Michael Stein-Ross, Burien Councilmembers Lucy Krakowiak and Bob Edgar, and his 6th grade class.

by Michael Stein-Ross

Following the November elections, a number of my sixth grade students at St. Francis of Assisi School wrote to two Burien City Councilmembers – Bob Edgar and Lucy Krakowiak – congratulating them on their wins in the election.

They also related their concerns about how Burien deals with the homeless and poor in the City of Burien.

So this last Friday, Jan. 13, 2012, Mr. Edgar and Ms. Krakowiak visited with Mr. Stein-Ross’s sixth grade students to discuss these topics. Students wanted to know why Burien does not have more homeless shelters, why some of Burien’s vacant storefronts were not being used to shelter people when the weather got really bad and why there were not more community garden spaces to grow food for the poor. Another issue for the students was the availability of medical service to the homeless and poor in Burien.

The class session with the Councilmembers involved a discussion on awareness of who was really homeless, what were some of the reasons for why people become homeless and how each individual student could help the homeless. The St. Francis of Assisi students currently collect food for our local food banks, run a clothing drive and do community service at a number of our local charity sites. Any items that readers of this article want to donate to support these homeless community drives or causes can be dropped off at the school.

Some other community service projects that my students have been involved in include: building a rain garden at the school and stenciling the storm water drains around the school. You may have seen the white marking around drains in Burien’s streets. These markings are to remind people not to put things like soaps, fertilizers, chemicals and oils down them.

The students of St. Francis of Assisi plan to continue to work for the homeless in Burien.

Isn’t that what the concept of citizenship is really about?

I don’t know how to post this, so hope you can help me.

I would like to give a ‘shout out’ of praise to Burien Bark.  Today I visited Nickelsville (our local homeless camp) with some food and saw how low they were on wood chips and gravel…essentials for keeping the mud at bay.

I came home and called Burien Bark and asked if they would be willing to donate some wood chips and gravel. Without so much as a one second pause, Jeff of Burien Bark said ‘absolutely’. They will go Monday the 9th to deliver Wood Chips, observe  what kind of gravel they are using and turn around and deliver that, too.  Jeff also said he would be on the look out for ‘pallets’ which the camp uses to elevate their tents from the muddy surfaces.

I have used Burien Bark for 10 years and I love their sense of family and ’community’.  Jeff mentioned that when the camp was in Burien a while back that he delivered some gravel to them, simply upon seeing their needs.

Support Burien Bark!

- Adelle Comfort

PS: Nickelsville has many needs, some of which we can fill from ‘extra’ items we have at home. If people think they have items that can help the homeless, please let them know they can contact me at adelle1016@comcast.net. I am just one person trying to help, but will do my best to respond to all efforts on their behalf.

[Have something you'd like to share with our Readers? Please send us your Letter to the Editor via email. Include your full name, and, pending our review, we'll most likely publish it.]

by Jack Mayne

Trash on Southwest 128th Street ramps to and from the 509 and the questionable panhandler types who leave it has caused nearby resident Mark Zink to get out his broom and rake, but now he wants some cleanup help from the Burien City Council.

At the Dec. 12 council meeting, Zink said ramps are becoming home to a regular crew.

“We now have them setting up couch cushions under the freeway so they can hang out all day, every day,” he had written in a letter to the council, which included photos. “In one photo, you can notice they walk up and down the freeway off ramp panhandling. This is illegal to be on the off-ramp but (it is) not on the sidewalk under current rules.”

He noted what many Burien residents have seen, that panhandlers leave trash and are usually on the Southwest 148th ramps, also.

He said he has asked for something to be done for years, but to no avail.

“Will the council make a no loitering rule near off-ramps?” Zink asked. “My neighbors and I have suffered with these people and the beer cans and garbage they leave throughout the neighborhood for years now,” Zink said.

“I have volunteered in this neighborhood for years trying to clean it up and spent thousands of hours as Public Works and the Parks Department can verify. I need help. I am tired of picking up after them and don’t feel like I should have to. Please take action now.”

