BIRTHS AT HARRISON MEDICAL CENTER

Wednesday, April 8

A girl to Crystal and Peter Voorhees of Bremerton.

A girl to Jackie Ngo and Quang Huynh of Silverdale.

Monday, April 13

A girl to Kari Wiedenhoft and Aaron Patrick of Bremerton.

Tuesday, April 14

A girl to Sarah Spletstoeser and Johnny Rodriguez of Bremerton.

HONOR ROLL

ELLENSBURG — The following Silverdale students were named to Central Washington University’s honor roll for winter quarter 2009. To qualify, students must earn a 3.5 or better grade point average while taking at least 12 credits.

Michael Bantog, Jerika Gonzalez and Danielle Messier.

GRAD

ALBANY, NY. — Ronald Shorter of Silverdale recently graduated from Excelsior College with a Bachelor of Science degree.

MILITARY SERVICE MEMBER PHOTOS WANTED

In celebration of Armed Forces Day and Memorial Day, Kitsap Mall is honoring local military heroes, past and present, in a photo display in the food court.

Mall officials are requesting assistance from the community in providing photos for the display of those who have or are currently serving in the Armed Forces.

To insure the valuable photos are not lost, photos may be e-mailed to Angie.Pomeroy@Macerich.com or brought to the Kitsap Mall Management office Monday to Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. where they will be scanned.

Photos must be received no later than May 6. Please include with the picture the name of the service member, service branch and the dates of his/her service.

For more information, call Kitsap Mall at (360) 698-2555.

ALUMNI NEEDED

Kitsap County alumni — particularly Bremerton, West, and East retired or current military — are wanted to participate in the Memorial Day service event to be held at Bremerton High School’s Memorial Stadium on Memorial Day, May 25 from 11 a.m. to about 2 p.m. The stadium itself was built by the 1946-47 Bremerton High School student body in memory of those in World War II.

439 Kitsap County fallen heroes are inscribed on three 2-ton granites from all American wars at the Victory Park inside Bremerton’s High School Memorial Stadium.

The reading of the names will begin around noon with a short memorial service at 1 p.m. Those interested in participating in the event should contact the Semancik Foundation — Lane or Deanna Dowell — at dowells@wavecable.com or (360) 479-1189.

DAR AWARDS TEA

The Elizabeth Ellington Chapter, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR), is hosting its annual Awards Tea.

The ceremony is at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 9 at the Central Valley Christian Fellowship Church, located at 6869 Central Valley Road in Bremerton. Visitors are welcome.

Several local youth and adults will be recognized for good citizenship and community involvement.

Retired Navy Capt. William Idsinga will receive the Americanism Medal. This award is given to a naturalized American citizen who has demonstrated outstanding leadership, service and patriotism.

The Angie Weber Harrison scholarship will be awarded to Salina Cameron who is planning a career in health care.

The community service award will be shared by Tex Lewis and Mary Lou Slaughter. Lewis has been a driving force in the creation and expansion of the Clear Creek Trail in Silverdale. Slaughter, a member of the Duamish tribe and great-granddaughter of Chief Sealth, has worked diligently to have the tribe recognized by the national government. She also is a renowned basket weaver. Her work can be seen at the Burke Museum in Seattle.

Boy Scout Troop 1539 will receive the Citizenship Medal. The troop keeps very busy with many community service projects. Their projects include scouting for food, Jupiter trail cleanup, installing fish traps and many others. Recipients of the good citizen award are chosen by school personnel and represent nine local high schools. Requirements for the award are based on the five qualities of honor, service, courage, leadership and patriotism. This year’s honorees are Lindsey DePhilippis, Bremerton High School; Jessie Crook, Central Kitsap High School; Christina Renee Zendejas, Klahowya Secondary School; Paige Elizabeth Mitchell, King’s West; Jessica Randall, Kingston High School; James Dexter, North Kitsap High School; Samantha Norene Hull, North Mason High School; Dorothy Garcia, Olympic High School; and Carolyn Henyan, South Kitsap High School.

Dr. Leonard Forsman will receive the Historic Preservation award. Forsman has a Ph.D. in anthropology from University of Washington. He is responsible for documenting and preserving historical and cultural sights and materials to perpetuate irreplaceable information for the Suquamish Tribe and history in general.

Avery and Evan Neims will receive the Junior Achievement award in the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution Poetry Contest. Avery, a fifth-grader, won honorable mention. Evan, a ninth-grader, won first place.

Cadets Melissa Sim (Bremerton) and Audrey Coleman (Port Orchard) will receive the JROTC Awards. These young women have demonstrated loyalty and patriotism and had established an excellent record of military and scholastic achievement during their participation in the JROTC program.

Cindy Mathieson was given the Constitution Week award in September for teaching and encouraging patriotism in her students.

