Eastside Fire & Rescue’s Reindeer Engine to collect food, toys
December 11, 2012
NEW — 5 p.m. Dec. 11, 2012
Eastside Fire & Rescue’s Reindeer Engine is scheduled to deliver holiday cheer — and collect food and toys for families in need — as Christmas approaches.
The fire engine — decked out in blinking lights, reindeer and a sleigh, and a holiday banner — heads to Endeavour Elementary School on Wednesday and then, on Sunday, to Four Lakes, Mirrormont, and other communities in May Valley and on Tiger Mountain.
Residents can donate food and toys Sunday as volunteers from Fire Station 76 on Tiger Mountain drive the Reindeer Engine travels through the communities near Issaquah from 5:30-7 p.m.
Reindeer fly to Cougar Mountain Zoo for annual festival
December 4, 2012
Rogue, who was 5 months old during the 2011 Reindeer Festival at Cougar Mountain Zoo, checks out visitors through a barn window at Santa’s house. By Greg Farrar
If you saw a deer-shaped figure roaming the night sky in November, don’t be alarmed, said Cougar Mountain Zoo General Curator Robyn Barfoot, it was just Santa’s reindeer getting some flying practice in before their big day.
But now Santa’s reindeer are done practicing and ready to meet with local residents at the Cougar Mountain Zoo’s 24th annual Reindeer Festival.
While the zoo is technically closed during the month of December, the zoo eagerly plays host to the festival that attracts more than 10,000 visitors every year, Barfoot said.
“It provides a really great opportunity for people to do something with their families during the day and kind of get everyone in the feel of the holidays,” she said.
Sammamish Symphony joins choir to create sounds of season
December 4, 2012
One of Sammamish’s holiday traditions, the Holiday Pops concert by the Sammamish Symphony, will have a new twist this year.
John Patrick Lowrie, known for work at the Village Theatre and voice-acting in a host of popular video games, will read “’Twas the Night Before Christmas,” to the accompaniment of the symphony.
“We try to make it interesting,” said R. Joseph Scott, conductor of the symphony.
The show will feature a host of popular holiday songs, Scott said, including Christmas and Hanukkah songs.
Wanted: Issaquah-area holiday light displays
December 4, 2012
Holiday lights started to twinkle from homes and businesses in the Issaquah area just before Thanksgiving.
Before Christmas arrives, The Issaquah Press seeks spectacular — or just plain cute — light displays from throughout the Issaquah School District to feature in upcoming issues.
Email your contact information and, if possible, a photo of your illuminated light display to editor@isspress.com, or contact the newspaper on Twitter at www.twitter.com/issaquahpress, or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/issaquahpress.
Northwest Boychoir features local singers in holiday shows
December 4, 2012
The Northwest Boychoir is back with its 34th annual presentation of “A Festival of Lessons & Carols” concert series. Included in the nine regional performances are two Issaquah voices: from Northwest Boychoir, Benjamin Richardson, 14, and from Vocalpoint! Seattle, Nick Borkowski, 16.
The singers are part of the two musical groups that are combining for the 90-member holiday chorus.
Follow fire safety tips to avoid Christmas tree disasters
December 4, 2012
NEW — 10 a.m. Dec. 4, 2012
The holiday season is a time for celebration, but fire hazards from Christmas trees and other decorations can dampen the festive spirit.
State fire officials remind residents to properly care for and decorate Christmas trees, and to practice fire safety in order to prevent yuletide emergencies.
If a household holiday display includes a natural tree, keep the tree adequately watered. Improper care and decoration of live or artificial Christmas trees can lead to catastrophic fires.
“It takes only seconds for a tree to ignite and the entire room to become engulfed in flames,” state Fire Marshal Charles Duffy said in a statement.
Report offers tips for donors to avoid holiday charity scams
December 3, 2012
NEW — 10 a.m. Dec. 3, 2012
Secretary of State Sam Reed and state Attorney General Rob McKenna urged consumers to beware holiday charity scams Wednesday, and unveiled a report to help residents donate wisely.
Throughout 2012, charities using commercial fundraisers in Washington received 46 percent of total donations raised by the fundraisers — lower than the 56 percent in the 2011 report and a major drop from the 77 percent in the 2010 report.
But the percentage individual fundraisers retained varied. Some fundraisers kept less than 10 percent and sent the remaining funds to charity. Other fundraisers’ fees and expenses exceeded the amount raised.
The report, compiled by the Charities Program in Reed’s office and released Nov. 29, spotlights recent financial information for commercial fundraisers soliciting or collecting donations on behalf of charity clients.
Christmas tree sellers unwrap holiday rush
November 27, 2012
Jason Hollaway, of Issaquah, a worker at Trinity Tree Farm on Squak Mountain, pulls a Christmas tree through a netting machine Nov. 24 for a family to transport home for the holidays. By Greg Farrar
The holiday rush is not limited to retailers. Once the calendar inches past Black Friday, another group of merchants girds for a deluge of customers — Christmas tree sellers.
Tiger Mountain State Forest is closed to Christmas tree cutting
November 27, 2012
Forget about cutting a fresh Christmas tree or pine boughs in Tiger Mountain State Forest or on other state lands.
The state Department of Natural Resources does not sell holiday greenery from state trust lands; agency officials limit timber harvests and foraging. The agency manages the public lands, and under state law, timber harvests must benefit public schools, universities and other state institutions.
Cut Christmas trees in Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest
November 27, 2012
Revelers determined to cut a Christmas tree in the forest can head to the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest and other U.S. Forest Service lands in Washington.
Rangers started selling permits to cut Christmas trees in the 1.7 million-acre national forest Nov. 13 and plan to do so until Christmas Eve, Dec. 24. The forest is accessible from numerous sites throughout Western Washington, including from Interstate 90 in and near North Bend.
