Canyon Creek’s marimba band has been a tradition at the school for seven years.

“It’s become part of the school culture here,” says Patricia Bourne, Canyon Creek’s music teacher and director of the group. “Only sixth graders can participate and those who do understand the commitment they must make, as it requires time, energy, self-discipline and responsibility.”

The idea to form a marimba ensemble was initially driven by students, who were interested in playing more challenging music with the instruments.

The first group consisted of 20 kids. This year, there are 33, with an almost even split between girls and boys.

Although acceptance to the band does not require an audition, it does necessitate the completion of an application form.

“I had 65 students apply this time around and I had to draw names to see who would get in,” says Bourne. “It was hard to disappoint those who weren’t selected.”

Bourne explains that she has been using marimbas in her classes for 10 years and that they are very popular with the kids.

She notes their accessibility and the fact that very young children can learn to play the instruments without too much difficulty.

She adds, “There’s immediate feedback to the marimba, which is well-suited to children.”

Bourne’s husband Tom makes the marimbas.

“I brought home a book about marimbas years ago,” she says, “and I asked him to make me one. He’s a musician himself and also a wonderful woodworker. After creating that first one, he’s gone on to make many more and now has his own company, Bourne Marimbas.”

The students, according to Bourne, take great pleasure in making music with the instruments.

She comments that it’s physically hard work to play the marimbas, but for boys, that aspect is particularly appealing.

“They get to hit something hard and it’s perfectly appropriate and acceptable,” she adds. “And they get to do it with their buddies. What more could you ask?”

As a member of the ensemble, students must attend rehearsals every Monday and Friday after school from February to June. Independent practice is also highly encouraged.

During May and June, the group performs at several events, including  the school’s art gala, Sorenson’s preschool carnival, for the University Women’s Club in Seattle and at Pacific Lutheran University, as well as at the Bothell Arts Fair this summer.

“It’s so rewarding for the students to have the chance to perform, as they’ve worked so hard and they’re thrilled to share their music with others,” comments Bourne.

She continues to explain that the children delight in the positive response they get from audiences.

“People smile and sometimes they start moving and dancing to the music. They always appear to be enraptured by the performances,” she adds. “They’re often surprised to learn that the kids are only 11 and 12 year olds because it just seems like it would be too difficult for children of that age to play these instruments so well.”

In addition to having fun participating in the band, students gain invaluable learning from the experience.

Musically, their sense of timing and rhythm improves, along with their understanding of theory, form and tonality.

Socially and emotionally, they learn about cooperation, commitment and accountability.

“They really take on a sense of maturity over time,” says Bourne. “They realize that they’re participating in a legacy and that there is a level of expectation and responsibility that comes with their participation.”

Bourne chooses the music selection for the group, opting for numbers that represent a variety of different genres, spanning from jazz and contemporary songs to the tunes of the 50s.

For sixth grader Saahil Vasdev, the music is energizing and makes him feel happy.

“Mrs. Bourne always picks out good music for us to play,” he says. “Some of the songs are difficult at first, but with practice they get easier.”

Saahil knew he wanted to be a part of the band after hearing his older friends talk about the experience.

“They told me how fantastic it was, which made me want to do it,” he adds. “I was so glad to get in and it’s been so much fun. The group really comes together and it’s great to see our skills improve.”

Fellow student Daniel Borgida expresses his pride at being a part of the ensemble, saying, “It really feels good to work at something that’s challenging and then be able to do it well. I like performing to show others what we’ve learned and to show them that marimbas are fun instruments. It’s also a way to get younger kids interested.”

Bourne derives much joy from directing the band and comments that the age level of the members is ideal. She remarks, “They’re so responsible and capable and they’re only limited by my skill.”

She comments that as she is a “true musician,” she loves great music, adding, “But, I love it even more when I can see and hear kids making great music. That is incredibly rewarding for me.”

