south whidbey record, december 21, 2011

RECORDSOUTH WHIDBEY

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2011 | Vol. 87, No.102 | WWW.SOUTHWHIDBEYRECORD.COM | 75¢INSIDE: Little learners,

Island Life, A14

BY BRIAN KELLYSouth Whidbey Record

Jay Wallace won’t be getting his badge back.

A federal court judge has ruled against the former deputy sheriff and said Island County was justified in firing Wallace after he shirked his duty in responding to 911 calls in Freeland where a woman was being held hostage and assaulted in early 2006.

Wallace, a one-time candidate for Island County sheriff, filed a lawsuit against Island County in May 2009 and claimed he had been targeted by former Sheriff Mike Hawley,

who opposed his candidacy.The lawsuit, which also named

Hawley personally, accused county officials of fraud, misconduct and corruption and claimed that county officials had withheld information

that would have helped Wallace in his fight to keep his deputy’s job. It also claimed that the county had violated Wallace’s civil rights and had wrongfully terminated his employment after he announced

his campaign bid for sheriff.U.S. District Judge Robert

Lasnik, in a decision announced last week, rejected all of Wallace’s claims and praised county officials for investigating Wallace’s response to the 911 calls that lay at the cen-ter of the case and his eventual termination.

“Such internal accountability, far from being outrageous, should be lauded,” Lasnik wrote in his deci-sion.

Hawley, who did not run for re-election as sheriff and now works as a lieutenant in the sheriff’s department, said he was grateful for the decision, calling it “a clear,

concise and complete ruling in my and the county’s favor.”

“I believe I’d done everything the proper way,” Hawley said of the Wallace investigation and sub-sequent dismissal of the longtime police veteran. “I bent over back-wards to make sure everything was right.”

Hawley said he was glad that the legal ordeal — which included a union challenge to Wallace’s ter-mination, formal criminal charges against the deputy that were ulti-mately dismissed, an administrative hearing where Wallace’s peace


COUPEVILLE — A Freeland man who alleg-edly stabbed his parents in a late night rage is mentally fit to stand trial and help his lawyer craft his defense, according to a state psycholo-gist who reviewed the man’s mental health.

Sean Paul DeMerchant has been held in the Island County Jail since his arrest on Oct. 9, when sheriff’s deputies found him in his parents’ bedroom at their Bush Point Terrace home, hovering over their injured bodies and giving first aid.

Authorities later charged DeMerchant with two counts of first-degree assault, and DeMerchant

entered a not-guilty plea at his arraignment.A court-ordered examination of

DeMerchant’s mental health conducted earlier this month has revealed disturbing facts about the accused assailant.

According to court documents, DeMerchant has been a drug user for most of his life and had used drugs the same day he allegedly stabbed his parents as an argument escalated

County prevails in lawsuit from former sheriff candidate

Lt. Mike HawleyJay Wallace

SEE LAWSUIT, A23

Suspect in stabbing has long history of drug use

S. DeMerchant

SEE SUSPECT, A24

BY BEN WATANABESouth Whidbey Record

LANGLEY – Good morning Orcas!Every day at South Whidbey

Elementary School, two students greet their teachers and classmates with those three words.

The words don’t echo through the halls, but the voices of the young broadcasters can be heard around the world.

Teachers and parents can access the daily announcements through the school’s podcast — basically radio on demand — on the SWES website.

“Anybody can do this,” said Ellen Wallace, a student support staff member at the school. “It doesn’t have to be the more academically inclined kids.”

Even so, school work matters. The

rotating hosts need to be caught up with their assignments and get their teacher’s permission to take a 20- to 30-minute break from class.

When fourth-graders Talin Vallat Phillips and Kaylie McRea arrived for their time before the microphone, they did a reading of the script with Wallace and divided the segments.

“You want to sound peppy,” Wallace told the student hosts.

First, they say the Pledge of Allegiance. Then they introduce themselves and welcome their listeners. Announcements are next, which are provided by teachers and staff.

Last week, Talin and Kaylie reminded teachers about Whidbey Island Nourishes, updated students on the Good Cheer food drive and celebrated having almost five

barrels of food. Then came the shout out. In unison, all

three said, “Awesome job, Orcas!”It was then time for more news. There

would be no double dutch in the gym during the last recess, or Junior Waste Warriors.

The young hosts then prepared for the whales’ tails spinner awards. Kaylie read the winners.

“Today’s winners aarrrrre,” Kaylie said, dragging out the consonant and build-ing suspense like a seasoned pro of the airwaves.

Next, Talin and Kaylie turned to the weather and the hot lunch menu.

Reporting the weather takes a local twist for this podcast, however.

SEE ORCAS, A23

Ellen Wallace talks to fourth-graders Talin Vallat Phillips and Kaylie McRea as they prepare for their next podcast.

ORCASON THE AIRStudent voices

enliven podcast

TODAY’S EDITION | VOL. 87, N0. 102TASTY PEACE OFFERINGS, A8: Margaret Walton gives up her best holiday cookie recipes.

OBITS, A10: Gerda Ann (Moen) Uren.

BLOOMING BUDS, A14: A new outside school for very young students. INSERTS: Fred Meyer and Big 5 Sporting Goods.

Online | www.southwhidbeyrecord.comNEW ONLINE POLL: Have you made any resolutions for the new year?

To vote, visit www.southwhidbeyrecord.com and click on poll.

Results will be posted in upcoming editions.

Contact us | Newsroom @ 877-316-7276Brian Kelly, editor.

Patricia Duff, Island Life editor; features, arts and entertainment.

Ben Watanabe, sports, schools.

PeoplePeoplePeoplePage A2 WWW.SOUTHWHIDBEYRECORD.COM

notable

Brightly colored Nordic and holiday attire, along with festive decorations and a beautiful tree, set the stage for a jolly holiday celebration for Daughters of Norway members when they gath-ered for their Dec. 10 meeting.

Ester Moe Lodge No. 39 met at the historic St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Clinton to start off the holiday season with music, laughter, food and anticipa-tion of future planning for the coming year’s activities.

The day began with a spirited rendi-tion of the tune, “Lutefisk, Oh Lutefisk,” led by Helen Hustad and musician Kathy Foster. Members enjoyed a fun sing-along in both English and Norwegian and following the meet-ing, everyone shared a tasty potluck luncheon.

The officers-elect for 2012 gath-ered for a group photo and incoming

officers will be installed at the Jan. 14 meeting. One of the lodge’s first orders of business will be the election of del-egates to the 2012 convention to be held in Bellingham next July.

Members will also be focusing on monetary incentive awards for quali-fied graduating high school seniors pursuing further training or education.

In addition, Daughters of Norway Grand Lodge will be offering $1,000 scholarships to the three can-didates who come out on top in their 2012 scholarship competition.

Daughters of Norway instituted a new lodge in Minnesota in 2010 and in Oregon in 2011, and growth of the organization is anticipated to continue. Members are excited to see what the coming year will bring.

For information on Daughters of Norway or Ester Moe Lodge, visit www.daughtersofnorway.org.

kudos

Photos courtesy of Ester Moe Lodge

Officers-elect for 2012 Ester Moe Lodge No. 39 are (front row) Salli Schonning, president; LaVerne Tiedeman, judge; (back row) Julie Sand, greeter; Kathy Foster, musician; Suzanne Ramsey, trustee; Janice Dakin, financial secretary; Cherie Erwin, secretary; Patricia Nostrand, treasurer; and Diane Crawford, marshal. Board members not pictured are Julie Humling, vice president; Beverly Wills, trustee; Lynne Hossfeld, trustee; Connie Angst, assistant marshal; Betty Hoffman, greeter; and DeAnn Lofthus-Olson, scribe.

yThe Whidbey Island Chapter of the

Daughters of the American Revolution participated in a “Wreaths Across America” ceremony on Dec. 10 at the Clinton Cemetery by St. Peter’s Lutheran Church.

Sally Buckingham, Regent of the Whidbey Island Chapter, brought togeth-er the Governor Isaac Stevens Chapter located in Oak Harbor to commemorate all veterans and to honor freedom.

The Mount Baker Council Boy Scout Troop 57 provided a color guard to raise the United States Flag in honor of Navy Command Master Chief C.L. Buckingham. The bugler was Evan Mellish with Scouts Will Holbert, Joseph Neil, Jason Neil, Evan Piehler and Brent Biehler serving as the color guard.

Whidbey Island Chapter members pres-ent included Joyce Forbes, vice regent, Evie Wilson-Lingbloom, secretary, and Barbara Bishop.

Forget Me Not Farms provided the wreaths for the ceremony and the mem-bers of the Govenor Isaac Stevens Chapter provided two wreaths.

Buckingham said the chapter will have the commemorative ceremony every year on the second Saturday in December. There are 66 veterans buried at the Clinton Cemetery and anyone wishing to donate a wreath can call Buckingham at 425-293-4510 or email sally.bucking [email protected] for further details.

