Even in an age in which the longevity of marriage isn’t certain, many will agree that there is something almost magical about a lifelong love.
Valley couples Harley and Kathy Brumbaugh, Jack and Bonnie Barker, and Lynn and Larry Anderson have all been married more than 50 years, and that’s something to celebrate.
What is it about marriage that captivates us? Why is it that a show about finding the perfect wedding dress can run for 11 seasons on TLC? Why is it that the most liked pictures on Facebook are wedding and engagement shots?
There is something inside of all of us that wants to believe in true love. But on an even deeper level, I think we all know that marriage isn’t just about romance; it’s about generations of people and the communities that are formed around them.
Last Thanksgiving, around the time most kids start dreaming about owning the latest iPad or epic roller skates, 11-year-old Julia Navidi of North Bend, started dreaming about packing shoeboxes filled with gifts for other children her age.
In the warmth of a lazy Monday evening, Alraune Chowdhury paints. She squeezes out fingernail length amounts of cobalt violet hue and phthalo blue onto ivory pallet paper. She mixes her colors with linseed oil until they glow and then carefully rounds the tip of her brush into a point. Leaning back in her chair, Alraune considers her nylon stretch canvas.
A friend has commissioned her to paint a portrait of purple and blue dahlias. She glances at a freshly cut dahlia to right and strokes the curve of the petals. After dipping her moistened brush in the glistening oils, she brings a garden to life in her little studio overlooking Mount Si.
At age 6, I hated reading. The gray and white text blurred and my head hurt. Why did I have to read anyway? During silent reading time at school, I daydreamed.
By the end of first grade, I was reading below grade level and my first-grade teacher thought I needed special education. My mom wasn’t against special needs programs, but she decided to try something else, first.
Alva was a government employee, working at Ministry of Justice in her home country of El Salvador, when life changed.
When Alva’s boss upset the wrong people, her job became deadly.
“Men with guns said ‘You leave or I kill you,’” said Alva. “I can’t talk about this. It was really dangerous for me.”
Alva and her son Daniel fled as refugees. Today, they live at one of Mamma’s Hands Houses of Hope shelters.
Dan Raley didn’t set out to be a journalist. When everyone else in his family was getting a business or science degree, Raley always wanted to do something different. When his best friend signed up to take journalism classes in school, Raley did it, too.
After graduating from Western Washington University and reporting for a stint in Alaska, Raley worked as a sports and crime reporter at the Seattle Post-Intelligencer for 30 years. Today Raley works for MSN.com and writes books about Seattle’s history. He and his family live in North Bend.
Most Valley families do not worry about whether their water is safe. That’s not the case for many families in the African nation of Uganda.
North Bend resident Don Baunsgard realized this firsthand when he travelled to Kasitu, Uganda, on a mission trip with Snoqualmie Valley Alliance church six years ago.
Outsiders who consider North Bend a sleepy little town clearly haven’t been to the Block Party.
The fourth annual North Bend Block Party was full of wholesome community fun. Events of the day featured a petting zoo with an assortment of animals including baby wallabies, cavies, and bunnies, a pancake eating contest which would satisfy anyone’s hunger, and live foot-tapping music.
Last fall, Snoqualmie resident Patrick McIntire woke up with a dream of a goofy little pig standing in a pool of water.
Since being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1990, McIntire’s health has had its ups, and often, downs. Yet there was something about this vision, of a pig in a pool, that brought joy to his soul and healing to his body.
Kyle Twede, owner of Twede’s Café, has always loved a good, messy, sticky food-eating contest. At age 13, Twede challenged his 11-year-old brother, Shane, to a pancake-eating contest. Together, they consumed 40 pancakes.
This year, at 2 p.m. on Saturday at the Community Stage, at the intersection of North Bend Way and Bendigo, 12 brave souls will be challenged to eat as many pancakes as their stomachs can hold.
When Cindy Walker bought the North Bend Theatre in 2006, she planted herself in the heart of historic downtown. The theater, which was built in 1941, is one of the oldest businesses in the city and one of the classic icons of the community.
“I still hear stories about people who had their first kiss in the theater during the 1940s,” said Walker. “Sixth and seventh graders have been riding their bikes to the movie theater for the last 60 years.”
Sterling Savings Bank will be presenting the Minute to Win It games at 1 p.m., Saturday at the community stage. Children ages 6 to 12 are welcome to compete in a variety of games including Try Mummy Me, Face the Cookie, This Blows, Extreme Hanky Panky and Junk in the Trunk.
