Edgewood officials will host a forum tonight asking citizens for feedback about how to trim the city's budget.

The city is trying to close a $750,000 budget gap this year, and is considering options such as reducing its police force, cutting city staff and a raising its levy lid.

A utility tax is another option that may be discussed.

The budget forum takes place tonight from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Edgewood City Hall, located at 2224 104th Avenue East.

Kevin Cavanagh with Pierce County Information Technology points out that the link we published in the printed paper for the weather tracker system left off one symbol.

The correct link is http://www.co.pierce.wa.us/PC/

If you can't bring it up, click here.

On the left side, it's titled "How hot is it?"

It's pretty cool. According to the site, "Eleven weather stations around the county record temperature, wind speed, relative humidity and more. Data is updated every 15 minutes."

How does living it up in air-conditioned luxury for about $100 sound? It's possible through Sunday at the Hotel Murano.

The downtown Tacoma hotel issued a special offer on its Twitter and Facebook pages: Whatever the high temperature of the day is, that's how much a one-night stay costs.

Dina Nishioka, spokeswoman for the hotel, called it the "Beat the Heat" special. It was the hotel's chance to attract customers during this week's hot streak while expanding its presence on the social-networking sites.

=> Read more!

I just stopped by Frisko Freeze in Tacoma to find out what's been their most popular item today.

Without a doubt, supervisor Jamal McGee says, it's milkshakes and cones. McGee and his co-workers are boxed into the Tacoma walk-up's tight quarters, which makes today's sun extra hot. I wrote about such occupations today.

Even though it's hot, this is a popular time for the restaurant, as hungry and thirsty customers need plenty of replenishment.

"On a day like this, we're doing like 2,000 in business," McGee asked how many customers visit the stand on a hot days such as today.

=> Read more!

Today was a good day for Micah Tyler. The 38-year-old snagged a couple of bass while fishing today at Spanaway Lake.

He also arrived at the park early, spotted some shad near the shore and plopped down his chair and gear. When the temperature began to rise to the upper-90's around noon, Tyler was relaxing on his chair.

"It's cool," he said as he reeled in his line. "It's nice right here."

=> Read more!

My assignment today is to find spots that people are going to keep cool in the 100ish-degree heat. One of the most unconventional places is the ice rink at Sprinker Recreation Center in Spanaway.

I visited the cool spot about 11 a.m., when the center's competitive skaters were practicing their moves. It was one of the best ways to beat the heat that I've found this week.

The arena was a cool 65 degrees, which center officials say is hotter than usual. I didn't mind.

=> Read more!

Candidates for three Puyallup City Council positions will appear at a candidate forum from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. tonight at the Puyallup Public Library.

The library is located at 324 South Meridian Street, on the west side of Pioneer Park.

Each council position has attracted three candidates, meaning each race will be on the August 18 primary ballot. The two candidates who receive the most votes in the primary will advance to the November general election.

At the forum, audience members will be able to ask the candidates questions directly as well as hear where candidates stand on city issues.

The forum is sponsored by the Puyallup Public Library and the League of Women Voters of Tacoma-Pierce County. More information can be found at the library Web site here.

The heat also makes work harder for anyone who wears an orange vest and hardhat on the road.

Whether they're laying asphalt, excavating dirt or simply directing traffic, their already warm workplace gets even hotter.

I spoke with a crew from Northwest Cascade Inc., who was excavating ditches today for a sewer project in the Tillicum area of Lakewood.

The boys in orange were digging in about 90-degree heat when I spoke to them about 1 p.m. They say the work site feels warmer.

=> Read more!

For people who say their roughing it with this week's heat, try working Choon Kim's job.

The owner of Fircrest Cleaners not only has to deal with the heat from outside, but inside his business it's even hotter. The dry cleaning operation's pressers are steaming from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. The usual reprieve from the heat is to open the windows or walk outside, but not this week.

"We always use fans and air conditioning, but it's not enough," Kim said around 11 a.m. today, when the mercury in his business' thermometer reached 94 degrees.

=> Read more!

Today's temperatures are causing havoc for people trying to stay cool. One option might be a Metro Parks spray park.

I stopped by the one at Jefferson Park today for my story on the heat wave. About 70 kids and their parents were having fun in the spray area around 1 p.m.

