Fares are about to go up for all Community Transit users, including local and commuter buses, DART, and vanpool service.
The increase takes effect Friday, Feb. 1, 2013.
Transit officials say the bump in fares was needed to keep up with the pace of inflation and continue with current service levels.
The new fare for adults will be $2 – which is in line with other local transportation agencies, according to Community Transit.
Below is a breakdown of the new fares for each user:
Community Transit local bus fares will increase by 25 cents for all riders – adults, youth and reduced fare riders (senior, disabled and Medicare).
Commuter bus fares to King County from Everett and south Snohomish County will increase by 50 cents for adults and reduced fare customers, and 25 cents for youth.
Commuter bus fares to King County from north and east Snohomish County will increase by 75 cents for adults and reduced fare customers, and 25 cents for youth.
DART paratransit fares will increase by 25 cents.
Vanpool fares will increase by 10-15 percent, depending on the number of passengers in a van and mileage for the trip.
More information about the new fares is available online.
A: It’s a small school in the Marysville School District with about 100 students. Our teachers are really engaged. They know you and what you are doing. They want you to succeed. Each student gets attention. Like any high school, we have six periods a day of the usual subjects. The only thing different is that we focus a lot on Native American culture. We don’t have it right now, but one of the classes offered is our native Coast Salish language, Lushootseed.
Q: What is your tribal heritage?
A: My dad is Tulalip, my mom and grandmother are Rosebud Sioux, and my grandpa is Alaska Native. I spent a lot of my childhood in Tacoma with my grandparents and went to Chief Leschi Schools, which are operated by the Puyallup Tribe.
Q: Why is cultural education important?
A: For me, what we learn at Heritage is another perspective, another way of looking at the world. We focus on the oral history of native people, not just what you get in classroom history books. I am thankful for the elders who have passed down the stories, and I’m glad we are a culturally active school.
Q: The staff at Heritage say you are very helpful and hard-working. Why is this important to you?
A: I like to take time to help people and it gives me something to do.
Q: What are your regular school-related activities?
A: I like to help in the school office. I’m the ASB treasurer, and I help with concessions at our school basketball games. The money we raise goes to our student body. Basketball is very popular in the community, especially when we play the Lummi Nation School, Muckleshoot Tribal School or Neah Bay High School. Then it’s about pride in our tribes.
Q: Do you have a job?
A: I’ve worked for Tulalip Tribes. This past summer, I got experience working with the Quil Ceda Village grounds maintenance crew. It gave me an understanding of how that department works. And I pulled a lot of weeds from 88th up to 116th Street.
Q: What do you want to do next year?
A: I hope to enlist in the Coast Guard. I would like to make a career of it and hope that I can work in Washington. I’ve already talked to a recruiter. My other idea is to become a member of the State Patrol or the Tulalip Police. Something like that. Just so I can help people. For me, it’s all about giving back to the community.
Q: Have other people in your family been in the service?
A: My dad was in the Marine Corps, my grandma in the Air Force, my grandpa in the Army and my cousin in the Coast Guard. My dad is encouraging me to go into the Coast Guard.
Q: It sounds like your family is important to you.
A: Yes, I help my sister by taking care of my 3-year-old nephew. I take him to the park and stuff like that. We have fun.
Q: What else do you do outside of school?
A: I like to ski, golf, play tennis and basketball and work out at the Marysville YMCA. I played football at Lake Stevens High School when I first moved up here. I miss football.
I also listen to music. All kinds. I like rap, country, classic rock and when I worked as a prep cook in the kitchen at the casino, I learned to like the Mexican music that the Hispanic guys played.
Q: What’s keeping you busy right now?
A: That would be my senior project. We have to answer the questions of, Who am I? Where am I going? How will I get there?
Q: What is your favorite class this year?
A: For me, that’s easy. It’s humanities with my teacher Maria Benally. She pushes me to excel in my work. We’ve been talking a lot about the issue of sovereignty. For example, we learned that Hawaii’s indigenous people were taken over by the United States.
Q: What is your favorite book?
A: It’s “Night” by Elie Wiesel about his experience in the Nazi concentration camps. That was a good book.