The South Whidbey Record is always on the lookout for items about people in the South Whidbey community. To submit an item, e-mail pduff@whidbeynews group.com.

Nona and her mom, Natasha Zimmerman, discuss the wonders of the Christmas tree at the December Daughters of Norway meeting.

Perry McClellan photo

Jim Gardner, commander of the Post 141’s Sons of the American Legion, presents a $500 check to Judith Gorman of the Veterans Resource Center.

Page A3

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Community gathering coming

A community gather-ing will be held later this month to remember the three young men who died in a car crash near Clinton on Nov. 11.

Individual memo-rial services have already been held for Charles “Mack” Porter III, Marcel “Mick” Poynter and Robert Knight, and orga-nizers said the upcom-ing event will be held to celebrate the lives of all

three.The celebration of life

is 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 30 at Bayview Community Hall.

Friends of the trio are encouraged to bring their favorite photos, or write a few words about a best memory to share with the families of the three.

A chip-and-dip potluck is also planned.

Two candidates in diking race

Longtime Diking District 1 Commissioner

Ray Gabelein will have an opponent for his board seat in the upcoming February election.

Thomas Kraft, a Seattle resident, has filed as a candidate for the position.

Kraft owns property at Sunlight Beach and is one of the property owners who is currently suing the diking district in Island County Superior Court over assessments that will help pay for the opera-tion of the district and a controversial $430,000 pump that was installed in December 2008.

Gabelein is one of two board members who sup-ported the pump project and the assessments of property owners within the district, which spans 743 acres and includes the neighborhoods of Sunlight Beach, Olympic View and Sun Vista

and Useless Bay Golf & Country Club.

The election is planned for Feb. 7.

Ferries earn national award

The state’s newest ferries, built in part by Nichols Brothers Boat Builders, have been named as “Significant Boats of 2011” by the mar-itime industry publication WorkBoat Magazine.

The Freeland shipyard was a subcontractor on construction of the fer-ries Chetzemoka, Salish and Kennewick for Washington State Ferries. The company built the superstructure for each of the 64-car vessels.

WorkBoat Magazine notified WSF in early November that the three Kwa-di Tabil-class ferries were among the 50 boats nominated for the presti-gious annual award. Each year, WorkBoat editors review the boats they’ve featured in the magazine and choose the 10 vessels deserving of special rec-ognition.

The winners were announced Nov. 30 at the International WorkBoat Show in New Orleans, La. and will be featured in the January 2012 issue of WorkBoat Magazine.

“This is a tremendous distinction and one we are excited to share with our partners Vigor Industrial and Elliott Bay Design Group,” said David Moseley, assistant secre-tary for Washington State Ferries. “We’re pleased this new class of ferries is getting this well-deserved national attention.”

“We’re immensely

proud of this honor, and of the skilled men and women who labored more than half a million hours to build these great ferries,” said Brian Evert, manager of new construc-tion for Vigor Industrial, which acquired the origi-nal builder Todd Pacific Shipyards in 2011.

“We were honored to be part of the team,” added John Waterhouse, chief concept engineer at Elliott Bay Design Group, the company that designed the vessel.

WorkBoat maga-zine editors said the industry considers the Chetzemoka, Salish and Kennewick significant because they are the first new boats for the WSF in more than a decade and represent a much-needed vessel upgrade for the Coupeville (Keystone)-Port Townsend route. Authorities said the boats are distinctive in design, both inside and out.

The roundupThe roundupThe roundupNEWSLINE | WEATHER REPORT: Patchy fog today before 10 a.m., otherwise, partly sunny. Mostly cloudy on Thursday, with a chance of rain Friday.

Page A4 WWW.SOUTHWHIDBEYRECORD.COM

N E W Y E A R ’ S DAY

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OpinionOpinionOpinion Page A5

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THE SOUTH WHIDBEY RECORD STAFFPublisher ............................................................................Marcia Van DykeSupervising Editor .....................................................................Jim LarsenEditor ...............................................................................................Brian KellyIsland Life Editor .................................................................... Patricia DuffReporters ..............................................................................Ben WatanabeColumnists .......................................... Margaret Walton, Frances WoodOffice Manager ........................................................................ Lorinda KayAdvertising Manager ..................................................... Lee Ann MozesAdvertising Sales ................................................................ Erica JohnsonAdvertising Services - Graphics ................................ Ginny TomaskoProduction Manager ......................................Michelle WolfenspargerCreative Artist ....................................................................Rebecca Collins

Scan the code with your phoneand look us up on-line! Keep the

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Thank you

To the editor:I would like to thank all the citizens and

businesses of South Whidbey who helped us while we raised Giles, a yellow Lab, who was being trained to become an assistance dog. I took him frequently into many of the businesses on the island. The goal of all of these visits was to socialize him, while also perfecting his obedience skills. He developed quite a fan club!

In May, I took him to Santa Rosa, (Canine Companions for Independence) to turn him in for advanced training.

By the time he got there he was pretty proficient at about 30 commands. While in “college” he learned many more advanced commands and he “graduated” on Nov. 4 as a service dog for a mom/grandma from Tumwater.

Many people have asked me about his fate, but I am sure there are many more who met Giles that might be wondering where he is. His new “partner” was so excited to receive him and after being with him a short time she knew he was going to enhance her independence in ways she couldn’t even imagine.

So for all you folks who wonder how we can raise them and then “give them away,” well, this is the reason. It is not much dif-ferent than raising a child and then letting them go out in the world to see how they can make it better.

Thanks again for your help.SHANNAN DUMKE

Freeland

Hospital bond

To the editor:We who live on Whidbey Island are so for-

tunate (I could say blessed) to have a com-munity based hospital, Whidbey General, in our backyard. I know of what I speak.

Two Sundays ago, completely unexpect-

edly, I found myself in need of emergency services and the hospital.

The ambulance and emergency fire per-sonnel arrived in short order. All those who arrived were patient and kind, asked ques-tions, while performing necessary tasks and had me in the ambulance and on the way to the hospital with efficiency. Upon arriving at the hospital the emergency room staff was calmly pleasant and efficient.

I won’t burden the reader with details but the next 24 hours I was taken care of in a superior manner. Every professional I met from the doctors, nurses, technicians, food server and maintenance woman introduced themselves, were considerate of my needs, explained their function and showed great consideration.

Our daughter, who has been in the medi-cal field for 20 years, spent many hours with me as I was being treated. She said in her experience she had never seen a kinder, more efficient group of medical people.

No one wants a medical emergency, but almost everyone gets one at one time or another. I am so thankful that I had Whidbey General Hospital available to me and my fam-ily. The staff was exceptional. The tests were swift and the results prompt. But perhaps as important as the technical aspects of my visit was the kindness and courtesy of all. This

understanding helped me control my anxiety in a difficult and uncertain circumstance.

Don’t be short-sighted when the next hospital bond issue is on the ballot. We have a wonderful service on Whidbey Island. Support the hospital bond issue. It could help save your life.

KATHRYN VON DORANFreeland

In response

To the editor:I think that Mr. David Freed knows what

collectivism means: The political principle of centralized social and economic control, esp. of all means of production, (Random House).

Historically, collectivism has had two broad segments: The socialist/communist branch, which has led to totalitarian regimes or unsustainable welfare states, and the arachno/utopian branch, exemplified by the old “Freeland” commune here on Whidbey Island and the now failing Occupy move-ment.

James Madison was concerned about the possibility of a majority becoming tyrannical. He wrote in Federalist No. 10: “A rage for paper money, for an abolition of debts, for an equal division of property, or for any other

improper or wicked project, will be less apt to pervade the whole body of the Union than a particular member of it.”

So Madison relied upon a representative system to dilute the unjust power of factions to victimize a minority. He also believed that a system of defined powers would prevent overreaching by the Congress.

In Federalist No. 45: “The powers del-egated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government, are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State gov-ernments are numerous and indefinite. The former will be exercised principally on exter-nal objects, as war, peace, negotiation, and foreign commerce.”

“The powers reserved to the several States will extend to all the objects which, in the ordinary course of affairs, concern the lives, liberties, and properties of the people, and the internal order, improvement, and pros-perity of the State.”

Madison soon came to realize that a Bill of Rights would be needed. Otherwise a loss of liberty would surely result from legislation exceeding the proper functions of the federal government. He would be horrified at the mutation of his handiwork into the bloated monstrosity which we now face.

JON BERGFreeland

Letters

The South Whidbey Record welcomes letters from its readers. Letters should be typewritten and not exceed 300 words. They must be signed and include a daytime phone. Send to [email protected].


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Twelfth Night Concert at WICASaturday, Jan 7, 7:30pm

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St. Peter'sLutheranChurch

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All are Welcome!

December 21st 7:00pm The Best Christmas Pageant St. Peter’s Style

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Christmas

Page A7

Christmas Eve

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Whether you’re Christian, agnostic, Muslim, pagan, Jewish, Druid, athe-ist, Buddhist, Catholic, Protestant, Mormon, Seventh Day Adventist, or any other appellation you

can come up with, it really shouldn’t matter when it’s the holiday season (or any other time, as far as I’m con-cerned.)

