The rescheduled meeting is set for Wednesday February 1st.
Emanuel Lutheran Church at 7pm.

From Yelm/Rainier Free Clinic on Facebook:
“Are you interested in the possibility of a free medical clinic in the Yelm-Rainier area?
Representatives from
– start-up agencies
– the medical and pharmacy fields
– churches
– services clubs
– public agencies
will be there to present and discuss options and answer questions.

Please invite anyone you know who is interested and join us for discussion and refreshments.

YELM-RAINIER FREE CLINIC FORUM COMMUNITY MEETING
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 1ST AT 7PM (Postponed from Jan 18th due to inclement weather)
EMMANUEL LUTHERAN CHURCH
206 – 3rd St SE
Yelm, WA 98597

For more information: click here

CBS News filed this AP report:
“Thousands of people lining downtown streets cheered wildly as veterans, some wiping away tears, marched through St. Louis on Saturday during the nation’s first big welcome-home parade for Iraq War veterans.

Several hundred veterans, many dressed in camouflage, walked alongside military vehicles, marching bands and even the Budweiser Clydesdales. People in the crowd held signs reading “Welcome Home” and “God Bless Our Troops,” and fire trucks with aerial ladders hoisted three huge American flags along the route.

“It’s not necessarily overdue. It’s just the right thing,” said Maj. Rich Radford, who became a symbol of the event thanks to a photo of his young daughter taking his hand while welcoming him home from his second tour in Iraq in 2010.

Since the war ended, there has been little fanfare for returning veterans aside from gatherings at airports and military bases no ticker-tape parades or large public celebrations so two friends from St. Louis decided to change that.”

How about Yelm hosting parade for Iraq War vets?

Mayor Harding and city leaders have been on a public relations blitz recently touting the physical improvements to Yelm that include:
– the library remaining at the current location
– new sidewalks and crosswalks
– realignment of Mossman Rd.
– upgrade to downtown well

However, let’s not lose the focus of a viable community – it’s our people!
The emphasis on all of the physical improvements from City Hall should not shove social issues here to the back-burner, as was recently identified with the homeless situation. That did not grow here overnight.

The military are a large part of the fabric of life here.
After-all, several times previously and in the Pierce County Business Examiner last week, Mayor Harding said the growth here is attributed to the military:
A lot of support continues to be at the local level. And the military market continues to grow. They enjoy the rural setting and their dollars buy a lot more than in DuPont or Lakewood.

HASN’T THE TIME COME FOR A PARADE FOR THIS AREA’S RETURNING IRAQ VETERANS?
AND, NOT JUST ON PATRIOT’S DAY IN SEPTEMBER!
LET’S JOIN ST. LOUIS IN CELEBRATING OUR RETURNING VETS WITH THE HONOR THEY DESERVE!

By NBC News and msnbc.com staff:
“At least eight sea lions have been found shot to death in the Puget Sound region in recent weeks, wildlife officials say.

The bodies of seven sea lions were recently found on the Nisqually River, south of Tacoma, all apparently shot, NBC station KING 5 of Seattle reported.”

“State and federal authorities are investigating, but they said they don’t know who killed the sea lions. The penalty could range from fees to possible jail time.

California sea lions are a protected species under the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Stellar sea lions are a federally protected under the Endangered Species Act.”

Rolf Boone filed this report for The Olympian:
“Thurston County home sales fell 5 percent in 2011, the fifth consecutive year in which they have declined. However, some South Sound real estate professionals said last years market finished on an upbeat note, and they remain hopeful for the new year.”

“Sales of single-family residences and condominiums fell 5.15 percent to 2,688 units last year from 2,843 units in 2010, according to a recap of the year released by the Northwest Multiple Listing Service.”

BY THE NUMBERS

Annual Thurston County single-family residence and condo sales since 2007

2011: 2,688.

2010: 2,834.

2009: 2,938.

2008: 3,175.

2007: 4,180.

Source: Northwest Multiple Listing Service”

Ed. Note:
Dropping home sales mean dropping sales tax revenue to municipalities!

From the Coastal Courier:

“Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Bryan R. Graves, son of Lori J. Graves of Allenhurst and Terrence R. Graves of Lakewood, Wash., participated in a recent community service project at the House of Family childrens shelter in Cambodia.
The shelter, located in Sihanoukville, serves as a refuge for HIV/AIDS-positive orphans or vulnerable children.”

“Graves is a 2006 graduate of Yelm High School of Yelm, Wash., and joined the Navy in August 2006.”
Read more from Coastal Courier.

From the Thurston County Auditor:
“Voters who are not currently registered in Washington State and miss the online or mail-in registration deadline may register in person at the Thurston County Auditors Office by 5:00 p.m. on
Monday, February 6, 2012. The Auditors Office is located in building 1, room 106, at the Thurston County Courthouse, 2000 Lakeridge Dr SW, Olympia, WA 98502.

