From Mayor Joe DePinto’s Facebook post:
This year, a fifth-grade teacher at Ft. Stevens Elementary in Yelm requested dictionaries for her students.
Excerpt from Thurston Talk:
In a world of digital everything – including books – the Olympia Host Lions works to instill the love of physical copies in children. For the past 21 years, the organization has donated “A Student’s Dictionary and Gazetteer” to Olympia-area schools. The Dictionary Project recently recognized them for giving out nearly 12,000 dictionaries.
Calling the Lions’ long participation in the project an “extraordinary milestone,” The Dictionary Project thanked Olympia Host Lions for “enriching and empowering generations of students with the lifelong gift of knowledge.”
By distributing dictionaries to students, Carrie Bonavita of The Dictionary Project says Olympia Host Lions are “leaving a lasting legacy of learning and inspiration throughout the community.”
In 2004, the Olympia Host Lions learned of The Dictionary Project at a Lions Leaders training session. The nonprofit organization has a mission “to assist all students in becoming good writers, active readers, creative thinkers, and resourceful learners by providing them with their own personal dictionary.” Dictionaries are given freely to the students at third grade level. “Educators see third grade as the dividing line between learning to read and reading to learn, so we encourage our sponsors to give dictionaries each year to children in the third grade,” The Dictionary Project says.
“This dictionary was created specifically for young students to use in their classrooms, was well received in other parts of the country, local teachers liked the format and the price was within the budget for Olympia Host Lions Club,” shares Karen Sell, Olympia Host Lions member, on why they chose the “A Student’s Dictionary and Gazetteer” for their project.
Third graders in Olympia-area schools have been the recipients of the dictionaries since 2025. “The Olympia Host Lions Club works primarily in the Olympia area so the Olympia School District is a natural jurisdiction with which to partner,” explains Karen. “We offer the dictionaries to all schools within the district. And because we have a branch of our club on the Steamboat Peninsula, we also offer dictionaries to the Griffin School District.”
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This year, a fifth-grade teacher at Ft. Stevens Elementary in Yelm requested dictionaries for her students. “The Yelm teacher heard about the dictionaries, thought they would be useful for her class and went looking for a source,” explains Karen. “Olympia Host Lions happened to have enough extra dictionaries on hand that we were able to meet her request.”
“When students get their dictionary from us, they are immediately enthralled, engaged and eager to discover all that the book provides,” Olympia Host Lions president Erik Johnson reports.
Several students mentioned they were grateful for a book of their own that they could take home. In many cases, Lions hear that the dictionary is the first book a child has ever actually owned.
You can help by donating to the Olympia Host Lions on the website. In the notes, you can put that it’s for the dictionary program.
Click here to read the full story.
A striking celestial show will soon rise over the evening horizon, offering skywatchers a bright reminder that spring has officially arrived.
Excerpt from The Daily Voice (Rhinebeck, NY):
The April full moon, commonly known as the Pink Moon, will reach peak illumination on Wednesday, April 1, at 10:12 p.m. EDT [Pacific Daylight Time (PDT): 7:12 p.m.].
Despite its colorful name, the moon will not actually appear pink. The nickname comes from the early spring bloom of moss phlox wildflowers that spread across parts of North America, according to The Old Farmer’s Almanac.
Skywatchers can begin spotting the moon rising in the eastern sky shortly after sunset on Wednesday. It will appear full for about a day before and after its peak, meaning the bright lunar display will be visible across multiple nights.
The moon may appear golden or orange when it first rises near the horizon, an effect caused by Earth’s atmosphere scattering light. As it climbs higher into the night sky, it typically shifts to its familiar bright white glow.
Astronomy coverage reported by MSN notes that the moon will appear in the constellation Virgo and may be visible near the bright blue-white star Spica during the evening hours.
Click here to read the full story.
+ The Chronicle: Letter: Friends of the Library groups address Timberland Library Board of Trustees
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Excerpt from The Olympian:
The Timberland Regional Library Board of Trustees voted toward the end of a four-hour meeting on Wednesday [March 25] to accept Executive Director Cheryl Heywood’s resignation letter, ending a nearly 30-year attachment to the five-county system, including more than a dozen years as its leader.
The board announced that it had received the letter at the beginning of Wednesday’s gathering, then shortly before 9:30 p.m. Trustee Dustin Loup took action to accept it.
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The board is now set to meet Monday to discuss interim leadership.
“I do want to acknowledge that Cheryl worked for Timberland for a long time,” said Trustee Brian Mittge. “We’re going to be moving forward to address the challenges facing TRL.”
