Oktoberfest comes to Kent via Kent Sunrise Rotary on Saturday, October 1 at Town Square Plaza.  The event is scheduled from 12 noon to 8:oo  pm, rain or shine.  This family friendly event features grub and grog and entertainment.  Beer garden pre-sale tickets are $20; $25 at the door.  The ticket price includes a German beer stein and first beer, and there is free admission to the Family Fest Zone.  Proceeds will support local veterans’ organizations.  It is a family event so kids and grand kids are welcome!  There will be entertainment for all ages, food booths and lots of fun.  Hope you’ll stop by!

Buy tickets online now at OktoberfestKent.com. Tickets are $20 in advance or $25 the day of the event.

Proceeds for the event will support returning veterans.

In addition, Mayor Suzette Cooke will announce five winners of the Service Above Self awards:  Chaplain Pat Ellis, Crisis Intervention Coordinator with the Kent Police Department; Lance Goodwin, Chair of Kent’s Relay of Life; Bill Westcott, Kent Lions’ Cornucopia Days and Farmers’ Market Coordinator; community advocates Marge & Harry Williams; and Sara Wood, Public Education Specialist with the Kent Police Department.

For more information about the event, please contact Marianna Stephens at 253-631-9609.

Thanks to Victoria L. Andrews of the Kent Sunrise Rotary for providing this information.

Kent Sunrise Rotary to Dedicate Shower Trailer on July 8

KENT, Wash. – June 24, 2010 – With construction provided by a group of dedicated, talented volunteers and a Rotary district grant of $8,000, the Kent Sunrise Rotary Club is donating a new portable shower trailer to help homeless men in Kent.  The trailer will be dedicated on Thursday, July 8 at 5:30 p.m. at the Kent Lutheran Church, 336 2nd Avenue South.

Working at a local shed donated for the build, the volunteer team, lead by Dave Anderson, outfitted a purchased trailer with two shower stalls. The trailer will be moved to sponsoring churches in the area serving the homeless.  Catholic Community Services will coordinate services, and the project is endorsed by Valley Cities Counseling and the City of Kent Housing and Human Services Division.

Guest speaker at the dedication will be Richard LeMieux, author of Breakfast at Sally’s, the account of one homeless man’s experience.  The book was written on a second-hand manual typewriter when LeMieux was forced to live in his minivan after his business failed.  Sally’s was the soup kitchen at the Salvation Army in Bremerton.

The Kent Sunrise Rotary Club is part of Rotary International, a worldwide organization of business and professional leaders who provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help build goodwill and peace worldwide. There are about 1.2 million club members in more than 32,000 Rotary clubs in over 200 countries and geographical areas.  Our motto is “Service Above Self.”  Weekly breakfast programs with local and visiting speakers offer education, fellowship and fun.

November 4, 2009 – Kent service clubs are taking the lead to match volunteers with those who need help preparing for potential flooding. Residents can now call or email for help with filling and placing sandbags at their homes.

Kent Sunrise Rotary, Rotary Club of Kent, Kent Meridian Kiwanis Club, Kiwanis Club of Kent, Kent Lions, Soroptimist International of Kent and Quota International of Kent Valley have all come together to serve as volunteer coordinators.

According to Kent’s Housing and Human Services Manager Katherin Johnson, there has been a outpouring of support from local residents and church groups wanting to know how they can help.

“The free sandbags have been a huge benefit for residents, but some people need help getting them” said Johnson. “Some just aren’t physically able to shovel sand or move sandbags. The local service clubs matching these people up with volunteers will be an outstanding help for everyone.”

Residents needing help with sandbags, or people willing to volunteer, can leave a message on the service club hotline at 206-755-4814 or by email at kentserviceclubs@yahoo.com.  Interested parties can also follow the service clubs on Twitter at twitter.com/SandbagsKentWA.

The Kent Valley is facing a higher risk of flooding this winter due to water seeping more rapidly through an earthen bank next to the Howard Hanson Dam after record high water last winter. Until the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers can make repairs, it must limit the amount of flood water it stores behind the dam.