Seattle – January 28, 2013– Washington afterschool providers came together today with anti-hunger advocates and child nutrition state and regional administrators to learn how to implement and expand the Afterschool Meal Program to receive federal funding to feed children afterschool, on weekends, and during school holidays. Working together, these stakeholders are helping to eliminate childhood hunger in Washington.
At the Luncheon: Eliminating Hunger After School: Expansion of the Afterschool Meal Program for Washington Kids, state and regional program administrators and advocacy organizations:
· Spoke about the connection between nutrition and educational enrichment,
· Presented an overview of the At-Risk Afterschool Meal Program,
· Provided information on how to apply to receive the federal funding available, and
· Discussed current opportunities for implementation and how to make the program work in a variety of settings.
“The Afterschool Meal Program can make a big difference for children in Washington,” said Linda Stone, executive director of the Children’s Alliance. “Many parents are struggling to hold onto jobs, working extra-long or nontraditional hours, commuting long-distances, or trying to get back into the workforce. They need care for their children in order to do that, so it absolutely makes sense to provide afterschool, weekend, and school holiday programs to help parents provide healthy food for their children.”
With its partners, the Children’s Alliance is working to increase the number of sponsors and providers participating in the federal Afterschool Meal Program so that more children in Washington can receive free meals and snacks, participate fully in their afterschool activities, and have access to the nutrition they need outside of school.
“The benefits of afterschool meal programs are boundless,” said Crystal FitzSimons of the Food Research and Action Center. “Access to afterschool meals improves students’ health, mental well-being, and their ability to fully participate and learn in afterschool activities. As a result, schools have higher overall achievement scores, and communities stay healthier.”
Washington’s childhood poverty rate is over 18 percent and the percentage of Washington families experiencing food insecurity has increased in recent years.
The Luncheon was organized by the Children’s Alliance and the Food Research and Action Center in partnership with the Afterschool Meals Workgroup, and with support from the ConAgra Foods Foundation.
SNOHOMISH COUNTY, Wash. — The Snohomish Health District reports five Snohomish County residents have died in the last month from the severe influenza (commonly called the “flu”) that is circulating throughout Western Washington. All but one death was in people over age 70, and all had underlying medical conditions in addition to confirmed flu.
The latest flu-related death was of an Everett woman in her 70s. The health district confirms and reports deaths through the previous week, Jan. 19. Previously the health district confirmed flu-related deaths in a Stanwood man in his 90s, a Bothell woman in her 40s, an Everett woman in her 80s, and an Edmonds woman in her 80s.
Nation-wide, the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention reports that more than 90% of flu season deaths have been in people over age 65. Older people are also more likely to be hospitalized as a result of this year’s H3N2 flu strain. To date, 71 hospitalizations related to flu have been reported in Snohomish County.
The Snohomish Health District has also received reports of flu outbreaks at nine longterm care facilities through Jan. 19, compared to one facility reporting flu in the 2011-2012 flu season. Facilities must report whenever at least two residents have flu symptoms and at least one has tested positive for influenza.
“Even when vaccinated, the elderly are more at risk to flu because their immune systems are weaker than in younger people,” explained Dr. Gary Goldbaum, health officer for Snohomish Health District. “That’s why flu vaccination is so important for people of all ages – so we don’t spread flu to people who are most vulnerable.”
State Health Officer Dr. Maxine Hayes sent a letter to long-term care facility managers urging them to encourage employees to get vaccinated to protect patients and themselves from the flu. Visitors to these facilities should get the flu vaccine and delay visits if they’re sick.
People who are at high risk of serious flu complications –seniors, pregnant women, young children, and people with asthma, diabetes, or heart disease – should contact a health care provider immediately if they develop influenza-like symptoms, including cough, fever, sore throat, and body aches. Antiviral treatment works best when started as soon as possible after you get sick.
For those who are healthy, flu shots are still recommended to protect yourself and others, along with frequent hand washing. Children’s flu shots are subsidized by the state. Adult flu shots are covered by most health insurance and are available in providers’ offices as well as community clinics, pharmacies, and the Snohomish Health District clinics.