Christy Branton of Tacoma was laying on a blanket with her two sons, Joetavis, 8, and Ben, 5. The boys had just come from the aquatic playground.

Ben was kind of shy, but Joetavis was more than willing to share his favorite part of the park. "I like the cup that drops water on your head," he said, referring to one of the spray park's more popular features today.

=> Read more!

Fans of egg tosses, penny candy, barbecued chicken and roving politicians will flock to the Waller Road Grange Community Fair from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.

The grange, at East 64th Street and Waller Road, is a bastion of traditional rural skills. The fair will feature 4-H animals, pie, produce and preserves judging, displays of farm machinery and fire equipment as well as games for children.

It's also a favorite stop for candidates and politicians.

Admission and parking are free, and the famous chicken barbecue is a bargain at $8 for a whole chicken dinner and $5 for a half chicken dinner.

It’s starting to feel like the dog days of summer, so today was a perfect day for the 19th annual Dog-A-Thon at Fort Steilacoom Park in Lakewood.

Organizers expected 2,500 people and 500 dogs to attend the event, a fundraiser for the Humane Society of Tacoma-Pierce County.

Pure-breeds and mutts alike gathered at Fort Steilacoom for the event, which featured demonstrations of dog herding and agility, contests for the best dog costume and biggest dog and other festivities.

“It’s a canine carnival,” said Kathleen Olson, the society’s executive director. “People like to see and be see with their dogs.”

Linda Leeman was among those seen with her dog Rusty, a 5-year-old red Australian cattle dog. Leeman owns Ewe-Topia, a herd dog training facility in Roy. She and Rusty herded some ducks into pens and up slides as an appreciative crowd applauded.

“We like doing this for the Humane Society,” Leeman said. “It’s a great organization.”

Last year’s Dog-A-Thon netted $137,000 for the organization. Olson said this year’s event is expected to raise more than $150,000. The money will benefit homeless animals.

Cats did their part, too.

Granted, they opted out of a day at a park teeming with dogs.

Laurie Cinotti, fosters kitten for the Humane Society and keeps a blog on them, www.theittybittykittycommittee.com. She mustered the blog's fans to raise Dog-A-Thon funds that will be used to expand adoption facilities for cats. People from all over the country and around the world donated. They also bid on naming rights for the new foster kittens, and on donations of an original watercolor and an art clock.

The effort brought in $21,200.

The nonprofit wasn’t the only one raising money. Vendors of dog toys, dog collars, doggy daycare and other canine goods and services se up booths around the park. Vendors say it’s one of their best events.

“This is their clientele,” Olson said of the dog owners. “These (dogs) are their furry children.”

Supporters are throwing a car wash today, Saturday July 25, to help send Tacoma 12-year-old Tyler Hill to the National Junior Olympics.

Tyler’s mom, Chantell Hill, says in an e-mail that Tyler hopes to compete in the National Junior Olympics in Greensboro, N.C., July 27 to Aug. 2. He's been participating with a USATF track team this summer.

To qualify, the Stewart Middle School student placed second earlier this month at the regional meet in Salem, Ore., in the 200 meter and 400 meter. His team placed second in the 4 X 400 meter relay.

The family is trying to raise $2,000 to cover airfare, hotel and other expenses for Tyler and one of his parents to go to the meet.

The car wash will be 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at New Jerusalem Church of God in Christ, 1623 S. 11th St. Tacoma. That’s at 11th and Grant streets on Tacoma's Hilltop neighborhood.

If you can't make it to the car wash, donations may be sent to:

Tyler Hill
c/o Ed and Chantell Hill
416 S. 48th St.
Tacoma, WA 98408.

Good luck, Tyler!

It's been tough finding crime-fighting activists in the neighborhoods along South Hosmer Street just north of 96th Street.

But it's an area rich in affordable housing and apartments, and community mobilizer Darren Pen has been working to bring residents into the effort to make it more secure.

That work is paying off. Local heroes have started meeting, and turned out by the dozens for the recent march against crime.

Now they're getting down to the real work of setting their priorities and figuring out how to address them. If you'd like to be part of that, ditch your plans for this evening. Instead, show up at Waverly Farms & Villa, 9314 S. Ash St. at 6:30 p.m. Representatives from law enforcement, the Tacoma City Council and code enforcement will all be there.