He also thanked the more than 200 people who watched the online meeting.
“We’re hearing the dedication and support that you have for your local libraries and for our Timberland Regional Library system as a whole,” Mittge said. “So we’re going to keep moving forward on that.”
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Was this the hardest year of Heywood’s long tenure? Perhaps. The five-county library district, which is headquartered in Tumwater, faced a $3.8 million shortfall in its budget due to rising costs and flat revenue, which ultimately resulted in 61 layoffs, both involuntary and voluntary. The involuntary layoffs are set to take effect in May.
The total layoffs amount to a 25% cut, based on a staff total previously identified at 240 people.
Residents and patrons have reacted in anger to those cuts, sharing their displeasure on social media and during public comment at board meetings, which have recently been watched by hundreds of people.
Click here to read the full story.
Excerpt from The Olympian:
Washington’s bridges and roads have seen better days, a new report found.
The state’s streets and spans rank No. 48 in the U.S. for cost-effectiveness and condition, according to the 29th Annual Highway Report from the Reason Foundation, a libertarian think tank, published Thursday [March 19]. Only California and Alaska, which respectively placed 49th and 50th, fared worse.
Washington dropped a spot in the Annual Highway Report ranking compared with last year, when it was rated 47th of 50 states. In this year’s ranking, Washington was the highest-spending state across multiple classifications, according to the foundation.
This comes as state officials have sought to boost funding for transportation-related upkeep.
Gov. Bob Ferguson praised state lawmakers for delivering on his priorities in a post-session news release.
“In my budget, I proposed $1.5 billion for maintenance and preservation of our roads and bridges over the next six years, without raising taxes,” he said in the March 12 release. “I appreciate the Legislature adopting that historic level of funding.”
The release noted the state is home to 342 bridges that are at least 80 years old, while 212 spans are in poor condition.
Click here to read the full story.
Global warming is speeding up. Credit: Science Daily.
Excerpt from Science Daily:
Date: March 9, 2026
Source:Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK)
Summary:Global warming has picked up speed in the past decade, according to a new analysis from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK). By removing short term natural influences such as El Niño, volcanic eruptions, and solar cycles from temperature records, researchers uncovered a clear acceleration in the planet’s long term warming trend beginning around 2015.
Global warming is speeding up, and scientists say the planet could exceed the 1.5°C climate limit before 2030 if the current trend continues.
Click here to read the full story.
Dear readers,
Today, on March 29th, 2006, the Yelm Community Blog began publication with almost daily posts for 20 years. This blog has been compiled by the continuous and longest serving writer in Yelm compared to any other online or print publication staffs. I have been proud to provide the community with stories that give you, the reader, public documents to read and discern news stories for yourself, and without any paid advertisements.
This work has been a free service, my gift to our community. I have never taken any revenue by allowing advertising. I am beholding to no one.
The first blog post was about Yelm Community Schools enrolling the 5,000th pupil, doubling their student numbers in 25 years.
Follow on X or subscribe to the e-list on the right side of the home page.
A heartfelt THANK YOU for your interest and support all of these years.
Sincerely,
Steve Klein
+ The New Republic: Trump Accidentally Admits to Epic Iran Blunder as War Takes Worse Turn – As Trump blurts out a striking confession about his Iran fiasco, a foreign policy expert explains why the latest developments in the war are so unnerving—and what to expect next.
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+ The Daily Beast: King’ Trump, 79, Suffers Another Worldwide Humiliation – Protesters all over the globe have joined Americans in blasting Donald Trump.
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+ BBC: Three charts that are warning signs flashing for Trump on Iran war
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+ USA Today: Trump sinks to record low approval rating due to Iran war in new poll
+ The Daily Beast: Trump’s Approval Hits New Low in Devastating Fox News Poll as Even Republicans Bail – The brutal poll shows Trump’s approval rating hitting a second term low.
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+ The Mirror US: MAGA call for ‘fat mouth’ Trump’s impeachment as they abandon president after Iran war rants – Prominent right-wing podcasters and streamers are accusing Donald Trump of betraying his MAGA movement as they turn against the president over his war with Iran
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+ The Daily Kos: Paul Krugman is right – America Is Quietly Shutting Itself Down
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+ The Daily Beast: Kennedy Center Board Member Launches Bid to Remove Trump’s Name – Trump is trying to remake the cultural institution in his own image.
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+ Truthout: German President Says Trump’s War on Iran Should Cause Permanent Rupture With US – The president’s remarks were a departure from Germany’s policies supporting the US in the war.