What matters at this particular time of year is, at least for a few days, friend-ship, family, hope, happy kids, smiles, good wishes for everyone, and if possible, a putting aside of anger, antagonism, pettiness and dissension.

And, as long as we’re talk-ing about things that matter during the holidays, let’s not forget to add, hopefully, an abundance of cookies, which you may call Christmas cookies or not, as you wish.

If it were possible, I’d bake each and every one of

you who read this column a batch of “holiday” cook-ies, just to say thanks and express my wishes for a happy holiday season.

Since that’s not possible, what I can do instead is give you cookie recipes, some very old, some from more recent years. I never give up collecting cookie recipes; I hope you can make use of these in the days to come. Bake up a storm, get the kids to help, and then pass some along to anyone with a smile on their face.

Happy holidays, good wishes to all, and may your cookies never crumble, nor your kids grumble.

RECIPESI love recipes that make a

lot of cookies, especially dur-ing the busy holiday season when you’d like to make as many as possible in the least amount of time, like this one. During the years I was teaching, I took homemade cookies to school for many occasions; this was one of the most requested cookies by kids and other teachers.

RASPBERRY DELIGHTS

1¼ cups sifted flour1½ cups sugar plus 1 t.

(see instructions)1 t. baking powder2 eggs plus 1 egg yolk

(see instructions)2 T. brandy (or use milk)¾ cup thick raspberry jam2 t. vanilla6 T. melted butter2½ cups flaked coconutSift flour with salt, 1 t.

sugar and baking powder; cut or blend in butter. Add egg yolk and brandy (or milk), mixing to combine. Pat into a buttered 11x7 baking pan. Spread with jam. Beat eggs until thick and lemon-colored. Beat in 1½ cups sugar, vanilla and melted butter. Add coconut. Spoon this mixture over the jam, spreading gently. Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for 35 min. Cool; cut into 1-inch squares. Store airtight or can be frozen.

Makes 6 dozen.

This next recipe also makes 6 dozen cookies, but these are not your average holiday cookie; they look almost like candy and are a chocoholic’s dream cookie. First, however, you’ll need this recipe for basic butter cookie dough, in case you don’t have one handy.

BASIC BUTTER COOKIE DOUGH

4 sticks (1 lb.) unsalted butter, softened

1 1/3 cups sugar¾ t. salt

WHIDBEY RECIPES

Margaret Walton

SEE RECIPES, A9

Homemade cookies add sweetness to the holiday season

BY PATRICIA DUFFSouth Whidbey Record

LANGLEY — She’ll bike and Skype for her love of teaching Spanish.

An irrepressible thirst for adven-ture and learning made Langley resident and Spanish teacher Sonja Bricker want to bring the world to her students.

Bricker teaches Spanish to sec-ond-, third- and fourth-year high school students at Meadowdale High School in Edmonds. In February, she will take a leave of absence from the classroom to launch a new program she calls “Spain with Sonja.”

“I love teaching and it’s great, but I don’t feel that my love of adventure and spontaneity, and all the experi-ences that have changed my life because of Spanish, are really com-ing out in the classroom,” Bricker said.

“I feel like it’s really just a class and even though I’m constantly try-ing to make it fun and interesting, it’s really contrived.”

Bricker decided it was time to shake things up, so she proposed a project to her employer that would

allow her a 37-day absence from her teaching job and be back in the classroom in April.

Having been a world traveler as a teen and young adult, Bricker discovered her love of language while traveling, often by bicycle, to 41 countries, 12 of which are Spanish-speaking.

“I spent about 12 years traveling around the world in the winters. When you speak Spanish you can go to 21 countries and you can speak with the people,” Bricker said.

From Feb. 6 to April 10, Bricker will cycle through Andalusia in the southern area of Spain and shoot videos of local teenagers, write a bilingual blog and conduct weekly Skype conversations between teens she meets in Spain and her students in Washington.

“I’ll focus on teenagers and show my students what it looks like living in Spain — living with their par-ents, what they wear, what they eat, dating, what the night life is like,” Bricker said.

“I feel like if they can relate to Spanish teenagers, maybe they’ll be truly interested and want to pur-sue something more; go further in

Spanish,” she added. Bricker has already created a rap-

port with her students after being firmly ensconced at Meadowdale High School for five years.

“I’ve already developed a relation-ship with them and I think they will care about following me; they care

about me enough to want to partici-pate,” Bricker said.

Bricker already has a Spanish-speaking website, which she cre-ated for her classes and which stu-dents can refer to for short Spanish videos, a dictionary and a link to YouTube streams for all things

Spanish-speaking. Recently, for this new travel

project, she added the blog, SpainwithSonja, with an introduc-tory video of herself explaining the program to anyone who might like to follow her travels.

“Every Friday I’ll Skype for the first 15 minutes of their class. I’m hoping to have guest speakers who will talk to my kids back in the class-room so they have a chance to prac-tice speaking with a native Spanish teenager in real time,” Bricker said.

She hopes to encompass all forms of learning Spanish, including the speaking, the reading and the writ-ing, she added.

“I know this technology doesn’t seem new to us now, but it’s really still kind of exciting, isn’t it? To be able to see a person that far away while talking to them,” she said.

Although Bricker is using her sab-batical to enhance the experience for her students, she will not be paid during her absence and is trying to raise funds for her trip. To donate, visit the blog page at spainwithsonja.blogspot.com or send a donation in the mail to Sonja Bricker, PO Box 102, Greenbank, WA 98253.

Photo courtesy of Sonja Bricker

Langley resident and teacher Sonja Bricker is an extensive traveler who has traveled to more than 40 countries including the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador where she met this turtle.

3 large egg yolks2 t. vanilla4 2/3 cup flourIn large bowl of a standing

mixer, beat together butter, sugar and salt until light and fluffy. Beat in yolks, one at a time, add vanilla, beat until smooth. Beat in flour gradu-ally, beating dough just until well combined. Makes about 3 lbs. of dough, enough for two batches of the following cookies, or divide in half and use the other half for anoth-er cookie recipe (this dough is useful for many types of cookies).

MOCHA BUTTER BALLS

½ of the prepared basic butter cookie dough (recipe above) at room temp.

¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process for this)

2 t. instant espresso pow-der

1 cup finely chopped wal-nuts or pecans

About 2 cups confection-ers’ sugar

In the bowl of a stand-ing mixer, beat together all ingredients except the confectioner’s sugar, until just well combined. Form the dough into 1-inch balls and arrange about ¾ inch apart on baking sheets (let kids make the balls, if they’re around). Bake the cookies in the middle of a preheated 350-degree oven until just firm and beginning to brown, about 18 min. Cool on the baking sheets for 5 min.

Sift confectioner’s sugar into a bowl. After the 5 min.

cool down of the cookies, toss the balls, a few at a time, in the sugar, coating them well and transferring them as coated to trays to cool completely. (Before storing or freezing, coat again lightly in the confectioner’s sugar to keep them from sticking to each other. These can be stored between layers of waxed paper in airtight con-tainers and frozen for up to 6 weeks.) Makes about 6 dozen.

You could use the remain-ing half of the basic butter cookie dough to make won-derful, old-fashioned cookies we used to call thumbprint cookies. My grandkids call them ...

JELLY BOWL COOKIES

½ of the prepared basic butter cookie dough (recipe above) at room temp.

¾ cup jam (raspberry, strawberry, apricot, peach, your favorite), strained (you want it to be a bit jelly-like)

Form level teaspoons of

dough into balls and arrange about 1-inch apart on baking sheets. With your thumb make an indentation in the center of each ball and fill with about ¼ t. of the jam (Or, you could drop a chocolate chip in each center before filling with jam, as a surprise.) Bake cookies in batches in the middle of a preheated 350-degree oven until edges are pale golden, about 12 min. Cool on bak-ing sheets for 2 min. before transferring to racks to cool completely. These may be stored between layers of waxed paper in airtight con-tainers for up to six weeks frozen. Makes about 8 dozen cookies (hooray!).

The holiday cookie scene, for me, wouldn’t be complete without ginger cookies of some sort, but I gave up making gingerbread men (or women) long ago; these soft ginger cookies with a light icing more than fill the need for something ginger.

GINGER COOKIES½ cup butter, at room

temp.

1 cup sugar2 eggs1 t. baking soda1 T. water1 cup molasses (use your

favorite type; I love dark)4 cups sifted flour1 t. ginger (a bit more if

you like them very gingery)Cream together butter

and sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Add eggs and beat well. Combine baking soda and water; add to creamed mixture. Blend in molasses.

Sift together flour and ginger; add gradually to creamed mixture, just until well combined. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto buttered

baking sheets and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven 12 to 15 min. Remove immediately to wire racks to cool. When cool, frost with confectioners’ icing (recipe follows).

