PORT ANGELES — The 12th annual Veterans Stand Down will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday at the Clallam County Fairgrounds, 1608 W. 16th St.
Free transportation to the event will be offered by both Clallam Transit and Jefferson Transit. Riders need only identify themselves as veterans to receive day passes.
The event is open to all veterans spanning World War II to Iraq in all branches of service and to their immediate dependent family members.
Proof of service is requested but not required.
Volunteers will serve free hot breakfasts and lunches. Counselors will offer employment services, information on veterans benefits, housing assistance and legal aid.
Professional providers will supply free medical and dental screenings. Free clothing, hygiene kits, bedding and outdoor equipment also will be available.
The Stand Down — military parlance for relief from combat readiness — especially targets needy and homeless veterans.
The first Stand Down was organized in San Diego in 1988.
Thousands of veterans have attended the events since Stand Downs started in Clallam County in 2004, organized by the Voices for Veterans group following the first Point In Time census of homeless people in the county.
Since then, the Stand Downs have spread to Forks and Port Townsend. The next Forks Stand Down will be May 5. The next event in Port Townsend will be July 25.
For details on Thursday’s event, call 360-797-1791, 360-640-0296 or 360-302-1285.
Flights set this week in Coupeville
COUPEVILLE — There will be field carrier landing practice operations for aircraft stationed at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island at the outlying field in Coupeville this week.
Today and Friday, flights are scheduled midafternoon.
Tuesday through Thursday, flights are scheduled in the evening.
The schedule is subject to change to meet mission requirements.
Comments, including noise complaints, can be directed to station’s comment line at 360-257-6665 or via email at comments.NASWI@navy.mil.
All other questions can be directed to the public affairs office at 360-257-2286.
PT orchestra
PORT TOWNSEND — The Port Townsend Family Orchestra, directed by Fred Nussbaum and Gary Fredrick, will present a concert of classical and popular music at the Quaker Meetinghouse, 1841 Sheridan St., at 7:30 p.m. today.
The orchestra is an all-ages group.
There is no fixed admission to the concert, though donations are welcome.
For more information, visit www.ptfamilyorchestra.wordpress.com.
Senior nutrition
PORT ANGELES — Port Angeles Senior Nutrition Site dinners will be served at 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday at the Port Angeles Senior Center, 328 E. Seventh St.
A suggested donation is $5 for those who are 60 or older.
People younger than 60 can attend for $8.
Reservations should be made 24 hours in advance to 360-457-8921.
Menus are subject to change.
■ Tuesday: Green salad, chili, corn bread, grapes and apple pie.
■ Wednesday: Tossed salad, cabbage roll, steamed rice and mixed berries.
■ Thursday: Green salad, chicken enchiladas, Spanish rice, refried beans and sherbet.
■ Friday: Green salad, liver and onions, whipped potatoes, dill carrots and baked custard with berries.
Rhody meeting
CHIMACUM — The Olympic Peninsula Chapter of the American Rhododendron Society will meet in the back room of the Tri-Area Community Center, 10 West Valley Road, at 3 p.m. Thursday.
Dennis Bottemiller, nursery manager of the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden in Federal Way, will speak about his May 2014 trip to Northern Germany and Denmark.
His presentation covers the highlights of the gardens along with pictures of the countryside.
The public is invited, and refreshments will be provided.
Dance, potluck
SEQUIM — Nash’s Farm Store will host its annual Community Potluck and Barn Dance at 1865 E. Anderson Road from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday.
Open to the public, the entry fee is $10 for adults, plus a potluck contribution.
Children younger than 16 are admitted free.
The North Olympic Land Trust will have wine and beer for sale; no outside alcohol is allowed.
Eric Bogart will play gypsy swing music starting at 6 p.m., followed by Blue Rooster on stage at 7:30 p.m.
All net proceeds from the dance will go to support the Seattle Neighborhood Farmers Market “Good Farmer Fund,” an emergency relief fund that benefits small farms suffering the effects of drought and fires in the state in 2015.
For more information, phone Patty McManus at 360-681-6274, email patty@nashsorganicproduce.com or visit www.nashsorganicproduce.com/events.html.
Native plants talk
SEQUIM — The Clallam Conservation District will hold a free field workshop on landscaping with native plants at the Dungeness Recreation Area, 554 Voice of America Road, located adjacent to the Dungeness Wildlife Refuge, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.
Workshop participants will learn to identify more than 25 native trees and shrubs during a 2-mile walk on recreation-area trails.
In addition to plant identification, the cultural requirements, aesthetic attributes and environmental and wildlife habitat benefits of each species will be discussed.
Tips on how to incorporate native plants into home landscaping also will be presented.
The workshop is free, but due to space limitations, preregistration is required.
Phone the district at 360-775-3747, ext. 5, for more information and to register.
