura Love, Lynx Vilden and Tara Dod. Cost is $10, or $5 for students.

For more information, call 997-9344.

Photo courtesy Lauralee Northcott Lauralee Northcott will emcee and perform at Saturday’s show.

the performers will deliver.

Jane and Aristides Pappidas have created a riff on letters to the editor, Patrick McGann will ruminate on the role of opinion in newspapers, and Donald MacLane will give people an insight into the best of the blotter.

Current Methow Valley News columnists Ashley Lodato, Sally Gracie and Joanna Bastian will provide a glimpse into writing about Winthrop (Lodato), moving to Twisp and getting her feet wet (Gracie) and the best of Carlton (Bastian). Bob Spiwak (Mazama) has contributed a “hilarious” piece, said Northcott.

Editor and publisher Don Nelson “will do something — a newsroom sketch — god only knows what,” said Northcott.

Local musicians will provide period music, with the Hottell Ragtime Jazz Band playing top hits from 1903, the year the first issue of the newspaper rolled off the presses.

Ben Gilmore will perform “Jim my Brown the Newsboy,” a bluegrass number from 1951 popularized by Flatt and Scruggs. Brad Pinkerton will also be on hand to deliver some festive fiddling.

Northcott will serve as emcee and offer up her own musical parody of the Methow Valley News.

“The newspaper keeps people who are not Internet people on the same page,” said Northcott. “Print matters, and our print really matters, because we use it.”

“There aren’t many smalltow n i ndep endent pap er s left — it’s a vital part of our community,” said Northcott. “Sometimes, you have to bring things to the conscious level so you don’t lose them.”

Saturday’s show begins at 7 p.m. in the Methow Valley Community Center gym. Admission is by donation.

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Methow Valley News

Wednesday, Feb. 11, 6-7:30pm in the Methow Valley Elementary School multi-purpose room Adult supervised child care with planned activities will be provided.

Please contact the district office at 996-9205 to reserve a space.

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For more information, call the MV School District office at 996-9205

Page a6

What’s Happening Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Wednesday Jan. 28

Meetings, etc.

OPEN HOUSE AND STUDENT EXHIBITS: At Methow Valley Community School, Twisp, to celebrate National School Choice Week. Free.

997‑4447. 5‑7pm

and other weekly things Wednesday 1/28 MV SCHOOL BOARD: Meeting in the school district office. See agenda: www. methow.org, click “school board and staff.” 996‑9205. 5:30pm AWANA: At Cascade Bible Church, Twisp. For ages 3 years old through 6th grade. Free. 997‑8312. 7‑8:30pm MV EAGLES AERIE #2584: Meeting at Eagles Hall, Twisp. 997‑8133. 7pm

Thursday Jan. 29

IMPROV: RightNow Improv theatre group practice for all levels at the Interpretive Center at TwispWorks. By donation. 341‑4900. 5:30pm SCHOLASTIC BOOK FAIR: Family night at MV Elementary School, with dinner, activities and books for sale. $3. 996‑2186. 5:30‑7:30pm SOUP AND PRESENTATION: Wild Wander‑ ers of the North Cascades, with Robert Long and Paula MacKay at North Cascades Basecamp, Mazama. $5. 996‑2334. Soup at 5:30pm, presenta‑ tion at 6pm WOMEN’S HOCKEY: Drop‑in session at Win‑ throp Ice & Sports Rink. $10. 996‑4199. 6:30pm

Thursday 1/29 SPINNERS & WEAVERS: Meets at 137 Old Twisp Highway. 997‑5666. 1pm FOOD BANK: “More than just food” at The Cove, 128 Glover St., Twisp. 997‑0227.

1‑4pm FIREFIGHTERS DISTRICT 6: Training and meetings at local fire halls. 997‑2981.

6:30pm PIPESTONE ORCHESTRA: Rehearsal in Room 7 at MV Community Center. 997‑ 0222. 6:30‑8:30pm

Friday Jan. 30

saTurday Jan. 31

LEARN TO KNIT: At Twisted Knitters in Twisp‑ Works. Free. 997‑0233. 10am‑noon SNOWSHOE TOURS: Winter snowshoe tours at North Cascades Basecamp and Sun Mountain Lodge. Free with trail pass. 996‑3287. 11am FOLK/ROCK: Mts. & Tunnels Trio at Old School‑ house Brewery, Winthrop. Free. 996‑3183. 7pm METHOW VALLEY NEWS CELEBRATION: Music, skits and lots of humor in a variety show celebrating the Methow Valley News’ 113th birth‑ day, at MV Community Center, Twisp. By donation.

996‑2404. 7pm

FeBruary 2 – 6

HEALTH CARE ENROLLMENT: Personal as‑ sistance with health care applications at MV Com‑ munity Center, Twisp. Free. 341‑4608. 8am‑4pm

MOnday FeB. 2

LINE DANCING: With the High Country Kickers at Twisp Valley Grange. Free. 429‑2064. 6pm

Tuesday FeB. 3

TWISP LIBRARY: Story time and craft project.

Free. 997‑4681. 1:30pm GRIZZLIES IN THE NORTH CASCADES: Methow Conservancy’s First Tuesday program at Twisp River Pub features wildlife ecologist Bill Gaines talking about his study of grizzly bears in the North Cascades. Free. 996‑2870.

7‑8:30pm

Friday 1/30 DOCTOR: Free health care to uninsured people 18 and under at The Country Clin‑ ic, Winthrop. Appointment: 996‑8180.

PILOTS' POTLUCK: At Twisp Airport.

997‑8141. 5:30pm BINGO: Play at Eagles Hall, Twisp.

997‑8133. 6pm

Photo courtesy Mts. & Tunnels Facebook page

Folk, surf and rock

Three members of the eight-person Seattle-area band Mts. & Tunnels will perform on Saturday in Winthrop.

Wednesday FeB. 4

WINTHROP LIBRARY: Story time. Free.

996‑2685. 1:30pm PRE-SCHOOL AND PRE-KINDERGARTEN DANCE LESSONS: With Missi Smith at The Merc Playhouse, Twisp. $50 for 10‑class punch card.

997‑7529. 3:30‑4pm Wednesdays through April 1 MUSIC: Wayne Mendro, Howie Johnson and Breathe at Twisp River Suites. Free with reserva‑ tion. 997‑0100. 6‑8:30pm

Thursday FeB. 5

IMPROV: RightNow Improv theatre group practice for all levels at the Interpretive Center at TwispWorks. By donation. 341‑4900. 5:30pm SOUP AND PRESENTATION: Native bees in the Methow with Don Rolfs at North Cascades Basecamp, Mazama. $5. 996‑2334. Soup at 5:30pm, presentation at 6pm SKI CLINIC: Hands‑on ski waxing clinic in Maza‑ ma. Free. 996‑4115 for reservation. 6:30pm WOMEN’S HOCKEY: Drop‑in session at Win‑ throp Ice & Sports Rink. $10. 996‑4199. 6:30pm

Friday FeB. 6

SENIOR DANCE: Hottell Ragtime Jazz Band at MV Senior Center, Twisp. Free. 997‑7722.

12:30‑2pm TEEN CENTER: Come on in for ping pong, video games, wi‑fi, dinner and a movie. Free. 341‑4279.

3:45‑10:30pm ALL ABOUT BIRDING: Biologist and author Dick Cannings presents “The World Needs More Birders” at Community Cultural Center, Tonasket.

Free. 486‑1328. 6:30pm FREESTYLE DANCE: Open to anyone who loves dancing, at The Studio, Twisp. $5. 997‑7779. 5:45‑ 6:45pm

saTurday FeB. 7

LEARN TO KNIT: At Twisted Knitters in Twisp‑ Works. Free. 997‑0233. 10am‑noon SNOWSHOE TOURS: Winter snowshoe tours at North Cascades Basecamp and Sun Mountain Lodge. Free with trail pass. 996‑3287. 11am TALENT SHOW: At the Tonasket Community Cultural Center. Free. 486‑2061. Dinner 5:30pm, Show 6:30pm MOVIE SCREENING: Haiku, written and di‑ rected by the Methow Valley’s Terry Hunt and fea‑ turing local actors, at The Merc Playhouse, Twisp. $5‑$10. 997‑9344. 7pm

Tuesday 2/3 WINTHROP KIWANIS: Meets at the Winthrop Barn. 997‑1086 or 997‑5666.

6:30‑7:30am TOPS: Take Off Pounds Sensibly at MV United Methodist Church, between Twisp and Winthrop. 997‑2242. 8:30‑10am COUNTY COMMISSIONERS: Open meeting, Okanogan County Admin. Bldg., 123 Fifth Ave. N., Okanogan. 422‑7100.

9am‑5pm YOUTH ORCHESTRA: Pipestone Youth Orchestra rehearsal in the MV Elementary School band room. 997‑0222. 3:20‑ 4:45pm

sunday FeB. 8

MINDFULNESS: An afternoon of mindfulness at Methow Valley Wellness Center Winthrop, includ‑ ing instruction and discussion. Free. 997‑2152.

Noon‑5pm NORDIC SKI ADVENTURE: Predict your time on three skiing courses for all ages at Liberty Bell High School, plus prizes, with the Methow Valley Nordic Team. Free. 996‑4267; register at www. webscorer.com/register?pid=1&raceid=35175 by Feb. 7. 1pm COMMUNITY MEAL: At Community Cultural Center in Tonasket, everyone welcome. Free. 826‑ 0100. 2pm

Wednesday 2/4 WOMEN RECOVERING FROM ADDICTION: Support group at Room One. 997‑2050. Call for time CLOSET QUILTERS: Open studio, 309 Highway 20, Twisp. Free. 997‑7020.