To make icing, Combine 2½ cups confectioners’ sugar, 1 T. white corn syrup, 2 T. softened butter and 3-4 T. hot water. Stir until thoroughly blended. Use to

frost ginger cookies. If I have it on hand, and I usually do, I put a small piece of uncrys-tallized candied ginger on top of each iced cookie. Makes 6 to 7 dozen cookies. (You can find uncrystallized candied ginger at Trader Joe’s, possibly elsewhere but I haven’t found it yet in local supermarkets.)

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You’ve listed your home for sale, and can’t wait to see your agent in action, showing your home to prospective buyers. You’re looking forward to hearing the agent describe the rosewood cabinetry in the kitchen, the heart-of-pine hand-pegged fl oors, and the effi ciency of the double-duty heating and cooling system.

What’s wrong with this picture? First, you should be conspicuously absent when your home is being shown. Buyers rarely bring up objections or concerns when homeowners are present, however they will talk freely with the agent. It is vital that the agent be allowed to work with prospects i an atmosphere conducive to positive negotiations.

Keep in mind that your agent is responsible for causing your home to sell. Your agent is the catalyst which causes your home to be exposed to the widest audience of buyers. Other agents are encouraged to show the home to their buyers too, thus widening the circle of prospects for an early sale.

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DINING & ENTERTAINMENT GUIDETHE CLYDE THEATRE

IN TIMEJustin Timberlake proves himself an actual action

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only the rich can buy the time to live past 25.

Rated PG-13.

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of the FBI, the man who caught John Dillinger and hunted for Reds under every carpet in this bio-pic from Clint

Eastwood. Armie Hammer plays his right-hand man

Clyde Tolson, which is ironic since Armie’s

great-grandfather Julius founded the Communist

Party in New York and his grandfather Armand was Lenin’s pen pal. Rated R.

NEIL’SCLOVER PATCH

We serve South Whidbey’s fi nest Prime Rib every

Friday & Saturday evening.

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Wines, gifts, warmth and the aromas of new vintages underway will greet you in the tasting room. We have

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Fabulous gourmet dining! Enjoy the view while you enjoy our lunch specials.

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Gerda Ann (Moen) Uren

Gerda Ann (Moen) Uren was born in Seattle on Feb. 14, 1929 and gently passed away with her family by her side at the age of 82 on Dec. 18, 2011.

Gerda married James Uren on March 23, 1963 and were together for 48 years. Gerda was a resident of Bush Point on Whidbey Island since 1968. She loved her home and was totally devoted to her husband and was happiest

when enjoying the company of her family, especially her great-grandchildren. She was a member of the Nyda Club associated with the Shriners.

She is survived by her husband Jim; their four chil-dren, Craig (and Pam) Dill of Freeland, and their chil-dren Tracy, Heather and Josh; Steve (and Kay) Dill of Langley, and their children Casey and Chris; Bill (and Michelle) Dill of Clinton and their children Shannon, Ryan and Sean; and Jayme (and Tom) Grant of Alpine, Calif. and their children Lindsay

and Kiarra; as well 13 great-grandchildren with three more on the way and many loving friends. She will be fondly remembered by her family and friends.

Services will be held on Thursday, Dec. 22, with graveside service at 11 a.m. at Bayview Cemetery; church service at noon at Trinity Lutheran Church in Freeland and a Celebration of Life at 2 p.m. at the Holmes Harbor Rod & Gun Club. Donations, in lieu of flowers, can be made to Shriners Childrens Hospital.

COMMUNITYWWW.SOUTHWHIDBEYRECORD.COM

Obituaries

Gerda Ann Moen Uren

Equestrian Crossings is accepting applications for winter riding lessons. The registration dead-line is Friday, Dec. 23.

Learn English and Western riding, vaulting and adaptive lessons with daytime and after school times. Lessons run for 8 weeks, begin-ning Tuesday, Jan. 24 in Oak Harbor and Greenbank.

Lessons, which are

$30 each plus an annual free of $30 for new stu-dents, are available for all ages over 5 and all skill levels.

Equestrian Crossings is a nonprofit organiza-tion that incorporates life-skill learning and fun into each lesson.

Download registra-tion packets from www.equestriancrossings.com.

For information, contact [email protected] or 360-320-1573.

Community news

SportsSportsSports Page A11

BY EVAN THOMPSONSouth Whidbey Record

Being only a second-year wres-tler, Falcon senior Cameron Schille has come a long way in honing his skills.

At the Lynnwood Classic on Saturday, Schille was the second-highest seeded wrestler in the 138-pound weight class.

After a first-round bye, Schille wrestled true to his placement, defeating his first opponent of the day, Tysen Campell of Granite Falls, by a 13-5 major-decision.

Schille’s semi-finals matchup was against the third-seeded wrestler, Lynnwood’s Jake Latimer. Schille pinned Latimer with 1 minute and 43 seconds left in the second peri-od, advancing to the finals match, his first-ever appearance competing for an individual title.

“I was really excited because I had never been in a finals,” said

Schille. “I’m doing a lot better this year.”

A lot has happened since he first entered the daunting blood-and-sweat filled mat room where the Falcons practice day in and day out. A year ago, Schille placed sixth at the regional tournament, finishing his junior campaign as a state-alternate.

Also the team’s co-captain, Schille draws a higher seed at tour-naments being a state-alternate last year, meaning he generally faces easier opponents early on and meet the tougher and more drawn-out wrestlers the further he advances.

In the championship, Schille lost to state-alternate and return-ing tournament champion Dustin Diemond from Meadowdale High School. Diemond pinned Schille with just over 40 seconds remain-ing.

“He has been wrestling for six

years; he’s good,” Schille said. “We were about the same strength level but technique wise he was a little bit better.”

Falcon head coach Jim Thompson was proud of Schille for making his very first finals matchup.

“He made the finals and it’s really neat,” Thompson said. “I’m really proud of him. He’s finally down to his normal weight of 138 pounds and he’s doing well.”

Other Falcon wrestlers that reached the semi-finals in the tournament were sophomore Andy Madsen (138), senior Montana Johnson and senior Avery

Buechner. All three lost to the eventual champions of their respective weight classes. Buechner and Madsen both finished third, while Johnson finished fifth.

Buechner pinned his first opponent in just under 1 minute.

After losing to Roosevelt’s Garrett Mack, Buechner battled back. He defeated Bridgen

Hayashi from Roosevelt with a 10-1 major decision.

In the third and fourth-place bout, Buechner beat Joe Stoutt of Eastside Catholic 3-0.

Madsen was pinned by Diemond, who later defeated Schille in the finals. He turned the

tide by pinning Charlie Ronan of Bishop Blanchet.

Finishing fifth along with Johnson were seniors Steven Smith (145) and Jeremiah Robey. James Itaya placed sixth.

Despite several placers, the Falcons only finished eighth out of 10 teams, in Thompson’s eyes that really didn’t matter.

“My thought is that I’m over-joyed with kids getting lots of matches and first-year wres-tlers placing in tournaments,” Thompson said. “Just like Cameron, when kids are down to their normal weights they start placing in tournaments.”

The Falcons will continue to practice throughout Winter Break until they face the Lakewood Cougars on Friday Jan. 6, then the following day the Falcons travel to Puyallup to wrestle a ranked 1A Cascade-Christian squad.

BY BEN WATANABESouth Whidbey Record

A road trip could not have been much better for the South Whidbey boys basketball team.

After starting with a 1-4 overall record, Falcon head coach Henry Pope said he needed more from his team.

“I used this trip as a little get away,” Pope said. “The way these boys played, I’ve got 10 boys who want to play in 2012.”

Pope wanted more passion — to see which of his players had desire and hustle.

The Falcons’ second trip to the Seaside Holiday Classic basketball tournament yielded high returns in wins and changed attitudes. Pope challenged the Falcons to define themselves and the team’s iden-tity during the tournament, and questioned their toughness. Their response was exactly what he want-ed to see.

“Man, they showed up,” Pope said. “They played the toughest, most aggressive games I’ve seen all year.”

South Whidbey finished 2-1, play-ing three games in three days.

The Falcons also had Zach Comfort, scoring 47 points through the tourney, voted to the all-tourna-ment team.

“Zach was the man,” Pope said. “He could not be stopped. I thought he was MVP.”

The Falcons also had sophomore forward Nick French named to the honorable mention all-defense team.

“That was a crock,” Pope said. “He played against some good scor-ers and kept them under their aver-age.”

South Whidbey won its first game 39-32 against La Pine.

The tournament, played in Oregon, was without a shot clock. That limited the amount of pos-sessions for South Whidbey as it adjusted to the sluggish pace of the game.

“It was kind of slow,” Pope said.“We really took our time getting

good looks.”Prepared for the pace, the

Falcons grinded down the clock by passing to Comfort in the paint.South Whidbey took an early 10-4 lead. Comfort was key in that plan, tying senior point guard Sam Lee with 10 points a piece to lead the Falcons.