During last year’s flu season in Snohomish County, 39 residents were reported hospitalized and there were two deaths related to flu. Only lab-confirmed deaths are counted, and not all hospitals report flu-related admissions. The CDC estimates that up to 49,000 people die from the flu each year.
“This flu season appears to be the worst since H1N1 in 2009, when more than 100 people were hospitalized in Snohomish County,” said Goldbaum. “However, the current flu strain is most severe in seniors, while H1N1 caused deaths in younger people. We also have plenty of vaccine matched to the current strain this year.”
To learn more about the flu and vaccination, visit the Snohomish Health District website at www.snohd.org.
Established in 1959, the Snohomish Health District works for a safer and healthier Snohomish County through disease prevention, health promotion, and protection from environmental threats. Find more information about the Health Board and the Health District at http://www.snohd.org.
To register, call 425-252-6081. The agency also is seeking people to sponsor tables. For more information, go to www.fnfvcv.org.;http://www.tulalipresort.com/?src=ppc_google_tulalipcasino&gclid=CIGWh9TL8rQCFW6CQgodlRYAXQ[URL][/URL]
Jim Pepper was known for pioneering the fusion jazz movement as well as being the kind of musical innovator who blended jazz with American Indian music.Jazz aficionados are well aware of Pepper’s composition “Witchi Tai To,” today a jazz classic that was a crossover hit between jazz and the top 40 popular song list when it was first produced in the mid-’60s.
Pepper’s life is celebrated in the film documentary “Pepper’s Pow Wow,” showing at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Hibulb Cultural Center on the Tulalip Reservation, 6410 23rd Ave. NE, Tulalip.
Admission for adults is $10. For more information call Hibulb at 360-716-2600 or online atwww.hibulbculturalcenter.org/.
Sandy Osawa will present the one-hour film. Osawa, a Makah, is the first American Indian filmmaker to produce on a national broadcast scale and has made 16 broadcast films.
She and her husband, cameraman and editor Yasu Osawa, will answer questions following the film.
Pepper’s heritage is Creek and Kaw and the film shows a rare, personal glimpse into the life of this jazz innovator, who made his name on the European stage rather than back home in America.
The film pays tribute to Pepper’s life along with sharing his music, including a recording of his grandfather, Ralph Pepper, singing the original chant that became the basis for “Witchi Tai To.”
Pepper played the tenor saxophone and the film opens with him performing the song “Caddo Revival” during the Kaw Pow Wow in Oklahoma, where Pepper grew up.
In the film, Pepper is recorded as saying music created by American Indians “comes directly from the ground, from the earth, from the four directions and the music is a healing force.”
Along with documenting Pepper’s life, the film delves into the birth of the jazz-rock fusion movement of the mid-1960s. The film includes footage of Pepper’s band, the first jazz-rock fusion band called The Free Spirits.
Filmmaker Osawa hopes that Pepper’s life “can be a metaphor for many indigenous people who are struggling to walk in two worlds with one spirit,” she said in a statement.
“Pepper’s Pow Wow” has been shown on the Public Broadcasting Station with funding by the Independent Television Service. Osawa’s films are available at www.upstreamvideos.com.
The Pacific Northwest Weather Workshop, the annual gathering for those interested in Northwest weather and climate. will be held on March 1-2, 2013. As usual it will be held at the NOAA Sand Point facility in Seattle. For more information and to register please check the meeting web site: http://www.atmos.washington.edu/pnww/
Abstracts for talks are encouraged and are due by 15 February 2013–see the “Submit an Abstract” web page for more information. Some information on the meeting is also found below. The meeting banquet will be held at the Talaris Center, close to the UW.
DATES: March 1 and March 2, 2013 (Friday and Saturday)
LOCATION: NOAA Western Regional Center, Building 9 Auditorium
TIMES: 1pm Friday through 4pm Saturday (tentative times)
The Pacific Northwest Weather Workshop will be held Friday and Saturday, March 1-2, at the NOAA Western Regional Center, Building 9 Auditorium, at Sand Point in Seattle, Washington. This annual conference, sponsored by NOAA’s National Weather Service, the University of Washington, and the Puget Sound Chapter of the American Meteorological Society, covers recent developments in weather forecasting and observational technologies, major weather events of the past year, and topics dealing with western U.S. meteorology.