To find out your voter registration status, please contact the Election Division at (360)786-5408 or go to the Thurston County Elections website at www.ThurstonVotes.org.”

Photo courtesy Citizens for Support of Yelm Schools

From Citizens for Support of Yelm Schools:
A few important messages regarding the upcoming Yelm Community Schools Educational Programs, Maintenance & Operation REPLACEMENT LEVY election:

– Ballots should be arriving in your mailbox this Saturday or the first of next week. Please remember to support Yelm students and vote YES!

– Many of you have asked to help with the election. There is a sign waving opportunity this Saturday, January 28 from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at any of the major intersections in Yelm or McKenna. Please feel free to join any of our groups.

– If you are not currently registered to vote in Washington State you have 12 days to register to be eligible to vote in the February 14, 2012 Special Election. Contact the Thurston County or Pierce County auditors office for more details.

Thank you for your continued support for Yelm students!

The Olympian has this terrific Op-Ed posted January 22nd:
“Schools will be in worse position without passage of funding measures”

” Yelm Community Schools has a four-year, $39.8 million levy that covers 18 percent of its school district budget. The estimated tax rate, which assumes a slow increase in property values in the four years ahead, would be $3.71 per $1,000 in 2013, rising to $3.92 per $1,000 in 2016.

If the levy doesnt pass, the school district will have to cut some $11 million from its school programs, which were trimmed by $1.1 million in 2009 because of state budget cuts.”
Read more

And this:
“A classroom assistant in Yelm makes $900 per month and pays $750 per month in insurance.”
Read more from the Marysville Globe.

Important Yelm Food Co-op Special Membership Meeting THIS SATURDAY

Something quite wonderful is in motion in Yelm and has everything to do with the future of food. Please attend this special meeting Saturday January 28, and bring your family and friends!

This meeting has been scheduled to tandem with the 9 am showing of “Revenge of the Electric Car” at the Yelm Cinemas. Watch the film, then join us at Gordon’s Grange for a short presentation. You will be inspired!!!

When: Saturday, January 21, 2012

What time: 12:30 1:30 pm – Immediately following Yelm Cinemas showing of Revenge of the Electric Car. Grab a coffee and come by for the meeting!

Where: Gordons Grange

Were on the move since last September!

Great things are happening and we want you to know about them!
Come find out about the New Coop Organization and How this Change Benefits the Community.

Come find out about the New Membership Structure and How this Change Benefits YOU!

Plus! Find out about the new programs and opportunities to give back to the community – Farmers Market, Community Gardens and more!

Bring your family and friends membership is not required to attend !

TELL THE YELM FOOD CO-OP YOU READ ABOUT THEM ON THE YELM COMMUNITY BLOG!

I appreciate the outpouring of support and understanding on my comments in response to the Tyler Huey’s story in the NVN last week. My story was titled: Joe Paterno, A Perspective
Read more

The many heartfelt comments I received and the blog’s high view numbers indicate this entry may have been a contributing factor to Huey’s NVN story being their Most Popular all week on their website.
Read more and my comment at the bottom.

Greg Couch wrote this excellent story for Fox Sports and said:
“There was a lot of talk about Paternos legacy. What is it? A few speakers said it is in his former players, and in what theyre doing now.”

“Paterno never had a chance to redeem himself, or even to explain.”

Ed. Note:
I happen to find our laws provide guidance on this – a person is innocent until proven guilty, regardless of those in the media being judge, jury and sentencer. Certainly in the Sandusky trial, Paterno would have been called as a witness and been able to publicly explain his side.

As Couch said in his story,
“He tried, speaking with Sally Jenkins of the Washington Post in the final days before he died. He said something about not understanding about rape and men. Its hard to believe he was that ignorant, honestly.”

“The truth is, he was a dying, 85-year-old man trying to defend himself in that interview. Its hard to say if he was even of sound mind.”

I hope we remember this when we might feel compelled to join in to “tar-and-feather” someone in the Town Square prior to their case being heard, as Huey did. A rush to judgement from the sidelines serves no-one and society has made several errors about others for thousands of years – after all, the Church took 350 years before finally admitting their error about Galileo!

Joe Paterno deserved better!

Posted on KING-5 TV’s site in Seattle,
Frank Mungeam, KGW.com Staff, Portland wrote:
“Thursday marked the 312th anniversary of the last, great Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake to strike the Pacific Northwest, according to researchers at the Oregon Department of Geology.

Scientific research in Oregon, Washington, and Japan indicates that a magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck at 9:00 p.m. on January 26 in the year 1700. The data show the quake was centered about 75 miles offshore.”

“The destruction caused by the similar magnitude 9.0 earthquake and the tsunami it generated on March 11, 2011, offshore Japan provides a chilling parallel to what could happen here in Oregon.”

Read more from The Pacific Northwest Seismic Network.