“Zach Comfort was just a beast,” Pope said. “We got Zach the ball a lot inside.”

Maintaining quality possessions, free of errors, still proved elusive for South Whidbey. The La Pine Hawks rallied in the second quarter to trail 18-13 at halftime.

Lee guided South Whidbey in the third quarter, scoring six of his 10 points in the period. La Pine stayed close to the lead with 5-of-7 free-throw shooting.

The Hawks used a press defense to stymie the Falcons and force either a great play or a mistake. South Whidbey kept La Pine at bay in the fourth quarter, despite a poor free-throw percentage.

The Falcons advanced in the

winner’s bracket to face the White Buffalos of Madras in the second game.

Madras, a school of almost 900 students struggled against South Whidbey, with about 480 stu-dents, but won, 59-44.

The White Buffalos used speed to their advantage to counter the Falcons’ size. At the end of the first quarter, the Falcons trailed 15-14.

“They were a quick team,” Pope said. “They took long shots, and long shots have long rebounds.”

Despite the Falcons’ size with 6-foot-8 Comfort, 6-foot-1 Nick French and 6-foot-4 Mo Hamsa, the White Buffalos secured offensive rebounds. Madras had a decidedly favorable free-throw advantage over

South Whidbey — 20 attempts to the Falcons’ two.

South Whidbey led in the second quarter with about 1 minute to play before halftime. Turnovers against proved costly as Madras scored six points to take a 30-25 lead.

“We missed a golden opportunity to take the lead,” Pope said.

Madras kept its lead at five points in the third quarter, 44-39.

Free-throw shooting iced the game as the White Buffalos made 9-of-10 in the fourth quarter.

Comfort led the Falcons with 15 points, 11 rebounds and five blocked shots. Lee added 10 points, junior guard Josh Bishop scored six; French had five; juniors Sam Turpin and Taylor Simmons each scored

two; Hamsa had two; and junior Andrew Holt finished with four.

The loss bumped South Whidbey to the consolation round against Central Linn, a much smaller school. The third-place game proved to be the thriller, as the Falcons beat the Cobras 66-61 in overtime.

Pope continued his theme of change in Game Three as he used an entirely different lineup. He started backup point guard Guy Sparkman, Turpin, Holt, French and Hamsa. It worked.

South Whidbey had a seven-point run to open the game, and led 15-5.

Mistakes made their mark against the Falcons, however, and the Cobras struck back to trail 17-13 at the end of the first quarter.

The regular starters returned in the second quarter. Poor free-throw shooting (11-of-25) limited the Falcons’ scoring, though they still led 35-23 at halftime.

Central Linn surged in the fourth quarter. Comfort fouled out, allow-ing the Cobras to attack the paint and slowly chip at the Falcons’ lead. On the sideline, Comfort watched his team struggle to score or stop the Cobras.

The Cobras shot 12 free throws and the Falcons failed to close the game, forcing overtime.

In bonus time, French scored five points, Hamsa got a putback and Lee made two free throws to beat Central Linn and claim third place.

“I was so impressed to see Nick play like that,” Comfort said. “Sam Lee also clutched up and hit his free throws.”

Falcons finish third at Seaside hoops tournament

Carl Comfort photo

Falcon senior point guard Sam Lee brings the ball to the top of the key against Central Linn on Saturday.


Who was that guy in your neighborhood last week…?Santa’s one of us

South Whidbey Fire/EMSSanta’s Sleigh: A fi re department tradition since 1995

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BY PATRICIA DUFFSouth Whidbey Record

BAYVIEW — The forest was waiting. There was the evergreen fort to finish building.

The group of children were unfazed by the cold and cloudy weather and ran ahead up the hill from the South Whidbey Tilth cam-pus where the Calyx Community Arts School meets twice during its three-days-per-week schedule.

Eight-year-old Audrey Conlon announced that she would draw the imaginary door to gain entry into the forest.

“We draw the door and we ask if we can come in and if it says, ‘Yes,’ then we can go into the forest,” Audrey said.

“Listen to the wind, the trees will rustle,” she said.

Why ask the forest before enter-ing?

“Because the forest wants to be treated nicely,” Audrey explained.

Audrey’s imagination and thoughtful respect for the woods is an active example of what Calyx founders Marta Mulholland and Lisa Kois had in mind when they began the school in October for children ages 4 to 8. The program is modeled on the “forest kindergar-ten” idea of an outdoor classroom, blended with an integrated Spanish language and arts curriculum.

“As you may know, the word ‘calyx’ comes to us from plant lan-guage and refers to the part of a flowering plant that holds and sup-ports the bud as it grows and blos-soms into a flower,” Kois said.

This “school without walls” takes its lead from the forest kindergar-tens which are more common in Europe, but catching on in America,

and take place almost entirely out-side, no matter the weather, to play, to explore and to learn in a forest or natural environment. Adult supervi-sion is meant to assist rather than lead, encouraging children to make their own choices about play, while making sure they are safe.

Back in the woods, four students of varying ages gave a “Coyote Call” back to “Mother Coyote” — in this case, Eva Bistuer-Gibson, one of the lead teachers at the school and an artist who is a native of Spain and speaks mainly Spanish to the children.

“They spend seven to nine hours (per week) immersed in the lan-guage through different activities such as reading stories, singing songs, playing games and going on walks in the forest,” Bistuer-Gibson said.

The children led the way to the fort within a large Douglas fir, which was somewhat tilted and provided some natural shelter from its bend-ing branches. They entered the fort with care.

Yovanna Ceron Cesar, a 4-year-old Spanish-speaking child who is learn-ing English, picked up a small leafy branch nearby and began sweeping the forest floor of pine needles. She swept for at least 15 minutes, taking care to admonish her fellow fort dwellers to be careful where they stepped on her newly swept floor.

Audrey, meanwhile, was busy adding larger branches to the walls of the fort and gave direction to the others about the intricacies of fort architecture. All the children were familiar with the forest and explored its floor, the bark of its trees and listened closely when their teach-er asked them what sounds they noticed.

Bistuer-Gibson spoke to each child in Spanish as they played. She had noticed a transformation in the children after only two weeks.

“I see all kinds of reactions. Some turn around looking for help from other adults, some run away from me,” she said.

“But little by little, I start to see changes — the language suddenly becomes something they are not afraid of anymore. They start to rec-

ognize some words and the learn-ing starts, just like that. They don’t even know they are learning, but they are. For me that is priceless,” she added.

Playing outside for prolonged periods has been shown to have a positive effect on children’s devel-opment, particularly in the areas of balance and agility, manual dex-terity, physical coordination, tactile sensitivity and depth perception.

Besides Bistuer-Gibson, there is a team of six other mentors, who include intern Hailey Johnson; park ranger Tess Cooper, who teaches the children about how to use their “owl eyes, deer ears, raccoon touch and dog nose” during their forays into South Whidbey State Park; Tilth leader Anza Muenchow, who

Island lifeIsland lifeIsland lifePage A14 WWW.SOUTHWHIDBEYRECORD.COM

A school to nurture the petals of flowering childhood

Calyx

Patricia Duff / The Record

Liam and Aaliyah review the parts of a viola in Linda Good’s music lesson at the Calyx Community Arts School at its South Whidbey Tilth campus.

SEE CALYX, A15

Patricia Duff / The Record

Left, Audrey Conlon, 8, builds a fort in the woods and, at right, joins her classmates Liam Adadow, 4, Yovanna Ceron Cesar, 4, and Aaliyah Kois Jacob, 5, at their mushroom garden.

is teaching them how to grow a garden for food; Island Strings music teacher Linda Good, who teaches them vio-lin, cello and other instru-ments; plus parent-teachers Kois and Mulholland. Five of the seven teachers are vol-unteers.

The original outside class-rooms also extend the idea that children who learn how to handle themselves in the outdoors — learning the use of outdoor tools, for instance — will gain confidence from their affinity with nature.

These children were cer-tainly in touch with the out-side and after showing off some colorful paper bag mushrooms they had made and “planted” in the grass, they talked about an animal that had become the school mascot.

Kois’ 5-year-old daughter Aaliyah Kois Jacob said there is a pet vole, which lives under a large piece of wood near the garden. She pointed to it.

“We don’t know if he’s got-ten eaten,” she said.

“If we open that platform, we see if he’s in there and if he’s in there, he’ll run to another hole. His name is Gracie Voley,” she said.

Bistuer-Gibson asked Aaliyah how she would describe him “en Español.”

“Raton de campo,” Aaliyah said with a perfect rolled “r” accent.

“There’s like 500 of them and if this guy got dead there’d be 400,” she added.

Not far from Gracie Voley’s home is the garden, where Muenchow hopes to have a hoop house for growing the children’s favorite crops, including carrots, strawber-ries and radishes. They have already planted trees for a wind break and some bulbs for early color and bee attrac-tion.

While they work in the garden, Muenchow sings the plant part song with them in Spanish: “raices, tallos, hojas, floras, frutas y semillas, seis partes que todas necesitan.”