Zink has received no response from the City Council or city staff.

So why does he spend this own time cleaning up the mess?

“The reason I do this volunteer work is that it is healthy for me to give back to my community and gives me a sense of accomplishment,” Zink said in an e-mail. “I also like to see nice things even if I have to help make that happen. Public works and the parks departments do not have the money or the manpower to keep up on all the things that need to be done in this area as far as cleaning graffiti, picking up trash etc.”

He says Burien Police have been very helpful “but we still have a problem with the transients who tend to bring illegal activities with them. Drugs, alcohol, sleeping in the parks, leaving bottles, cans, hypodermic needles, used condoms or whatever else they don’t want anymore.”

Zink is finishing his associate of arts degree at Highline Community College.

His wife, Colleen, is a web editor at kirotv.com, the web site for KIRO 7 Eyewitness News. She says she is proud of all Zink’s volunteer work and “agrees that changes need to be made with the panhandlers because they make Burien look bad.”

The Burien office of Windermere Real Estate has given a $1,000 grant to Hospitality House, a non-profit homeless shelter for women located in Burien.

Hospitality House has been open every night since 2000, helping women move on to better places.

This grant will fund one woman for 45 days in the programs at Hospitality House.

“It’s greatly appreciated by Hospitality House,” reads an email announcement.

The Windermere Foundation receives money from each Agent when an Agent closes a Real Estate transaction. Windermere’s Burien Office pools money with six other Windermere Offices, two in Federal Way, two in Renton, one in Kent and one in Maple Valley.

Here’s more from an email:

In October the seven offices put on an Oktoberfest Event at Fairwood Golf Course and raised $15,000 to go to the Foundation. At the Oktoberfest is staffed by all volunteers, no one gets paid, so it is all to the Foundation. This was Windermere’s 3rd Event, like this. Windermere started doing the Events 3 years ago because the Foundation has not raised as much money because of the poor real estate market. Windermere needed to do something extra to help out the organizations who receive the grants to. Windermere also do issue spring grants.

Photo courtesy Union Gospel Mission.

On Sunday, July 24^th, the Union Gospel Mission’s Lighthouse Apartment building, located at 9820 Des Moines Memorial Way, burned down in a huge three-alarm fire, leaving 41 low-income residents homeless.

Everyone was able to get out, but two people were sent to Harborview Medical Center with injuries. Both are said to be recovering well.

“We lost everything…” said one former resident.

HERE’S HOW YOU CAN HELP
We’ve done this a couple times before (read about our fundraising for the victims of the 2008 Tara Apartment fire here, and the Buckley Family here), and we’d like to ask our Readers to do what they can to help these poor folks, many of whom have lost everything.

According to the Union Gospel Mission website, of the 41 displaced residents who watched all of their belongings go up in flames, only one had renters insurance. Most didn’t have car insurance beyond liability – 9 cars were damaged and 5 completely destroyed.

These people no longer have transportation to commute to their jobs.

Also, Becci Surgz Harrison is pitching in – here’s a message she sent us through Facebook:

I just feel it necessary to try to help if I can I am coordinating donations.

Here is a list of immediate needs but obviously they need much more:

• Tube Socks
• Household items
• Non-perishable food
• Mattresses/box springs (twin, full, queen): gently used, no rips or stains
• Gift cards (grocery, Target, Fred Meyer, shoe stores)
• Razors & shaving cream
• Bottled water (individual size)
• Men’s clothing (jeans and khakis particularly needed)
• Full size toiletry items
• Bath linens

Please email me surgzpromotions@gmail.com for more info.

Thank you!

Here are other ways to help:

• Shelter. Everyone was set up with emergency shelter just hours after the blaze started, but more permanent housing is needed.  Please contact Gary if you can help provide shelter for displaced residents.
• Donate Now. Funds raised will help those impacted by the fire.
• Gift Cards for Target, Fred Meyer, grocery and shoe stores.  Mail to:
• P.O. Box 202
  Seattle 98111
  Attention: “Lighthouse Apartment Fire”
• Gifts in Kind. Drop-off clothing, house wares, toiletries, etc. See complete list of needs or contact Linda at 206.723.0767 x405.

