“Ice Chips Candy company co-founders Bev Vines-Haines (left) and Charlotte Clary give a quick tour of their new Olympia production site, which is four times larger than their previous Yelm location. The new, state-of-the-art boiler they’re standing beside will help increase candy production in the kitchen.”
Photo credit: Steve Bloom, The Olympian.

From Rolf Boone, The Olympian:
“Charlotte Clary and Bev Vines-Haines, the two grandmothers behind the popular Ice Chips Candy, are moving their venture to Olympia from Yelm.

Why?

‘Explosive growth,’ Clary said during an interview and tour of the new facility this week, which is just off Old Highway 99 at 79th Avenue Southeast, across from Olympia Regional Airport.”

“So in August they signed a lease for 21,500 square feet of space and are set to begin moving in the coming days.”
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UPDATE: March 4, 2015
The Olympian story appears in the sister newspaper, the Tacoma News Tribune.
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– From Relay for Life!
Relay for Life is! TODAY is KICK OFF! Join us at Baydo Chevrolet from 6-8 p.m. K2K Productions will deejay the night away, door prizes, games, meet local heroes, enjoy mocktails and delicious hors d’oeuvres. For every new to Relay guest you bring you will also earn extra tickets for door prizes!
For more information, visit www.facebook.com/SEThurstonRelay.

– And on March 21st:
“Team Spark and Friends are hosting a Spring Bazaar March 21st, 11-5 at The Lions Club, 301 W. Yelm Ave.

Show your support for local crafters and ENDING CANCER and stop by to see all the goodies! All prcoeeds will be donated to Relay For Life of S.E. Thurston County!

If you are interested in having a booth it is $20.”

– Mark you calendars:
“The communities of Rainier, Yelm,Tenino, Grand Mound, McKenna, Rochester, and Roy are coming together with the American Cancer Society for an exciting Relay For Life event for 2015. We are participating in the world’s largest and most impactful fundraising event to end cancer. With the support of our community we are achieving and surpassing goals set by ACS: for 2014, while raising over $45,000 we earned the prestigious Pacesetter award. 2015 promises to be even greater! Please join us! Check out our facebook page at SE Thurston Facebook.

“Children could walk. Outside. Alone.”
Photo credit: Bernard Hoffman/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images

“10 things you used to do — but now can’t”
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Photo courtesy: Karla’s Wild Shop

From Karla’s Homesteading Newsletter:
Gourmet Foods from the Wild , Sunday, March 8th, 2pm to 5pm
You will learn how to make delicious and healthy foods from Stinging Nettles and Dandelion and more. These plants will also help you to spring clean your body and boost your immune system. This is a fun outdoor/indoor class after which you will never see these plants as a nuisance again. We will also cover the medicinal value and how to prepare and preserve them for these purposes .
Don’t miss this class, it’s already half filled up.

Early Bird Special till February 28th, $30 plus $5 for materials; after February 28th $35 plus $5 for materials.

To make a reservation, please contact Karla:
http://www.karlaswildshop.com/

“Yelm police Officer Devon Taylor (left) and Thurston County Sheriff’s Deputy Brett Campbell received the Medal of Courage and Lifesaving Award at a Friday [Feb. 20] ceremony. Taylor and Campbell rescued a Spanaway woman from the Centralia Canal in November. Photo credit: Amelia Dickson, The Olympian.

“Sheriffs deputy and Yelm police officer honored for saving woman from sinking car”

“When Colette Smith crashed her car during the early hours of Nov. 30, she wasnt sure where she had landed. She thought her car had landed in a ditch, but when she tried the doors she couldnt climb out.

Then her car started filling up with water, and she realized she had landed in the Centralia Canal.”

“Thats where Yelm police Officer Devon Taylor and Thurston County Sheriffs Deputy Brett Campbell come in. The two officers are credited with saving Smiths life, and were honored for their actions at an award ceremony Friday afternoon at the Thurston County Courthouse.

Campbell and Taylor received the Medal of Courage and the Lifesaving Award,” quoting Amelia Dickson, The Olympian.
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“Although longtime Allstate Insurance agent Bill Funk is set to retire, his daughter, Ronelle, and son, Vince, will carry the family name on with their own established Allstate offices in Lacey, Yelm and Aberdeen.
Photo credit: Steve Bloom, The Olympian.

“Bill Funk, 70, the father, was a career firefighter in California and Nevada before he sold insurance; his wife, Marilyn Zuckerman, who actually got him into the business, sold books; Funks daughter, Ronelle, has a masters degree in counseling; and his son, Vince, was a horse jockey for about 25 years.

Now, theyre all selling insurance, except for Bill, who is winding down a 26-year career, and Marilyn, who is trying to sell her book of business at her Olympia office.”

“Ronelle, meanwhile, is taking over Bills former office on College Street in Lacey she also has an office in Yelm while Vince and his wife, Debbie, run Allstate offices in Lacey and Aberdeen,” quoting Rolf Boone, The Olympian.
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Seats are limited, so reserve your tickets early by e-mailing: rainiereducationfoundation@gmail.com.
Click here for more information on the auction.

Ramtha’s School of Enlightenment Lecture Series continues
Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Click here

Click here

King Harald V of Norway. (Photo by Slve Sundsb, The Royal Court of Norway.)

“King Harald V of Norway will come to Pacific Lutheran University in May to speak at commencement and receive an honorary doctorate.

The university has a long connection with Norway. The Tacoma university was founded by Norwegian immigrants in 1890, and students from Norway make up its largest group of international students. Commencement is May 23.

The king will receive a Doctor of Laws jure dignitatis, according to a press release from the university, which celebrates its 125th anniversary this year. He also is scheduled at a fundraiser for PLUs exchange programs with Norway and will meet with Norwegian students,” quoting The Seattle Globalist.
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“The scoop on what happens to your Facebook posts, iPod collection and more”

“From banking and social media to email, iTunes and beyond, our lives are increasingly being lived and stored online. We upload family pictures to photo-sharing sites, download our favorite books into e-readers and share many of our stories on Facebook and Twitter. But what happens when we die? While probate courts have established procedures to distribute physical items, only a handful of states have laws governing the management and inheritance of online property. Unless you make specific plans for your digital afterlife, experts say, your “digital assets” stand a good chance of being mismanaged or of disappearing entirely.

‘People often don’t think about this,’ says Naomi Cahn, a law professor at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. ‘People don’t plan for how to handle these assets.’

The good news is that there’s plenty you can do now, before the unexpected happens, to ensure you get to determine the fate of your online life and additionally make things easier for the loved ones you leave behind.

Before you can decide how you want your digital assets managed after your death, you first need to take an inventory of your accounts, says Evan Carroll, coauthor of Your Digital Afterlife,'” by Carrie Arnold, AARP The Magazine, February/March 2014.
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