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NOT GUILTY PLEA | Former JBLM soldier pleads not guilty in slaying of Kirkland woman [5]
Host Berth | Kirkland All-Stars win host berth FRIDAY, JULY 27, 2012 in Junior Softball World Series [11]
Kirkland Classic Car Show celebrates 10th anniversary
DUI crash changed many lives, laws
BY MATT PHELPS mphelps@kirklandreporter.com
Nabila Lacey speaks about support of friends and community
Downtown Kirkland will be invaded Saturday and Sunday by hot rods, vintage cars, custom cars, trucks and motorcycles, as the Kirkland Classic Car Show celebrates its 10th anniversary. “It looks like we are going to get perfect weather,” said event organizer and Kirkland resident Terri Fletcher. “We should have between 12,000 and 25,000 people.” But that is not all that could be invading. “We hear a rumor that the Seafair Pirates might land at Marina Park,” said
BY MATT PHELPS mphelps@kirklandreporter.com
T
he N.E. 85th Street interchange with I-405 is one of the most busy thoroughfares in the City of Kirkland. Nabila Lacey and her kids have avoided it during the past year. “We have mastered not taking that route back from Costco,” said Nabila. But she returned to the site on Tuesday at 1:58 p.m., one year to the minute that her husband Steve was killed by a drunk driver. “We wanted a way to celebrate him, but not with a party,” said Nabila of two signs she purchased through the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT). “We wanted to make a public statement.” The signs read: “Please don’t drink and drive, in memory of Steve J. Lacey.” They were placed on either side of the overpass following a ceremony at a nearby park and ride, attended by Nabila, two friends and WSDOT workers. Her two friends hugged Nabila as the sign was unveiled and Nabila was overcome by the emotion of the moment. Steve was killed instantly by Patrick Rexroat, who had three times the legal limit of alcohol in his bloodstream, on July 24, 2011. Nabila purchased the signs for $750 through a
Re-opening | Heathman Hotel to re-open next week [6]
Fletcher. This would be the first time in decades that the Pirates have visited Kirkland. The two-day event will be split between the second annual Cruise in and Dance at 3 p.m. on Saturday and the Kirkland Classic Car Show on Sunday. Both events are free to spectators. The Cruise in and Dance is free for the first 145 vehicles. The event will include activities for children, and a performance by the band 24 Hour Diesel from 7-10 p.m. at Marina Park. Marina Park and Kirkland Avenue to Lake Street will [ more CARS page 12 ]
Friends and family of Kirkland’s first woman mayor, Doris Cooper, sit in Houghton Beach Park for a ceremony to renamed park for the former mayor who died last year. ROSE MARIE GAI, Special to the Reporter Kirkland residents Anna Rising and Deb McFarlane stand in front of a new sign that was installed on Tuesday near the site on N.E. 85th St. where their long-time friend, Steve Lacey, was killed by a drunk driver exactly one year ago. CARRIE RODRIGUEZ, Kirkland Reporter WSDOT program that has been around for 15 years. “We probably do this two times a year on average,” said WSDOT spokesman Dave Deede. “We see it as a very positive way to get the message out to the public about drinking and driving. We also hope it helps to bring a little closure.” But the site has become well-known in Kirkland, with flowers and balloons appearing at different times during the past year.
“It makes me cry every time I drive by,” said longtime friend Anna Rising of the site where Steve was killed. “I don’t know if anyone who knows Steve doesn’t think about him when they drive by there … It’s nice there’s a tribute to him, besides all the flowers and little baskets.” Nabila talked about how difficult the past year has been for her and her two young children, especially through the holidays and her wedding anniversary
last Saturday. When her son realized the anniversary of his father’s death was near, he gave some comfort to Nabila when he said, “’Mom we made it.’” “It has taken all my energy to teach them that it is okay that we are a family of three.” Nabila and her family have gained strength from good friends and the Kirkland community. Two of her good friends accom[ more DUI page 3 ]
Kirkland park renamed to honor first woman mayor BY ROSE MARIE GAI Special to the Reporter
The sun was shining on Kirkland Saturday morning as friends, family and Kirkland council members (past and present) assembled at a ceremony to rename Houghton Beach Park to Doris Cooper Houghton Beach Park. In the late 1960s, Cooper, along with Judy Frolich and Delores Teutsch, decided that the former Standard Oil fuel tank site would make a great park. The
three housewives used tenacity and a secret hightech weapon of the day – the telegram. “They orchestrated a ferocious telegram campaign aimed at our congressional delegation in Washington D.C. and they succeeded in securing the funds for Houghton Beach Park,” said Kirkland Mayor Joan McBride. Cooper, who passed away in 2011, moved from the public activist role to serving seven years on the [ more COOPER page 6 ]