Tulalip News

VAWA passes 78-22

By Monica Brown, Tulalip News Writer, February 12, 2013

The VAWA bill has passed 78 to 22 today. It already had 62 co-sponsors which helped ensure its passage, but it picked up additional support from a handful of Republicans who weren’t already sponsoring it.

“Today the Senate took a major step forward to protect all victims of domestic violence across America,” Sen. Maria Cantwell said. “And because of the Senate bill, nearly 500,000 women in Indian Country will receive better protection if we can get this onto the President’s desk and signed.”

The reauthorization bill includes improvements to extend domestic violence protections to individuals, including women in Tribal communities, who suffer disproportionately from domestic violence due to complex jurisdictional loopholes.

The Senate’s reauthorization bill increases protection for 30 million women regardless of sexual orientation, immigration status, or residency on Tribal land. The bill authorizes $659 million over five years for VAWA programs and expands VAWA to include new protections for LGBT and Native American victims of domestic violence, to give more attention to sexual assault prevention and to help reduce a backlog in processing rape kits.

Senators voted on a few amendments to the bill. They voted 93 to 5 to include a provision that targets human trafficking, and 100 to 0 on a provision that ensures child victims of sex trafficking are eligible for grant assistance. They rejected the amendments by Sen. Tom Coburn (Okla.) to consolidate certain Department of Justice programs and to allow grants for sexually transmitted disease tests on sexual assault perpetrators.

“The Senate sent a very clear message that no matter where you live, you deserve to be protected,” Sen. Cantwell said at today’s press conference. “And the message was equally clear that you cannot escape accountability for committing crimes against women. So this final bill that we now move to the House of Representatives will help us close the gap in the legal system for prosecuting domestic violence on Indian reservations.”

“The clock is still ticking and over 160 million women across the country are watching and waiting to see if the House will act on this bill and finally provide them the protections from violence they deserve. And just like last Congress, we all know it will take leadership from Speaker Boehner and Leader Cantor to move this bill forward. The fate of VAWA still lies squarely on their shoulders and too many women have been left vulnerable while they have played politics,” Sen. Patty Murray

The issue of tribal court is expected to be a hurdle as lawmakers try to reconcile the Senate bill with the eventual House bill. Two House Republicans, Tom Cole (Okla.), who is of Native American heritage, and Darrell Issa (Ca.) — have been pushing a compromise that would give defendants the right to request that their trial be moved to a federal court if they felt they were not getting a fair trial. Others have argued that those tried in Indian courts should have better defined rights to appeal to federal courts.

Seattle experiencing attacks on women

By Monica Brown, Tulalip News Writer

Seattle Police are currently investigating four separate attacks on four women since Friday Feb 8^th. The men have been described in their 20’s with thin to medium builds. Three of the women were able to escape with minor injuries but one was sexually assaulted. So far they have no leads as to whether the attacks are related. The Seattle times have constructed a map to view the locations of the attacks.

View the whole story here:

http://blogs.seattletimes.com/today/2013/02/third-woman-reports-attack-in-north-seattle-all-since-sunday/

Brush up on your self-defense skills. Be safe and if you don’t have to, try not to go anywhere dark and/or unfamiliar alone.

10 BEST SELF-DEFENSE AWARENESS TIPS:

Source: http://www.attackproof.com/10-best-self-defense-tips.html

These 10 tips have been circulated for quite some time now. Guided Chaos Grandmaster John Perkins and Prof. Bradley Steiner have added to the original tips. This is a small list of things to be aware of but it should serve as a start for some folks who have not studied the topic.

1. Tip from Tae Kwon Do: The elbow is the strongest point on your body. If you are close enough to use it, do!

Brad Steiner: While this is a good point, it may not be the best tip for someone unskilled in karate. It does take a bit of dexterity and training before the elbow, per se, may be employed reliably as a weapon — especially by a woman in normal attire, against a large, strong male. I would recommend driving open and extended fingers-to-eyes, or using a chinjab followed by raising the elbow of the striking arm and then eye-gouging. BITING, if grabbed hold of, and kicking like crazy, is also good. Just opening the hand and whipping a surprise handaxe to the throat is also good. Head butting is effective. I would prefer these methods because, for the complete novice, they are more likely to be delivered with sufficient force and effectiveness to facilitate escape.