Coffee with mayor
SEQUIM — The city’s “Coffee with the Mayor” program continues in October.
Residents can meet informally at The Fifth Avenue, 500 W. Hendrickson Road, with Sequim Mayor Candace Pratt at 8:30 a.m. Thursdays, Oct. 1 and 15.
She will listen to anyone who wants to chat, ask questions, express a concern or make a comment about the city or community.
Contact Pratt at 360-582-0114 or cpratt@sequimwa.gov with questions.
Discussion group
SEQUIM — The Sequim Great Decisions Discussion Group will meet at the Sequim Library, 630 N. Sequim Ave., from 10 a.m. to noon Friday.
All are welcome to the free meeting.
The topic is “Human Trafficking in the 21st Century.”
The suggested background reading for this discussion is the article “Human Trafficking in the 21st Century” from the Foreign Policy Association’s publication Great Decisions 2015 Briefing Book.
For more information and a schedule of future meetings, visit www.tinyurl.com/pdn-greatdecisions.
Volunteers needed
PORT TOWNSEND — The Guardian ad Litem (GAL) Program, a division of Jefferson County Juvenile and Family Court, is looking for volunteers to join its next intensive training starting Wednesday, Oct. 21.
Volunteers receive in-depth training over the course of four weeks to prepare them to be an advocate for a child in need.
Classes meet Wednesday evenings and Saturday mornings.
Jefferson County GALs work to advocate for the best interest of children involved in the dependency and foster care system.
Volunteers also receive ongoing training and support from the GAL office when they begin to take cases.
For an application, visit www.JeffersonCountyGAL.org.
Applications are due Wednesday, Oct. 14.
For more information, phone Anne Dean, program coordinator, at 360-385-9190.
Rainforest fables told this Friday
FORKS — Pat Neal will read a selection of his rainforest fables at “The Hoh Down on the Hoh,” a Hoh River Trust fundraising event, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday.
The reading will take place at Hard Rain Cafe, located 6 miles up the Upper Hoh Road, 12 miles south of Forks.
Neal is a weekly wilderness gossip columnist for the Peninsula Daily News, a radio show host on KSQM 91.5 FM in Sequim and a fishing guide on the Hoh River who was featured on the National Geographic Channel’s reality show “Legend of Mick Dodge.”
The Hoh River Trust is an environmental organization that has acquired 7,000 acres in the Hoh River valley to maintain public access while restoring the old-growth forest ecosystem for the preservation of fish and wildlife.
Music during the event will be provided by Sally Milici’s HOHmm Grown Band.
A hosted barbecue will be presented by Hawaiian master chef Dennis Fernandez.
Race conversation
PORT TOWNSEND — Port Townsend Friends Meeting (Quaker) and The Mandala Center for Change will present a free showing of the film “Race: The Power of an Illusion” at the Port Townsend Friends Meetinghouse, 1841 Sheridan St., at 6:30 p.m. Friday.
A discussion facilitated by Nikki Russell and Richard Sloane will follow.
The film marks the launch of an ongoing discussion series on race with the intention of “making the invisible visible.”
“We hope that viewing this film will stimulate a thoughtful conversation about race and privilege,” Russell said.
“We’ll explore the historical roots of race and racism and unpack some of the messages about race that continue to impact our lives today.”
The organizers will cover a wide range of topics during the series, including the history of racism in the U.S., prejudices, white privilege, cultural appropriation, allyship/action for change and more.
For more information, contact Sloane at 360-531-4846 or heroesofharmony@gmail.com.
Chain gang busy
PORT ANGELES — The Clallam County Sheriff’s Office Chain Gang, during the week of Aug. 31-Sept. 3, cleaned up from recent storms.
The following roads were cleared: Edgewood Drive, Mount Angeles, East and West Scribner, Key, Tamarack, Old Mill, Little River, Herrick, South Shore, Joyce-Piedmont, Mount Pleasant, Monroe, Draper, Harrington, Miller, Agate Beach, Class and Deer Park roads.
Klahanie Campground was cleared and hazardous trees were removed.
During the week of Sept. 7-11, crews cleaned a homeless encampment behind Lietz Farms, Old Rayonier Truck Route, Tumwater Bridge and below Clallam County Corrections Facility, totaling 1,300 pounds.
Tree removal and storm clean-up was performs on Piedmont Road, where 28 cautionary signs on Hoko-Ozette Road were removed and used for a chip-seal project.
At Klahanie Campground, crews cleaned up from storms and removed hazardous tress.
They performed parking lot maintenance, trail renovations and removed trees from across the Bogachiel trailhead.
During the week of Sept. 14-18, the crew removed 1,320 pounds of refuse from illegal dump sites on Little River and Airport roads.
They cleaned from Laird Road to the Elwha River Bridge in an Adopt-a-Highway program.
