Full-day kindergarten: primary equity in Clark County schools
It's universal in Evergreen district, where it has improved reading skills, but it's offered only at some schools in Vancouver
Before Evergreen Public Schools in Vancouver began offering universal full-day kindergarten, 50 percent of children in the half-day program were reaching benchmarks in reading. Now 85 percent of kindergartners do.
Taking the lead against elder abuse (with video)
'Turn Town Purple' uses dance to forge ties, raise awareness
Mary Kasper has attended several meetings on the topic of elder abuse.
Local school districts feeling pinch of fewer students
Hockinson, others see state funding disappear as their enrollments decline
Clark County schools overflowed with students throughout the two decades straddling the turn of the millennium. Districts struggled to find space for the influx of children. Now a few local school districts have to deal with the flip side: declining enrollment.
Abandoned Houses: Trouble beyond unsightliness
When nobody cares for a house, woes multiply
Neighbors all but cheered as they gathered to watch flames twisting through the roof of a vacant duplex in the Ogden area of Vancouver last month.
Ridgefield in growth spurt
City the 5th fastest growing in state; Woodland population dips slightly
Ridgefield was the fifth fastest growing city in Washington between 2011 and 2012, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates released late Wednesday. City leaders say years spent laying the groundwork for business and residential development helped Ridgefield bounce back quickly from the Great Recession.
Effort to recall Madore, Mielke afoot
Meeting Saturday; successful campaigns rare in Washington
Former Vancouver Mayor Royce Pollard advocated for recall of David Madore and Tom Mielke at a packed Clark County commissioners meeting earlier this week.
Deaths from firearms top car-crash fatalities in Washington
Suicides greatly exceed homicides, report says
Firearm deaths have exceeded car-crash fatalities in Washington for the first time since 1934, according to a report by the state Office of Financial Management released last week.
Beloved singing Costco clerk mending after surgery
His Facebook page is filled with posts wishing him well
Facebook is overflowing with electronic well-wishes and prayers for the beloved signing Costco clerk, Teddy Patrick of Vancouver, who was hospitalized last weekend.
Saving early for college tuition
Wary families face the challenge of daunting costs for kids' higher education
Beth Cooper helped her 9-year-old son, Jace, open his own bank account, where he stashes half his $4-a-week allowance. He was thrilled when the balance reached $100.
Tea Party reigns at GOP dinner
Stand up to government, event's speakers implore
Even though most of the 250 Republicans who attended Saturday's Lincoln Day dinner drank coffee with their dessert, it was clear the event was all about the Tea Party.
Fire rips through vacant duplex in Vancouver
Two 'people of interest' in fire investigation
Boys playing with fire admitted to starting fire that destroyed a vacant duplex in Vancouver's Ogden neighborhood.
Patrols keep eyes peeled for parking violators
Clark County Sheriff's Office volunteers look for cars parked illegally in disabled spots
As Tom Croley drove slowly through the parking lot at Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center, he and his partner trained their eyes on the dashboards of cars parked in spots marked for disabled visitors.
Air Museum dispute not the trust's first fight
Nonprofit group led by some of Vancouver's most influential residents, battle-tested executive
The National Park Service's recent takeover of management at Pearson Air Museum from the Fort Vancouver National Trust generated protests, newspaper headlines and a congressional hearing on a bill that would, in effect, return the museum to the trust's operation.
Health care benefit to apply to many in Clark County
Nearly 41,000 local residents will be eligible for tax credits
An estimated 40,840 Clark County residents will be eligible for help paying for insurance coverage under the 2010 Affordable Care Act -- and most of them don't know it, according to a health-reform advocacy group.
Lapping up lovable Leonbergers
Club brings together 60 of the big dogs for national show at convention center
Club brings together 60 of the big dogs for national show in downtown Vancouver
City had asked for Pearson handover
Documents show intention to break agreement in 2010
Vancouver officials have protested as loudly as anyone about the National Park Service's takeover of Pearson Air Museum last month, yet two years ago they asked the federal agency to do just that, according to documents obtained by The Columbian.
Clark County population sees slight increase
1.2% growth between 2011, 2012 brings total to 438,287
Clark was the sixth fastest growing county in Washington state last year, according to an estimate released by the U.S. Census Bureau on Thursday.
Weighing wealth in Clark County by zip code
Brush Prairie-Hockinson the most well-off, according to firm's data
If your address ends with 98606, you're likely to be a member of the sandwich generation, contribute to PBS and carry a lot of insurance. And you're probably wealthy.
