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COMMUNITY | Citizen of the Month: Volunteer Dorothy Wells always lends a hand [6]
VOL. 17, NO. 48
MIRROR
F E D E R A L WAY
DIVISION OF SOUND PUBLISHING
OPINION | Publisher’s Note: Mirror has openings for editorial board [4] Roegner: Newsmakers, shakers of 2015 [4] POLICE | Teenage boy shoots girl in face with BB gun [10] SENIOR | Best kept secret: Federal Way Senior Center offers food, fun and friends [14]
THEATER | Spotlight shines on FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2015 | 75¢ ‘Godspell’ production [2]
CALENDAR | Roots and Reflections - South Aisians in the Pacific Northwest [20]
Valley Cities selects new site for recovery center FROM STAFF REPORTS
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alley Cities acquired the former Recovery Centers of King County building in Kent that will provide a portion of the mental health and substance abuse treatment programs that were slated to be delivered as part of a campus of integrated services at the proposed Woodmont Recovery Center in Des Moines.
The Federal Way organization postponed plans for the comprehensive campus after receiving backlash from legislators and the community in August. Valley Cities agreed to work with city, county and state officials to research alternate sites following a public outcry in the Des Moines community regarding the proximity to a library and Federal Way school district elementary school.
“We listened to the community’s concerns about the Woodmont site and explored other options,” Ken Taylor, Valley Cities CEO, said in a media release. “We know that we’re good neighbors and have a positive impact on the communities we serve. But unfortunately, that’s not enough to overcome the stigma facing our clients. We were lucky to find something that will meet some of the spe-
cific needs of people living with mental illness, but this is a very partial solution.” In addition, this site is ideally located in close proximity to the Valley Cities offices in downtown Kent that houses the agency’s administrative offices and provides outpatient counseling services. Valley Cities is proud to have served the people of Kent for almost 50 years and looks forward to continuing a
Ashley House opens new offices
Habitat for Humanity, Delta dedicate home to family
Nonprofit provides medical care and normalcy for children
BY RAECHEL DAWSON rdawson@fedwaymirror.com
BY ANDREW FICKES For the Mirror
Ashley House, a nonprofit dedicated to caring for medically fragile children in home-like settings, is set to open its new 5,400-squarefoot administrative offices on Dec. 2 in Federal Way. Located at 33811 Ninth Ave. S., the new two-story building will serve as the home base for Ashley House’s 75 employees. “Our administrative offices will include the executive office, accounting and human resources,” said Ken Maaz, Ashley House chief executive officer. “There will be room for ongoing staff training and new staff orientation, which will be a great benefit.” Ashley House was founded in 1989 by a group of parents and health care advocates who recognized the gap in quality, costeffective, comprehensive care for Washington state’s medically fragile children. [ more CHILD, page 12 ]
cooperative relationship with the Kent community for many years to come. King County has only 201 involuntary treatment beds. People from South King County must travel long distances to access services in downtown Seattle, Kirkland or Burien. The Kent facility, at 505 Washington Ave. S., is within easy access to Interstate 5 and lo[ more CENTER, page 5]
Above, Tirngo Webe and her husband cut the ribbon in celebration of their new Federal Way home at a house dedication ceremony on Nov. 19. Habitat for Humanity and Delta Air Lines volunteers helped renovate the home for the couple and their five children. Webe came to America in 2002 from Ethiopia. Left,Yibeltal Redie celebrates his family’s new home during a dedication ceremony that drew Mayor Jim Ferrell and other elected officials. Photos courtesy of Rebecca Ellison Photography
Due to the complicated immigration process, Tirngo Webe came to America in 2002 alone, without her twin daughters she had just birthed, her husband and her other children. “I moved to Seattle to live a better life and I have a better life now,” the Ethiopian native said. “It took me a little while to get citizen[ship] and to understand the culture, a little bit difficult for me.” Her family wouldn’t join her until 2011. “We had just a small house and lived the Ethiopian lifestyle,” she said. “We don’t have that much hard time or that much rich, it was good to live with our family and it was a good education too, but we just looked forward to [moving] to America.” In the meantime, her husband, Yibeltal Redie, and mother took care of her twin daughters and her older two went to live in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, for school. Webe worked as a laundry aid in south Seattle and received help from a close friend. When her family finally joined her, they packed into a two-bedroom apartment with mold and water damage. The apartment’s location had also been deemed a high crime area. Learning of Habitat for Humanity through a friend who had received [ more HOME, page 5 ]