A couch, two chairs and 118 needles were found.
The county right of way on Little Loop Drive was brushed and chipped.
Alder trees growing along the ditch line of Monroe Road were removed.
Scotch broom was removed from the West End County Shop.
Pedestrian access was made available along the shoulder of Klahowya Campground’s roadway loop.
Crews weed-eated and cleaned all 55 campsites, including the amphitheater and river site trails.
They cleared Pioneer Path, opened up the north side of the Snider-Jackson Trailhead, rebuilt steps at the camp host site leading to the river, cut down a hazardous tree near campsite No. 6 and built a bench out of a tree for Pioneer Path.
WSU honor roll
PULLMAN — The following students were named to Washington State University’s president’s honor roll, which recognizes students who have excellent academic performance.
To be eligible, undergraduate students must be enrolled in a minimum of nine graded hours in a single term at WSU and earn a grade-point average of 3.75 or earn a 3.50 cumulative GPA based on 15 cumulative hours of graded work.
■ Forks: Stephanie Marie Bechtold.
■ Port Angeles: James Michael Armstrong and Maria Cristine Thacker.
■ Port Townsend: Erika Dawn Hoglund.
■ Sequim: Abraham Mark Weiss.
Train show steams in next month
SEQUIM — North Olympic Peninsula Railroaders will present the 16th annual Train Show & Swap Meet at the Sequim Prairie Grange, 290 Macleay Road, during the weekend of Oct. 17-18.
The show is from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. that Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. that Sunday.
Admission is free.
There will be railroad items and memorabilia, model train layouts and model train items for sale.
Model scales include G, O, HO, N, Z and more.
There will be many door prizes, plus a room of “U Run” trains for kids.
One train set for children will be given away free.
For information on table rentals, phone 360-582-1316 or email stevenstripp@juno.com.
AAUW nominations
PORT TOWNSEND — The American Association of University Women (AAUW) Port Townsend annually honors a woman who has contributed significantly to the local community through paid and/or volunteer work in Jefferson County.
AAUW invites community members to submit nominations.
To be eligible, nominees must have resided or worked in Jefferson County for three years.
Download the Woman of Excellence Nomination Form at http://pt-wa.aauw.net or phone 360-379-0239 for a form.
Three letters of reference should accompany the one-page nomination form and must be received on or before Tuesday, Nov. 3.
The nomination form and supporting letters should be mailed to Carol Andreasen, 115 Kruse St., Port Townsend, WA 98368.
The award will be given in December.
AAUW Port Townsend and its affiliate, the University Women’s Foundation of Jefferson County, are committed to making a significant impact on education and equity through scholarships, middle school career days, elementary school projects in literacy and math, and other mission-related projects.
Membership is open to those with an associate or higher degree from an accredited institution.
For information on AAUW activities and membership, visit http://pt-wa.aauw.net.
Agnew neighbors
AGNEW — The Agnew Helpful Neighbors club held its regular meeting recently.
The scholarship committee reported that the club gave out $20,000 in scholarships to returning students and new recipients this year.
The group is planning for the public Christmas Bazaar, to be held at 1241 Barr Road from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 14.
The table rental fee is $25, and there are a few tables left for participants. Anyone can sign up.
Club members will be serving homemade soup, sandwiches and homemade pies.
For more information, phone Myla Reid at 360-452-2872.
Tax-Aide volunteers
Tax-Aide is looking for new volunteers to prepare federal income tax returns for the upcoming tax season.
Volunteers of all ages and backgrounds are welcome.
They will provide free tax return preparation and electronic filing for low- and middle-income members of their community.
The program is sponsored by the IRS and the AARP Foundation.
AARP membership is not required to volunteer or to receive Tax-Aide’s free tax preparation and e-filing services.
Training begins in December using training materials and software provided by the IRS.
All volunteers must attend training classes and pass the IRS test before assisting taxpayers during the tax season.
Visit www.aarp.org/taxaide to complete an online application.
Once an application is processed, a local coordinator will be in touch.
For questions in Port Angeles, contact Lois Bellamy at 360-457-1497 or lois_bellamy@mac.com; in Sequim, contact Julia Roberts at 303-887-3178 or jroberts1957@hotmail.com.
For information in Jefferson County, contact David Self at 360-385-2617 or dcself@olypen.com; in the Forks area, contact Hearst Coen at 360-452-6541 or hj_coen@msn.com.
Comicon slated
CLALLAM BAY — The fifth annual Clallam Bay Comicon will be held July 9-10 in the Lions Club building, 90 Bogachiel St.
There will be no admission fee, and tables will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Peninsula businesses and communities are encouraged to offer welcoming specials or events to Comicon attendees.
For more information, visit www.donnabarr.com, email donnabarr01@gmail.com or phone 360-963-2935.