Noon‑5pm EAGLES AUXILIARY: Meeting at Eagles Hall, Twisp. 996‑3869. 1pm FAMILY PLANNING CLINIC: At Room One, 315 S. Lincoln St., Twisp. 997‑2050.

1‑5pm PRAYER SHAWL MINISTRY: at Twist‑ ed Knitters in TwispWorks. 997‑0233.

2‑5pm AWANA: Activities, Bible stories and more at Cascade Bible Church, Twisp. For ages 3 years old through 6th grade. Free.

997‑8312. 7‑8:30pm

MOnday FeB. 9

LINE DANCING: With the High Country Kickers at Twisp Valley Grange. Free. 429‑2064. 6pm

Tuesday FeB. 10

TWISP LIBRARY: Story time and craft project.

Free. 997‑4681. 1:30pm

MON TWISP BAK A E NN

RY

Methow Home

Monday 2/2 COUNTY COMMISSIONERS: Open meeting, Okanogan County Admin. Bldg., 123 Fifth Ave. N., Okanogan. 422‑7100.

9am‑5pm SPEAK FRENCH: Revive or improve your French in Hank's deli. 557‑2944.

4:30‑5:30pm GAME NIGHT: Darts, cards and free pool at Eagles Hall, Twisp. 997‑8133. 5:30pm WINTHROP BARN: Board meeting.

Info: 996‑2117. 6pm BEAVER CREEK CEMETERY: Board meeting at Cascade Center, 125 Hwy. 20, Rm. 2. 997‑3569. 6:15pm MVID: Meeting at Riverbank building, Twisp. 997‑2318. 7pm

CONCERT: Grammy‑nominated band The Duhks at Winthrop Barn. $5‑$27. 997‑4004. 7pm

CI

KIDS’ ART PARTY: Learn to make life masks with Jody Olson at MV Elementary School; for grades 1‑5. $35. 997‑2787. 10am‑2pm TEEN CENTER: Come on in for ping pong, video games, wi‑fi, dinner and a movie. Free. 341‑4279.

3:45‑10:30pm FREESTYLE DANCE: Open to anyone who loves dancing, at The Studio, Twisp. $5. 997‑7779.

5:45‑6:45pm DANCE: At the Tonasket Community Cultural Center. Free. 486‑2061. 6‑8pm COUNTRY: Eagle River Band at Old Schoolhouse Brewery, Winthrop. Free. 996‑3183. 7pm

Methow Valley news

SOUP'S ON! Two a Day Warm Up Body & Soul Open Mon.-Sat. 6-3

Saturday, Jan. 31st Dance Party with

DJ BULLFROG 9:30pm-12:30am No cover

Sunday, Feb. 1st

Old SchOOlhOuSe B r e w e r y

Monday 2/9 COUNTY COMMISSIONERS: Open meeting, Okanogan County Admin. Bldg., 123 Fifth Ave. N., Okanogan. 422‑7100.

9am‑5pm MVID: Meeting at Riverbank building, Twisp. 997‑2318. 1pm SPEAK FRENCH: Revive or improve your French in Hank's deli. 557‑2944.

4:30‑5:30pm GAME NIGHT: Darts, cards and free pool at Eagles Hall, Twisp. 997‑8133. 5:30pm TRANSIT: Okanogan County Transit Authority public board meeting at 307 S. Main St. #4 in Omak. 557‑6177. 6pm FIRE DISTRICT 6 COMMISSIONERS: Public meeting at Twisp Fire Hall, 434 W. 2nd Ave., Twisp. Info: 997‑2981. 7pm COMMUNITY CENTER BOARD: Room 4, MV Community Center, Twisp. 7pm Tuesday 2/10 MENTAL HEALTH: Counselor for un‑ insured adults at Room One. 997‑2050.

All day WINTHROP KIWANIS: Meets at the Winthrop Barn. 997‑1086 or 997‑5666.

6:30‑7:30am TOPS: Take Off Pounds Sensibly at MV United Methodist Church, between Twisp and Winthrop. 997‑2242. 8:30‑10am COUNTY COMMISSIONERS: Open meeting, Okanogan County Admin. Bldg., 123 Fifth Ave. N., Okanogan. 422‑7100.

9am‑5pm YOUTH ORCHESTRA: Pipestone Youth Orchestra rehearsal in the MV Elementary School band room. 997‑0222. 3:20‑ 4:45pm TWISP TOWN COUNCIL: Meets at Town Hall. 997‑4081. 7pm Wednesday 2/11 WOMEN RECOVERING FROM ADDICTION:: Support group at Room One. 997‑2050. Call for time CLOSET QUILTERS: Open studio, 309 Highway 20, Twisp. Free. 997‑7020.

Noon‑5pm

Submit your event to: Calendar@MethowValleyNews.com

Deadline: Fridays at 5pm *all phone numbers are 509 area code except where noted

Monday, February 2nd

Trivia Night 6pm • $3 Buy-in

FOR A MORE EXTENDED CALENDAR, VISIT

www.methowvalleynews.com

Taco Tuesdays Wing Wednesdays Tacos for $3.50 Wings for $1 Thursday, January 29th

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Friday 2/6 DOCTOR: Free health care to uninsured people 18 and under at The Country Clin‑ ic, Winthrop. Appointment: 996‑8180.

PILOTS' POTLUCK: At Twisp Airport.

997‑8141. 5:30pm BINGO: Play at Eagles Hall, Twisp.

997‑8133. 6pm

FOR AA, NA & SIMILAR MEETINGS, SEE HEALTH DIRECTORY

509.996.3183

Advertising deadline is Friday, February 6th.

Thursday 2/5 WOMEN, INFANTS & CHILDREN: WIC help with nutrition, health care and food. Room One, 315 S. Lincoln, Twisp.

997‑2050. Call for hours SPINNERS & WEAVERS: Meets at 137 Old Twisp Highway. 997‑5666. 1pm FOOD BANK: “More than just food” at The Cove, 128 Glover St., Twisp. 997‑0227.

1‑4pm FIREFIGHTERS DISTRICT 6: Training and meetings at local fire halls. 997‑2981.

6:30pm ORCHESTRA: Pipestone Orchestra rehearsal in Room 7 at the MV Community Center. 997‑0222. 6:30‑8:30pm MV BACKCOUNTRY HORSEMEN: Meeting at MV Senior Center, Twisp.

997‑4802. 7pm ATV CLUB: ATV recreation, trail & camp‑ site maintenance, and roads discussed at Eagles Hall, Twisp. 996‑3321. 7pm

Please include the name of event, a short description, date/time, address, cost and phone number.

Downtown Twisp 509.997.5030 Free Internet Access

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WINTHROP TOWN COUNCIL: At Win‑ throp Barn Hen House. 996‑2320. 7pm EASTERN STAR: Meets at Masonic Hall in Okanogan. 997‑2071. 7:30pm

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American Sniper Action/Biography/Drama Starring Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller, Kyle Gallner Fri: 6:30, 9:45 • Sat: *3:00, 6:30, 9:45 132 Min R Sun: *3:00, 6:30 • Mon-Thurs: 6:30

unitarianuniversalist Fellowship sunday, Feb. 1st, 10 am speaker:

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Methow Valley News Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Sports

B Section

& Recreation

Liberty Bell wins a couple of nail-biters, can’t close at Oroville

By Don Nelson

T he L ib e r t y Bel l H ig h School boys’ basketball team endured three tense games in four days last week, coming away with two wins that moved them up in the North Central Washington 2B North league standings.

The Mountain Lions endured

a fourth-quarter push by Tonasket on Jan. 20 to prevail, 54-50, on their home court. On Thursday (Jan. 22), Liberty Bell edged Lake Roosevelt, 46-44, in another home game. Friday night (Jan. 23), the Mountain Lions traveled to Oroville, where they fell, 65-57.

Liberty Bell started fast against Tonasket, with junior

Connor Cooley scoring the team’s first seven points. The teams were knotted at 13 at the end of the first quarter.

The Mountain Lions reeled off nine straight points in the second quarter to go up by 22-13, but Tonasket worked its way to 31-26 at halftime. A relatively quiet third quarter ended with Liberty Bell up by 41-33.

Photo by Don Nelson Andrew Reggiatore drives the lane in the Mountain Lions’ 54-50 win over Tonasket. Reggiatore scored nine points.

Cooley kept the lead at eight, 44-36, with a three-pointer. But it was mostly Tonasket after that, with the visitors battling back to within a point, 48-47, with five minutes left, and then taking the lead, 49-48, at about the fourminute mark.

Senior Jorge Lara then scored a Mountain Lions bucket on a breakaway to put Liberty Bell up by one before Tonasket tied things at 50 apiece with less than two minutes to go. Junior Micah Klemmeck sank two foul shots and two points on a put-back to reclaim the lead for Liberty Bell, and Tonasket had trouble getting off a final shot.

Cooley finished the night with 19 points and five rebounds, while Micah Klemmeck tallied 16 points and seven boards.

Junior Andrew Reggiatore added nine points.

Coach Kyle Acord called Thursday’s match-up against Lake Roosevelt a “very hardplayed, competitive ga me throughout.”

Liberty Bell got off to an uncharacteristically slow start as both teams clamped down on defense to finish the first half tied at a meager 14 points each.

“In the second half, we did a good job of adjusting to their defense, and forced them to switch to man-to-man,” Acord said. Indeed, the Mountain Lions scored more points in each successive quarter.

“We were able to build a 10-point lead with around four minutes left in the game when Lake Roosevelt made a great comeback and pulled to within two points a couple of times,” Acord said. “Fortunately, we were able to hold on.”

Micah Klemmeck topped the scorers with 14 points and earned a double-double by grabbing 13 rebounds. Cooley scored eight points, and Lara nabbed seven steals.

