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INSIDE | Terrence Williams’ assault case still under review [3] Opinion | Kent Black Action Commission making an impact, being heard [5]
FRIDAY, AUGUST 30, 2013
Kent teachers get up to speed as classes begin BY ROSS COYLE rcoyle@kentreporter.com
As summer winds down, teachers are gearing up for the school year by preparing classrooms, materials and lesson plans. “It’s a whole lot more than setting up desks and chairs,” said Amy Abrams, who teaches language arts at Northwood Middle School.
“It’s like preparing for a long distance race.” It’s a lot more complex than just laying out a lesson plan, Abrams said. She and her teaching partner, Aaron Ohlsen, have to consider a multitude of questions as they look at their lesson plans for the year. “How are we going to [ more SCHOOLS page 4 ]
Amy Abrams and Aaron Ohlsen, teachers at Northwood Middle School, stand in their shared classroom. The teachers assist each other in teaching language arts. Abrams’ side of the room, on the left, is prepared, while Ohlsen has some more setup to do. ROSS COYLE, Kent Reporter
FEMA to discuss Green River flood maps at meeting
Preps kick off season
REPORTER STAFF
Kent residents, business owners and property owners in the Green River Valley can find out about insurance rates and building regulations at a special meeting from 6-8 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 11 at the Maleng Regional Justice Center, 401 Fourth Ave. N., in Kent. The members of the King County Flood Control District Executive Committee will be joined by representatives of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to discuss FEMA’s flood maps for the Green River Valley.
Kent Meridian defensive players practice blocking kicks in preparation for their Sept. 6 opener at Tahoma. Royals coach Brett Allen said practices have focused heavily on building a new defensive line and bucking what he calls a defeatist culture in the football program. Preview, page 10. ROSS COYLE, Kent Reporter
[ more MAPS page 4 ]
A KENT PIONEER AND HIS PLACE O’Connell legacy lives on with lasting family farm BY MARK KLAAS mklaas@kentreporter.com
From his perch atop a small tractor, Tom O’Connell appears at peace as he putters around his family’s enduring
farm. “I love this place,” said O’Connell, the 89-year-old patriarch of a family whose roots can be traced back to more than 140 years in Kent, whose farm stands untouched by surrounding commercial development. Tucked away in the heart of the Kent Valley along the Green River, the O’Connell
family’s 30-acre farm on Frager Road South remains timeless, preserved, one of the last of its kind in a changing landscape that supports Boeing’s empire, corporate warehouses and other growing industry. All of which doesn’t seem to bother the good-natured [ more O’CONNELL page 12 ]
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Tom O’Connell has maintained the same farm his family established more than 140 years ago. MARK KLAAS, Kent Reporter
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