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BEACHCOMBER VASHON-MAURY ISLAND
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2012 Vol. 57, No. 47 www.vashonbeachcomber.com
Searchers find body of missing woman
Hope in the holidays
Musician is upbeat in a trying time
By NATALIE JOHNSON Staff Writer
By ELIZABETH SHEPHERD Staff Writer
Last July, Islanders Geoff Johns and his wife Carol Lutra-Johns did what they have done for years: They led a raucous brigade of drummers and samba dancers down Vashon Highway during the Strawberry Festival parade. Many of those lining the street broke into applause, and some danced in place along to the beat — a brief, wild moment of exuberance and joy on Vashon. But at the time, even as the drums pounded and the crowds cheered, Johns was deeply concerned about his health. He’d noticed a lump in his neck a few weeks before the parade — a symptom that soon led to a diagnosis of stage four head and neck cancer, followed by neck dissection surgery in early August. The illness came as a shock to Johns, 54, and to many on the Island who knew him as a healthy and seemingly tireless percussionist, performer, educator and world-music scholar. Since moving to Vashon in 1993, he’s carved a niche for himself as a sought-after teacher, conducting residencies with thousands of public school students through his
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Natalie Johnson/Staff Photo
Carol Lutra-Johns and Geoff Johns say they consider Geoff’s cancer a “healing opportunity” and are working together on his treatment. work with Washington State Arts Commission and Vashon Allied Arts’ Artists in the Schools programs. He’s also long been a fixture in the Island’s vibrant music community, contribut-
ing his talents to several bands, and he has also regularly collaborated with Lutra-Johns, a dancer, vocalist SEE JOHNS, 9
The search for a missing Vashon woman ended tragically when she was found dead on Saturday. The body of India Castle, 27, was found in a pond in a wooded area near the Vashon Airport. The King County Sheriff’s Office is investigating, and a cause of death has not yet been determined. “Because of the age and circumstance of being found in the woods, we’ll investigate this to its fullest,” said Cindi West, a spokeswoman for the sheriff’s department. West said Castle’s family reported her missing on Friday evening. She was last seen on Tuesday night at a home on 109th Avenue, near the Vashon Airport on Cove Road. George Brown, assistant chief of Vashon Island Fire & Rescue (VIFR), said Castle was thought to have left the house that evening to walk to her own home, which was also near the airport. The sheriff’s office immediately organized a search and rescue operation on Friday, and a helicopter searched for Castle overnight. On Saturday, search and rescue volunteers from King, Kitsap, Pierce and Thurston counties searched the area on foot, along with volunteers from VIFR and Vashon’s Community Emergency Response Team. Brown said there were 75 to 100 people searching for Castle, including three horse teams and two dog teams. “It’s impressive the amount of people thrown together in that amount of time,” he said. Castle’s body was discovered at about 1 p.m. on Saturday in a shallow pond about 1,000 feet behind the house where she was last seen, Brown said. West said there were no obvious signs of trauma, and it would take several days or longer for investigators to determine how she died. On Sunday, West said that because of Castle’s age and the circumstances of her death, the sheriff’s office was SEE SEARCH, 15
Finding Faith | An occasional series
The Bible is the backbone of Bethel Church By AMELIA HEAGERTY For The Beachcomber
Over the years, probably thousands of Islanders have walked through the doors at Bethel Church, a spacious, light-filled building among towering firs on the west side of the Island. This is where the Vashon Opera holds its some of its sold-out productions, where the Vashon Chorale performs its soaring concerts. “My philosophy is buildings are meant to be used; they’re not monuments,” said Bethel Senior Pastor Bob Gentzel. “We have people in here seven days a week.”
But this is also where one of Vashon’s more conservative, Bible-based congregations gathers — a church that denounces premarital sex and homosexuality as sins and where some adherents question evolution. Politics are not preached from the pulpit, Gentzel said, and he urges his 175 congregants to leave politics at the door. Indeed, he was unhappy when an advertisement in The Beachcomber last month opposing Referendum 74 — the effort to legalize gay marriage — carried Bethel’s name. The ad was never approved by Bethel, said SEE BETHEL, 19
Amelia Heagerty Photo
Bob Gentzel leads the Bethel congregation.