“The next night we played in Oroville and had an off night,” Acord said. “Give credit to Oroville, who came out inspired and ready to play, while we just looked out of sorts. We did pull to within two points at 57-55 with a few minutes left in the game, but just couldn’t quite get over the hump.”

Micah Klemmeck again led the way in scoring with 13, followed by Cooley with 11 and Reggiatore with nine.

The Mountain Lions have four league games and one nonleague contest left in the regular season. Liberty Bell will need to finish in fourth place in the North league to advance to the district tournament.

The coming week’s games won’t make that an easy task. On Tuesday (Jan. 27) , the Mountain Lions were scheduled to play league-leading Brewster at home.

On Dec. 19, Brewster thumped Liberty Bell, 84-43.

On Friday (Jan. 30), Liberty Bell travels to Bridgeport, a team they beat 67-65 at home on Jan. 6. The Mountain Lions return for a home game next Monday (Feb. 2) against a tough Okanogan team that beat Liberty Bell, 78-53, on Jan. 9.

Liberty Bell vs. Tonasket

Tonasket Liberty Bell

13 13 7 17 50 13 18 10 13 54

Points/rebounds/steals/assists Jorge Lara 2 4 1 Ben Klemmeck 0 0 0

3 3

Jose Dominguez 2 Andrew Reggiatore 9 Connor Cooley 19 Micah Klemmeck 16 Willy Duguay 6 Garrett Dornfeld 0

2 2 5 7 3 3

1 1 1 4 0 1

0 0 0 2 2 2

Liberty Bell vs. Lake Roosevelt

Lake Roosevelt 10 4 11 19 44 Liberty Bell 6 8 14 18 46 Points/rebounds/steals/assists Jorge Lara 4 4 7 2 Ben Klemmeck 0 3 0 2 Jose Dominguez 4 5 1 1 Andrew Reggiatore 4 2 0 0 Connor Cooley 8 5 1 0 Micah Klemmeck 14 13 2 2 Willy Duguay 8 3 0 2 Garrett Dornfeld 4 0 1 0

Liberty Bell at Oroville

Liberty Bell Oroville

16 14 14 13 57 17 22 14 12 65

Points/rebounds/steals/assists Jorge Lara 4 1 1 Ben Klemmeck 4 2 2 Jose Dominguez 5 2 3 Andrew Reggiatore 9 3 0 Connor Cooley 11 6 0 Micah Klemmeck 13 4 5 Willy Duguay 7 3 2 Garrett Dornfeld 4 2 0 Josh Frey 0 0 0

0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0

Standings, North Central Washington 2B North

Conference Overall Brewster 10-0 15-1 Okanogan 8-1 12-3 Liberty Bell 6-4 11-4 Lake Roosevelt 5-3 6-5 Oroville 3-6 5-9 Tonasket 3-7 6-9 Bridgeport 2-8 4-9 Manson 1-8 6-9 Source: cwbathletics.com

Lady Lions hang tough for home win, then lose next two games

By Don Nelson

The Liberty Bell High School girls’ basketball team protected a narrow victory on its home court against Tonasket last week, but dropped games to Lake Roosevelt in the Lady Lions’ gym and then to Oroville on the road.

Liberty Bell prevailed over Tonasket, 33-32, on Jan. 20; lost to Lake Roosevelt, 50-34, on Thursday (Jan. 22); and fell to Oroville, 69-37, on Friday (Jan. 23).

In the Tonasket game, Liberty Bell built a commanding firsthalf lead, heading to the locker room ahead by 22-8.

Tonasket made a strong run in the early minutes of the second half, closing to 27-18 at the end of the third quarter.

It was hang-on-for-dear-life time in the fourth quarter as Tonasket outscored the Lady Lions, 14-6, to nearly steal the win.

Liber ty Bell sophomore Lauren Fitzmaurice hit the most critical shot of the game: a threepointer that put the Lady Lions up, 33-25. Those were the last points Liberty Bell would score as they were blanked for more than four minutes. Tonasket had one last opportunity, but missed its final shot at the buzzer.

Fitzmaurice led the Lady Lions’ scoring with 13 points.

Katie Labanauskas added six, Ashley Watson, Monica Chavey and Lauren Ochoa each had three, Sarina Williams and Exie Romero scored two, and Erin Knight finished with one.

Fitzmaurice had another strong night against Lake Roosevelt, tallying 16 points. But it wasn’t enough to fend off the Raiders. Ochoa added six points, Watson five, Williams three, and Labanauskas and Knight each

chipped in two points.

T he wea r y L a dy Lions couldn’t keep up with Oroville on the road. Chavey led the Liberty Bell scoring with nine points, followed

by Fitzmaurice, Ochoa and Watson with seven each, Williams with five and Romero with two.

“After staying up late studying for semester finals this week and playing back-to-back games on Thursday and Friday, the girls just ran out of steam,” coach Ed Smith said.

Liberty Bell was schedule to

host Brewster on Tuesday (Jan. 27), travel to Bridgeport on Friday (Jan. 30), then return for a home game against Okanogan next Monday (Feb. 2).

Standings, North Central Washington 2B North

Conference Overall Okanogan 9-0 15-0 Lake Roosevelt 8-2 9-3 Brewster 7-4 8-8 Oroville 6-3 9-6 Liberty Bell 3-7 3-9 Manson 2-7 5-10 Tonasket 2-9 3-11 Bridgeport 2-9 3-10 Source: cwbathletics.com

Photo by Callie Fink Liberty Bell’s Ivan Johnson (in the green-and-yellow uniform) took on Brandon Arneson of Colfax at the Coyote Classic.

LBHS wrestlers rack up wins at Coyote Classic meet in Kittitas The Liberty Bell High School wrestling team continued its march back to the state finals with impressive performances at last weekend’s Coyote Classic meet in Kittitas.

Defending state champions Meritt Fink, Emmett Fink and Trent Skelton each took first

Sports briefs ‘Big Adventure’ at LBHS on Feb. 8

Photo by Don Nelson Katie Labanauskas launches a free throw in the Lady Lions’ squeaker win over Tonasket, 33-32. Labanauskas scored six points.

“The Big Adventure” — a day of low-key Nordic skiing competition — will be staged Feb. 8 at Liberty Bell High School beginning at 1 p.m.

The free event, which will feature members of the Methow Valley Nordic Team, is “for all children under 100 years of age,” according to organizer Hanz Scholz. Partici-

place in their weight classes for the Mountain Lions, who have won the state 1B/2B team championship for the past two years.

Brayden Charette took third place, Ivan Johnson took fourth place, and Reed Wenger took a second place in the JV bracket.

Next up for the Mountain

pants can predict their times on any of three courses. There will also be prizes and other activities. Participants must register by 6 p.m. on Feb. 7 at www.webscorer.com/register? pid=1&raceid=35175. For more information, call Scholz at 996-4267.

Cupp an Academic All-Star

USA Cycl i ng has announced that the Methow

Lions is the Central Washington B Mix-n-Match meet at Kittitas on Saturday (Jan. 31). The district meet in Oroville, on Feb. 6-7, will determine who moves on to the regional meet at Northwest Christian on Feb. 14.

The state tournament is in the Tacoma Dome on Feb. 20-21.

Valley’s Cody Cupp has been named a collegiate Academic All-Star. The All-Star list includes 50 riders from 14 different schools. The Academic All-Star program recognizes cyclists who achieve top grades in the classroom while also competing at USA Cycling Collegiate National Championships. Cupp, a cyclocross competitor, attends Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado.

Page B2

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Local skiers take 9 of top 25 spots in Methow Pursuit Out-of-towners claimed the first four places in the overall results for last weekend’s Methow Valley Pursuit races, but locals Chris “Flash” Clark and Laura McCabe skied well enough to take fifth and seventh places respectively.

Edic David of Whitefish, Montana, was the winner with a combined time of 3 hours, 6 minutes and 11 seconds for the two races.

Clark posted a combined time of 3:07:55 and McCabe, first among all women finishers, finished the two

Methow Valley News

Judge rules for state in Hwy 153 condemnation case

By Ann McCreary

races in 3:09:40. David Ford of Winthrop took ninth place with an overall time of 3:30:50.

Other local finishers in the top 25 were John Spaude, 12th, 3:23:55; Scott Waichler,14th, 3:24:48; Leslie Hall, 16th, 3:27:23; Andrew Nelson, 19th, 3:28:58; Louis Sukovaty, 23rd, 3:36:24; James Kelley, 24th, 3:36:31. A total of 55 skiers competed in the two events, sponsored by Methow Trails.

For complete results, go to methowtrails.org/events/race-results.

A judge has ruled that the Washington State Department of Tra nspor tation (WSDOT) can acquire a small piece of private property through condemnation to complete repairs to flooddamaged Highway 153 at Benson Creek.

The property, owned by Patrick Fitzgerald, “is necessary for the construction, maintenance and operation of SR 153, which is a public use,” said an order issued Jan. 12 by Okanogan County Superior Court Judge Christopher Culp.

Culp heard arguments in December to determine wh e t h e r WSD O T of f icials’ desire to obtain land belonging to Fitzgerald qualified as a necessary and public use.

The land in question is .01 acre that lies on the river side of Highway 153, below the outlet of a new culvert installed at the mouth of Benson Creek after water and debris brought down by thunderstorms destroyed a section

Photo by Stephen Mitchell Winthrop’s Laura McCabe, wearing bib No. 5, tracked Kent Murdoch of Fall City near the end of Sunday’s Methow Pursuit race. McCabe took seventh place overall and first among women competitors. Murdock took sixth place overall, only 3 seconds ahead of McCabe.

of highway.

State transportation officials want to install large boulders on the small segment of Fitzgerald’s property to finish armoring the channel below the outlet to prevent erosion from water flowing out of the new pipe.