To learn more, please contact Gary at 206.723.0767 x441.

“The Red Cross will be providing assistance which could include shelter, food, clothing and other immediate needs,” according to an email from Katherine Boury, Seattle Red Cross Media Relations Officer.

“It was a minor fire caused by bedding and mattress against a baseboard heater,” said Doug Luedeman of the Burien/Normandy Park Fire Department. “The fire was contained in the bedroom and quickly extinguished by the fire department. There were no working smoke detectors in the home at the time. There was nobody home at the time of the fire and there were no injuries to fire personnel.”

“On average, the American Red Cross Serving King & Kitsap Counties responds to an emergency like this every other day. All Red Cross assistance is free. For more information about the Red Cross please go to www.seattleredcross.org.”

PREVIOUSLY: We encourage all our Readers to participate in our community news gathering efforts (you can email us tips & photos here), and here’s an example of one such submission from BTB Reader Desiree Gonzalez – a photo of a residential fire in a complex just north of SW 132nd and First Ave South in Burien at around Noon on Tuesday, July 12th:

Click image to see larger version.

We’ve inquired about this incident with the Burien/Normandy Park Fire Department, and once we gather more info, we’ll update this post.

If you happen upon something newsworthy in the Burien area, please take a photo and email it to us: editor@b-townblog.com.

Please include your name, location of the event and any other info you can find, and pending review, we’ll likely post it.

by Theresa De Lay

Homelessness is a huge problem all across the country. In recent years, the economic downfall of our society has caused countless more men, women and children to call the streets their home. Just within Seattle, there is an estimated population of more than 6,000 homeless people.

Being homeless is a devastating and vicious cycle. With no place to clean their clothes or take a shower, it often proves difficult for the homeless to acquire and maintain jobs. Homeless youth are at higher risk for depression, rape and abuse. Dropping out of high school, turning to drugs and resorting to a criminal lifestyle are all too common.

Spending a wintry night outside is most assuredly a death sentence in other areas. Thankfully we live in the Pacific Northwest, an area known for its ‘mild’ weather. Try telling that to a Seattle-area homeless family as they are huddled together to keep their children warm.

It’s difficult to fight homelessness. With the economy in shambles, most of us don’t have a penny to spare and the local government is scrounging to fit budgetary needs with very little money. Job openings are hard to come by and financial assistance is even harder. Sadly and quite obviously, this is a predicament with no easy fix.

Venessa Stiffarm

Amidst the uphill battle against homelessness, I’m proud to bring you news about the Forgotten Friends Project. It began when Venessa Stiffarm humbly dreamt of giving 20 homeless ‘friends’ a small holiday gift this December; a card with $5 and a scarf to stay warm.

Venessa was born and raised in West Seattle and attended Chief Sealth High School. Known for her loving and generous nature, she lived on the streets for two of her teenage years. When asked about this experience she said:

“I know what it is like to be hungry and have no food. I was forced to steal it from the grocery stores. Many days, I didn’t eat at all. I remember my first night out, and how cold I was and scared. It was September of 2000 and it was just the start of the rainy season.”

It’s only natural for her to reach out to others now. Seattle is her home, and the people of Seattle are her family. After telling her friends and family about her plans for the FFP, it took on a life of its own.

The goal of the FFP has shifted, but only slightly. The FFP is now collecting holiday cards, small monetary gifts to include in the cards, hats, scarves and gloves. On December 11th, FFP volunteers will pass out the cards and small gifts to the homeless people of Seattle.

With a month to go before The Big Give Away Day, the FFP will be able to reach out to a lot more than the 20 people Venessa originally thought of. When asked about her vision for the FFP, Venessa said that she wants to “show those who are homeless that people really do care about them. Maybe by raising awareness more people will be willing to work on creating lasting solutions to the problem.”