The vole didn’t seem to want to make an appearance, and it was time for music anyway.

Inside the small, cozy activity hut, Good was setting up various instruments and musical trinkets to show the children. Johnson repeated in Spanish all of what Good was talking about in English.

“I’m delighted to teach at Calyx, because I love teach-ing music to young students and I’m happy to review espa-ñol,” Good said.

Good explained all the parts of some instruments she brought and some of their origins in the country in which they were made. The children were engaged and eager to see what was next

on her list. “My teaching over the

years is based on the Suzuki philosophy as explained in ‘Nurtured By Love,’ where we assume that children want to learn,” Good said, who shares her love of teaching with her husband Leonard.

“In the 45 years that Leonard and I have lived on South Whidbey, we’ve taught at many private schools and in the districts and appreciate the parents and staff of Calyx working and experimenting to find an education to fit their needs,” she added.

Marrying an outside class-room to a bilingual arts cur-riculum is the school’s main thrust, but with that they hope to give the children tools for practical life.

Kois said that they strive to guide each child with a gentle hand through exam-ple and storytelling, through

appreciating and thanks giv-ing, through collaboration, genuine connection and with empathy. In this way, a stu-dent can learn in a natural way to think critically, to have compassion and delve into the creative process, she said.

“How we engage in cre-ative process. How we are in the world, with others, with children, with the earth. This is hard work,” Kois said.

“We have no illusions that adults have all the answers. In fact, we believe that life and learning are in the ques-tions,” she added. “So, we ask lots of questions. We ask them of ourselves, we ask them of the kids. Questions that make us think, wonder, explore, examine, create, and ask more questions.”

Like Kois, Mulholland wanted a school for her son, 4-year-old Liam Adadow, that

reflected her own values and experiences of respect for the natural world.

“I passionately believe that we need to foster in our children a deep respect and awareness for our earth, and the only way we can do this is to model it ourselves,” Mulholland said.

“We literally need to dig our toes and fingers into the dirt, lie on the earth, smell the soil and connect with that to which we belong.”

The school schedule is from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, with an optional 30-minute yoga class for kids and their grown-ups at 8:30 a.m. all three days,

and an optional local food lunch from 1 to 2 p.m. each Wednesday.

Classes on Mondays take place at South Whidbey State Park on Smugglers Cove Road in Freeland, and Tuesdays and Wednesdays are at South Whidbey Tilth, where Calyx has access to a small kitchen for cooking classes, snacks and the lunch option and a small room for music learning, and other indoor learning activities.

For more information, visit calyxcommunityarts school.wordpress.com, email [email protected] or call 331-1323.

ISLAND LIFE Page A15

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CONTINUED FROM A14

Community calendarCommunity calendarCommunity calendarPage A16 WWW.SOUTHWHIDBEYRECORD.COM

The “Little Brown Church” at the corner of French and Maxwelton roads in Clinton will host a community Christmas sing-along at 7 p.m. tonight.

The South Whidbey commu-nity is invited to join together for singing of traditional Christmas songs.

South Whidbey graduate and singer Alicia Gianni will give a holiday concert featuring pia-nist Joseph Li at 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 23 at Langley United Methodist Church.

Gianni was recently nominat-ed as Best Jazz Artist in Houston for the 2011 Houston Press Music Awards and is currently at work on her solo album at the historical Sugarhill Recording Studios.

The Langley concert will include a variety of music, including the debut of a few songs from her album. Admission is by donation, with all proceeds going toward Gianni’s CD production costs.

Sno-Isle Libraries will host an additional screening and public discussion of the new PBS documentary, “Not In Our Town: Light in the Darkness,” in December. The screening is part of Sno-Isle Libraries’ “Issues That Matter” series of programs that encourage community dialogue.

A local screening of the film is at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 29 at Langley Library.

“Not In Our Town: Light in the Darkness” tells the story of resi-dents of a Long Island village taking action after a local immi-grant is killed in a hate crime attack by seven teenagers.

While starkly revealing the trauma of hate, the film pro-vides a blueprint for people who want to do something before intolerance turns to vio-lence.

The hour-long documentary, narrated by Academy Award

nominee Alfre Woodard, will be followed by a discussion about what local residents can do to stop hate in their community. Communities across the country use the film to initiate dialogue about intolerance and anti-immigrant violence.

The South Whidbey Polar Bear Dive will return to Double Bluff Beach on New Year’s Day.

Registration begins at 10:30 a.m. and the jump is at noon. The cost is $15 per person with $5 off for Polar Bears who bring a bag of canned food for Good Cheer.

A “First Day Hike” will be held on New Year’s Day at Deception Pass State Park.

The park is one of four Washington state parks that will be open for guided tours on the holiday as part of the America’s State Parks First Day Hikes initia-tive.

The hikes offer individuals and families an opportunity to celebrate New Year’s Day by connecting with the outdoors

while supporting healthy life-style habits in the natural set-tings of Washington.

The other hikes will be in Fields Spring State Park in Anatone; Lake Sylvia State Park in Montesano; and Squilchuck State Park in Wenatchee.

At Deception Pass Park, the mile-and-a-half hike will begin at 11 a.m. at the Bowman Bay parking area. The trail is moder-ate, and children must be 5 years and older to participate.

Hot chocolate will be pro-vided after the hike. It is recom-mended that participants bring water.

More information about First Day Hikes in Washington is available online at www.parks.wa.gov/events.

Stephan A. Schwartz will lead “Opening to the Infinite: Science, Shamanism, and the Hidden Self,” a three-day work-shop that will guide participants in learning and experiencing techniques for accessing the non-local self, Jan. 6-8 at the Sears House in Bayview.

Using paths grounded in science, as well as shamanic and spiritual traditions, the workshop will include the direct

experience of techniques for accessing the non-local self.

Schwartz is one of the acknowledged founders of Remote Viewing, a “modern mental yoga” and a scientific approach to experiencing the non-local.

For 40 years he has been studying the nature of con-sciousness, particularly that aspect independent of space and time. He is also the Senior Samueli Fellow for Brain, Mind and Healing at the Samueli Institute, a research associ-ate of the Cognitive Sciences Laboratory of the Laboratories for Fundamental Research, and the author of 50 technical papers and reports.

To register, contact Craig Weiner at 331-5565 or [email protected].

Artists of South Whidbey will start the year with a pastel demonstration at their meeting at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 10 in the Brookhaven meeting room, Langley.

Noted Pastel Artist Karen Schroeder will be presenting a demonstration of her unique pastel technique.

ASW welcomes artists of all

levels and media to join their meetings, which begin with a sack lunch at 11:30 a.m. The meeting will begin at noon with the demo at 1 p.m. Artists should bring artwork to share or for gentle critique.

For more information, call Judith Burns at 221-2353.

Island County Democrats will hold their next quarterly gen-eral meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 11 in the meeting room at the Freeland Library.

The meeting starts at 7 p.m. and can also be viewed via Skype at the Vista/Madrona Firehouse on Camano Island.

Whidbey Island Center for the Arts presents “Kitsch ‘N Bitch with Sue Frause: Seattle Bites,” at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 11.

Frause, a food and travel writ-er, will give a show reminiscent of “The Tonight Show” with celebrity foodies, while jam-ming with the Kitschen Band (Deja Blooze), whipping up treats, and mixing a signature drink during each show.

“Seattle Bites” features Seattle restaurateurs Thierry Rautureau, The Chef in the Hat (Rover’s and Luc) and Ethan Stowell (Staple & Fancy, Tavolata, How To Cook A Wolf, Anchovies & Olives); Julien Perry, Seattle editor of “Chefs Feed,” food writer for Seattle Weekly; and Deja Blooze and bartender Chris Adams (Mo’s Pub and Eatery).

Ticket prices for KNB range from $10 to $12 and are avail-able by calling WICA at 221-8268 or 800-638-7631.

Whidbey Island Center for the Arts will welcome pianist Walt Wagner to Whidbey Jan. 13-14.

Wagner will perform at two Whidbey Island venues. The first show is a benefit house concert at Robbie Cribbs’ Sound Trap Studios at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 13. Tickets are $150 with proceeds to benefit the WICA Annual Fund.

The second performance, “Walt Wagner in Concert at WICA,” is 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 14. Tickets range from $20 to $30 and are available by contacting the WICA ticket office at 221-8268 or 800-638-7631.

Wagner has performed with Jay Leno, Bill Cosby, Bob Hope, George Burns, Lily Tomlin, Roberta Flack, Sammy Davis Jr., Bob Newhart, and as a pianist and conductor with Peggy Lee.

21Wednesday

Photo courtesy of Rocco Gianni

South Whidbey graduate and singer Alicia Gianni returns to the island from her home in Houston, Texas for a holiday concert featuring pianist Joseph Li at 7 p.m. Friday, Dec. 23 at Langley United Methodist Church. Admission is by a suggested donation, with all proceeds going toward Gianni’s production costs of the CD. The church is located on the corner of Third Street and Anthes Avenue in Langley.


