Kent Reporter, March 13, 2015

Page 1

KENT .com

REPORTER

NEWSLINE 253-872-6600

INSIDE | Kent man gets 8 years in prison for dealing heroin [3] Sports | Conks settle for sixth at 4A Hardwood Classic [12]

FRIDAY, MARCH 13, 2015

VOTE NOW for the BEST OF KENT! [ pages 10-11 ]

Thunderbirds’ general manager seeks legislative victory BY STEVE HUNTER shunter@kentreporter.com

Farwell

Russ Farwell looks forward to wins on and off the ice this spring with the Kent-based Seattle Thunderbirds junior hockey team. As the T-Birds near the end of the Western Hockey League regular

season at the ShoWare Center and soon will open the playoffs against the Portland Winterhawks or Everett Silvertips, Farwell, the general manager, keeps a close watch on the state Legislature as well. Farwell and the owners of the Everett, Spokane and Tri-Cities teams are

lobbying the Legislature to pass a bill that clarifies the players are amateur athletes and not paid employees who should be paid minimum wage and fall under state child labor laws for those under age 18. Players are ages 16-20. An ongoing investigation by the state Department of Labor & Industries

(L&I) into whether child labor laws have been broken by the teams caused the WHL owners to go to legislators for support. “It’s not a change but clarifying what we’ve been doing for 37 years,” Farwell said during a phone interview. [ more T-BIRDS page 4 ]

Police drug bust seizes $400,000 cash; drugs worth $648,000 REPORTER STAFF

David Valmonte, a junior at Kentridge High School, unleashes some breakdance moves during K-Day: Leave Your Legacy, a Kent School District

event organized to help forge partnerships and effect positive, sustainable change. MARK KLAAS, Kent Reporter

STUDENTS STAND UNITED ON K-DAY Program brings schools together in a show of love, support for others BY MARK KLAAS mklaas@kentreporter.com

More acceptance and better understanding can bring a richer, rewarding life, especially for today’s teens. Houston Kraft knows as much. “Don’t forget that large acts of life are shaped by little acts of love,” Kraft told a young audience assembled at the Kentridge High School gymnasium last week

for K-Day: Leave Your Legacy, a Kent School District event organized to help forge partnerships and effect positive, sustainable change. Kent’s four high schools are working in partnership with the school district and Kent Police Department to bring a message of unity. Proceeds from the event benefitted KentHOPE and its efforts to end homelessness in the community. The student-led campaign invited Kraft, a leadership [ more K-DAY page 2 ]

Kent Police arrested two people, seized $400,000 in cash and confiscated drugs worth a street value of about $648,000 during a recent bust in Renton. Detectives learned information about drug trafficking in the Kent area. An investigation led to the Feb. 27 arrest of a 41-year-old Renton man and a 42-yearold Renton woman, said Kent Police spokesman Jarod Kasner. Police surrounded a residence in the Renton Highlands and executed a search warrant. Police found the following items at the home: • Three firearms • 3.69 pounds of heroin • 13.97 pounds of cocaine • 1.76 pounds of marijuana • $400,000 cash [ more BUST page 4 ]

Circus to remove elephants from shows BY STEVE HUNTER shunter@kentreporter.com

Houston Kraft, a leadership coach and kindness advocate, has fun with the K-Day crowd at Kentridge High School. Kraft encouraged students to ‘do the little things for big love.’

The elephants are leaving the circus. And no, it's not because they got tired of working for peanuts. The Feld Family, owners of Feld Entertainment, Inc., the parent company of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey, announced last week they will remove Asian elephants from the traveling circus performances by 2018.

MARK KLAAS, Kent Reporter

[ more ELEPHANTS page 3 ]


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