You may contact Pen at (253) 279-2111.

Flat Stanley may be made of paper, but he’s no ordinary paper doll in the hands of 6-year-old Connor Covel and Connor’s dad.

Connor’s Flat Stanley survived 15 combat missions in Afghanistan. He made bombs for demolition exercises, and rode an Army helicopter and a C-17 transport. He won a Bronze Star – and Connor has the photos to prove it.

Not bad for a piece of paper.

Flat Stanley is the fictional character in the 1964 book by the same name that has inspired thousands of kids to learn about geography and life in other parts of the world.

In the book, Stanley is accidentally flattened when a bulletin board hanging above his bed falls on him. The boy survives, but is so flat he can slide under doors and be mailed to friends.

Grade school teachers often assign students to read the book and make their own Flat Stanley to send to far-off places. The hope is that the acquaintances will snap a photo of Flat Stanley and send it back to the youngster.

Connor crafted his Flat Stanley in Kathryn Cassel's first grade class at Carter Lake Elementary School on McChord Air Force Base in the spring. He sent Stanley to his dad who was deployed to Afghanistan at the time.

Connor’s dad laminated Flat Stanley and brought him along on missions, snapping dozens of photos of the paper boy.

He included the best shots in a scrapbook he assembled for Connor. After he returned from his deployment in May, he visited his son's class to help Connor present Stanley’s adventures.

“I liked the pictures and the words,” Connor said of the scrapbook. “There’s pictures of Flat Stanley doing things in Afghanistan, like riding in a helicopter and driving four-wheelers.”

During the stay, Flat Stanley grew a beard and got combat gear. Check out Flat Stanley's helmet and night vision goggles in this photo of Connor from the Clover Park School District web site.

“Dad drew them,” Conner explained.

“I thought it was a really cool, cool idea (for Stanley) to experience all these different things,” Earl Covel said.

“Connor doesn’t have the opportunity to see a lot of the things I do and see on a daily basis. I wanted to give a him a keepsake that he can show his kids some day. All the guys I work with enjoyed it and thought it was a lot of fun, too.”

You know you're dealing with a hard-core activist when her idea of "heartwarming" involves disappearing garbage.

Cindy Beckett, who crusades to save and repair wetlands, spent Saturday, July 7, on Portland Avenue picking up beer cans, food wrappers and all manner of other roadside trash with Midland Resident's Assn. volunteers.

"As usual, the area nearest 72nd Street was the worst," she said. "When we were done, we drove our truck and trailer along Portland Ave. to pick up all the bags and piled them in one location at 85th and Portland to make it easier for the county pick up the following Monday. It was a pretty good pile."

No kidding.

And all those bags beg the question: What kind of person tosses junk out of their car, assuming that some other person won't mind picking it up?

"On Sunday afternoon, I noticed that the pile was smaller," Cindy continued. "Then Stacy (Emerson) drove by even later and noticed it was even smaller. That evening I drove by again and it was smaller still."

The two were puzzled. It was clearly garbage in those bags. Who'd want them?

"Then we realized - the locals, bless their hearts, must have thought that someone had come into our beloved Midland and dumped their garbage on us, so they were taking the bags away a few to a time to put in their own garbage cans," Beckett said. "By the time the crew got there Monday, over half of the pile was gone. Now that's what I call community spirit!"

A Puyallup city councilman has filed a court petition against the Puyallup city manager and Puyallup city attorney alleging they’ve withheld city records he needs to do his job.

John Knutsen, a first-term Puyallup councilman, is seeking a court order requiring City Manager Gary McLean and City Attorney Cheryl Carlson to give him unfettered access to city records.

Lawyers representing McLean and Carlson say Knutsen is requesting special treatment not given to anyone, councilman or otherwise.

In the petition Knutsen filed Monday in Pierce County Superior Court, he says he has asked for numerous city records since November that have been given to him only after being significantly redacted or edited.

Knutsen also says that when he has sought information about issues the city council is reviewing, he’s been forced to submit public records requests as a private citizen to get it.

“In order to perform my duties as a City Councilmember, I must be able to access information and records of the city,” Knutsen’s filings say. “The law does not vest authority in the unelected City Manager and City Attorney to be the ultimate gatekeepers for all information pertaining to the City business.”