The state has already installed boulders to armor state-owned property beneath the culvert adjacent to Fitzgerald’s parcel.

Transportation officials also sought a temporary easement of .04 acre on Fitzgerald’s property to allow them access to complete work on the project.

Culp ruled in favor of the state’s motion for the permanent acquisition as well as a temporary easement that will end on July 1, 2015.

The next step in the process requires that a trial be scheduled to determine the compensation and damages to be paid for taking the property.

Fitzgerald, a logger whose home is next to Highway 153 just north of Benson Creek, refused to let transportation crews onto his property

to repair the damaged road because he disagreed with WSDOT’s design for a new culvert. His refusal to allow crews on his property caused delays in the work and in reopening the highway after the Aug. 21 storm.

Fitzgerald predicted that the volume of debris that could come down from the watershed, which was badly burned in last summer’s Carlton Complex wildfire, would overwhelm the culvert.

Fitzgerald, through his attorney Michael Brady, argued that WSDOT had not taken into consideration postfire studies that predicted debris flow in the drainage could increase by 5,529 percent.

In a letter accompanying his order, however, Culp said disagreements over the culvert design were not relevant because the law only requires the court to rule on whether the property is a necessary and public use.

“Mr. Fitzgerald may be correct in his contention that the replacement culvert …

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is insufficient; a bridge or a lager arched, fish-friendly culvert may be preferable and prudent,” Culp wrote.

“However, whether a better alternative solution is available is not the issue before this Court. The issue instead is simply whether Mr. Fitzgerald’s land is necessary for the State to acquire for a public use, public interest requires it and the property is necessary for the purpose of … fixing the roadway and maintaining it,” the judge said.

Fitzgerald said Tuesday that he is entitled to a jury trial to determine the compensation to be paid by the state for his property.

“I’m going to fight them on that too. I’m going to fight them all the way,” he said.

He said he is no longer being represented by Brady and does not know if he’ll hire another attorney.

Fitzgerald said he is building reinforcements around his home, using logs anchored by steel rods driven into the ground, to protect his house from potential future flooding.

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AD DEADLINES DISPLAY ADS Friday @ 5pm CLASSIFIEDS Monday @ noon HEALTH & SERVICE DIRECTORIES Friday @ 5pm

Methow Valley News 997-7011

www.methowvalleynews.com

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full-service recycling & garbage collection 509-997-8862

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List your business for just $8 a week.

Call (509) 997-7011 or email advertising@methowvalleynews.com

Service & Health Directories ~ Deadline for ad placement & changes is Friday at 5 pm for insertion in the next Wednesday’s paper.

Directory ads are $8 per column inch. Additional charges may apply for color. To have your service listed please call 997-7011.

Methow Valley News

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Classifieds

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING - 997-7011 E-MAIL TO frontdesk@methowvalleynews.com All classifieds to be prepaid. Deadline: Monday, Noon.

Weekly: $6.75 for 15 words or less. $8.75 with email or web site address.

20 cents for each additional word.

CLASSIFIED SPECIAL: Buy 3 weeks, get 4th week free. No refunds or changes please.

Prepayment required to qualify.

Classified display ads: $10.00 per column inch.

Deadline for CLASSIFIED DISPLAYS & LEGAL NOTICES: Thursday, 5 p.m.

Directory

FOR SALE ......................................10 YARD SALE ...............................14 AUCTIONS ................................16 REAL ESTATE ................................20 MOBILE/MFD. HOMES .............22 FOR RENT .................................24 WANTED TO RENT ...................25 BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES .......30 EMPLOYMENT ...............................31 WORK WANTED .......................32 SERVICES .................................34 CARS & TRUCKS ..........................40 RVS ............................................42 ANIMALS-PETS, HORSES, LIVESTOCK................. 50 MISCELLANEOUS .........................70 WANTED.........................................75 THANK YOU ...................................80 COMMUNITY EVENTS...................83 PERSONALS ..................................85 FREE ..............................................90 LOST & FOUND .............................95

20......................... REAL ESTATE PUBLISHER'S NOTICE: All real estate advertising in this newspaper is subject to the Fair Housing Act which makes it illegal to advertise “any preference, limitation or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin, or an intention, to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination.”

Familial status includes children under the age of 18 living with parents or legal custodians, pregnant women and people securing custody of children under 18.

This newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. Our readers are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised in this newspaper are available on an equal opportunity basis. To complain of discrimination, call HUD toll-free at 1-800-669-9777. The toll-free telephone number for the hearing impaired is 1-800-927-9275.

ARROWHEAD LODGE on Big Twin Lake, $350K. Waters managed by State Dept Fisheries, selective gear, trout emphasis.

Year round migratory pathway/ sanctuary with stunning wilderness views. arrowhead2079@ gmail.com for info.

38

31........................ EMPLOYMENT

JAMIE’S PLACE Adult Family Homes is seeking caregivers and is currently offering a hiring bonus and incentive package! The cost of a significant portion of training expenses for committed team members who do not yet have HCA or CNA certifications is also available. Contact us to learn more: 509-996-4417 or jamiesplaceafh@yahoo.com. You can also check out our video at www. jamiesplacehomes.org.

40 FRENCH QUAIL IS looking for a friendly sales person who enjoys working with clothing. Pick up an application at 158 Riverside Ave. M-Sat 11-5:30, Sun 12-4.

38 CINNAMON TWISP BAKERY now accepting applications for Closing Counter/Barista. Looking for cheerful, motivated individuals to join our team in providing our community with delicious, wholesome food in a friendly atmosphere. Applications available at the Cinnamon Twisp Bakery, 116 N Glover St, Twisp.

39

D E L L I F

LOVE SPORTS?

Join the MV News lineup!

The Methow Valley News is looking for a reporter to cover the valley’s sports teams and recreational activities with accuracy, completeness and a flare for bringing games and events to life through lively writing. It’s a parttime job with irregular hours (20 to 25 a week) but may include other opportunities to contribute to the newspaper. Photography skills a big plus; availability to work nights and some weekends a necessity; ability to meet deadlines an imperative.

Send a cover letter and other materials to: frontdesk@ methowvalleynews.com or P.O. Box 97, Twisp, WA 98856.

Include writing samples and a description of your relevant experiences.

24............................... FOR RENT

CONFLUENCE GALLERY and Art Center: 3 office spaces available for rent. Perfect for non-profits, professionals such as attorneys, therapists, massage practitioners, artists and others seeking a quiet space with natural light. Office 201 is 325 sq. ft., asking $325/month. Office 206 is 132 sq. ft., asking $150/month. Office 207 is 230 sq. ft., asking $250/ month. All offices are for 1-yearlease (negotiable). For additional details and viewing, contact David Wright 509.996.3681 or Salyna Gracie, 509.997.2787.

40 RENT ROOM 7 in MV Community Center. $410. per month includes utilities, w/one year lease. 509-997-2926.

38 ONE SPACE AVAILABLE February 1st in building behind Pardners in Winthrop. 550 square feet. Call George at 509-322-6139 for more info.

39 2 BEDROOM 1 BATH furnished home with W/D on Twisp River Park. Non-smoking. $850mth. 4 month minimum. Call 360-3012009.

40

34............................... SERVICES

32 BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

LEGAL SERVICES DIVORCE $155. $175 with children.

No court appearances. Complete preparation. Includes custody, support, property division and bills.

BBB member. (503) 772-5295. www.paralegalalternatives.com

RIVERSIDE PRINTING Winthrop. Steady, growing print shop supporting Methow Valley. Equipment, Inventory. $45,000. 509-996-3816. 40

SPEEDY SKI HOT WAXING. Cascades Outdoor Store, downtown Winthrop, will get you out on fast skis without delay. Open every day 9:30-5. 10 pass hotwax card also available. 509-9963480.

40 95................. LOST AND FOUND

FOUND: Blue foot key/bottle chain with one key attached.

Found on the corner of Glover and Second St. 509-997-7011. 40 STATEWIDE ADS EVENTS-FESTIVALS PROMOTE YOUR REGIONAL EVENT for only pennies. Reach 2.7 million readers in newspapers statewide for $275 classified or $1,350 display ad. Call this newspaper or (360) 515-0974 for details.

EVENTS-FESTIVALS BIG ONE Snohomish County 4-H Tack Sale Saturday, February 21 9am-3pm. Consignment: Wednesday 4-9pm, Thursday 9am-9pm, Friday 9am-6pm. For more information, 425-308-2815 or https://www. facebook.com/#!/events/

STATEWIDE ADS, Cont.

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HELP WANTED Ready for a CAREER in Concrete Plant Production? Progressive Contractor seeking Concrete Batch Plant Operators. Mechanical background required. Will train on Plant.

Travel required. Great Pay. LEGAL ADS

LEGAL NOTICE Superior Court of Washington County of Okanogan No. 14-200342-2 SUMMONS BY PUBLICATION THE DECEDENT’S TRUST CREATED UNDER THE FODOR FAMILY REVOCABLE LIVING TRUST, U/A/D APRIL 15, 2002, Plaintiff, vs. HANNAH MORRILL WORTHEN, as her separate estate, and DAVID JONES, a bachelor, and the heirs and devises of HANNAH MORRILL WORTHEN, deceased, and the heirs and devises of DAVID JONES, if he is deceased; and all persons claiming by and through them and ALL OTHER PERSONS OR PARTIES UNKNOWN CLAIMING ANY RIGHT, TITLE, ESTATE, LIEN OR INTEREST IN THE REAL ESTATE DESCRIBED IN THE FILED COMPLAINT HEREIN, Defendants.

