REPORTER
COVINGTON | MAPLE VALLEY | BLACK DIAMOND
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IN THE KITCHEN | Holiday family tradition recipes [page 2]
Top 10 Photos | A look back at front photos from 2015 [11]
FRIDAY, JANUARY 1, 2016
A DIVISION OF SOUND PUBLISHING
BY DENNIS BOX Editor
T
he week of New Year’s Day is the time The Reporter editorial staff looks back at the stories that define the past 12 months. The stories of 2015 were a mix of joy and sadness, election battles won and lost, graduations and a state championship. Here are the top 10 for 2015, and a few more.
that accounts for less than 1 percent of all cancer cases. The Black Diamond and Enumclaw communities gathered to support Goral at the annual Boots and Badges basketball game on April 12, but they weren’t the only ones – Goral’s story resounded all around the state as donations came in from as far as Ocean Shores and Yakima to support his fight.
No. 4 Black Diamond incumbents lose No. 1 Teen drowns in Lake Wilderness elections After a fiery campaign season, incumbents in the The top story of 2015 is also the saddest. A 14-year-old Tahoma Junior High student drowned in Lake Wilderness June 23. The boy was with a group of friends swimming near a private beach on the east side of the lake when he went under the water. An off-duty Kent police officer, who was nearby with his family, called 911 and then jumped into the water in an attempt to rescue the teen. Dive teams from the Renton Police Department and King County Sheriff ’s Office arrived and pulled the teen out of the water, approximately 40 minutes after he had gone under the surface of the water. Once he was out of the water, paramedics were able to get a heartbeat after CPR was performed. The teen was then airlifted to Harborview Medical Center where he later died due to anoxic encephalopathy, or lack of oxygen to the brain.
Black Diamond City Council lost their re-election bids in November.
No. 3 Cmdr. Greg Goral dies
Black Diamond police Cmdr. Greg Goral died Aug. 16 after a three year battle with appendiceal cancer, or a cancer of the appendix, an extremely rare cancer
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announced she would not be serving another term as mayor. Harto served 10 years as mayor. She was appointed to the council in 2002 and was first elected in 2003. At the meeting announcing her retirement Harto said, “It certainly has been my privilege and honor these last 10 year to serve and be the leader of this council, but it is time for a change. Each one of you, and all I have served with, have left a very significant footprint on my heart. Tonight I am telling you it is time for this mayor to retire…. The guy you call the mayor’s chauffeur, we’ve been together 54 years; I have decided he is the most important person in my life.”
No. 6. Washington’s smoke signals Citizens of the state voted to legalize marijuana in 2012 and 2015 was the year retail shops opened in or around many communities. The Reporter published a in a four part series analyzing the history and politics marijuana. The series won first place in the “Comprehensive Coverage of a Single Issue or Series” category of the annual Washington Newspaper Publisher’s Better Newspapers Contest. Reporter Rebecca Gourley wrote on the continuing evolution of politics surrounding marijuana, focusing specially on the reconsideration of drug convictions, and the history of hemp in the United States. Reporter Ray Still focused on the science behind cannabis and how it affects the body, and examined some myths and misconceptions about marijuana.
No. 7 Bears win state crown
No. 2 Russell Ridge closes
In March a letter was sent to parents announcing Russell Ridge, an alternative learning experience program in the Tahoma School District, was being closed. For several months it was a controversial subject in the Letters to the Editor and at the school board meetings. After considerable discussion and consideration, the board members unanimously voted to close Russell Ridge. “Rather than focusing on a program that was already in place, we want to start from scratch and design an AL program that meets needs of students here and is in line with state AL standards,” Kevin Patterson said, spokesperson for the district.
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In Black Diamond, challenger Brian Weber took Council Position 4 from Craig Goodwin with 68 percent of the vote, and challenger Pat Pepper unseated Ron Taylor with similar numbers. In Maple Valley incumbent council members Noel Gerken, Position 5, and Layne Barnes, Position 3, chose not to seek re-election. Les Burberry , Position 3, and Megan Sheridan, Position 5, will join the council in January.
No. 5 Covington mayor retires gavel Mayor Margaret Harto presided over her final Covington City Council meeting Dec. 8 when she
May 31 the Tahoma Bears fastpitch team lifted high the state 4A fastpitch trophy at Merkel Sports Complex in Spokane after going on a four-game winning tear through the tournament. After winning three and losing one during districts, the Bears entered the state tourney as the No. 3 seed. Once at state, the Bears found the championship formula and went on 4-0 run for the crown.
No. 8 Covington ends school impact fees agreement A legal battle between the city of Covington and the Kent School District triggered the nuclear option Oct. 27 when the Covington City Council unanimously approved an ordinance terminating the collection of school impact fees. [ more TOP 10 page 3 ]