Knutsen's court filings name Carlson and McLean only in their official capacity, not as private citizens.

Milton Rowland, a lawyer speaking on McLean and Carlson’s behalf, said that Knutsen is requesting special access not given to any council member or member of the public.

Knutsen is asking city officials “to treat him differently than they treat anyone else who makes public records requests, and differently than any other City Council member,” Rowland said in an e-mail statement.

The city will ask the judge to dismiss Knutsen’s petition, Rowland said.

“We are disappointed that he chose to act in a way calculated to drain public resources by filing a lawsuit,” Rowland wrote, adding that Knutsen could have proposed instead that the City Council members vote to change how they receive information.

=> Read more!

Sustainable Saturday will be like an eco-daycation at two University Place sites.

From 9 to 1 p.m. this Saturday (July 18) volunteers will build a compost bin, install rain barrels and get the lowdown on how to identify and assassinate invasive plant species.

Participants can choose their site to match the skills they want to learn.

At Adriana Hess Wetlands Park, 2917 Morrison Rd. W., they'll build a compost bin and install rain barrels. There will likely be time for a briefing on weeds.

At the 3200 block of 67th Ave., near the Fircrest Golf Course, they'll concentrate on rousting the invader weeds to make room for native plants.

Want to play? Dress for mess, and bring work gloves and water.

Audubon's Together Green Volunteer Days are part of a national program that's organized 200 projects in 30-plus cities. Toyota helps bankroll the national effort. UP's Sustainable Saturday is co-sponsored by Tahom Audubon Society and University Place's Volunteer Center.

Need info? Call Julie Kerrigan at (253)-223-0039 or log in to one of the sponsors' sites: TogetherGreen at www.togethergreen.org; Tahoma Audubon Society at www.TahomaAudubon.or, or University Place Volunteer Center at www.upvolunteers.org.
The event

This coming weekend is the second of three fee-free weekends for visitors to Mount Rainier National Park.

All park entrance fees, including commercial tour entrance fees, will be waived Saturday and Sunday.

The fee-free weekend applies to all national parks.

In addition to supporting affordable vacations for families, the free weekend is aimed at giving small shot in the arm to businesses in the area. Mount Rainier National Park tourism dollars contributed $50.7 million into the local economy last year, according to park officials.

This summer’s high number of park visitors combined with spectacular weekend weather has led to significant parking problems in the Paradise and Longmire areas, according to Mount Rainier National Park Acting Superintendent Randy King.

The result, he said, is frustration for drivers and safety hazards along the roadway as drivers attempt to park cars on narrow roads.
King said he strongly encourages visitors to use the free shuttle bus that operates between Longmire and Paradise on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

Visitors can board the bus at the historic Longmire Gas Station and makes stops at Cougar Rock and Narada Falls on the uphill run, and at Comet Falls and Cougar Rock on the downhill run.

On Saturdays and Sunday only, visitors can board the bus in Ashford at Whittaker Mountaineering and connect with the Paradise Shuttle in Longmire.

Since parking at Paradise is very limited this summer due to
construction work on the lower parking area adjacent to the old Jackson
Visitor Center, an additional shuttle will transport visitors to and from the Paradise Valley Road, where there is overflow parking.

For shuttle schedules and other park information, check the park’s Web page at www.nps.gov/mora.

Tacoma public utilities director William Gaines told the city council Tuesday that he wants to sell three small chunks of property the utility no longer needs.

The three are:

– one-third acre at North 18th and Orchard,
– 0.2 acres at S. 35th and S. J Street,
– 0.15 acres at S. 45th and S. Warner.

The first lot is about two building lots. The others are single building lots. They are among nine that the utility had wanted to sell but stopped to gauge whether there was interest in the community to use them for public purposes.

TPU chief Gaines told the council there was no community interest in these three parcels.

City Councilwoman Lauren Walker said she had heard concerns from the Warner Street neighbors about the lack of green space in the area due to apartment and townhouse construction. Perhaps, she wondered, it could be used for a small park.

Gaines said the utility was open to discussion.

We reported in today's paper that more kids are eating free lunch at several Tacoma parks than last summer.