Influenced by Woodinville Heritage Society leadership, which spoke passionately on retaining the historic landmark with maximum integrity during the public comment segment of Tuesday’s meeting, the Woodinville City Council voted unanimously (5-0, as council members Art Pregler and Les Rubstello were absent) to postpone any decision on the future of the 103-year-old edifice for three months and asked city staff to work with the Heritage Society to come up with an alternative plan for rehabilitation.

It was essentially a rejection of all three proposals put forth by consulting group Heartland LLC at the April 10 meeting and reviewed at an April 17 executive session. The first proposal called for public/private school house renovation for commercial use with a city hall plaza over an underground parking structure. The second proposal called for the same but included mixed-use development. The third called for selling the public property to a private developer for large mixed-use development, and included the demolition of the Carol Edwards Center.

The proposals would cost between an estimated $3.5 and $5.5 million — and likely in the end more than that —  money the city has repeatedly stated it does not have.

On Tuesday city staff asked council to select one of the rehabilitation options to be included in a Request for Proposals (RFP) to be circulated to the development community.

It never got that far.

Deputy Mayor Liz Aspen immediately moved to have city staff work with the Heritage Society to look at options for simply “preserving” the old school house.

“Our civic campus and public land are very important to our citizens and I’m not willing to give that up to renovate the old school house,” she said.

“I think there are other options we can explore that are not being explored … I’m excited to be able to offer that building and that property to our community. I’m not ready to go out to an RFP.”

Mayor Bernie Talmas added he was not comfortable with any of the proposals.

“They don’t really deal with the school house,” he said. “They deal with the parking and related issues.”

The city, incidentally, will pay Heartland a reported $200,000 in consulting fees.

Councilmember Susan Boundy-Sanders said she wanted to repeat her position on the issue: “I do not want (us) to be the developer on this. I am not comfortable spending the city’s operating or capital budget. I am very much in favor of sending it to a vote of the people or a bond issue that would be paid for by some additional kind of taxes … I would vote in favor of that myself. But I don’t think it’s appropriate to take this (issue) to the front of the line and defer all the other maintenance, transportation and safety projects that we have on our capital improvement plan.”

Among them, some of which were spoken about later in the meeting in a discussion of 2012 council work plan and priorities, include the Sammamish River Bridge replacement project, the Woodinville-Duvall Road widening project, as well as sidewalk construction and road repair among others.

City Manager Richard Leahy then said there was no “drop-dead” time frame for the staff to take action on the issue.

“We’re more than happy to sit down and talk to the Heritage Society,” he said. “As you well know, the (then) City Hall staff moved out of that building in 2001 and it’s 2012 now and nothing’s changed. So there’s no immediate time issue … It’s really up to the council.”

Cedarcrest’s top scholars are Dan Ho and Katy McClintic. Photo by Leanne Christensen

Katy maintains a GPA of 3.986, while taking such high level classes as honors biology, honors chemistry, honors physical science, honors physics, AP biology, honors pre-calculus, AP calculus and AP statistics.  She has justifiably earned a reputation for being a high achieving and extremely motivated student.

During her years at Cedarcrest, Katy has been the recipient of numerous notable awards: Ricoh 2011, Intel International Science and Engineering Fair 2011 finalist, Water Environment Federation U.S. Regional Stockholm Junior Water Prize 2011, Washington State Academy of Sciences award 2011, American Junior Academy of Sciences Life-Long Fellow, Washington State Science and Engineering Fair 2012 Behavioral Sciences Category 1st place winner,  an AP Scholar 2011 and a member of the National Honor Society from 2009 to 2012.

Along with her enduring commitment to her studies, Katy has also participated in the CHS track and field squad, the JV cross country team, and been a member of the Technology Student Association (TSA).  In support and service to her community Katy has volunteered at the Washington Trails Association, the Duvall Church Vacation Bible School and Children’s Nursery, Duvall Days community events and at the local food bank.

The honor and distinction of Cedarcrest salutatorian 2012 will be given to Dan Ho.

Dan is an extremely gifted student both academically and musically. With an overall GPA of 3.970, Dan consistently challenges himself, sharing that he believes his best traits to be “hard work and ambition.”  He also expressed his gratitude to CHS teachers Mrs. Robison and Mr. McLaughlin for their profound teaching, in preparation for his college studies.