2. Learned this from a tourist guide. If a robber asks for your wallet and/or purse, DO NOT HAND IT TO HIM. Toss it away from you…. Chances are that he is more interested in your wallet and/or purse than you, and he will go for the wallet/purse. RUN LIKE MAD IN THE OTHER DIRECTION!

Brad Steiner: Excellent general advice! Additionally, keeping a “throw away wallet” that is stuffed with junk or play money, etc. but that seems authentic, can be utilized with this ploy. While avoidance and escape is the best tactic, when possible, there may be contexts in which an appropriately prepared individual can feign compliance, reach for a handgun (or even a knife) under the guise of reaching for a wallet, and then . . . well, you can figure it out.

[Editor’s Note: There may be some risk however if you’re dealing with an angry psycho. It is possible that by throwing the wallet, he may just blow you away…and then casually retrieve the wallet. That being said, if he is that species of beast, he may have shot you no matter how compliant you were. All the more reason to never go with the attacker to crime scene #2 and to attack the attacker.]

3. If you are ever thrown into the trunk of a car, kick out the back tail lights, stick your arm out the hole and start waving like crazy. The driver won’t see you, but everybody else will. This has saved lives.

Brad Steiner: With modern vehicles it is possible to extricate oneself from inside the trunk of a car if you keep a cool head. HOWEVER: the smart tactic is never to permit oneself to be locked inside a vehicle trunk in the first place. Pretending to comply, then suddenly knocking any weapon aside and attacking the abductor’s eyes/throat and then running, is — I think — a better tactic that offers a greater chance of survival, on balance. Obviously the abductor does not wish to kill the person whom he orders into the vehicle’s trunk, right away. I have always been a powerful advocate of NEVER permitting oneself to be taken from a primary crime scene, if humanly possible to offer resistance. Like escape-and-evasion in military contexts, THE SOONER AND FASTER ESCAPE IS UNDERTAKEN, THE BETTER! The escape from a vehicle trunk is good counsel; nonetheless, should one find oneself thus trapped, for whatever reason).

4. Women have a tendency to get into their cars after shopping, eating, working, etc., and just sit (doing their checkbook, making a list, etc.) DON’T DO THIS! A predator may be watching you, and this is the perfect opportunity for him to get in on the passenger side, put a gun to your head, and tell you where to go. AS SOON AS YOU GET INTO YOUR CAR, LOCK THE DOORS AND LEAVE.

If someone is in the car with a gun to your head DO NOT DRIVE OFF, Repeat: DO NOT DRIVE OFF! Instead, gun the engine and speed into anything, wrecking the car. Your Air Bag will save you. If the person is in the back seat they will get the worst of it. As soon as the car crashes bail out and run. It is better than having them find your body in a remote location.

(Steiner’s comment: Good advice. Also: Always lock your vehicle and secure it when getting gas and entering the office to pay for the gas. Criminals have been known to enter vehicles and lie in wait, in the back, for the woman to come back to her vehicle and drive away. THEN, they overtake their victim who is helpless. Also: KEEP YOUR GAS TANK FULL. Never stop at stations where there are odd individuals standing, or at stations in questionable neighborhoods. Do not fill your gas tank at night. Keep your vehicle well supplied — go to brightly lit gas stations in good areas, and in broad daylight. Note: I am not 100% sure of the “drive into something” advice with a gun to your head. One does not wish to cause the weapon to go off due to the criminal’s being shocked, or simply reflexively firing as the vehicle purches. On the other hand, I can see how this tactic could save a life.)

5. A few notes about getting into your car in a parking lot, or parking garage:

a.) Be aware: look around you, look into your car, at the passenger side floor , and in the back seat.

b.) If you are parked next to a big van, enter your car from the passenger door. Most serial killers attack their victims by pulling them into their vans while the women are attempting to get into their cars.

c.) Look at the car parked on the driver’s side of your vehicle, and the passenger side… If a male is sitting alone in the seat nearest your car, you may want to walk back into the mall, or work, and get a guard/policeman to walk you back out. IT IS ALWAYS BETTER TO BE SAFE THAN SORRY. (And better paranoid than dead.)