We gave a long list of schools and parks where children 1 through 18 years old can pick up a sack lunch or snack – gratis.

Turns out, we neglected to include eight sites sponsored by St. Leo Food Connection and funded through the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Food Connection director Kevin Glackin-Coley wants readers to know the agency offers the free lunches from noon to 1 p.m. Plus, kids can play basketball, soccer, draw chalk pictures on sidewalks and play other games from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Last summer, Kevin writes in an e-mail, St. Leo operated two sites serving some 60 to 70 children per day. This year, the eight sites are serving 275 or more youngsters.

Kids can still join in the fun weekdays through Aug. 28 at the sites in Tacoma and Lakewood:

-- McCarver Elementary School, 2111 S. J St., Tacoma.
-- Bryant Elementary, 717 S. Grant St., Tacoma.
-- McKinley Elementary, 3702 McKinley Ave., Tacoma.
-- Sheridan Elementary, 5317 McKinley Ave., Tacoma.
-- Larchmont Elementary, 8601 E. B St., Tacoma.
-- Springbrook Park, 12501 Addison St. S.W., Lakewood.
-- Mt. Tacoma Trailer Park, 3214 96th St., Lakewood.
-- Wards Lake Park, 8599 Pine St. S., Lakewood.

Greeted by cheering and high-fives, Ed Barney finished Sunday running from Seattle to Portland.

The Federal Way School Board member crossed the finish line of the Seattle to Portland Bicycle Classic around 12:30 p.m.

Barney said he ran about 185 miles from Seattle to Portland, starting Wednesday afternoon.

With temperatures reaching the high-80s, Barney rode 10 miles Saturday night to cool down in a motor home with his wife, Barbara, who drove the route.

“I was dying of heat exhaustion,” Barney said.

Barney, 55, was back at work Monday morning teaching job skills at Deseret Industries in Federal Way.

“The only thing I’ve got is some sore sunburned calves,” Barney said. “Other than that I’m feeling pretty good.”

Barney laced up his jogging shoes to raise money for elementary school track programs in the Federal Way School District. He expects to raise at least $3,500 in donations.

Barney ran from Federal Way Thursday. From Spanaway Lake, he followed the STP route. An STP spokeswoman said she’d never heard of someone running the course.

The Tapps Island Association advised all of its water customers Friday to boil their drinking water after samples showed the presence of coliform bacteria.

Trace amounts of E.coli bacteria were detected in the water system on Tuesday, according to the association’s Web site. Retesting on Friday showed that coliform was present but did not disclose any trace of E.coli.

The association supplies treated well water to about 535 homes on the island and 10 homes off the island, said Don Lisko, interim general manager.

The association’s customers should use treated bottled water, or boil any water that might be consumed. That includes water for drinking, brushing teeth, dishwashing, preparing food, and making ice. Water should be brought to a rolling boil for one minute, and then be allowed to cool before use.

The Tapps Island Association is working closely with the Washington State Department of Health’s Office of Drinking Water to find the source of contamination and fix the problem, according to a Department of Health news release.

The water system at Lake Tapps is separate from but near the Bonney Lake water system.

Disinfecting the Tapps Island water system may be required. The boil-water advisory is in effect until further notice, the health department said Friday.

The association’s Web site warned the bacteria can make people sick and are a particular concern for those with weakened immune systems.

No illnesses related to the Tapps Island drinking water have been reported. The association is inspecting all of its water facilities to find the source of contamination.

Lisko said chlorine is being applied to the entire water system today and will be flushed out Sunday.

“Any time you have a situation like this you take it seriously,” Lisko said. “I’m hoping by Monday or Tuesday we’ll be back to normal.”

Notices of the boil-water advisory were hand-delivered to all of the system’s customers Friday night, Lisko said.

For more information, visit www.tapps-island.org or call Lisko at 253-266-2053.

A memorial service to commemorate the one year anniversary of the death of East Pierce Fire and Rescue Fire Chief Dan Packer while fighting a California wildfire will be July 26 in Bonney Lake.

City of Bonney Lake Mayor Neil Johnson will dedicate a newly constructed pond, water fountain and bench in front of the East Pierce Fire & Rescue headquarters station, 18421 Old Buckley Hwy.