THE STATE OF WASHINGTON TO said Defendants: EACH OF YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to appear within sixty (60) days after the date of the first publication of this Summons, to wit, within sixty (60) days after December 24, 2014, and defend the above entitled action in the above entitled Court, and answer the Amended Complaint of the Plaintiff and serve a copy of your answer upon the undersigned attorney for Plaintiff, David Ebenger, at his address below stated; and in the case of your failure so to do, Judgment will be rendered against you according to the demand of the Amended Complaint, which has been filed with the Clerk of said Court.

The object of this action is to quiet title to real property in the name of the Plaintiff as described in the Amended Complaint for Damages and to Quiet Title or in the Alternative for Adverse Possession filed herein.

Dated: December 12, 2014.

DAVID EBENGER, WSBA #4939, Attorney for Plaintiff, P.O. Box 217, Winthrop, Washington 98862.

Published in the Methow Valley News December 24 and 31, 2014, January 7, 14, 21, 28, 2015.

Page B3

LEGAL ADS, Cont.

LEGAL ADS, Cont.

LEGAL ADS, Cont.

LEGAL NOTICE Methow Valley School District is updating its Small Works Roster for general contractors for future construction, alteration, repair or improvement of public works projects. If you are interested in being included on the roster, please email a letter of intent to suziem@ ncesd.org or to the following address and we will send you a small works roster application: Methow Valley School District c/o North Central ESD, Attn: Suzie Morrison, P.O. Box 1847, Wenatchee, WA 98807.

Published in the Methow Valley Newspaper January 21 and 28, 2015.

LEGAL NOTICE NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS Trout UnlimitedWashington Water Project is proposing to construct a project on the Methow Valley Irrigation District Canal in Twisp, WA: replacing existing pipe along the approximately 9000 l.f. E1 lateral within the Town of Twisp. Contractor shall provide and install 2” to 12” HDPE pipe and fittings.

Two WSDOT road crossing are included in the project.

There is a mandatory prebid site inspection at 1 PM on February 3, 2015, at the RiverBank Office, 206 Glover Street, Twisp WA. Contractors interested in receiving a bid solicitation packet should contact Project Administrative Assistant Katy Williams at 509-997-0640 x267 or email katy@vanheesllc.com prior to the closed bid opening at 5 PM on March 3, 2015.

Published in the Methow Valley News January 21 and 28, 2015.

LEGAL NOTICE IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON IN AND FOR THE COUNTY OF KING IN PROBATE In Re The Estate Of: LELAND R. DOWNER, Decedent. NO. 15-4-001822 KNT PROBATE NOTICE TO CREDITORS (R.C.W. 11.40.030) The Administrator, named below, has been appointed as Administrator of this estate. Any person having a claim against the decedent must, before the time the claim would be bared by any otherwise applicable statute of limitations, present the claim in the manner as provided in R.C.W. 11.40.070 by serving on or mailing to the Administrator or the Administrator’s attorney at the address stated below, a copy of the Claim and filing the original Claim with the Court in which the Probate proceedings were commenced.

The Claim must be presented within the later of: (1) Thirty (30) days after the Administrator served or mailed a Notice to the Creditor

as provided under R.C.W. 11.40.020(1)(c); or (2) four (4) months after the date of first publication of this Notice. If the Claim is not presented within this time frame, the Claim is forever barred, except as otherwise provided in R.C.W. 11.40.051 and R.C.W. 11.40.060. This bar is effective as to Claims against both the decedent’s probate and non-probate assets.

DATE OF FIRST PUBLICATION: January 21, 2015.

Jeffrey Downer, Administrator, 18625 173rd Way SE, Renton, WA, 98058.

Kelly Kenn / WSBA #32250, Kelly Kenn, PS, Attorney at Law, 385 NW Dogwood Street, Issaquah, WA, 98027.

(425) 392-0351.

Published in the Methow Valley News January 21, 28 and February 4, 2015.

LEGAL NOTICE Town of Twisp Request for Statement of Qualifications For Establishing a Consultant Roster The Town of Twisp (pursuant to Chapter 61, Laws of 1981) requests Statements of Qualifications (SOQ) and performance information from firms interested in providing professional engineering and land surveying services for the 2015 year in conjunction with Town sponsored projects.

Potential projects include improvements to the Town’s water and wastewater systems, street and storm drainage system, airport, pool, park and recreational facilities.

Professional services may include, but are not limited to planning, grant and loan application assistance, project cost estimating, surveying, environmental documentation, permit acquisition, and design and construction engineering.

Additional information about possible anticipated projects may be obtained by contacting Town Hall at 509-997-4081 or emailing to: publicworks@ townoftwisp.com.

Statements shall include 1) description of the firm, 2) a listing of the types of services the firm provides, 3) description of the consultant’s team including references, 4) descriptions of relevant project experience related to the facilities and services listed above, and 5) firm references.

Statements of qualifications will be reviewed, placed on file for the 2015 year and will be used as the source from which to select one or more qualified firms from whom a detailed proposal will be requested for any specific project. Projects may be totally or partially funded through the Washington State Community Development Block Grant program (with federal funds provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development), the Washington State Department

of Health, Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, U. S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development, Environmental Protection Agency, State and Tribal Assistance Grant, Transportation Improvement Board, or Washington Department of Transportation/ Federal Highway Administration funding programs. Cost plus percentage of construction cost contracts will not be allowed and a number of state and federal equal opportunity and affirmative action requirements will apply to the selection process and conduct of each project.

Minorityand womenowned firms are encouraged to submit statements of qualifications. The Town is an equal opportunity employer.

Questions regarding this solicitation should be directed to the Town of Twisp at P.O. Box 278, 118 S. Glover St., Twisp, WA 98856.

The Town publishes this request in accordance with the requirements of RCW 39.80.

Contracts with selected firms will be negotiated in accordance with RCW 39.80.

Two copies of the SOQ shall be submitted to the Town (received or postmarked) no later than 5:00 p.m., PST, February 26, 2015.

Interviews may or may not be conducted. The Town reserves the right to select the consultant based upon written qualifications only, or to advertise and retain other consultants on individual projects independent of the firm selected from this solicitation.

Published in the Methow Valley News, January 28th & February 4th, 2015 LEGAL NOTICE TOWN OF TWISP - NOTICE OF PUBLIC SMALL WORKS ROSTER 2015 In accordance with RCW 39.04.155, the Town of Twisp maintains a Small Works Roster and is now accepting applications.

Small works contracts are for public works projects with an estimated cost of construction and/ or services not to exceed $300,000. The Town will accept proposals for jobs from all appropriate contractors who request to be on the list by submitting a completed application. Jobs include, but are not limited to the following: building maintenance and construction, electrical, street and sidewalk construction and maintenance including snow clearing, sewer and water system work, landscaping and excavation. A Small Works Roster application can be obtained from Town Hall (118 S. Glover Street), call 509997-4081 or visit our website at www.townoftwisp.com/ publicworks.html - EOE Published in the Methow Valley News, January 28, 2015

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Page B4

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Methow Valley News

News of Record

Comment invited again on county comp plan

By Marcy Stamper

Interested citizens will have at least one more opportunity on Monday (Feb. 2) to give county commissioners their ideas about whether the county’s comp plan outlines the future they want for Okanogan County.

The Okanogan County commissioners adopted a revised comprehensive plan at the end of last year, but were persuaded by reactions from the public that the hearing — held just three

days before Christmas — had not given people an adequate opportunity to weigh in on the final draft of the plan, which has been undergoing revisions for the past eight years.

In addition to the main comp plan, the commissioners adopted two subarea plans for the Methow Valley, an interim zoning ordinance and related maps.

In a resolution passed early this month, the commissioners decided to reconsider the comp plan only, but Okanogan County

Planning Director Perry Huston said he believes the commissioners are open to public comment on any of the documents.

After taking more verbal and written testimony, the commissioners may re-adopt the plan, rescind it, or send it to the planning department for more work.

They may also move to reconsider or ask for changes on the other documents, said Huston.

The hearing on Monday is at 1:30 p.m. in the commissioners’ hearing room in Okanogan.

People will be allowed three minutes of verbal testimony at the hearing. They can also submit written comments before the hearing to ljohns@co.okanogan. wa.us.

The comp plan, Methow plans and zoning ordinance, along with the resolutions adopting them, are available on the Planning Department website at www.okanogancounty.org/planning.

For more information, call Huston at (509) 422-7218.

Harts Pass

By Erik Brooks

Compiled by Don Nelson

Okanogan County Sheriff’s Office Jan. 9

ASSAULT: Caller on Ross Road, Twisp, said a man had assaulted a woman and the man was now walking down Highway 153.

Jan. 11

Jan. 25

ASSAULT: Caller on Marble Street, Twisp, reported that his nephew was assaulted the previous evening.

SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY: Caller on Wildcat Ridge Road, Twisp, reported that a neighbor had seen a man walking up the caller’s driveway toward a home that is not currently occupied.

HARASSMENT: A woman on West Chewuch Road, Winthrop, reported that her boyfriend was refusing to leave her alone and kept coming to her residence.

Jan. 10

ABANDONED VEHICLE: An abandoned vehicle was reported at Twin Lakes Road and Bryan Road, Winthrop, and was blocking the roadway.

Jan. 13

The task force looking at facilities needs for the Methow Valley School District has reconvened for the first time since the summer and is reviewing the status of buildings, athletic fields and school buses.

Last year the task force recommended putting two levies — $4.5 million for facilities improvements and $800,000 for transportation — to voters, but the school board postponed the election to be sensitive to eco-

nomic and emotional needs of the community after the Carlton Complex Fire.

The task force — more than 25 people, including some new members — met Monday (Jan. 26) to review their former recom-

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mendations and see if any needs have changed, according to task force co-chair Sarah Brooks.

The group includes staff, students and community members.

The district was able to use some of the $56,000 it received for use of the campus as a fire camp this summer to repair the heaters in the Cub gym and to address other small issues, said Methow Valley School District Superintendent Tom Venable.