(Steiner’s comment: THIS IS PERFECT ADVICE! WE HAVE BEEN TELLING THIS TO STUDENTS FOR DECADES! FOLLOW IT!)

6. ALWAYS take the elevator instead of the stairs. Stairwells are horrible places to be alone and the perfect crime spot. (This is especially true at NIGHT!)

(Steiner’s comment: This might be construed in the opposite, as well. Elevators can be risky. Personally, we have heard of more attacks inside elevators than we have heard of attacks in stairways. However, there is to the point made. We urge serious caution at all times, and being prepared to fight back ferociously and using the element of surprise — always with a WEAPON, if this can be done lawfully.)

7. If the predator has a gun and you are not under his control, ALWAYS RUN! The predator will only hit you (a running target) 4 in 100 times; and even then, it most likely WILL NOT be a vital organ. RUN, preferably in a zig-zag pattern!

(Steiner’s comment: GREAT ADVICE! Again, we have urged this for decades as a good tactic, and we see no reason to change the counsel. In fact, it is NOT likely that an armed criminal will in fact fire at you at all. He obviously did not wish to fire when he had you at gun point; and he can see that raising an alarm by firing when you run away will only attract attention to himself with little chance of hitting you.)

8. As women, we are always trying to be sympathetic: STOP it may get you raped, or killed. Ted Bundy, the serial killer, was a good-looking, well educated man, who ALWAYS played on the sympathies of unsuspecting women. He walked with a cane, or a limp, and often asked ‘for help’ into his vehicle or with his vehicle, which is when he abducted his next victim.

(Steiner’s comment: RIGHT! Again, we have been urging this for many, many years, and it is good advice!)

9. Another Safety Point: Someone just told me that her friend heard a crying baby on her porch the night before last, and she called the police because it was late and she thought it was weird. The police told her ‘Whatever you do, DO NOT open the door….’ The lady then said that it sounded like the baby had crawled near a window, and she was worried that it would crawl to the street and get run over. The policeman said, ‘We already have a unit on the way, whatever you do, DO NOT open the door.’ He told her that they think a serial killer has a baby’s cry recorded and uses it to coax women out of their homes thinking that someone dropped off a baby. He said they have not verified it, but have had several calls by women saying that they hear baby’s cries outside their doors when they’re home alone at night.

(Steiner’s comment: VERY, VERY VALUABLE AND IMPORTANT ADVICE!!!!)

10. Water scam! If you wake up in the middle of the night to hear all your taps outside running or what you think is a burst pipe, DO NOT GO OUT TO INVESTIGATE! These people turn on all your outside faucets full blast so that you will go out to investigate and then attack. This was mentioned on America’s Most Wanted when they profiled the serial killer in Louisiana.

(Steiner’s comment: Again — very, very valuable advice!)

Statement by Billy Frank Jr. on selection of Sally Jewell as Interior Secretary

Source: Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission

“We are excited about President Obama’s selection of Sally Jewell for Secretary of the Interior,” says Chairman Billy Frank of the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission. “We think she’s a great choice.”

Jewell, the former chief executive officer for outdoor gear giant REI, grew up in Washington state and knows the issues important to Indian tribes, Frank said. “She’s one of us, and we couldn’t be more pleased that she will be leading the Department of Interior for the next four years,” he said.

Frank said that Jewell brings a strong blend of business sense and a natural resources conservation ethic to the agency. “A healthy environment and a healthy economy can go hand-in-hand,” Frank said. “We can have both, and I think Sally Jewell will help make that happen.”

Frank praised Jewell’s knowledge of tribes and tribal issues, and respect for tribal sovereignty and treaty rights. “We are facing big challenges such as achieving salmon recovery, protecting water quality and adapting to climate change,” Frank said. “Our cultures, economies and treaty rights depend on a healthy environment and healthy natural resources.”

Because the Department of Interior also includes the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Jewell’s understanding and respect for tribal governments are critical to a good working relationship between the tribes and the agency, he said.

“I believe Sally is the right person, in the right place, at the right time,” Frank said. “We look forward to working with her, and thank President Obama for his wise choice.”