The chapter also is recognizing members who have been nominated for state, regional or national awards. These members are Bett Houston for a chapter quilt award; Alexia Hatfield for a chapter membership photo; Hatfield and Kelli Reinhardt for outstanding juniors; and Cheri Rapp for a literacy award. Annie Merrill will be presented with the hospitality award.

BEREAVEMENT SUPPORT FOR CHILDREN

Hospice of Kitsap County offers specialized bereavement support to all those in the community who are coping with issues of grief and loss.

Wednesdays, now through May 20 from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in the Red Barn Clubhouse at Country Meadows Retirement Center, Hospice of Kitsap County is hosting a special six-week group for kids ages 4-12 who have lost someone they love, with a concurrent group for parents/guardians.

There are many misconceptions surrounding grieving children. Adults often think children do not grieve, or they are too young to understand. The truth is children grieve at any age and often revisit grief at developmental mileposts. Studies show children can benefit from the help of a support group even if the loss occurred years ago.

In Hospice of Kitsap County’s Kids Grief Group, children learn to express their feelings and find healthy ways of adapting to loss. Thanks to the generous support of United Way of Kitsap County, there is no fee for the groups, but donations are always gratefully accepted.

For more information or to register, call Hospice of Kitsap County at (360) 698-4611.

OLYMPIC COLLEGE/

WSU PARTNERSHIP

Students admitted to Olympic College can now be guaranteed admission through the co-admission program with Washington State University Distance Degree Programs (WSU-DDP): http://online.wsu.edu/future_students/community_college.aspx.

As hard economic times force people to become more competitive in the workforce with higher-level degrees, increased access to in-state university baccalaureate programs for Kitsap County is a realistic opportunity for many. An advantage to WSU-DDP over other online out-of-state universities is that qualifying financial aid recipients are not excluded from the Washington State Need Grant, which requires Washington residents to attend an in-state eligible institution.

An added benefit as a co-admitted WSU-DDP student, all WSU student services are available including but not limited to: advising, counseling, events, library resources, tutoring and more.

To get started, students need to apply for admission to Olympic College. Next, request a WSU-DDP Co-Admission application from an OC advisor or the admissions office. Submit the completed application to the OC advisor. Admission is guaranteed, provided students earn a transfer associate’s degree within 16 consecutive quarters with the required cumulative GPA and any major requirements.

For more information, contact the Student Entry Advising Center at (360) 475-7230 or the admissions office at (360) 475-7479.

GRANTS AWARDED

Thirty local organizations this week received program and/or project grants totaling more than $55,000 during the Kitsap Community Foundation Grant awards event.

This year’s grant awardees are Holly Ridge Center; BHS Pay It Forward Scholarship Fund; Great Peninsula Conservancy (two grants); Washington State Trails Association; Central Kitsap Food Bank; Boys and Girls Clubs of South Puget Sound; Washington CASH; God’s Kitchen; North Kitsap Fishline; Kitsap Legal Services; the Rolling Reader Program at Suquamish Elementary; C.A.S.T. For Kids Foundation; Blue Star Banner Program; West Puget Sound Youth for Christ; Kitsap Peninsula Mycological Society; Island Music Guild;; Habitat for Humanity of Kitsap County; Joy of Freedom; Kingston Cooperative Preschool; Kitsap Children’s Music Theatre; Literacy Council of Kitsap County; RMH Services; United States Lighthouse Society; Cedar Cove Association; Friends of SAIVS; S’Klallam Worship Center; the Port Orchard Rotary Foundation; ShareNet Food Bank; and Catholic Community Services — Benedict House.

In addition to these grants, the foundation distributed 16 grants totaling more than $61,000 from advised funds in support of nonprofit organizations.

Those recipients were Luther Center for Learning; Poulsbo Middle School Peer Mentor Program; Restoration Ranch; Bremerton High School; Bremerton Symphony Association; CHAMPS; Evergreen Freedom Foundation; Great Peninsula Conservancy; Habitat for Humanity; Kitsap County Historical Society; William H. Kohrs Memorial Library; the Salvation Army; St. Vincent de Paul; Northwest Harvest; the Kathleen Sutton Inspirational Fund; and the YWCA ALIVE Shelter.

To find out more about investing in the future of our community, contact Kitsap Community Foundation Executive Director Rob Schneidler at (360) 698-3622 or kcf@kitsapfoundation.org.

VOLUNTEER RECOGNIZED

Kitsap County resident Steve Leslie was recognized this week by Gov. Christine Gregoire and the Washington Commission for National Community Service for his outstanding volunteer efforts in supporting his community.

Leslie belongs to the Olympic Mountain Rescue (OMR), which focuses on rescue activities in mountainous terrain and the education of the public in backcountry safety. Although the organization is based in Bremerton, they are most active in the Olympic National Park.