The Chief Dan Packer Walk of Honor also will be dedicated during the 3 p.m. ceremony. The Walk of Honor will pay tribute to firefighters, emergency services personnel and citizens who have volunteered their time and service to the community.

The public is invited to attend the memorial and refreshments will be provided.

Packer died July 26, 2008. He had been deployed to the Panther Fire south of Happy Camp in Siskiyou County in northern California to assume a supervisory position in the firefighting effort. Packer was a member of a Washington State-based incident management team and was deployed to major incidents, most frequently large wildland fires.

Guests are encouraged to park at Pierce Transit’s Park & Ride facility located at 184th Ave East and Sky Island Drive East in Bonney Lake. A free shuttle to and from the fire station will be provided.

The public is welcome to celebrate Chief Packer’s life by contributing stories, memories and photographs at www.mem.com. Insert Packer’s name in the search box.

The fire chief in Orting lost his job Thursday amid charges he misappropriated funds, misled the fire district’s board of commissioners and had “anger issues.”

Randy Shelton, chief of Orting Valley Fire and Rescue, was terminated by the fire district’s Board of Commissioners Thursday after a closed-door meeting to discuss allegations against him.

Shelton wouldn’t comment Thursday but denied all the charges.

Shelton was placed on leave in late May pending the results of an investigation into undisclosed complaints.

Late last month, the fire district’s Board of Commissioners laid out seven formal charges against Shelton and sent the chief a notice of intent to discipline him.

The district’s investigation found that Shelton did the following:

-Overpaid himself by $16,000, plus six unauthorized hours of vacation pay.

-Harassed fire district employees, showing “anger issues.”

-Implemented new operations policies without approval from the Board of Commissioners.

-Falsified information to gain access to confidential fire district files and read commissioners’ e-mails.

-Suspended an employee without issuing prior written warnings.

-Falsified information to the board during the hiring of a new medical service officer, at one point telling the board the applicant was certified as a firefighter when he was not.

-Manipulated the hiring process for two new lieutenant positions to exclude certain applicants, ultimately hiring two people who failed the lieutenant’s exam.

=> Read more!

The Pierce County Library System has a winning design for its first teen library card, and the winning artist is Michelle Barreto, an 18-year-old who graduated from Harrison Preparatory School in Lakewood.

“I use a watercolor technique with more paint and less water, which produces a bright, mural-like piece,” Barreto said in a library news release, describing how she created her fish-and-floral design.

Barretto's card will be available for free, in addition to other designs that the library system offers at its 17 branches, during the third annual card drive this fall. While the new design is intended to appeal to teens and tweens, adults can ask for it, too.

The contest began this spring, when 110 young contributors submitted creations in colored pencil, pen, paint, camera and computer-generated art. Judges narrowed the field to five finalists, and 1,240 Pierce County residents cast votes on the library’s Web site to pick the winner.

This could be one of the coolest events of the summer for history buffs and mystery fans. It is a tour of the Old Tacoma Cemetary near South Park.

I've spent a little time in this cemetary and its neighbors and wish I knew more about it. It's kind of hidden in plain site and holds many stories and mysteries.

I'll let the sponsors explain the event and how to join in.

Historic Tacoma Cemetery Tour
On Friday evening July 17th, Fort Nisqually will be partnering with the Tacoma Historical Society and the Old Tacoma Cemetery to present a living history event.

For those of you who remember the Port Townsend/Jefferson County Historical Society Cemetery tour of several years ago, this will be a very similar format – where re-enactors stand at the headstone of people from Tacoma’s past and tell their life story in first person.

If you would like to know more about people like Job Carr (Jim Weatherford), Rebecca Carr Staley (Jill Weatherford), Thea Foss (Karen Haas), Angelo Fawcett (Patrick Haas), Clinton Ferry (John Salicco), Edward Huggins (Jerry Eckrom), Letitia Huggins (Judy Bridges), John Sprague (Ken Morgan) or Allen C Mason (Steve Ricketts) be sure to mark the date on your calendar.

Like Fort Nisqually’s Candlelight Tour, tickets will be purchased for specific start times and can be purchased from the Tacoma Historical Society by calling 253-472-3738 or emailing info@tacomahistory.org or visit their website at www.tacomahistory.org . The tickets are $8 each.