We welcome talks on all topics dealing with Northwest weather and climate. The meeting will start Friday, March 1, at 1pm and will continue through mid-afternoon on Saturday. Registration will be $30 for regular attendees ($15 for students) and will include Saturday lunch, afternoon and morning refreshments, and a pre-print volume. We will also have a Friday evening banquet (for an additional charge).
This year’s banquet talk title and speaker will be announced in early February.
Pre-registration is requested for all attendees. You can check for the latest information and register on-line via our website at: http://www.atmos.washington.edu/pnww/index.php?page=registration. Please submit abstracts for oral presentations and posters in text, Word or WordPerfect format – no PDF please. ABSTRACTS SHOULD BE RECEIVED BY February 15, 2013. Please include the title, author’s name and author contact information. Poster presentations are welcome and will be displayed throughout the meeting and during a special poster session. Please send abstracts to Cliff Mass, at the email address shown below.
For more information contact: Brad Colman/Kirby Cook, NWS Forecast Office, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115 (206.526.6095 x222/224,brad.colman@noaa.gov , Kirby.Cook@noaa.gov), or Clifford Mass, Dept of Atmospheric Sciences, Box 351640, University of Washington, Seattle WA 98195 (206.685.0190, cliff@atmos.washington.edu).
ARLINGTON — The city of Arlington and the Stillaguamish Tribe welcome locals and out-of-towners alike to attend the sixth annual Eagle Festival on Friday, Feb. 1, and Saturday, Feb. 2, in Arlington. The Stillaguamish watershed hosts large concentrations of bald eagles during the winter, when they feed on the spawning salmon.
This year, in an effort to make the festival a two-day event, organizers have added activities on Friday, including a rafting trip on the Stillaguamish River. To make a reservation, call North Cascades River Expeditions at 1-800-634-8433. The cost is $60. Also on Friday, the Predators of the Heart Wild Animal Show will start at 7 p.m. at Eagle Creek Elementary. This event is new to the Eagle Festival and is sponsored by Calvary of Arlington.
The Arlington Arts Council will again be conducting its Nature Art Show at Magnolia Hall. The show opens on Friday at 5 p.m. with an artists’ reception and wine tasting, and continues on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Included in the show are a Nature Art Contest and an Eagle Photograph Contest. Cash prizes will be awarded. For more details, log onto www.arlingtonwa.gov/eaglefest.
Also included in the Eagle Festival is a Nature Poetry Contest whose details can be found online, again, at www.arlingtonwa.gov/eaglefest. Fogdog Gallery will be displaying the poems and providing prizes at 233 N. Olympic Ave.
Starting at 9 a.m. on Saturday, city Natural Resource Manager Bill Blake will lead a short walk through the city’s Storm Water Wetland Park, and along the Stillaguamish River’s Eagle Trail. Participants should meet at the Haller Park parking lot, located at 1100 West Ave. From 10 a.m. to noon, wildlife biologists will be giving tours at the Port Susan Bay Nature Conservancy.
For a personal encounter with a live bird, guests should stop by the Sarvey Wildlife open house from noon to 4 p.m. in the City Council Chambers at 110 E. Third St. Sarvey Wildlife staff will be showing many birds of prey. Nature exhibits and representatives from Western Wildlife Outreach, Sound Salmon Solutions, Pilchuck Audubon Society and Snohomish Conservation District will be on site from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Representatives from Sound Salmon Solutions will be presenting “Tree Tenders” at 11 a.m. at the Depot at Legion Park.
The Country Carvers Chainsaw Show will return Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Legion Park. Chainsaw artists from across the Pacific Northwest will carve eagles and other art, and an auction at 3 p.m. on Saturday will sell those carvings to the public, while the best-in-show title is awarded.
For more information on the Eagle Festival, please visit the city of Arlington’s website at www.arlingtonwa.gov/eaglefestor call 360-403-3448.
