POULSBO — Raab Park took on a sweeter flavor Sunday as candy canes were hidden in the grass waiting for eager hunters to track them down.
With Mother Nature providing a healthy dose of winter sunshine, about 100 children and their parents wasted little time in finding their prey as all the Christmas delights were gone in a matter of minutes.
Better not pout either, it’s just not very grown up at all. While we don’t know when you’ve been sleeping, or when you’ve been awake (that’d just be freaky), chances are we know when you’ve been bad or good, so be good for goodness sake. Although we’re not coming to town, seeing as we’ve been here since 1901, the North Kitsap Herald has received the official OK from Santa Claus to dole out some candy canes and coal the week before Christmas.
Robert Montgomery’s workspace at Bremerton Office Machines is filled to overflowing with old typewriters, copying machines in various states of repair, dinosaurs of the computer age, yellowing monitors, manuals for office machines that haven’t been made in 50 years, and a drafting table that doubles as an operating table for dismantling or repairing equipment.
KINGSTON — It doesn’t matter if you are 8 or 80 — being able to decorate a gingerbread house with every type of candy imaginable has no age limit.
And there were plenty of houses to decorate during Farm Kitchen’s famous parties this year, as owner Hollis Fay and organizer Anna Joe Savage and their crew baked 720 pieces of gingerbread, creating 160 houses. They also whipped up about 300 pounds of icing to “glue†the homesteads together, as well as for decorating.
Whether you’ve put off starting your gift buying or are just looking for the final stocking stuffers, books are always a good choice.
A survey of Kitsap bookstores from Port Orchard to Bainbridge Island found a plethora of offerings from authors who are also our neighbors. They suggested a wide range of books to fit any member of the family, from children’s books and adventure stories to cookbooks and romance novels.
POULSBO — North Kitsap Fishline Toy Store volunteer Camille Myers admitted she had seen better days as clients arrived to pick up their gifts last Wednesday morning.
“We don’t have as many toys as last year, but compared to other programs this year, we’re doing OK,†Myers said, noting that the program will still reach at least 600 kids this year.
POULSBO — One minute and thirty-four seconds to go and the NK crowd was a ruckus. Jasmine Hill had just nailed a three-pointer to pull NK within three of the perennial big dogs of Gig Harbor, and there was timeout on the floor.
The Tides’ inbounds pass came from half court and Elizabeth Betterbed came out to bank in a long-distance triple, giving Gig the six-point lead. And the momentum to seal a 60-45 win.
POULSBO — Thanks to the efforts of businesses and community groups, North Kitsap Fishline will meet its goals for food. Energy assistance, however, is another story.
“We’ve had about 25 food drives and right now, we really need donations for energy assistance,†said Fishline Executive Director Sharon Kirkpatrick.
All of the food donations have allowed the organization to feed its clients, but many are still left with the dilemma of how to heat their homes, Kirkpatrick said.
Next time you’re at the grocery store, stop by the dairy section. Open one of the refrigerators and take a look at one of those big, plastic jugs of milk. That’s a gallon.
Now, and this is where it gets gross, imagine it’s full of wastewater, stool and urine. Imagine there aren’t just 30 or 40 such containers staring you back in the face from behind the chilly glass and plastic but about 1,000 of them.
POULSBO — The North Kitsap High School choral department gathered with friends and family Dec. 13 to sing the songs that ring all season long. And, despite a quick turnaround, the annual event went off without a hitch.
“The kids did a fantastic job learning their music quickly,†said NKHS choir director Sylvia Cauter. “It’s been a bit chaotic with the limited time.â€
POULSBO — Four days after the most recent sewage spill into Liberty Bay, Public Works Director Jeff Lincoln briefed the city council’s public works committee on the incident and its aftermath.
Less than 1,000 gallons of sewage spilled into the bay Saturday after a major power outage affected many areas of Poulsbo, including the Marine Science Center, public works building and city hall, Lincoln told the committee.
KINGSTON — It was a night for the books.
The final public hearing for the Suquamish and Kingston sub-area plans took less than an hour Dec. 13 — compared to the more than three hours it took for the Kitsap County Planning Commission to hear testimony last month.
But it didn’t mean that those who spoke didn’t have anything important to say.
KINGSTON — The residents of the Little City by the Sea and members of the Port of Kingston aren’t the only ones opposed to the state’s taking over the port’s ferry terminal property.
The Kitsap County Board of Commissioners passed a resolution this week supporting Port of Kingston’s effort to maintain ownership of the 3-acre property that is leased to the Washington State Ferries for Kingston Ferry Terminal.
POULSBO — Little Garrett Lehmann didn’t have much from doing chores for his parents, but he gave it to Bellringer anyway.
Garrett’s $1.03 plus $45.96 from his four siblings helped push the fund over the $20,000 mark while Karl and Kelly Hadley from Studio City, Calif., issued a challenge for Bill Gates with their $1,000 donation. Will the Bellevue billionaire come through as his father, Bill Sr., is a Kitsap County native? Hopefully and so will a whole host of donors as Bellringer moves toward its $30,000 goal.
POULSBO — Being employed as a Santa elf on a Poulsbo Fire Department fire engine is hard work.
There are candy canes to hand out, children to visit and lists of toys to relay to Santa Claus, who is perched on top of the truck.
And to maintain such a strenuous pace, the elves have to energize themselves with hot chocolate and homemade Christmas fudge.
Mother Nature shared in the holiday spirit Saturday, shining sun upon both the Kingston and Port Gamble Country Christmas festivals and giving droves of visitors a reason to celebrate the outdoor events.
While the organizers of Port Gamble festival were happy with the attendance, they couldn’t say the same for the fruitcake contest — there were only three entries Saturday, compared to the 21 cakes that were entered last year.
Craig Alden Dell, a world-renowned classical guitarist who now lives in Seabeck, has taught his style of playing to guitarists for decades, but he never knew how much influence he had until he recently met up with former student AnnaMaria Cardinalli.
I’m not exactly sure when it happened but sometime between my childhood and my adulthood (two periods which seem to overlap and intermix constantly), people stopped wishing others a “Merry Christmas.†It was no longer the politically correct thing to do.
People, so worried that they might offend someone of a different religion, quit using what for many essentially boils down to a friendly “hello†during the holidays.
No, this is not a repeat of last week’s article. Following their appearance at the Admiral Theatre in Bremerton Dec. 9, New Age acoustic duo Eric Tingstad and Nancy Rumbel perform a concert of holiday music Dec. 17 at Island Center Hall on Bainbridge Island.
SUQUAMISH — As part of the Suquamish Tribe’s efforts to expand its government offices, the tribe recently shifted its personnel again.
The Suquamish Tribe’s wellness program moved its operations to the former tribal courthouse building on Augusta Avenue in downtown Suquamish in early September.