Violators avoiding tickets as need for disabled parking increases
Budget-struck Vancouver pares back enforcement, education
Although anyone who parks in a disabled spot without a blue placard risks a ticket, not many actually receive them in Vancouver. Enforcement and education efforts have gone by the wayside.
911 calls shed light on death of suspected prowler
Shooter's wife, neighbors described confrontation, killing to operator
Calls to 911 from Sean H. Doucette's wife and neighbors shed light on the Jan. 29 shooting death of Iosif Dumitrash.
Bridge traffic didn't grow with county
Projected count of people who will be crossing river is part of planning for a new bridge
In a decade of growth in Clark County, a bedroom community where a third of the workforce commutes to Portland, you'd expect to see traffic on the bridges crossing the Columbia River to worsen.
Local older voters buck axiom by backing school districts' levies
It's a widely held axiom that older voters are the ones who sink school levies.
Guns play role in only a fraction of local violent crimes
Use of firearms in assaults, robberies is up, but numbers small
Attention on guns — their use in crimes and their regulation — has intensified since last month's shootings at Clackamas Town Center in the Portland area and Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut.
Data: Fear often drives spikes in gun sales
Despite recent surge, Clark is 3rd-lowest among Washington counties
Vancouver resident Mark Havens learned to shoot his father's rifles as a kid. He had never owned a gun himself until he bought one this week.
Few in county will feel fiscal cliff's top earner pinch
Increase affects households earning more than $450K
The fiscal cliff deal that raises taxes on top earners begs the question: Who earns that much around here?
Man’s desire to aid Storro backfires
Fundraiser, first considered a scam, withdrawn at family’s request
When a Brush Prairie church received a letter from a man identifying himself as “Reverend Garner” pleading for money for Bethany Storro’s medical expenses, the church’s business administrator smelled a scam. Instead, the letter seems to be a well-meaning but misguided effort by someone Storro met at Elahan Place, a Vancouver rehabilitation program operated by Columbia River Mental Health Services.
The best medicine
Look in kitchen cupboards for health
St. Johns-Highway 500 interchange project gears up
Officials break ground on $49 million project
The Washington State Department of Transportation took another step toward removing traffic signals from state Highway 500 on Tuesday when it broke ground on a $49 million interchange at St. Johns Boulevard.
Clark County homeownership rate plunges
While it dropped in past decade, it’s still higher than state’s
The American dream of homeownership has become more elusive in Clark County over the past decade, no surprise to anyone who has watched foreclosure rates here skyrocket during the Great Recession. The homeownership rate dropped from 67.3 percent in 2000 to 65.8 percent in 2010, but remains higher than Washington’s rate of 63.9 percent, according to U.S. Census figures released today.
Older and out of a job
For many, the consequences of late-career layoffs are dire
Vancouver residents Mark McCloud and Fred Schwarz represent the two — what seem to be inevitable — outcomes of late-career job loss. McCloud, 63, hasn’t been able to find another job, and is at the brink of a retirement he wouldn’t have chosen and might not be able to afford.
County to buy landfill for $1.5M
Part of 74-acre site, closed since 1991, will be used for road
Clark County commissioners Tuesday approved the purchase of the closed Leichner Landfill and surrounding land for $1.5 million. “By moving ahead now, we can bring this land into productive re-use,” said Jeffrey Mize, a spokesman for the county public works department.
Ridgefield military wife’s blog a ‘secret’ no more
Lori Volkman started a blog to cope with her husband’s military deployment last September. “It started out just as a diary,” the Ridgefield resident said. She gave little thought to the fact that people might actually read it. In less than a year, the blog has garnered almost 25,000 hits.
Fatal house fire stuns neighbors
Details about homeowners emerge; identities of six victims still unconfirmed
As arson investigators dug through the rubble of Vancouver’s deadliest fire in a half-century Monday, residents of Northeast 13th Circle in Vancouver questioned how such a horrific event could happen in their quiet neighborhood.
Money matters for students
Camas High School adds a class called Financial Fitness to teach students how saving can be fun
Students in Camas High School’s Financial Fitness class huddled to craft campaigns touting the importance of saving. Christine Moss, 17, and her group planned a video spot to explain the rule of 72 and other key formulas.
Discover family fun of Discovery Walk
Annual festival also includes bicycling and swimming activities
This weekend, a scaled-back International Discovery Walk Festival returns for its 15th year. The economic downturn didn’t spare the beloved celebration of walking. International participation fell last year, and so did sponsorships. Organizers are weary, and ready to hand on the baton. Sound like bad news?