The task force is meeting again next week to look in more detail at facilities at all three schools. “I think of it more as a pause button—we’re not completely starting from scratch,” said Brooks.

The group will put together an informational mailing for all voters in the school district, which will be sent out in February. They also plan a public meeting to solicit feedback before making a final decision.

The task force’s goal is to make a recommendation to the school board directors by early March about the most urgent repairs and upgrades.

The recommendation would also include a decision about the type of funding they would ask voters to support — either a bond or a levy. The earliest possible election would be April 28.

Jan. 24 SEARCH AND RESCUE: Report of a 74-year-old cross country skier with a possible broken femur or hip, in the area of the River Run Trail.

SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY: Caller on Twin Lakes Road, Winthrop, reported a suspicious vehicle near a mailbox. The vehicle left when the caller approached.

S U S P I C I O U S CIRCUMSTANCES: Caller on Twisp-Carlton Road observed a man in the area of a nearby vacation home.

Jan. 12

District’s facilities task force resumes work

UTILITY PROBLEM: A power outage was reported on West Twisp Avenue, Twisp.

CIVIL MATTER: Caller in Twisp reported that he had given a gun to a man in March so the man could decide if he wanted to buy the gun, but the potential buyer had repeatedly refused to return the gun and was now claiming that the caller never gave it to him.

Jan. 16 NON-INJURY ACCIDENT: A non-injury accident was reported on Highway 20.

Jan. 19 INJURED ANIMAL: An injured deer was reported on Highway 153, Methow.

Jan. 21 CHECK ON PERSONAL WELFARE: Caller requested a check on the personal welfare of a person on French Creek Road, Methow.

TRAFFIC HAZARD: Caller reported that a pedestrian walking in the area of Highway 153 and Iris Lane, Twisp, was wearing dark clothing and the caller’s vehicle almost struck him, and the pedestrian didn’t seem to be dressed for cold weather.

Jan. 22 THREATS: A caller on Twin Lakes Road, Winthrop, reported that someone in Stevens County was threatening them.

Jan. 23 ANIMAL ABUSE: Caller reported concern that a dog was being kept in a horse trailer on Twisp River Road and apparently was not getting food or water.

Twisp Police Department

could see someone inside a building on Highway 20.

VEHICLE PROWL: Caller reported that a vehicle on Highway 20 was broken into and some medication was taken.

SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY: Suspicious activity was reported on Bridge Street.

SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY: Caller reported seeing someone inside a building on Horizon Flats Road, possibly the owner.

Jan. 9 UNSECURED PREMISES: An open gate was reported at a location on Highway 20.

Jan. 10 CITIZEN ASSIST: The Marshal’s Office provided a courtesy ride for a disabled bicyclist.

Jan. 11

Jan. 8 VICIOUS ANIMAL: A vicious animal was reported on North Lincoln Street.

Jan. 10 STRAY ANIMAL: A stray dog was reported on Hagerman Street.

Jan. 15 AGENCY ASSIST: There was a complaint about black ice on Highway 20 near Twisp.

Jan. 19 WARRANT ARREST: A warrant arrest took place on East Methow Valley Highway.

Jan. 21 POSSIBLE SUICIDE THREAT: Caller on East Methow Valley Highway reported that he had received a call from a highly intoxicated friend who was talking about suicide, and had tried to commit suicide in the past.

Jan. 22 HARASSMENT: A possible harassment incident was reported on Magers Street.

ANIM AL PRO BLE M: An animal problem was reported on East Twisp Avenue.

COMPUTER CRIME: Some kind of computer crime may have been committed on Alder Street.

Jan. 23 DISORDERLY CONDUCT: Disorderly conduct of some kind was reported on East Methow Valley Highway.

Jan. 24 ACCIDENT: It was reported that a single vehicle had been involved in a roll-over accident on Highway 20, Winthrop, in extreme black ice conditions.

Winthrop Marshal’s Office Jan. 8 SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY: Caller reported that they

CITIZEN ASSIST: The Marshal’s Office assisted a motorist at the post office on Highway 20.

Jan. 12 TRAFFIC HAZARD: An unsecured load was reported on Highway 20.

Jan 15 FOUND PROPERTY: Found property was reported at a location on Riverside Avenue.

Jan. 21 JUVENILE PROBLEM: It was reported from Twin Lakes Road that a child was having a “violent episode” and would not be able to get on the school bus.

Jan. 23 JUVENILE PROBLEM: An officer assisted with a child who was “having a bad day” and whose behavior was escalating, at a location on Twin Lakes Road.

Okanogan County District Court Eddie Ray Carpenter, 35, of Winthrop, pleaded guilty to third-degree Driving While License Suspended.

He was sentenced to 90 days with 87 suspended and fined a total of $858.

Okanogan County Superior Court Jacob R. G. Nanamkin, 24, of Twisp, pleaded guilty to Possession of a Controlled Substance. He was sentenced to 45 days and fined a total of $1,110.50.

Ashley Rae Hansen, 27, of Winthrop, pleaded guilty to Lottery Fraud and firstdegree Theft. She was sentenced to 150 days and fined a total of $1,110.50.

The court found probable cause to charge Carl Robert Coshow, 31, of Twisp, with third-degree Assault of a Child. Bail was set at $5,000.

Real Estate PUBLISHER'S NOTICE: All real estate advertising in this newspaper is subject to the Fair Housing Act which makes it illegal to advertise "any preference, limitation or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin, or an intention, to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination." Familial status includes children under the age of 18 living with parents or legal custodians, pregnant women and people

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Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Page B5

‘It all started with underwear’: Nectar expands boutique

By Laurelle Walsh

A small business owner who pays close attention to customer feedback and sales has the ability to morph and change their business in response to customer interests and preferences.

Such is the case of Nectar Skin Bar in Winthrop, whose owner, Leslie Lanthorn, recently

expanded the boutique end of her business.

“It all started with underwear and grew from there,” said Lanthorn. “Underwear triggered the whole boutique thing.”

That underwear, made by Intertwined Designs of Mazama of a fabric called Soy Luscious, quickly became a large part of Nectar’s retail sales as “local gals

began replacing their underwear, one pair at a time,” said Lanthorn. Skirts, dresses and tops by Intertwined are also on Nectar’s racks.

Now, around half of Nectar’s storefront is dedicated to sustainably made, natural-fiber clothing

by Intertwined Designs, Yala and Wooden Ships, as well as several lines of jewelry and accessories,

including Methow Made brands.

“Women a re hungr y for comfortable clothing in natural fibers,” said Lanthorn. And, these clothing lines fit in well with Nectar’s already established skin- and hair-care products and skincare services, she said.

Intertwined Designs owner Betsy Cassell-Thomas credits Nectar’s boutique with “keeping

me busy this winter. It’s a great relationship that works well for both of us,” she said.

Cassell-Thomas, who moved her clothing business to the Methow from Bellingham in 2013, said, “It was a scary move, but Nectar has helped make the transition easier for my business.”

To ma ke spac e for t he expanded boutique and a dress-

ing room, Lanthorn took out the pedicure chair and discontinued that service last month. “It was a business decision,” Lanthorn said. “There’s not a lot of interest in pedicures and it takes up a lot of space.”

Unused pedicure gift certificates can be exchanged for any service or product in the store, Lanthorn said.

Mount Gardner Massage moves to a new address in Winthrop

By Laurelle Walsh

Although “one success begets another” most often refers to a single business, sometimes the success of one can rub off on another.

This may be true for Denise Heatley’s massage practice, Mount

Gardner Massage, which, she feels, was positively affected by the success of Nectar Skin Bar. Mount Gardner Massage was situated next door to Lanthorn’s Nectar when they were both in the Coldwell Banker building in Winthrop. “Working next to

Leslie inspired me a lot,” said Heatley. “Watching Leslie grow Nectar has given me the courage to move into my own new space.”

That new space is in the Winthrop Physical Therapy and Fitness building, 202 White Ave., a location with better exposure, she said.

“It’s a desirable spot. I’ve wanted to be in this space for years.”

Heatley had a massage practice in Twisp until 2004, when she became co-owner and operator of Boulder Creek Deli until 2008. She also helped manage the dining room at Freestone

Inn until 2013, after which she reopened her massage business in Winthrop. She moved into the new location at Winthrop Fitness last June, shortly before the Carlton Complex Fire broke out.

“I was still trying to build my business during the fire. It was

difficult,” Heatley said. “Business started picking up right around Christmas,” she said.

“Now it’s going great. I have new clients every week.”

Mount Gardner Massage may be found on Facebook. For more information call (509) 341-4228.

Shotgun Nellies to occupy part of White Buck building Shotgun Nellies, a Westernthemed home decor and gift shop that opened in Winthrop last April, has temporarily closed its doors, but plans to re-open at a new location on the boardwalk on April 1.

The store’s new home will be at 241 Riverside Ave., in a new space that’s being remodeled in the White Buck building, according to owner Nilsine Harris.

“We’re going bigger,” said

Community briefs Grizzlies in the North Cascades

“Ghost Bears: Studying Grizzly Bears in the North Cascades” is the topic of the Methow Conservancy’s next First Tuesday program (Feb. 3) at the Twisp River Pub. The free event begins at 7 p.m. Featured speaker is wildlife ecologist Bill Gaines, who will discuss his three-year search for elusive grizzly bears in the North Cascades and talk about the history

School menu

Harris, tripling Shotgun Nellies’ former 380 square feet to nearly 1,100 square feet, she said.

“I have a lot of cool new things coming in for locals,” said Harris, who wants her business to be

File photo by Laurelle Walsh Nilsine Harris opened Shotgun Nellies near the end of last April in a small location on the Winthrop boardwalk.

as much for valley residents as for visitors. “Locals have been a huge support,” she said.