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+ Truthout: Twin Cities Win JFK Library Award for Resisting ICE Crackdown – Numerous recipients of the award over the past several years have received the honor for their resistance against Trump.
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+ The Washington Post: Trump is breaking an axiom of war. Did no one warn him? – Fighting a war on two fronts is a big mistake.
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+ The Mirror US: Trump says he has to tread carefully or cabinet could invoke the 25th Amendment against him – Trump claimed he must be cautious about what he says to avoid his cabinet invoking the 25th Amendment, a statement worrying many social media users
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+ Truthout: Trump Votes by Mail in Florida Special Election, Despite Calling It “Cheating” – “Mail voting is a safe, secure, and reliable method” to cast ballots, the Bipartisan Policy Center states.
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+ The Daily Beast: The Real Reason Trump Talks Like an Idiot: Author – Kurt Andersen likened the president to one of America’s most famous con men.
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+ Truthout: Trump’s Iran War May Mark the Beginning of the End for Dollar-Backed US Empire
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+ The Daily Voice: USPS Hiking Prices As Iran War Rages: See What’s Increasing – The cost of shipping packages is about to rise nationwide due to skyrocketing fuel prices as the US-Israeli war on Iran approaches its second month.
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+ Ralph Nader Newsletter: The Deafening Abdication of Four Ex-Presidents on Trump
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+ The Daily Voice: Trump Putting Signature On Dollar Bills In Unprecedented Move For Sitting President – President Donald Trump’s signature will soon appear on US paper currency in a controversial, historic first for a sitting president.
+ Truthout: Trump Admits Iran War Is Unconstitutional: “You’re Supposed to Get Approval” – Trump said he’s avoiding using the word “war” in reference to the Iran war, even though he’s used it many times.
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+ Truthout: Trump’s DHS Has Tried to Deport Nearly 300 Veterans, Despite Protections – The Trump administration slashed protections for military members, but the military still touts benefits in recruitment.
+ Truthout: Report: Many Middle East US Bases “All But Uninhabitable” Due to Iran Strikes – Military officials have been relocated to offices and hotels, officials say, spurring civilian targeting concerns.
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+ The Washington Post: They defended the Capitol on Jan. 6. Their names are missing from the tribute. A Washington Post review found at least 16 D.C. police officers who faced the violent mob are omitted from a personnel list displayed at the U.S. Capitol.
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+ AlterNet: The Mueller Report’s menacing warning about Trump that America forgot
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+ Joyce Vance: What Was Actually in the Mueller Report
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+ MS.Now: Trump appeared to have business motive for keeping classified documents, Jack Smith finds – The special counsel’s office found that Donald Trump held on to documents so secret that only six people could legally review them — and the team believed his reason for doing so was financial gain.
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+ Politico: How Jack Smith connected the dots between GOP lawmakers, Trump aides in 2020 election probe – New documents reveal the extent of the former special counsel’s efforts to investigate the president.
+ MS.Now: The Epstein class thinks it runs America. Today, No Kings protesters send their response. Americans are horrified by the Trump administration’s cover-up of the Epstein files and the lack of accountability for the elites who crossed lines.
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Excerpt from The New York Times [accessible text]:
Joseph Briseño arrived at CSL Plasma around 8 a.m., just as the morning rush of donors was thinning out. He took a few small sips from his water bottle, preparing for what he ruefully described as his second job.
Four days a week, Mr. Briseño, who lives in the Houston suburbs, works long shifts seated at the controls of a crane at a local waste disposal company, where he is a supervisor. It’s his full-time job, and he earns around $50,000 a year. On two of his days off, he sits in a cushioned recliner for an hour with a needle in his left arm, donating blood plasma to be used in making certain medical therapies. Donating is a misnomer. He earns an average of $70 for each visit.
“That can be gas money, grocery money, money put into savings for emergencies,” said Mr. Briseño, who started going to this plasma collection center a year ago after struggling to find a part-time job that didn’t conflict with his work schedule. He needed to do something to offset the increased costs of living.
“In this economy, it’s expensive,” he said, “and donating helps.”
Every day, an estimated 215,000 people donate plasma, the yellowish liquid component of blood. Mr. Briseño is among them. He is not jobless or facing eviction, but, like many in the American middle class, he is caught in the vise of rising expenses and wages that aren’t growing fast enough to cover them. So he is turning to a method more commonly associated with the lowest-income Americans. For people like him, an extra $600 or so a month can mean making a mortgage payment or covering increased health-insurance costs.
While no one publishes statistics on the exact incomes of people who sell their blood plasma, the location of the centers suggests a shift toward a less financially desperate clientele.
Click here to read the full story.