Members of Mars Hill Church and neighborhood volunteers installed a huge new mural in the upper parking lot of the Phinney Center on Saturday.

The mural was designed by Priscilla, a Mars Hill church member (that’s her in the back row, third from the right in the green shirt), and volunteers from the church donated all the materials and most of the labor. 

The mural was partially painted when it arrived. Volunteers, including the PNA’s Marylee Newman, on the right, finished painting it after it was installed.

Thanks to Mike V for all the photos!

Michael Gregory, director of the Phinney Soup Kitchen at St. John Lutheran Church, will be honored next Sunday for his 25 years of service.

Gregory began volunteering at the soup kitchen in 1984, when it was run by the Fremont Public Association (FPA), and quickly became the director of the meal program. The Phinney Neighborhood Association (PNA) took over the program in 1999.

On Tuesday and Wednesdays, you’ll still find Michael in the St. John kitchen – unpacking donated food, directing volunteers, and cooking.

In a press release, Gregory reminisced about the many changes in the past 25 years:

“In those days, we were serving 25-30 people at our one meal on Wednesday. Today, it is not uncommon for us to serve 150 to 200 meals in a day. I love to take whatever food comes in and turn it into something. The feedback is immediate; I have heard people say a thousand times that this is the only meal they had today and that it was really good.”

Gregory will be honored at the Sunday, Sept. 27, 10:30 a.m. service at St. John United Lutheran, 5515 Phinney Ave. N., followed by a celebratory coffee hour. He’ll also be honored during soup kitchen meals the following week: Monday, Sept. 28, at 12 p.m. at Calvary Lutheran, 7002 23rd Ave. NW (the program’s second site), and Tuesday, Sept. 29, at 5 p.m. and Wednesday, Sept. 30, at 12 p.m. at St. John United.

The PNA soup kitchens receive some city funding, as well as donations from Food Lifeline and Northwest Harvest. They also depend on community support. On Thursday, Oct. 1, 20 Phinney-Greenwood restaurants will donate a portion of their sales to the soup kitchens as part of the 7th annual “Phabulous Phinney Pig Out.” Check out the list of participating restaurants.

Photo by Raul Campoverde.

If you know someone in the neighborhood who goes above and beyond in caring for our parks, you can nominate them for the Seattle Parks and Recreation Department’s Denny Awards, which honor volunteer service to the city’s parks system.

The Denny Awards acknowledge and honor the crucial role volunteers play in neighborhood parks, community centers, and recreation programs throughout the city. Volunteers help Parks and Recreation staff and management in the work of the department and give valuable advice on important decisions about our Parks and Recreation facilities and operations. Volunteers pull ivy and plant native trees in our parks, coach kids’ sports, work as docents at selected parks and the Seattle Aquarium, and serve on various advisory councils and boards.

The awards are named for Seattle pioneers the Denny family, who were dedicated to preserving park land and open space for the public.

Nominees should must have:

• Demonstrated exceptional stewardship to parks and/or recreation;
• Provided stellar leadership related to enhancing and preserving parks and/or recreation programs;
• Demonstrated a significant personal commitment of time and effort to assist the Seattle Parks and Recreation department; and
• Gained respect of community peers for efforts to help Seattle Parks and Recreation.

The nomination form is due by Thursday, Oct. 1, and the awards ceremony is Tuesday, Nov. 17.

Seattle needs volunteer Salmon Watchers to count salmon returning to the city’s creeks and shorelines.

Salmon Watchers spend 15 minutes twice a week during the fall observing a stream or lake shore in the greater Lake Washington Watershed, counting the returning salmon. The data collected are used by agencies and groups working to help restore endangered salmon runs and improve habitat for all salmon.

You don’t need experience to become a Salmon Watcher, but you do need to attend a classroom training to learn about salmon identification. The nearest training class to Greenwood/Phinney is at the Good Shepherd Center in Wallingford, from 7-9 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 29.

For more information about the Salmon Watcher Program, contact Ecologist Jennifer Vanderhoof at 206-263-6533.

The Phinney Ridge Community Council still has openings for volunteers to serve on the board.

Nominations for the four positions will be considered at tonight’s (Tuesday) meeting, and monthly meetings through the end of the year. The PRCC is an informal group that provides a community voice for all kinds of neighborhood issues, especially development.

The minimum level of involvement as a board member includes attending the monthly meetings and weighing in on the occasional group e-mail. There are opportunities to do more, such as attending city meetings or writing letters on PRCC’s behalf, but it is not required.

Our agenda is shaped largely by input from people who attend our meetings – most frequently Phinney Ridge residents who are feeling frustrated by the response, or lack of response, they are getting from the city on a problem that most commonly includes traffic, safety, zoning and land use. PRCC board members often bring agenda items to the meetings based on their experiences or at the request of neighbors. We also get occasional guest speakers such as candidates running for office, city planners hoping to build support for a new or proposed city policy, or those who can help shed light on a complicated issues. We had a speaker about the bag tax at our last meeting.

Most often we give advice and help connect neighbors with problems to other neighbors who can, or are willing to help. If we decide to take a side in an issue, we often draft a statement, then send it to the appropriate parties. If there is a neighborhood issue you’ve been meaning to deal with, the PRCC is a great way to find other people who might share your views and can help.

The PRCC boundaries are Aurora Ave to 8th N.W. and 46th Street to North 75th St. People who own a business or property within those boundaries are eligible to serve even if they don’t live within the boundaries.

Even if you’re not interested in serving on the board, you can drop in to any PRCC meeting to find out what’s happening in the neighborhood. Meeings are at 7:30 p.m. the first Tuesday of each month at the Phinney Neighborhood Center.

If you’re interested in joining the PRCC, email or call Diane at 206-782-1420.