Sought-after local, sustainable seafood sold at Lummi market

Lummi tribal fishermen harvest Fraser River sockeye during 2010′s record-breaking run.

Source: Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission

Tribally caught fish sold at the Lummi Nation’s Schelangen Seafood Market is both locally sourced and sustainable, two of the most sought-after qualities for chefs, according to the National Restaurant Association.

Schelangen, in the Lummi language, means “way of life.”

“Harvesting has always been the cornerstone of our culture,” said Elden Hillaire, chairman of the Lummi Fisheries Commission. “All of our harvest targets healthy stocks while protecting weak wild runs. Fishing sustainably and being able to supply locally caught seafood is important to us.”

Locally sourced meat and seafood is the top trend in the National Restaurant Association’s What’s Hot 2013 survey. Ninth on the list is sustainable seafood. The What’s Hot list is compiled from a survey of professional chefs about the food, cuisines and culinary themes that will be popular on restaurant menus this year.

Tribes have been forced in recent years to limit fisheries because of widespread damage to salmon habitat. “Fortunately, because of careful management, we can still harvest without impacting weak wild runs,” Hillaire said. “But in the long term, sustainable harvest and the restoration of salmon habitat are our goal.”

The Lummi Gateway Center, off Interstate 5 north of Bellingham, is intended to promote community prosperity through tribal enterprise. The nearly 10,000-square-foot shopping center also includes a cafe serving lunch daily and a gift shop featuring Lummi artwork.

In addition, the Lummi Gateway Center has space for seven small businesses to start up. These “incubator” spaces will provide an opportunity for tribal members to develop a new business in a prime storefront area. The building itself has been designed to use less energy on a daily basis than a traditionally constructed building, and earned a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Silver Certification.

Hopi and Diné Meet to Discuss Future of Navajo Generating Station

By Tanya Lee, Indian Country Today Media Network

Long the cause of conflict and distrust, Black Mesa coal is becoming the key to a new approach to building a sustainable future for the Native peoples of the region and the many non-Native peoples who have lights and water because of that coal.

In early December, three generations of Navajos and Hopis met with representatives of grassroots and national human rights and environmental groups to discuss the future of Navajo Generating Station (NGS) on Navajo land near Page, Arizona. Former Navajo Nation president Milton Bluehouse says, “This was a strategy meeting about how to phase out coal for energy over a period of time and find a way to use other resources such as solar, wind or biomass to produce electricity.”

The 2,250-megawatt coal-fueled power plant was built in the early 1970s to provide power for the Central Arizona Project (CAP) and electricity for the growing cities of the Southwest. Marshall Johnson, Navajo, who describes himself as a watchman for his people, explains that most of the power generated at NGS and owned by the federal government “is used to push water uphill from Lake Havasu to Phoenix and Tucson. Eighty percent of the people in Arizona depend on CAP for their water.”

The fuel for the power plant comes from Kayenta Mine on Black Mesa. That coal is owned by the Navajo and Hopi; the strip mine is owned and operated by Peabody Energy, which pays royalties to the tribes. According to a report by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the power plant and the mine together provide copy50 million to the tribes, including coal royalties, bonuses, groundwater, leases and air permits. NGS employs 450 American Indians and the mine 400.

The future of NGS is up for grabs for several reasons, says Johnson: “Coal is too expensive and water is too expensive to use for generating power.” First, plant owners will in the next few years have to install pollution controls for emissions of nitrous oxides, mercury and other toxics under new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rules. Estimated cost: as much as copy.1 billion. If Congress or the EPA imposes limits on carbon dioxide emissions, NGS’s position in relation to the Clean Air Act would be even more tenuous.

Second, the water service contract between Salt River Project and the Bureau of Reclamation that supplies water to the power plant expires in 2014.

Third, the power plant is on Navajo land, and the 50-year site lease for the plant, as well as the rights-of-way for transmission lines, railroads and haul roads, expires in December 2019.

