As of Friday, April 16, 2010, over 500 volunteers have signed up. We’re looking forward to a people-powered event at which last year, we painted one block-long mural previously plagued with graffiti, cleaned and painted art on 21 trash cans for the business district, removed invasive plant species at six parks, and hauled away two tons of garbage. Volunteers covered 70 neighborhood blocks, picking up litter and completing 19 individual beautification projects developed by local residents and groups.

This year, besides a complementary BBQ/burger lunch at the KCHA’s Greenbridge Plaza, you and your family will be treated to a host of family-oriented events:

1. Entertainment by the Suns and Stars Dance Troupe & Drumline Company.
2. Learn how to make spring rolls with Chef Nicki Nguyen (Banh 88 Restaurant) and buy ingredients from WC’s produce markets!
3. Participate in “pancake flipping race” - an old-time tradition in White Center: http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=8616
4. Swim for free at the Evergreen Swimming Pool from 3pm-5pm.
5. Buy delicious ice cream at discount from Full Tilt Ice Cream’s bicycles
6. 10% discount at DubSea coffee for volunteers
7. We will award the Clean & Safe award to a dedicated White Center resident/business/etc.

Registration for this event is now closed. For questions, please contact Nhan Nguyen, Neighborhood Revitalization Program Manager at (206) 694-1082 or at whitecenterspringclean@gmail.com.

Click on “Read the rest of this entry” below for more information about the White Center Spring Clean!

Read the rest of this entry »

Blog editor’s note: The following letter was written in response to an opinion piece in the January edition of Shorewood on the Sound Community Club’s newsletter. A copy of this piece was stapled to the White Center Chamber of Commerce’s agenda for their Tuesday, March 9 meeting. You can also read the original piece above.

March 9, 2010

Shorewood on the Sound Community Club

Kevin DeLashmutt, Editor

Michael Armstrong, President

Delivered via email to: kevinde@msn.com

RE: January 2010 Shorewood News edition

Dear Mr. DeLashmutt and Mr. Armstrong:

My organization received a copy of your latest Shorewood News edition at the March 9th, 2010 White Center Chamber of Commerce meeting and were quite disturbed by one of the articles titled “Dog-doo doings….Ewww.”

We are an organization formed by local residents to promote a vibrant neighborhood and high quality of life for White Center residents. We value treating everyone with dignity and acting with cultural competency by respecting the values, history and culture of our diverse communities. We also overwhelmingly believe in our community’s strengths and operate with an open partnership approach to our work.

This is why we were offended by your remark stating that “At our next community club meeting we will be discussing penalties for anyone caught not cleaning after their pets. Something equally if not more egregious, like maybe catapulting flaming bags of poo through their windows, or sending their beloved pets to White Center to be recycled (eaten).”

We do not find this remark funny- we find it offensive, as this stereotype is obviously applied to the communities of color in our diverse White Center. It is also abusive to our goal to market and promote our wonderful, hard-working, and largely immigrant owned small businesses and restaurants.

We appreciate community residents like yourselves getting together to improve your neighborhood. We’d implore you to please do so without dragging down a neighbor, especially one like White Center that has done so much to counter such negativity over the last few years.

Additionally, we’d welcome the opportunity for further conversation with your group as part of a larger North Highline community. Please contact me at aileen@wccda.org or 206-694-1802 x164. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Aileen Balahadia

White Center CDA Executive Director

Karen Veloria

White Center CDA Board President & Blvd. Park resident

Heather Downey

White Center CDA Board Vice President & Shorewood resident

Billy was featured in the White Center CDA's Neighborhood Action Plan, which you can download at the "Neighborhood Plan" tab on our website. Image above is copyright of White Center CDA and cannot be used to repost.

Samway Supermarket was among some of the businesses highlighted in this wonderful piece written by Hugo Kugiya for the Seattle Times. They even quoted Billy (pictured above) in the article:

“…Billy, works most days. He was born and raised in Louisiana, and speaks with a bayou drawl. He has learned friendly phrases in a half-dozen languages so he can properly address his customers.

‘I can speak a little,’ Billy Yim says. ‘Just enough to make them smile.’”

Got Green, a program of the White Center CDA, is hosting its first open house on Wednesday, March 17!

Expect food, entertainment, multimedia presentations and the chance to network with Got Green and their community partners on how to support Green jobs, Green initiatives, youth, low-income communities of color and more.

Child care is available - this event is open and free to the public.

Please see flyer above for more information.

Attention youth and students! This year’s Youth Summit planning is underway, so if you’d like to get involved and/or if you’re looking for service learning hours, please contact estevan@youthmediaseattle.org. Youth Media Institute and other youth organizations at Youngstown have been longtime partners and supporters of White Center CDA. Last year, the youth summit was held in White Center, and this year it will include all of our South Seattle communities, so expect a larger event and even more fun!

Photo courtesy of King County Parks blog.

From King County Parks regarding the new playground at Steve Cox Memorial Park in White Center:

“The new playground at Steve Cox Memorial Park in White Center is now officially OPEN! Featuring some very groovy Scandinavian-designed equipment for kids aged 2-5 and 5-12, there are slides, swings, and lots of spinny things. And of course, safety surfacing so you don’t get hurt when you fall down and go boom.”

Thanks to Darlene Sellers from the Teen Program for giving the White Center CDA a heads up about this!