Upon graduation from college, Dan’s plans include medical school and a career as a doctor.

Dan’s  extensive list of AP and honors classes include: honors English, honors integrated math III, honors physical science, honors pre-calculus, honors biology, honors modern world history, pre AP language and composition, AP calculus, honors chemistry, AP US history, AP statistics, AP government and politics and AP biology. In addition Dan had the honor of receiving both red and white ribbons at the 2010 Science Fair.

Impressively, Dan is also very involved in extra curricular activities at Cedarcrest, participating in the Knowledge Bowl Club, CHS FBLA, CHS Jazz Choir and the CHS Jazz Band, where he adds his expertise of skillfully playing both the piano and the trumpet.  He recently received the highest score possible at the local “Solo and Ensemble” competition.

In addition to his numerous commitments at school, Dan has also been involved with the Vietnamese community, participating in many fundraising activities, the Vietnamese Cultural Festival “Tet in Seattle,” and also performing in musical events at the Vietnamese Senior Community Center.

Cedarcrest Principal Clarence Lavarias stated, “Both Katy and Dan are outstanding students. They excel not only in the classroom, but are also involved in a variety of school/student activities and in service to their community.”

Beekeeper Dave Schiefelbein holds up an empty honeycomb from one of the newly installed hives (seen in the background). Schiefelbein refers to himself as Corky Luster’s “right-hand man.” Lisa Allen/staff photo

As the honey bees huddled together in their hives to keep warm, beekeeper Corky Luster answered numerous questions, one of them about the range of the bees.

“They can fly as far as six miles away from the hive,” he said. “They can make it to the river from here. There are plenty of blossoms in this area – the biggest nectar flow is in the blackberry flower. They also like knotweed, clover and dandelion.”

Luster’s hives line a green-carpeted hillside about a mile from Camp Korey’s main campus. The introduction of the new hives is the latest effort in a mission to bring farming back to the 818-acre former showplace dairy.

The move to expand farming followed a planning session by the camp’s board of directors last fall. Board member Elbridge Stuart (great-grandson of the farm’s founder E.A. Stuart) noted that although hay has continued to be grown on the farm, the forests, pastures, fences, and farm buildings became underutilized when dairy farming was discontinued by the Nestle Company which had owned it since 1985. In 2005 Nestle sold the farm to Tim Rose who dreamed of having a place for sick children to go and have fun. He named the camp in honor of his son, Korey, who died from bone cancer at age 18. To help the camp succeed financially, Stuart’s foundation recently repurchased the farm.

To help navigate the new phase of farm development Camp Korey sought out experts. Partners and advisors now include Luster, owner of Ballard Bee Company, Eiko and George Vojkovich of Skagit River Ranch who lease pastures for organic grass fed beef, and Tom Hanson, whose International Forestry consulting is assisting Camp Korey to gently thin commercial stands of timber for healthy habitat and future harvests.

Camp Korey is a member of SeriousFun Children’s Network, founded by Paul Newman. Like all SeriousFun Camps around the world, Camp Korey provides joyful, transformative camp experiences for children with serious and life-altering medical conditions, always free of charge.

“We are always looking for ways to make our mission more vibrant,” said Camp Korey Executive Director Hillary Carey at the bee event. “The children’s program here is expanding by leaps and bounds and we are hoping to double the number of children this year. We are constantly reaching out to new children and are now holding reunions for previous campers.”

Luster said he was enchanted when he first laid eyes on the vast expanse of property his honeybees would be pollinating.

“I was so excited to see all this space,” he said. “By summer there should be 50-60,000 bees in the hives and each hive should produce about 180 pounds of honey.”

Luster said he started raising bees three years ago in Ballard, with the original aim of bringing bees back into the city.

“I noticed we were losing honey bees to colony collapse disorder,” he said. “Agriculture is dependent on bees, but bees are a fragile population now. I draw a parallel to the children who attend this camp  … they are fragile and come here to help with healing. This could be a healing place for bees, too.”