Finally, the power plant uses 34,100 acre-feet a year of water from the Upper Basin of the Colorado River. Arizona’s share of that water under the Upper Colorado River Basin Compact is 50,000 acre-feet a year. The Navajo Tribe has claimed all of Arizona’s share under the Winters Doctrine. The Hopi also have a claim under the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo. In the original water contract to supply NGS drawn up in the late ’60s, the Navajo Nation waived all rights to Upper Colorado River water in exchange for job preference at the mine and power plant, the exclusive right to sell coal to supply the mine, an allocation of power from the plant to the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority, copy25,000 over five years for Navaho Community College (now Diné College) and some CAP water. The resolution passed by the Navajo Nation Tribal Council says the tribe promises to limit its claim to 50,000 acre-feet of Colorado River water per year “for the term of the lifetime of the proposed power plant, or for 50 years, whichever shall occur first.” That 50 years is up in 2016, just one year after the life-of-mine permit expires in 2015.

Given this constellation of environmental requirements and expiring leases and contracts, Joe Browder, who worked on environmental issues in the Carter administration and is now an international consultant on energy development, says, “It is inevitable that NGS will go through some kind of transition. Since the transition will occur anyway, and funds will be invested to make that happen.… It’s not some radical dream for the tribes to think they could get a better deal.”

Clark says the Flagstaff meeting looked at two main questions: “How do we talk about what this transition should be? And how do we present our ideas to tribal and federal leadership in such a way that our ideas will be part of their discussions? We hope to elevate this issue to a top priority in President Obama’s second term.”

The options for converting NGS into a cleaner generator are many. The Navajo Reservation has excellent solar potential, according to the NREL report, and for some, solar is the preferable—or indeed the only—answer. In addition to conventional solar farms, Clark, citing a draft working paper on NGS prepared by the Grand Canyon Trust, suggests the possibility of covering the CAP canals with photovoltaic solar panels.

Natural gas could be another option as a stand-alone or it could be combined with solar, says Browder. “Tribes could offer a combination of solar and natural gas generation, which would be of real value to the utilities and their customers,” he says.

Other possibilities include the sale of the water used at NGS to cities such as Las Vegas, which, according to Clark, is paying $2,000 to $3,000 an acre-foot. The water used at NGS—which the tribes have or say they can claim—would be worth at least $68.2 million. Another option would be to use California’s carbon market. In the global carbon market, says Clark, there are examples of indigenous people earning revenues by not cutting down their forests. Not turning organic carbon, in the form of Black Mesa coal, into atmospheric carbon could work the same way. Not running NGS could also produce revenues. At the low end, the global carbon market is paying copy0 per ton of emissions. At that figure, the carbon dioxide emitted by NGS would be worth approximately $200 million a year.

Regardless of which option (or options) is pursued, the effort will have to be led by the Department of the Interior (DOI). Clark says the Trust’s key point is that there needs to be a commitment from DOI, the Department of Energy and the EPA to come up with a sensible solution to a unique set of problems and to look at a transition plan involving the development of economic alternatives for Native peoples, providing low-cost electricity for CAP and reducing the health impacts of the mine and power plant on the Navajo and Hopi people. Several of the steps needed to keep NGS going or to create alternative energy sources will require an environmental impact statement. There is interest in the environmental and business communities in looking at the life-cycle costs of projects, which could mean, for the first time, quantifying the long- and short-term health and social impacts of coal-based generation in general and NGS in particular.

Bluehouse suggests a principle under which such a plan could evolve. If an orderly transition is going to occur, “we have to cooperate with people in Phoenix, Tucson and Southern California who use the electricity produced at NGS in a civil, respectful negotiation. We should plan this transition with compassion and humanity among all the people involved. We all have to be at the same level in terms of non-Indians and Indians.”

Despite years of struggle, which Janene Yazzie, Navajo, and others say was fostered by the federal government in order to obtain cheap coal and water from the Navajo and Hopi people, Bluehouse says he saw at the meeting “no hard feelings between Navajo and Hopi,” but rather a group of well-informed young, middle-aged and elderly people who had gathered to work collaboratively. He added, “We will have to pull together as brothers and sisters to handle this.”

Tribal Instructor Encourages Healing Through Music—It ‘Helps Folks Reach Their Inner Being, Their Soul’

Phil Bradley, music instructor for the Absentee Shawnee Tribe, teaches using music for expressing emotions and overcoming challenging situations. (Margaret Starkey)

By Brian Daffron, Indian Country Today Media Network

Many people throughout the world find peace and solace through music. For the prolific writer Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., music was the only proof needed “for the existence of God.” Victor Hugo, the original author of Les Miserables, wrote that music “expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent.”