Harris plans to post updates on Shotgun Nellies’ Facebook page as things progress, she said.

Tickets on sale for the Bite of the Methow of grizzlies in the Pacific Northwest.

For more information, call 996-2870.

Help with health care

Nicole Langan, a certified health care broker from Country Financial, will be at the Methow Valley Community Center in Twisp all next week (Feb. 2-6) from 8 a.m.–4 p.m. each day to provide personal assistance with submitting health care applications. Call (509) 341-4608 to schedule an appointment. There is no charge for the service.

THURSDAY, JAN. 29: Breakfast burrito; chicken nuggets, roll; ham sandwich deli option.

FRIDAY, JAN. 30: Professional day, no school.

MONDAY, FEB. 2: Bagel, yogurt; lasagna rolls; ham Caesar wrap deli option.

TUESDAY, FEB. 3: Breakfast burrito; sloppy joes; turkey sandwich deli option.

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 4: Granola, yogurt; teriyaki dippers; taco bar deli option.

THURSDAY, FEB. 5: Breakfast bagel; chicken patty mozzarella, ham sandwich deli option.

FRIDAY, FEB. 6: Muffin, hard-boiled egg; pizza; soup of the day deli option.

All breakfasts include fruit, juice and milk. The breakfast burrito is subject to change but will always be an egg dish. All lunches include a trip through the fruit and vegetable bar. Milk is 1 percent or non-fat.

The 2015 Bite of the Methow is coming up on March 14, and Winthrop Kiwanis is already gearing up for the event.

A combination chefs’ showcase, auction night and social extravaganza, Kiwanis’s annual Bite raises big money for projects that benefit valley kids.

Past projects have improved facilities at the elementary school playground, the Winthrop ball field and the library.

Last year’s Fund-A-Dream project helped replace wrestling mats at Liberty Bell High School.

With a limit of 375 entry tickets available this year, event organizer Bob Stone expects the Bite to sell out early, and recommends not waiting until the last minute, he said. Tickets are on sale now for $15, and may be purchased from any Winthrop Kiwanis member.

For the second year running, a 7-day cruise for two on Holland America Line will be raffled off at the Bite.

Cruise winners can choose a trip to Mexico, the Caribbean, New England or Alaska. Five hundred cruise raffle tickets will be sold by Kiwanis mem-

bers for $20 each, starting on Feb. 1.

Kurt and Pearl Ramke of Winthrop were the winners of last year’s cruise raffle, and had “an incredible experience” cruising up the Inside Passage from Vancouver, B.C., to Skagway, Alaska. “They just spoil you rotten,” said Pearl. They will definitely enter the cruise raffle again this year, said Kurt, who sees the Bite as a great opportunity to help the valley.

For more information about the Bite of the Methow, contact Stone at 996-3991.

Methow Valley Senior Center Calendar

Feb.3: Bus to Omak Feb. 5: Blood pressure checks Feb. 10: Hank’s Harvest Foods senior appreciation day Feb. 17: Bus to Wenatchee March 27: Spring and summer sale starts April 7: Over-80 party

Notes We are going to have a pre-game party for the Super Bowl on Friday (Jan. 30).

The dining room is all decorated up in green-and-blue Seahawks colors with footballs and players’ pictures, thanks to Randee’s handiwork. I hear we are going

to have some games and prizes along with the door prize gift basket. So show your support and wear the colors and come have some fun.

Our spring and summer sale date has been set for March 27, so you can find some Easter finery and other Easter goodies. So think spring.

The Hank’s Harvest Foods senior appreciation dinner is going to be on Feb. 10 at the community center gym, so mark your calendar for some good food, music and fun.

One of our long-time members passed away — Lester Boccuzzi, or uncle Lester as he was called. Also, one of our other member’s son passed away. Our condo-

lences got out to their families.

The bus to Omak will be Feb. 3, because of the dinner on Feb. 10.

The Thrift Shop is open Monday, Thursday and Friday from 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. We are now closed on Saturdays until next April.

The Senior Center is located next to the Methow Valley Community Center on Highway 20 in Twisp. Lunch is served at noon by the Okanogan County Transportation and Nutrition Program on Monday, Thursday and Friday. The suggested donation for lunch is $3.25 for seniors over age 60; the cost is $8 for those under 60. Annual membership dues are $1.25. For more information,

call 997-7722.

Transportation is available locally for the senior lunch program, and for monthly trips to Omak/Okanogan the second Tuesday of the month and to Wenatchee the third Tuesday of the month. Call the Senior Center at 997-7722 for additional details.

Lunch menu THURSDAY, JAN. 29: Hot roast beef sandwich, mashed potatoes, baby carrots, green salad, mixed fruit, Jell-O with topping.

FRIDAY, JAN. 30: Baked chicken, stuffing, cauliflower, coleslaw, apricots, biscuit.

Health Directory Al Anon Meetings

NA MEETINGS Narcotics Anonymous weekly meetings

Support group for families of those with chemical dependencies

Columbia River

10

Sunday @ 5pm only

Tuesdays, 6:30 pm at St. Genevieve Catholic Church, Twisp Fridays, 8:30 am at Masonic Hall, Twisp

at Horseshoe Mobile Home Clubhouse 305 Magers Street, Twisp

509-997-9243 for more info

509-826-6371 for more info

Locations

ACROSS the region

& growing

1.800.660.2129

Se Habla Espanol WWW . MYFAMILYHEALTH . ORG

AA MEETINGS Twisp: 509-997-0356

Sun. 9:30 am & 6:30 pm Mon. 7:30am & 6:30pm, Tues. 6:30pm at Masonic Lodge Wed. 7pm at Calvary Chapel

Winthrop: 509-996-8174 Thur. & Fri. 7pm at Friendship Church Sat: 7pm at the Winthrop Fire Hall

Aero Methow Rescue E M E RGE NC Y Office: 997-4013

Health & Service Directories ~ Deadline for ad placement & changes is Friday at 5 pm for insertion in the next Wednesday’s paper.

Directory ads are $8 per column inch. Additional charges may apply for color. To have your service listed please call 997-7011.

Valley Life

Page B6

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Here in West Boesel it is a foggy Monday morning. A mile to the west, just over Weeman Bridge, all the way to the high mountains the sun is Bob Spiwak out and despite ambient temperatures, it is a very hot sun. However short it may be, the melt is on. This can have its down side, no pun intended.

Last Saturday morning the road was so icy that, downside-up, there was a car in the ditch, partially buried. Apparently there were no major injuries and when I stopped, Brian Sweet, who had helped at

The post-race Pursuit Dinner at the Winthrop Barn last weekend gave skiers and spectators a chance to relax and enjoy a salmon dinner cooked by Methow Valley Nordic Team parents as well as to hear some of the older team memAshley Lodato bers show videos of their recent Junior National qualifier races. Several attendees went home with pairs of master racer Kent Murdoch’s skis, while two lucky ducks won $500 gift certificates to Winthrop Mountain Sports, donated by Diane and Rita. Hello, shopping spree!

At the end of the evening the crowd cleared out and many skiers went home to rest up for their 30-kilometer skate race the next day. But Margo Aspholm, who had been on her feet in the kitchen since 8 a.m. preparing the dinner, took to the stage and with the accompaniment of the jazz band treated the clean-up crew to sultry renditions of “Autumn Leaves” and a few other classics.

For non-football fans, this whole 12th Man business is a little bewildering. There’s a lot of energy (not to mention money) going into blueand-green clothes, Seahawks-inspired make-up and haircuts, and creatively outrageous displays of team loyalty. Meanwhile, 50,000 gallons of oil just spilled into the Yellowstone River. Boko Haram is destroying Nigeria. And right here at home there are people who rely on the food bank to help feed their families. In light of all that, who cares about football scores? Millions of people, that’s who.

What I’m realizing is the reason that many people care so much — why the Seahawks winning or losing really matters to them — is that in the grand scheme of things, it doesn’t matter at all. Whether or not the Hawks win has a minuscule, if any, impact on the quality of most of our lives. All those other things — religious extremist violence, environmental pollution, civil rights, generational poverty — those things really matter. But we all must have a certain capacity for caring about the things that really count, and beyond that we have a need to care a lot about things that are of little consequence, and upon whose outcome we have absolutely no influence.

Hence, the Seahawks (or to be fair, any other NFL team) mania.

For some of us, our pointless caring is wondering whether Frank Underwood will ever make it to the Oval Office (some of us are still a few episodes behind); for others it’s a burning curiosity about the Duchess of Cambridge’s latest couture maternity dress (see, even I know that she’s pregnant). But this is the week of all weeks to care about football, so to all you 12th men and women out there I say “Go ’Hawks.”

Off the wall

the scene, came to my car and said he was taking the occupant(s?) to his place up the road. Way to go, Brian.

It has been about 10,000 years since the last ice age, give or take an eon or two, and according to some academic pundits, the warming of the globe is a precursor to the beginning of another ice age. We seem to have both phenomena here in the valley, in that the snow (albeit less than average) in the upper valley is notable while it diminishes further south.

We tried the snow rake on a couple of our outbuildings and it was a losing battle with two layers of thick ice sandwiching the snow.

But things, despite the fog and gray days, were looking good for the Nordic Festival last weekend.

According to Danica Ready of the Methow Trails organization, the number of participants was up from years past. The Methow, she observed, has

a nationwide groundswell of actions being taken against pollution of water through natural product fertilization.

The good news for golfers here and abroad is that the Bear Creek course will be open as usual when spring comes and the snow is gone. This from the new operators Terry and Debbie Evans, who will be leasing the course for the coming season, and according to Ash Court the lease will be renewable.