Take a moment to imagine the impact if each person donated one dollar or told one friend about this project. Imagine the smiles, the warmth and the compassion that we can give others! Consider the difference we can make in someone’s life – no matter how small.

Find out more about the Forgotten Friends Project on Facebook:

“We could change someone’s life by the simplest act of kindness; a holiday card to those who would otherwise be forgotten this season.”

PHOTO CREDIT: Alex O’Neal

Dear Scott Schaffer Schaefer, editor of the B-Town Blog-

On behalf of all of us at Hospitality House Shelter in Burien, thank you for supporting our Walk for the Women fundraiser on your blog (read our coverage here). The web allows us to reach so many more people than in the past and judging by the numbers of new supporters we met last Saturday, it is a valuable medium.

Our work is only possible through the generous donations of groups and individuals in our community. Each year we take about 80 women living on friend’s couches, in their cars or on our streets into our House for a fresh start and a much needed second chance. Through individual attention by our case managers, each women begins to work through her program of healing and rebuilding. Over 65% of the women that enter Hospitality House move into stable housing and a new life.

Thank you for your continued support and the support of your readers.

Sincerely-
Tammie Schacher
Hospitality House Board Chair

Local members of “Team Cherisse” (in honor of activist Cherisse Luxa and her strong support for Hospitality House), are inviting everyone to join them this Saturday to help raise needed funds for Hospitality House at their annual walk through Burien.

Photo by Dina Hrisko.

Registration is $25 and starts at 9am Saturday, Sept. 25th at the Hospitality House table located on 5th Ave SW near SW 152nd at Burien Town Square.

If you have sponsors, bring your completed sponsor form and money to the registration table before the walk. If you are unable to walk but would still like to sponsor our group, please contact us before the walk or meet us along the route on Saturday morning.

Reports are that they’ll also have a special guest walking with them – “Flat” Howard Dean!

It’s a life-size cut-out of Dr. Dean, and for a small donation you can get your photo taken with him. Just think how jealous your friends and family will be!

For more info: http://www.hospitalityhousesouthking.org/

Left to right: Ed Dacy, Marcia Richter, Ed Richter, Kathy Keene, Liz Giba, Ian Gunsul. Photo by Dina Hrisko.

A “BUNCO Night” Fundraiser for Burien’s Hospitality House will be held Friday night, Feb. 5th starting at 7pm at the Normandy Park Congregational United Church of Christ.

It’s just $25 per person, giving you a chance to “roll the dice to end homelessness” and have a fun evening to boot.

Here are the details:

WHAT: BUNCO Night Fundraiser for Burien’s Hospitality House.

WHEN: Friday, Feb. 5th starting at 7pm.

WHERE: Normandy Park Congregational United Church of Christ, 19247 1st Avenue South, in Normandy Park.

INFO: From an email:

BUNCO Night for Hospitality House is Friday, February 5th at 7 p.m.

For $25 per person, one can roll the dice to end homelessness and have a fun evening to boot. Beginners and Bunco groups are welcome to join in. This strictly-for-fun evening is endorsed by the World Bunco Association.

There will be raffles, prizes and complimentary refreshments.

This event will be held at Normandy Park Congregational United Church of Christ, 19247 1st Avenue South, in Normandy Park.

This will also be your first chance to purchase seats for another fundraiser – the “Boats for Beds” sail.

Pre-register for Bunco through the Hospitality House website, by calling 206-915-5337, or by sending an email to buncofeb5@aol.com.

Hospitality House is a shelter and place of transition for homeless women in south King County. The Women of Hospitality House are supported by more than twelve local churches and organizations as well as by our local communities. Home-cooked meals are provided 365 days per year by volunteers.  With the staff case workers, over 70 women each year develop and work their individual plans to find home, health and hope. See hospitalityhousesouthking.org to learn more about Hospitality House or these events.

More information is available at their website.