Former Nashville writer and studio musician Phil Bradley, an enrolled member of the Absentee Shawnee Tribe, has similar philosophical insight about the need for music in our daily lives.

“I believe music helps folks reach their inner being, their soul,” Bradley says. “[Music will] reach really deep into your soul, and teach you that you’ve got something more than just working every day or going to school and coming home, and doing it again tomorrow.”

Bradley’s journey back to his Absentee Shawnee people came with the illness of his mother.

“I came back [to Oklahoma] because they said in 2000 my mom had been expected not to live, say, for a year,” says Bradley. “I said, ‘Well, I’ll come back there and visit her.’ The Lord saw fit that she live three more years.”

By February 2010, Bradley had been contacted by the Absentee Shawnee Tribe’s Behavioral Health Department and written into their Meth and Suicide Prevention Grant. For this new program, the tribe wanted to include both music and drug education. The free music program started with just one child from an abused home. Now Bradley works with more than 85 children and elders.

“There were so many youth in our communities—Native Americans—that had troubles,” says Bradley. “They came from troubled homes—alcohol and drug abuse homes. A lot of them are just thrown aside and not given a chance for anything.”

Since then, Bradley’s position has changed to where he is now the head of the tribe’s Music and Arts Department. Bradley finds himself working up to 13-hour days at times, and teaching guitar, bass guitar and piano in the towns of Shawnee and Little Axe, both of which are within the tribe’s jurisdiction in central Oklahoma. At press time, Bradley had 58 active students ranging in age from teenagers to elders in their 80s.

“The therapists have said it’s been a big benefit to the [students],” says Bradley. “I teach them to respect who they are, and that they have a gift inside them.”

The Music and Arts department’s other endeavors include raising money for their annual summer program and helping with the Meth and Suicide Prevention Walkathon, which takes place annually in October. Bradley also has plans to collaborate on a Shawnee language DVD that will be produced by the tribe.

“I teach them attitude can move mountains,” says Bradley about his style of teaching music. “It can take you places that only people can dream about. That’s our logo. It’s on my wall.”

U.S. State Department Asks Sonny Skyhawk to Be Cultural Ambassador

Indian Country Today Media Network Staff

Sonny Skyhawk, Rosebud Sioux, an accomplished actor and activist, has been asked by the U.S. State Department to serve as a Cultural Ambassador representing Indian country around the world. His first visits will likely be to South America, the Caribbean, Canada, and Mexico.

As a Cultural Ambassador, Skyhawk will be for the most part an educator, sharing all aspects of Native American culture with people in other nations upon request. Talks could be geared toward, for example, indigenous peoples or the business communities of the countries he visits. He also aims to promote tourism and economic development by inviting people to come to visit reservations and traditional Indian lands within the borders of the United States.

Skyhawk is the founder of American Indians in Film and Television, and has spent his career trying to improve the depiction of American Indians in media as well as the treatment of Native actors in Hollywood.

“It is an honor to serve and represent my people, and I am humbled by the privilege,” Skyhawk said. “It is my hope to continue fostering lasting bonds of understanding amongst all indigenous cultures in the Americas, and to nurture our ancient Lakota belief, which is ‘mitakuya oyasin’ — ‘we are all related.'”

Skyhawk has appeared in 58 films and television shows, and is also author of the “Ask N NDN” feature at ICTMN.com.

Kiwanis Memorial Scholarship Concert returns March 8

Source: Marysville Globe

MARYSVILLE — The Marysville Kiwanis Club invites the public to a special benefit concert featuring young Marysville artists and Edmonds Community College’s premier Soundsation Jazz Choir, which will raise funds for student vocational-technical scholarships.

The Kenneth J. Ploeger Kiwanis Memorial Scholarship Concert will kick off at 7 p.m. on Friday, March 8, in the Marysville-Pilchuck High School auditorium, located at 5611 108th St. The scholarship fund was named by the Ploeger family in memory of Ken, a longtime dedicated Kiwanis member, retired Navy electronics technician and city of Marysville employee who believed in the value of scholarships for students entering a vocational trade or career. He passed away in 2007.