The venerable links has been built, owned and managed by the Court family for 50 years, except for a brief hiatus a few years ago. The only change the Evanses have announced is that the $500 season pass will have the state sales tax added, rather than included in the fee. Also, it is good to know that on the course, only the greens are fertilized, and lightly. The rest of the lovely greenery is all in the hands of Ma Nature.

the surface of various pieces, adding either drama or whimsy.

Other statues balance thick slabs of ice gleaned from the southern fork of Gold Creek that flows nearby. The thick panes of ice glisten in the sun like glass and crystal. Throughout the day, the reflection changes — frosted in the morning, luminous in the bright afternoon.

Other art galleries may rotate their featured art every few months.

Tony’s gallery evolves daily. Features and expressions change with the warmth of the sun before freezing overnight. Statues soften and lean ever so slightly in differing degrees before submitting completely to the snow covered ground. New sculptures appear, freshly carved and formed in sharp detail, next to their melting counterparts.

If you think about it, Tony’s art is a living gallery, frozen in situ.

The Methow Va l l e y i s renowned for its perfect mix of snow. The accumulation of perfect little snowflakes is not too dry nor too wet. It is the Joanna Bastian perfect blend for groomed ski and fat bike trails. It is also the perfect medium for sculpting snowmen, snow bears, and even stalwart Roman soldiers.

On the corner of Gold Creek and South Fork Gold Creek roads, the Luchtes have a Seattle Seahawk “snow fan” all decked out in 12th snowman gear. But the Seahawks are so hot, the little guy is practically melting in all his excitement.

A little further up the South Fork of Gold Creek there is a snow bear, a snow soldier, and a snow dial, along with a whole host of other intricately carved, frozen sculptures. The entire outdoor art gallery is the creative expression of local artist, Tony DeRosa.

Tony will sculpt images out of most anything: paper, wood and stone have all morphed into physical represen-

tations of his creativity. The snowstorms and freezing temperatures in December and January gave Tony yet another source of sculpting materials — snow and ice.

Tony’s design concept is far more precise than the giant rolled snowballs and resulting crisscrossed wacky paths that define a yard that hosts a snowman. The area around the sculptures is a neatly cleared art floor of packed snow. Visitors can easily walk around and enjoy the diverse collection.

When asked about how he came up with the idea of the soldier, Tony explained, “I dreamt about this Roman soldier the night before and when I woke up in the morning, I thought, ‘yeah, I can make that!’”

Tony first forms the snowy statues with mounds and mounds of packable snow. Features are then carved out of the surface — the rounded ears and nose of a bear, the curved edges of a heart, the expression on the lips of a soldier. When asked to describe his snow sculpting tools, Tony laughed. “The great thing about snow is anything will work as a tool — saws, spatulas …” he shrugged, “pretty much anything.”

Icicles — glistening exclamations of ice — are then added to the snow sculpture. The Roman soldier holds a nearly 3-foot sword that just days ago hung as an icicle from the edge of Tony’s roof. Stalactites of ice pierce

Photo by Joanna Bastian Tony DeRosa next to his Roman soldier, frozen in time on Gold Creek.

It’s not surpr ising that I dreamed of snow last night; I was watching The Weather Channel before I went to sleep. Two Sally Gracie young women in very short skirts and low-cut blouses hyped the “historic,” “record breaking,” “blockbuster” blizzard that would dump as much as 3 feet of snow on parts of the Northeast on Monday night (Jan. 26) through Wednesday (Jan. 28).

My snow dream included flashes from past snowfalls.

An image from a weathercast from Minnesota or Wisconsin earlier this winter became a refrigerator sculpted into my front door frame, filled with Lean Cuisine, Ben & Jerry’s, and

soft drink cans. The electric power was gone, but, fortunately, my dream house had a pellet stove and lots of battery-powered lanterns. My Verizon cell phone wasn’t working, so I had no way to contact anyone. I couldn’t see anything from the windows because snow had drifted up close to the roof.

I woke up before the dream turned to total nightmare.

Nightmare is what many people on the East Coast will be facing for the next few days if the forecasts are accurate. We in the Methow Valley will be thinking of our friends and families there, who are being told to “be prepared to be in a house without power for 48-60 hours.” No thanks. Been there, done that last summer.

I came to the valley expecting the average snowstorm to be as sizeable as that really big storm a few years before I arrived here in 1999. My younger son and his buddy were in the valley visiting Reed and Salyna at their place on Texas Creek when that storm happened. The photos of the storm show a van literally buried.

The roof of their “barn” collapsed from the weight of the snow.

I’ve since learned from experience that ordinary snowstorms here may not drop as many inches in one go-round as the occasional storm dumps in Baltimore. The difference is that our snow stays on the ground through the winter.

I much prefer accumulating snow to one big blizzard. Heavy snows and a blizzard in February 2010 created more snow in Baltimore for the season than we get in Twisp in an average year.

Even a threat of snow empties supermarket shelves and opens schools late in Baltimore County.

Baltimore County Public Schools were even closed today before the historic snow had begun; early today the mayor of New York City closed his schools for Tuesday. Baltimore County Schools (where I was employed for close to 30 years) schedules seven “just-in-case” snow days into the calendar. The Methow Valley School District no longer allows for any snow days at all in its schedule.

The district just wasn’t using them, according to a Liberty Bell High

Lessons from one’s dotage: ‘it’ happens

This morning (Jan. 16), I got a letter caught my eye was that cremation had in the mail from The Neptune Society. less impact on the environment. I quesI get very little mail other than email, tion this because environmental experts so I was excited to open it. claim that smoke is a major I guessed it had to do with cause of climate change, assisted suicide. Ms. Gloria which used to be called suggested it was to have my “global warming.” Or the remains frozen. I scoffed at other way around. this — sure, and if I order To learn more about the now they will give me a society’s benefits, the likebonus minus-10 degrees. We able company has included both were wrong. in bold italic script a code The Neptune Society is, it that can be used to send for says in a florally embossed Bob Spiwak more information. This is note, “America’s Cremation akin to the passwords for Specialists.” The note is quite lengthy things like eBay, Facebook, Consumer and they are not advocating a mere Cellular and the like. Of course I have toasting, but rather a memorialized one forgotten all of them and, where I noted at that. Among the list of benefits that them on paper, have forgotten where

Valley Life Contacts

become iconic for its winters and in prior years not as many people came here from places afar, including Alaska, Montana and points east.

At Harts Pass yesterday, the snow depth was down 6 inches over the week to 74 inches. The snow/water equivalent likewise was slightly diminished to 117 percent of average.

Farmers in the Midwest are now considering the limits of being “green.” According to a piece on “The Farm Report” on TV Sunday morning, a farmer who has been fertilizing his fields with manure (source not named) is being sued by a local water district as well as other organizations for polluting wells along with several rivers. He did not use chemical fertilizers, as is the case with many of us here in the Methow. As we who are rural folk have wells for all our water needs, the Iowa tidbit is mentioned here because there is apparently

Methow Valley News

Mazama: Bob Spiwak, 996-2777 or badwater@centurytel.net

those are as well. Neptune knows this, hoping that I will hasten to send it to them before I forget. Or die.

They even have that base (or is it vase?) covered. The note ends with the admonition: “P.S. Sometimes deaths happen before you have had a chance to put plans in place. Neptune stands ready to assist you at a moments notice should you ever need immediate help.”

If this has been addressed to me, and I am already dead, I cannot see how Neptune will be of much help.

But wait folks, there’s more. If I return the completed enclosed card I can win a pre-paid cremation. Neptune even tells me who last month’s winner was. Don’t worry, sir. I won’t reveal your name just

Winthrop: Ashley Lodato, 996-3363 or ashleylodato@alumni.stanford.edu

in case you are still with us.

My wife noted that we must be on some master mailing list because of our ages. We regularly get blurbs from funeral homes, are inundated with hearing aid practitioners’ propaganda, and pitches by sellers of large-button computers that have pictures rather than writing. And it is true, we are of that age.

If I did not know that from my birthday party, all it takes is the regular end-ofthe-year pantheons of deceased famous people that appear on TV and Internet.

Now I am not claiming to be famous, other than in West Boesel, population nine. But the people who notably died in the past year were generally movie stars I remember, or sports people, or gangsters of my childhood.

Twisp: Sally Gracie, 997-4364 or sgracie@centurytel.net

School employee. It should be noted that Baltimore County has 800 school buses and a litigious clientele.

Weather reporters refer to the storm that’s advancing on New York and Boston as “crippling,” a “bomb,” a “blockbuster.” The Weather Channel (TWC), not NOAA, has named the storm. When I lived in Baltimore, hurricanes had names. Winter storms, even blizzards, didn’t. These days, if a committee of meteorologists at TWC deems that the storm will impact a significant number of people, they name it. Snow and winds accompanying the “Historic Blizzard of 2015” will affect 28 million people, according to TWC. That’s why it has a name: Juno.

Besides politics, disastrous weather makes great television. That’s why I’ll be watching TWC. My very good neighbor Nolan Wilson has kept my front yard cleared of snow with his snow blower and, if that’s not working, a larger piece of machinery. If my snow dream ever becomes reality, I expect he’ll be here.

I hope he will.

I am at the age where I won’t willingly drive in the dark in the snow.

Something we’ll call “it” will happen that I cannot deal with in my dotage.

A flat tire, a deer collision, “it” can be anything. This may be sexist, but true: When a guy first drives a car, “it” does not exist. Over the years “it” becomes an avoidable possibility. Once married and with children, “it” is lurking around very corner. By the age when Social Security is hoping you’ll die and the doctor expects the event, an “it” paranoia circles the cerebrum.

One of these days I will write about the money-saving option of selling one’s remains to a university. It is still a remote choice. But first I want to see if I win the Neptune Society lottery.

Methow: Joanna Bastian, (509) 341-4617 or MethowJoanna@gmail.com