Clark County’s CSAs need customers for their locally grown food
If you’ve ever wanted to subscribe to receive a weekly delivery of fresh produce from a local farm, now’s your chance. The popularity of community-supported agriculture programs, or CSAs, has rocketed in past years to the point that you’d be lucky to find a farm that still had openings in April. This year is different. Farms find themselves under-subscribed, perhaps because of the extended economic downturn, said Luisa DePaiva, owner of Purple Rain Vineyard in Brush Prairie.
Helping native artists flourish
Native Arts & Cultures Foundation makes its presence known from Officers Row headquarters
More than a decade of meetings among Native Americans across the country have manifested in an elegantly appointed office near Fort Vancouver. There, a staff of four people work at creating a sort of National Endowment for the Arts for native artists. The Native Arts & Cultures Foundation, created with a $10 million grant from the Ford Foundation, awarded its first grants last year — $394,319 to 26 Native American, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian artists and organizations in 12 states.
Get your game on
No reason to be bored with GameStorm 13 coming to Vancouver HIlton
Economy tanks, move 10 spaces ahead. A poor economy has actually boosted board-game sales even as overall toy sales fell. Looking to pinch pennies, many families brought back game night.
At market, folks sample foods, business ideas
A farmers market booth lets an entrepreneur pitch his brisket face-to-face with the customer base
The spotlight shines on Portland’s food-cart scene, but you could say Vancouver has had one for more than 20 years. It’s just that it’s only around on weekends — and just from spring through autumn.
Ready for a big one in Clark County?
Editor's note: Here is a story The Columbian published March 15, 2010:
Stolen Sweets at home in an earlier era
Group will play music from the 1920s-'40s in Ridgefield
If you’ve ever felt like you were born too late, you can step back in time at Ridgefield’s Old Liberty Theater on Saturday to listen to the sounds of the 1930s as performed by The Stolen Sweets. “All of us in the band, we joke we were born in the wrong era,” said Jen Bernard, a vocalist in the Portland trio. “We just love old theaters. It’s where this music was originally played.”
More theater options in Clark County coming soon
New Cinetopia, return of Kiggins, Liberty will cheer movie fans
From high class to low cost, Clark County’s movie-going options will expand this year. Twenty-six silver screens are expected to open here in 2011. Two historic venues, the two-screen Liberty Theatre in Camas and the single-screen Kiggins Theater in downtown Vancouver, will re-open. And luxury-theater operator Cinetopia plans to open a 23-screen venue at Westfield Vancouver mall in November.
Hispanic population rises quickly
2010 Census figures reveal that number of Latinos in Clark County nearly doubled in past decade
The big jump in Clark County’s Hispanic population comes as no surprise to the Rev. Armando Perez. About 900 people attend his Spanish-language Mass at St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church each Sunday.
Playtime options available indoors
It’s pretty easy to keep kids busy when the sun is shining. In Clark County, though, expect 150 days of rain a year. Better have a list of activities for those showery days when kids go nuts cooped up in the house.
Food co-op blossoms
Vancouver program opens storefront downtown, offers online ordering for members
The Vancouver Food Cooperative, a dream that dates back to 2003, is starting to materialize. It may only be open intermittently for pickup of online orders, but the co-op has an actual storefront in the Wallis Engineering building in downtown Vancouver.
2010 Census: A decade of gains and challenges
Only in Clark County would population growth of 23 percent over a decade be considered slow. Clark County’s expansion over the past 10 years fell well short of the 45 percent growth of the previous decade, according to U.S. Census figures released Wednesday.
Miss Washington Jacquie Brown’s crowning achievement
Vancouver native’s third runner-up finish at Miss America Pageant icing on amazing year
Competing in last month’s Miss America pageant in front of 6.67 million television viewers was so intense for Miss Washington Jacquie Brown, a Vancouver native, that she sobbed during commercial breaks. “For me to be there representing my state, it was emotional,” said Brown, 22. “Because I knew how much I put into it, and how much the people around me had put into helping me and supporting me.”
The inspiration of respiration
Doctors, yoga fans proclaim virtues of conscious breathing
Breathing for relaxation • Sit quietly in a comfortable position with your eyes closed.
Touching the past at antiques show
Event’s big draw is casual evaluations of heirlooms, or just objects with history
If you’re planning to head to the Clark County Antique and Collectible Show to find out how much your family treasures are worth, you might be surprised by an appraiser’s advice on what to bring.
Local experts tout benefits of plant-based nutrition
If you want to gain fitness and lose weight, think beyond protein shakes and supplements. Registered dietician Alison Ozgur and certified personal trainer Derrick deLay encourage their clients to eat whole foods, preferably plants.
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