Cocktails that don’t need spendy limes, D1
05.25.2014
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Everett, Wash.
Saving school lunches
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$1.50 (higher in outlying areas)
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HeraldNet.com
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Joyful new outlook
New autism center in Everett to offer more services to local families
Granite Falls scrambles to preserve a summer program after federal funds are cut off. By Chris Winters Herald Writer
GRANITE FALLS — Carl Cary’s on a mission to save school lunches this summer. He has three weeks to do it. In the Granite Falls School District, where Cary serves on the board of directors, the summer school lunch program fell victim to federal Census data, which the government uses to determine which areas are eligible to receive funding. That was surprising to Cary, who compared the finding to reports about how well the economy has recovered while most people weren’t seeing it. “I could certainly introduce you to a lot of people who are struggling right now,” Cary said. “It’s unfortunate.” Linda Hall, superintendent of the Granite Falls School District, explained that the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which reimburses school districts for summer lunch programs, said the government looks for concentrated population areas, not districts as a whole, to See LUNCHES, Page A11
DAN BATES / THE HERALD
Tricia Benfield laughs with her son Lawson, 3, on a recent afternoon, as Lawson plays with a magnifying glass. Benfield and her son, who live in Arlington, will be included in the new Providence Autism Center’s first intensive program for children and their families.
Center at Everett hospital to officially open in August By Sharon Salyer
Three hikes the entire family can take right now. Great Outdoors, D6
MR. EXCITEMENT
M’s rookie James Jones makes things happen. Sports, C1
Classified . . . . E2 Crossword . . .D4
Herald Writer
EVERETT — It’s the biggest expansion of services since Providence Children’s Center moved into new quarters in 2002. In August, the 3,000-squarefoot Providence Autism Center will be opened on the fifth floor of Providence’s Pavilion for Women and Children on Pacific Avenue in Everett — the first center of its kind in Snohomish County. Construction is expected to cost about $480,000. And donations to the Providence General Foundation, many from the annual Festival of Trees program, will allow total program
Dear Abby. . . .D5 Horoscope . . .D4
Lottery . . . . . .A2 Movies . . . . . .D5
grants to reach $1.5 million over the next five years, said Lori Kloes, the foundation’s development director. The autism center will include a large classroom where most of the activities and services to children will take place. Two nearby rooms will allow parents to observe specialists working with their children, said Darren Redick, Providence’s vice president for support services. The center, which will officially open on Aug. 11, has been a longtime dream of the children’s center manager, Christie Tipton. Washington has a relatively high incidence rate of autism, See CENTER, Page A11
Arlington family celebrates son’s progress, big and small By Sharon Salyer Herald Writer
ARLINGTON — Tricia Benfield says it was her “mommy intuition.” Before her son, Lawson, was even a year old, she sensed “things are just different for him.” From infancy, baths and contact with water, especially on his face, triggered unusual amounts of tears. When she tried to clip his fingers and toenails, he was so fussy and distraught she had to hold him down. Her son made no eye contact when spoken to and didn’t respond to his name. He didn’t react even to the distinct sound of passing trains or the piercing wails of sirens.
Sports . . . . . . C1 Viewpoints . . . B7
Nation/World .A3 Obituaries. . . . B3
Tacky 62/50, C10
When Lawson was about 12 months of age, his father, Troy, walked up behind him one day clapping his hands. Lawson didn’t react or even turn his head. “I think our son is deaf,” Troy told his wife. About this time, Lawson suddenly stopped eating familiar food like cheese and yogurt. The only thing he would take in was whole milk, three times a day. He still wasn’t talking, so he couldn’t communicate what was wrong. Small things, like when his mom was on the phone and she laughed, would trigger an out-ofproportion outburst. He would cry and beat his head against the See LAWSON, Page A12
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