A 58-year-old Seattle man with family in Oak Harbor has been tentatively identi-fied as the person who jumped off the ferry M/V Cathlamet as the ship was approaching Whidbey Island on Dec. 11.

Authorities said this week that Phil Erb of Seattle is believed to be the man who went overboard from the Cathlamet while it was sail-ing between Mukilteo and Clinton earlier this month. Trooper Keith Leary of the Washington State Patrol, however, said authorities could not say with certainty that Erb was the missing traveler, as a body had not yet been recovered.

Erb was reported miss-

ing to the Seattle Police Department a few days after the man overboard incident. He is the son of Bob and Shirley Erb of Oak Harbor, and a frequent visitor to Whidbey.

The Erbs declined to talk to a reporter Monday.

Father Nigel Taber-Hamilton of St. Augustine’s in-the-Woods Episcopal Church, speaking on the family’s behalf, said they believe Phil Erb is the miss-ing passenger from the Cathlamet.

Taber-Hamilton said the Erb family became con-cerned after they received a package from their son on Dec. 13 that contained the house key they had given him.

“That was kind of a big

red flag,” Taber-Hamilton said. “’Why is my son send-ing back my house key? He needs it.’”

The couple became even more concerned after their son did not come by for his typical weekly visit.

“They tried to contact him and were unable to do so, and got worried,” Taber-Hamilton said.

The minister said the family had not heard that a passenger had gone miss-ing from the ferry, but were soon contacted by the Coast Guard and a chaplain from the Oak Harbor Police Department after they filed a missing person report.

The couple was shown a photograph taken of the man

who had gone missing from the ferry, and the couple identified the person as their son. The photo showed Erb wearing a sweater that his mother had given him.

Taber-Hamilton said the Erb family has been mem-bers of St. Augustine’s for more than a decade, and that Phil Erb had also attended services at the Freeland church. He was a former software worker, and one of four children in the fam-ily. His two brothers live in Texas, while his sister lives in North Carolina.

He was twice married and divorced, and did not have children.

Taber-Hamilton said that Erb had put his affairs in

order. The package was mailed to his family on Saturday, Dec. 10, the day before he jumped from the ferry. He also left the laptop he usually carried with him everywhere at his apartment in Seattle’s International District.

“He clearly planned this for a long time,” Taber-Hamilton said.

The minister said the family has also heard an account from the woman who witnessed Erb jump off the stern of the ship during the 10 p.m. sailing.

“He simply walked to the back of the ferry and lifted up the rope, the way you see the ferry workers lift it, stepped over the webbing,

and put down his bag,” Taber-Hamilton said.

The witness said he appeared to grab something out of his bag, then simply jumped off the ferry.

Ferry service between Whidbey and the mainland was immediately halted after a witness reported a man going overboard, and the Coast Guard led an unsuc-cessful search for the miss-ing man that night and the days that followed.

Taber-Hamilton said a memorial service for Phil Erb will be held early next year.

Brian Kelly can be reached at [email protected].

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Page A17

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7 0 2 3 . 9 3 0 2 5 G r a n t o r s : Northwest Trustee Services, Inc. Wells Fargo Bank, NA Grantee: Shilo C. Berg and Kevin M. Berg, wife and husband Ref to DOT Audi- tor File No.: 4267819 Tax Parcel ID No.: 664668 Ab- breviated Legal: LOT 2, SP 46-90, VOL. 2, PAGE 330 Notice of Trustee’s Sale Pursuant to the Revised Code of Washington 61.24, et seq. I. On January 20, 2012, at 10:00 a.m. outside the main entrance of the Is- land County Annex Building near the Veteran’s Memori- al at 1 NE 6th Street in the City of Coupeville, State of Washington, the under- signed Trustee (subject to any conditions imposed by the Trustee) will sell at public auction to the highest and best bidder, payable at time of sale, the following descr ibed rea l property “Property”, situated in the County(ies) of Island, State of Washington: Lot 2 of Is- land County Short Plat No. 046-90. R23113-312-3540 as approved November 15, 1991, and recorded Decem- ber 20, 1991, in Volume 2 of Short Plats, Page 330, under Auditor’s Fi le No. 91019570, Records of Is-

Legal Notices

land County, Washington; being a portion of Lot 26, Block 1, Camano Sunrise Division No. 1, according to the Plat thereof recorded in Volume 3 of Surveys, Page 9 0 , A u d i t o r ’s F i l e N o . 300279, Records of Island County, Washington. Com- monly known as: 965 Law- son Road Camano Island, WA 98282 which is subject to that certain Deed of Trust dated 01/21/10, recorded on 01/27/10, under Audi- tor ’s F i le No. 4267819, records of Island County, Washington, from Shilo C. Berg and Kevin M. Berg, wife and husband, as Gran- tor, to Northwest Trustee Services, LLC, as Trustee, to secure an obligation “Ob- ligation” in favor of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., as Benefi- ciary. *The Tax Parcel ID number and Abbreviated Legal Description are provided solely to comply with the recording statutes and are not intended to supplement, amend or supersede the Property’s full legal description provided herein. II. No action commenced by the Beneficiary of the Deed of Trust is now pending to seek satisfaction of the Ob- ligation in any Court by reason of the Grantor’s or Bor- rower’s default on the Obli- gation. III. The Beneficiary alleges default of the Deed of Trust for failure to pay the following amounts now in arrears and/or other defaults: Amount due to rein- state by 10/18/2011 Month- ly Payments $21,676.43 L a t e C h a r g e s $ 9 3 4 . 3 4 Lender ’s Fees & Cos ts $40 .00 Tota l Ar rearage $22,650.77 Trustee’s Ex- penses (Itemization) Trus- tee’s Fee $725.00 Title Re- port $1,054.39 Statutory Mailings $9.56 Recording Cos ts $14 .00 Pos t ings $70.00 Sale Costs $54.35 Total Costs $1,927.30 Total Amount Due: $24,578.07 Other known defaults as follows: IV. The sum owing on the Obligation is: Princi- pal Balance of $308,646.42, together with interest as provided in the note or other instrument evidencing t h e O b l i g a t i o n f r o m 11/01/10, and such other costs and fees as are due under the Obligation, and as are provided by statute. V. The Property will be sold to satisfy the expense of sale and the Obligation as provided by statute. The sale will be made without repre- sentation or warranty, express or implied regarding title, possession, encum- brances or condition of the Property on January 20, 2012. The default(s) re- ferred to in paragraph III, together with any subsequent payments, late charges, advances costs and fees thereafter due, must be cured by 01/09/12 (11 days before the sale date), to cause a discontinuance of the sale. The sale will be discontinued and terminated if at any time before the close of the Trustee’s business on 01/09/12 (11 days before the sale date), the default(s) as set forth in paragraph III, together with any subsequent payments, la te charges, advances, costs and fees thereafter due, is/are cured and the Trustee’s fees and costs are paid. The sale may be terminated any t ime a f te r 01/09/12 (11 days before the sale date), and before the sale by the Borrower, Grantor, any Guarantor or the holder of any recorded junior lien or encumbrance paying the entire balance of principal and interest secured by the Deed of Trust, plus costs, fees, and advances, if any made pursuant to the terms of the obligation and/or Deed of Trust. VI. A written notice of de-

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Legal Notices

fault was transmitted by the Beneficiary or Trustee to the Borrower and Grantor at the following address(es): NAME AND ADDRESS Shilo C. Berg 965 Lawson Road Camano Island, WA 98282 Kevin M. Berg 965 Lawson Road Camano Island, WA 98282 by both first class and either certified mail, return receipt requested on 03/11/11, proof of which is in the possession of the Trustee; and on 03/11/11 Grantor and Borrower were personally served with said written notice of default or the written notice of default was posted on a conspicu- ous place on the real property described in paragraph I above, and the Trustee has possession of proof of such service or posting. VII. The Trustee, whose name and address are set forth below, will provide in writing to anyone requesting it a statement of all foreclosure costs and trustee’s fees due at any time prior to the sale. VIII. The effect of the sale will be to deprive the Grantor and all those who hold by, through or under the Grantor of al l their right, title and interest in the Property. IX. Anyone having any objection to the sale on any grounds what- soever will be afforded an opportunity to be heard as to those objections if they bring a lawsuit to restrain the sale pursuant to RCW 61.24.130. Failure to bring such a lawsuit may result in a wa iver o f any proper grounds for invalidating the Trustee’s sale. X. NOTICE TO OCCUPANTS OR TEN- ANTS - The purchaser at the Trustee’s Sale is entitled to possession of the property on the 20th day following the sale, as against the Grantor under the Deed of Trust (the owner) and anyone having an interest junior to the deed of trust, including occupants who are not tenants. After the 20th day following the sale the purchaser has the right to evict occupants who are not tenants by summary proceedings under Chapter 59.12 RCW. For tenant-oc- cupied property, the purchaser shall provide a tenant with written notice in a c c o r d a n c e w i t h R C W 61.24.060. The trustee’s rules of auction may be ac- cessed at www.northwest- trustee.com and are incor- porated by this reference. You may also access sale status at www.northwest- trustee.com and www.USA- Foreclosure.com. EFFEC- TIVE: 10/18/2011 North- west Trustee Services, Inc., Trustee Authorized Signa- ture P.O. BOX 997 Bellevue, WA 98009-0997 Contact: V o n n i e M c E l l i g o t t ( 4 2 5 ) 5 8 6 - 1 9 0 0 ( T S # 7023.93025) 1002.187810- FEILEGAL NO. 346680Published: Whidbey News- T imes , Sou th Wh idbey Reco rd . December 21 , 2011, January 11, 2012

Legal Notices Legal Notices Legal Notices Legal Notices Legal Notices

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officer certification was revoked for dishonesty, and a $1.5 million claim filed by Wallace against the county in February 2008 that alleged his firing was politically moti-vated — was over.