The evening’s talent includes performances by Marysville’s own 10th Street Middle School Jazz Band and the M-PHS Jazz Band and Choir, who will be joined by the Mountain View High School Jazz Choir from Meridian, Idaho. The night will also feature a very special appearance by the fabulous Soundsation Jazz Choir from EdCC, according to Penny Ploeger, widow of Ken, a school teacher and Kiwanian who has carried on the tradition of hosting the memorial concert as a means for raising scholarship money for students in need.

“The scholarship fund is a way for our family to give back to the community in Ken’s honor by helping young people on their first steps toward a meaningful career,” Ploeger said. “We hope you’ll join us for a spectacular night of jazz music. Soundsation Jazz Choir is the cream of the crop.”

The premier jazz choir combines vocalists, a piano, a guitar, bass and drums, and features Soundsation graduates who have moved on to become leaders in vocal jazz education and professional performance.

The concert will benefit Marysville students through technology and skills scholarships for classes or community college credits that will prepare them for employment in the public sector, according to Ploeger, who gave special thanks to Marysville School District Music Director John Rants Jr. for assembling the local bands and choirs.

You may purchase tickets at the door or online at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/325859.

Prices are $10 or a donation, and kids 12 years and younger get in for free. Donations of canned goods or other non-perishable food items for the Marysville Community Food Bank would also be appreciated. For more information, call 360-653-3646.

Calling all bands and musicians for 2013 ‘Sounds of Summer’ Concert Series

Source: Marysville Glibe

MARYSVILLE — Marysville Parks and Recreation is seeking musical talent and will be booking soon for the annual “Sounds of Summer” Concert Series, which is set to take place this year over the course of five Thursdays, from mid-July to mid-August.

Interested individual musicians or bands should call 360-363-8450 for details on how to submit their information for consideration in this series.

Public invited to reception for Marysville City Council candidates Feb. 11

Source: Marysville Globe

MARYSVILLE — Nine citizens are in the running to fill the vacancy on the City Council to succeed Council member Carmen Rasmussen.

The application process ended on Feb. 1. Candidates will each be granted time to give brief statements during the Feb. 11 City Council meeting at 7 p.m. in the Council Chambers, on the second floor of City Hall, located at 1049 State Ave. The public is invited to meet the candidates at a reception from 5:45-6:45 p.m. prior to the start of the Council meeting.

The Council does not expect to name a successor until the Feb. 25 meeting, which will give them the opportunity to ask further questions of the candidates. All meetings are open to the public.

The candidate selected by a vote of the seated six Council members will need to file for office in the next general municipal elections in November of 2013 to retain the seat, then would fulfill the remainder of the four-year term of the position, which ends on Dec. 31, 2015.

Here is a snapshot of the nominees:

• Robert Weiss, a hydraulics system and control engineer at Boeing with more than 20 years experience who currently serves on the Marysville Salary Commission, and participated in the Marysville Police Citizens Academy.

• Marvetta Toler, a licensed realtor with Prudential Northwest Realty whose civic service includes serving on the Planning Commission, chairing the Diversity Advisory Committee, and various Marysville School District committees over the years.

• Kamille Norton, an active community volunteer who serves on the city’s Civil Service Commission and Salary Commission, and is director and founder of Marysville Select Girls Basketball.

• Scott Allen, a Boeing employee with a hospital consulting services background who currently serves on the Marysville Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, and as secretary for the Kiwanis Club.

• Gregory D. Cook, a retired Navy petty officer and work center supervisor on the USS David R. Ray in Everett, as well as a former Boeing employee and neighborhood association past president.

• Cheryl Deckard, a community member who has dedicated more than 25 years to community involvement. She has served with the Washington Festival Association and the Pride of Marysville Award Program.

• James White, a Boeing employee and former corrections officer who was a gubernatorial candidate in the 2008 and 2012 elections.

• Roger Hoen, a city Planning Commissioner who has served on the Washington State Liquor Control Board and the Washington State Reduce Underage Drinking Coalition, and ran for a City Council position in 2011.

• Iris Lilly, a training specialist who trains others on how to assist disabled individuals. She is a firm believer in community involvement and seeks to be a positive role model for her son.