OR, if you would like to volunteer to help we are also looking for docents to lead the groups through the tour. The primary job of the docent is to lead the group from person to person and introduce the character the group is about to meet. If you would like to volunteer please contact Melissa McGinnis at melissam@tacomaparks.com.

The Old Tacoma Cemetery is located at 4801 South Tacoma Way and is adjacent to South Park Community Center where Fort Nisqually holds the annual Robert Burns Volunteer Recognition Dinner.

Tacoma ranks 150th among the 200 largest U.S. cities in terms of frequency of automobile collisions, according to Allstate’s fifth-annual "America’s Best Drivers Report” released this week.

Tacoma was rated slightly safer than it was in the Insurance company's 2005 list. The average Tacoma driver has a collision every 7.9 years. That compares to once every 13.5 years in No. 1-ranked Sioux Falls, S.D.

Among the five Washington cities that made the list, Tacoma was ranked the least safe in terms of collisions.

For a tongue-in-cheek look at this year's rankings, check out this week's Nose column when it comes out Friday morning.

Yes, there was a lot of traffic on state highways over the July 4th weekend, according to the The Washington State Department of Transportation. WSDOT released preliminary traffic counts today in the following press release:

OLYMPIA - Preliminary data from WSDOT's Transportation Data Office
revealed more drivers hit the roadways for Independence Day weekend
2009, with just one minor exception. WSDOT's traffic counts show a
slight decrease in travel from the Bellingham area north to the Canadian
border.

WSDOT's initial traffic counts show increase of nearly 15 percent in
holiday traffic on I-90 Snoqualmie Pass compared to 2008, while on US 2
over Stevens Pass there was a 12 percent increase. On I-5 near Olympia,
there was only a 6 percent increase. Further north, on I-5 from
Bellingham to the Canadian border, there was a 1 percent decrease from
2008.

While most traffic counts increased, there were no major delays in the
mountains most of the weekend. A collision Friday on Snoqualmie Pass
slowed drivers in the early evening, but Sunday's commute back into
Western Washington showed only minor delays.

Thursday and Friday traffic on I-5 showed typical commute wait times.
I-5 drivers in the Olympia area heading north experienced delays Sunday
afternoon, while those heading south slowed due to a collision near
Centralia.

WSDOT provides travel information for areas known to be three-day
weekend travel routes so drivers can make the best decisions for their
travel plans.

This is just one of the tools WSDOT offers on its Web site to give
drivers the opportunity to know before they go and know on the road. You
can find these travel tools at www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic.

The Fourth of July fell on a Friday in 2008. The numbers below show the
2009 Fourth of July weekend travel roundup from across the state in
comparison to 2008:

I-90 Snoqualmie Pass
*183,000 vehicles traveled both directions over Snoqualmie Pass between
Thursday and Sunday, an increase of 15 percent (20,000 vehicles).
*4,800 more vehicles Thursday
*19,000 more vehicles Friday
*4,100 more vehicles Saturday
*4,800 more vehicles Sunday

US 2, Stevens Pass
*31,400 vehicles traveled both directions over US 2 from Thursday
through Sunday, an increase of 12 percent (3,900 vehicles) *1,500 more
vehicles traveled Thursday
*1,000 more vehicles traveled Friday
*400 more vehicles traveled on Saturday *1,000 more vehicles traveled on
Sunday

I-5 Thurston/Lewis counties
*269,400 traveled both directions of I-5 south of Olympia into Lewis
County between Thursday and Sunday, an increase of 6 percent (9,800
vehicles).
*Comparison data from Thursday is unavailable due to a 2008 equipment
failure *3,400 more traveled Friday *5,600 more vehicles Saturday *800
more vehicles Sunday

I-5, Bellingham to US/Canada Border
*121,700 vehicles traveled both directions on I-5 from Bellingham to the
Canadian border between Thursday and Sunday, a decrease of 1 percent
(700 vehicles).
*2,900 more vehicles traveled on Thursday.
*1,100 fewer traveled Friday
*1,200 fewer traveled Saturday
*1,400 fewer traveled Sunday

The state’s three national parks are receiving $200,000 in grants from Washington’s National Park Fund, the fund announced this week.

