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‘Mr. Volunteer’ is Chimes & Lights’ tree lighter Charges won’t be filed in mayoral flap
Al Mahaney is a fixture at city’s holiday festival, Fathoms O’ Fun events
Staff report
By LESLIE KELLY
I
lkelly@soundpublishing.com
t doesn’t really matter what’s going on in Port Orchard, chances are Al Mahaney is involved. Mahaney, a resident of Port Orchard for 25 years, has been selected to be the honorary “tree lighter” and will pull the switch to light the town’s holiday tree during the Festival of Chimes & Lights on Dec. 5. He’s being honored for all the volunteer work he does around town. This year will be his ninth year helping with the Festival of Chimes & Lights. He’s also a major force with Fathoms O’ Fun each summer, and is the current chairman of the Concerts By the Bay series. He’s been building and driving the Fathoms floats since his daughter was a Fathoms princess in 1988. “I’ve volunteered all my life,” Mahaney said. “I was in the Junior Lions in high school and I did search and rescue. I was in the original Seattle Search & Rescue Explorer Post.” Mahaney spent 22 years in the Navy. Once he retired, he had more time for his volunteer work. For Chimes & Lights, he’s in charge of making sure Santa’s sleigh gets to the park and gets decorated before Santa arrives around 5:30 p.m. He also gets all the hay for the hayride, sets up the fire pits in the park and makes sure there’s enough trash cans along the Jingle Bell Run route. “I’ve been doing the sleigh for nine years now,” Mahaney said. “We set it up next to the gazebo and once Santa gets here, we help 300 kids see Santa in an hour.” The sleigh was part of a float in another town. Claude Brown, who taught Mahaney to build parade floats, gave it to him for Port Orchard. “It’s a full-sized sleigh with a front and back seat,” he said. “It’s red and has a green felt front. Kids and families get in it and take their photos with Santa.” The sleigh is kept at Mahaney’s house under a tarp. Each November he takes it to his garage, cleans it up and gives it a new coat of paint. On
Belfair man killed in Nov. 19 Gorst crash
File photo
Port Orchard resident Al Mahaney (left) will be the honorary “tree lighter” during the Festival of Chimes & Lights Dec. 5.
Leslie Kelly / Sound Publishing
the day of the event, the sleigh is set up at 2 p.m. and the current Fathoms royalty begins to decorate it. “They put puffy snow all around the bottom of it,” he said. Mahaney is very much appreciated in Port Orchard. “Al has generously donated his time for 17 years as a tireless volunteer in Port Orchard,” said Cindy Lucarelli, chairwoman of Chimes & Lights. GORST – A 71-year-old Belfair man was killed and two other people were injured in a four-vehicle crash on State Route 16 Nov. 19. Andrew David Tobler, 30, of Fircrest, who allegedly caused the crash, was booked on
“Hardworking and humble, he is the definition of a true community booster. His contribution of time and self to the Festival of Chimes & Lights is just a tiny part of why we recognize Al. It’s folks like him who make our city special.” Among the other activities Mahaney helps with are The Taste of Port Orchard, the Hog Fest and The Chocolate Festival. He’s been the Man of the Year in Port Orchard and he won the Carnation Milk Award in high school for the first parade float he ever made. “It was in 1965,” he said. “It was Puff the Magic Dragon. I always took part in the Seafair parades when I was child.” His volunteering is from the heart. “I do it because it just makes me feel good,” he said. “It’s my way of supporting the community. I think all of these events help bring people downtown. I want to help bring people here to support the local merchants.” Mahaney’s wife is employed at the Navy shipyard in Bremerton. They have five grown daughters, a son and one grandchild. vehicular homicide and suspicion of DUI, according to a Washington State Patrol report. According to the report, Tobler was driving a white 2003 Ford Ranger pickup truck south on State Route 3 in Gorst at 5:21 a.m. and was
BREMERTON — After a review by the Bremerton city attorney’s office earlier this month, a misdemeanor assault charge will be not be filed by city prosecutors as a result of an Oct. 30 melee involving Port Orchard Mayor Tim Matthes, Teresa Osinski, executive vice president of the Home Builders Association of Kitsap County, former mayor Lary Coppola and others at a Bremerton restaurant. Police officers from Bremerton responded to a call made by Matthes’ supporters, who alleged Osinski and Coppola contributed to an assault at a meeting between the mayor and Osinski. The meeting had been arranged by Osinski so that the association vice president could review campaign finance documents for the mayor’s campaign. Matthes earlier had elected to file his campaign finance documents under the “mini-reporting” option for candidates with contributions less than $5,000. While those documents do not need to be made public through normal public-disclosure procedures, candidates using that option must allow an in-person opportunity for an individual requesting to review them. When Coppola, who showed up at the Bremerton Bar & Grill as a witness for Osinski, arrived unannounced at the meeting, Matthes reportedly abruptly ended the session and struggled with Osinki to take back the documents. For her part, Osinski alleged the mayor hurt her finger when he grabbed for the documents. She also said the struggle contributed to a sore right arm. In turn, former Kitsap County Commission candidate Linda Simpson, a Matthes witness at the meeting, alleged in the police report that she had been assaulted by Coppola. Matthes lost his bid for re-election as mayor Nov. 3 to Rob Putaansuu, current Port Orchard City Council member.
transitioning to eastbound State Route 16. At that time, a 71-year-old Belfair motorist, Delyle Edgar Machacek, pulled out of the Gorst GORST, SEE A2
THIS Elementary schoolkids ‘immersed’ WEEK: into Spanish language. A12 The Independent: 2015 General Excellence award winner, Washington Newspaper Publishers Association Better Newspapers Contest
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