“I’m glad,” he said. “It’s been like a low-grade toothache for the last seven years,” Hawley said.

Wallace’s attorney said it was too soon to say if the decision would be appealed.

“Our clients are disap-pointed with the decision, and respectfully disagree with Mr. Lasnik’s decision,” said attorney Gregory McBroom.

McBroom said he had not yet spoken with Wallace and his wife Lana, who were both parties to the lawsuit.

“We’ll be getting together this week to discuss it and look at the options available,” he said.

The Wallace case became one of the biggest scandals in memory for the Island County Sheriff’s Office after news became public of a botched police response to 911 calls made by a woman who was being held cap-tive in a Freeland cabin in February 2006.

The victim, Victoria Walker, told police she had

been held against her will and assaulted by Matthew Friar, a childhood friend, during their stay at his family’s summer home on Shoreview Drive. She called 911 twice, but Wallace, the deputy on duty who was sent to the scene, left with-out talking to anyone in the cabin and never came back when Walker called 911 for help a second time.

Walker escaped from the home the next morning and called police from a strang-er’s cell phone at nearby Freeland Park.

Attempts to prosecute Friar for unlawful impris-onment and assault were unsuccessful, however, after Walker left the island and refused to contact detec-tives. She later collected a $150,000 settlement from Island County, alleging that the county had not properly trained and supervised its officers and that Wallace had been negligent in respond-ing to the 911 calls.

For his part, Wallace repeatedly disputed inves-tigators’ version of his response to the 911 calls, and said he was fired because of his political aspi-rations.

In his lawsuit, Wallace said Hawley’s public statements after the Freeland cabin incident caused “irreparable damage to … Wallace’s standing in the community

and ruined his sheriff can-didacy by poisoning public opinion.”

Wallace “was considered the favored candidate in community circles,” accord-ing to his lawsuit, but county officials worked to discredit Wallace and “paint him in a bad light with political par-ties, community groups, the press and voters.”

After the 911 controversy became public, the lawsuit noted that the Republican Party revoked its support of Wallace’s candidacy and he was no longer invited to speak at meetings or events.

Wallace said Hawley prohibited the deputy from talking to the press, while Hawley himself told a KIRO-TV reporter that Wallace had been fired for dishonesty and added, “He shouldn’t be elected dog catcher.”

In his Dec. 13 decision, the judge said Wallace had failed to prove his case, and said the county’s launching of an investigation into the deputy’s handling of the 911 calls was “eminently reason-able.”

Lasnik defended the termination proceeding and said the extensive materi-als submitted in the court case “fails to reveal anything that could be ‘exonerating’ evidence” and that evidence supported the allegation that Wallace had lied about his response to the 911 calls.

The judge also rejected Wallace’s argument that the victim’s version of events was unreliable.

“Having waded through the voluminous record in this matter, heard the arguments of counsel, and attempted to follow the logic of plaintiffs’ arguments, the court feels compelled to note that, in plaintiffs’ strenu-ous efforts to discredit Ms. Walker and her accusations by any means, they make unsupported arguments and draw irrational inferences that would, if not carefully analyzed, mislead the court,” Lasnik wrote.

The judge also said just because Friar was not found guilty didn’t mean there wasn’t a crime committed.

“It simply means, unre-markably, that Mr. Friar could not be prosecuted after the complaining witness disappeared. Ms. Walker’s relationship with Mr. Friar and her criminal and drug history may bear on her credibility, but these factors fall well short of proving that her allegations were false.

“Plaintiffs’ misstatements and overstatements in this proceeding are far more troubling and material than those of which defendants are accused,” Lasnik added.

Page A23

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CONTINUED FROM A1

“Remember Orcas, it’s wintertime and it’s very cold outside. Please remember to wear your sweatshirt or coat outside at recess.”

The final segment of the show is a piece of leadership advice. The elementary school is work-ing on a school-wide lead-ership initiative based on the “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People,” and for Dec. 15, the lesson was “Begin with the end in mind — have a plan.”

When they were fin-ished with their first and only take, Talin and Kaylie listened to the five-minute recording.

“It makes me sound so different,” Kaylie said.

“I’m almost jealous I don’t get the long parts, then when it starts I’m, ‘Oh yeah, I’m OK.’”

Both Talin and Kaylie are repeat hosts. For a couple of veteran podcast hosts, both dislike read-ing in public. There’s something different about speaking into a micro-phone, rather than in front

of a crowd.“I like doing the pod-

cast, just not reading out loud,” Talin said. “Maybe it’s that I’m not doing it in front of my class.”

Wallace said people from across the world download and listen to the podcasts, and she remind-ed her young hosts of their celebrity.

“Families love hearing you on the podcast,” she told the pair.

“There’s a lot of families that sit over breakfast and listen to the podcast.”

The shift from announcements through the school intercom to a podcast via the Internet happened in 2009. Rather than interrupting class, teachers can choose a convenient time to play the podcast for their students.

And as for the students, well, they are heard all over the school and the world, as well. How cool is that?

“The kids absolutely love it,” Wallace said.

At the end of the epi-sode, Talin and Kaylie gave a synchronized goodbye.

“Thanks for listening to our podcast. This is Talin and Kaylie signing off.”

CONTINUED FROM A1

in their Dolphin Drive home.

According to an outpa-tient mental health report, filed with Island County Superior Court on Dec. 9, DeMerchant appears to have a record of mental ill-ness — he has been medi-cated for bipolar disorder — but also has a “significant history of substance abuse,” and admitted smoking meth-

amphetamine drugs “two to three times a week.”

The report also said DeMerchant admitted using marijuana on a daily basis, including on the day of the attack.

In the past, DeMerchant told a state psychologist, he said he had tried cocaine and used LSD “when I could get my hands on it,” as well as Ecstasy, nitrous oxide gas and psychedelic mushrooms, and had also been prescribed pain-killers, anti-psychotic and anti-anxi-

ety medications, and mood stabilizers, according to the report.

DeMerchant also admit-ted “significant abuse of alco-hol,” and said he drank to self-medicate. He also told the examiner that his last use of marijuana was “short-ly before my arrest … about eight to nine hours before.”

An official from Western State Hospital evaluated DeMerchant on Nov. 28 at the Island County Jail, and DeMerchant’s attorney was present during the review.

According to the report, DeMerchant, 38, had been living at his parent’s home at the time of the attack.

A graduate of the University of Washington with a mathematics degree, and a master’s in mathemat-ics from the University of Tennessee, the report noted that DeMerchant had not been diagnosed with mental illness while in college and

had worked as a software engineer until he “burned out” in 2000 and was fired for depressive episodes. The report said he hadn’t worked since, and has lived on Whidbey Island for roughly a decade.

During the evaluation, the reviewer noted that DeMerchant had above average intelligence and understood the court sys-tem and how a trial would be conducted.

The doctor said DeMerchant should be returned to court so legal proceedings could con-tinue, but also noted that DeMerchant still presents a moderate to high risk for future, serious dangerous behavior.

The evaluation also noted that DeMerchant had recently attempted suicide, and recommended that he be monitored during his time in custody.

SATURDAY, DEC. 310:27 a.m. — A caller on

Pleasant View Lane had ques-tions about neighbors who were having lots of parties.

10:34 a.m. — An injured deer was in the ditch on Smugglers Cove Road.

11:56 a.m. — A vehicle was prowled on Freeland Avenue.

1:08 p.m. — A woman said her boyfriend threw her things at her dad during an

argument.2 p.m. — Several full gas

cans were stolen overnight from behind a home on Mutiny Bay Road.

3:26 p.m. — A caller said there was a stolen Caterpillar, and possibly stolen guns, at a property on Highway 525.

10:22 p.m. — Two men shoplifted alcohol from a gas station on Highway 525 and took off running on Langley Road.


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Merry Christmasand a happy and

healthy 2012 to the wonderful people of South Whidbey.

~Joe Supsinskas

Sheriff’s Report SUSPECTCONTINUED FROM A1

south whidbey record, december 21, 2011

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