The grants to Mount Rainier, North Cascades and Olympic national
parks come from another successful fund raising year by the fund. The fund is the official philanthropic partner for the state's three national parks and collaborates with them to obtain support
for priority projects.

The parks will use the funds this year for a wide
range of purposes, from site restoration to wildlife monitoring to
public education and enrichment programs.

Contributions were raised from a variety of private sources, including
individuals, corporations and foundations, plus several special events
and proceeds from the sale of the state’s national park license plate.
Donors to Washington's National Park Fund live in every state of the
U.S. plus Japan, Canada and the UK.

Mount Rainier National Park is receiving more than $72,000 to support
Camping Adventures with My Parents (CAMP), Connecting Kids to Parks,
volunteer outreach, and the Paradise Meadow Restoration project.
CAMP is bringing inner city youths and their families to the park this summer to experience camping.

“The Washington's National Park Fund grants will enable Mount Rainier
National Park to create new opportunities for people to establish
meaningful connections with their parks by introducing urban-based
families to the camping experience and young people to the mountain, and
through volunteerism,” said Randy King, Acting Superintendent of Mount
Rainier National Park. “We are very excited about these programs and
deeply appreciative of Washington’s National Park Fund, and of the
generosity of the individuals and companies.”

North Cascades National Park will receive a total of $55,000 for a volunteer shelter at Marblemount, a Botanical Forays project, and a Landbird Inventory and Monitoring project.

Olympic National Park will receive more than $72,000 to study and protect Roosevelt elk, monitor the Fisher restoration, and assess and conserve Olympic marmot populations.

To learn more about the Washington's National
Park Fund, visit the Web site at wnpf.org or call 253-566-4644.

Eleven-year-old Drew Pepin will have the coolest response ever when people ask what he did over summer vacation.

He met President Obama.

Drew reports Obama has a strong handshake, and the Tacoma boy added, “He was very, very tall.”

Drew Pepin, 11, stands behind President Obama at the White House on June 23. Photo credit: Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation

Drew and his parents, Kim and Scott Pepin, and 14-year-old sister Ally recently returned from a trip to Washington, D.C., where the boy was among 150 youths throughout the country at the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation’s Children’s Congress.

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"From Ruins to Renaissance: The Architecture of Downtown Tacoma" tells the story of the city's architecture from its founding 125 years ago to today.

In a small space at the Tacoma Historical Society's Exhibit Center, the exhibit walks visitors through the early days of boom and bust, the post-war decline, the mixed effects of Urban Renewal and the more-recent investments of public and private money.

It also displays several artifacts from buildings that have been lost.

The exhibit was designed by Mary Bowlby and curated by Heather Straub. Bowlby describes Straub as a newcomer to the city "who wanted to learn more about her new home and fell in love with its history in the process."

"From Ruins to Renaissance" was developed in partnership with GeoEngineers, Inc. The Exhibit Center is at 747 Broadway and is open between noon and 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday.

Steilacoom Mayor Ron Lucas directed today that American flags on city buildings remain at half mast through next Tuesday to honor a local soldier who died last week in Afghanistan.

He also encouraged city residents to do that same thing.

Governor Chris Gregoire directed flags on public buildings throughout the state be lower Wednesday to honor 1LT Brian Bradshaw, 24, who died June 25 in in Kheyl, Afghanistan of wounds suffered when an improved explosive devise was detonated near him.

Bradshaw grew up in Steilacoom and graduated from Bellarmine Preparatory School and Pacific Lutheran University.

Bradshaw was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Airborne Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division in Fort Richardson, Alaska. His unit deployed in stages to Afghanistan beginning in February and Bradshaw arrived in March.

Bradshaw is the first Pierce County service member to die in Afghanistan in more than a year.

Funeral services will be held Monday at 11 a.m. at St. John Bosco Catholic Church in Lakewood. He will be buried later that afternoon at Tahoma National Cemetery in Kent.

We didn't run a picture of the actual roadside sign advertising "Nearly Naked Fireworks" in the story we ran on the business today. The sign, not the scantily-clad women inside the tent, is what's got neighbors really ticked off, said one resident, Annie Starwich Claeys.

What do you think? Take a look.

Claeys posed the following question this morning: "Is this something you want in your neighborhood?"