Islander student Marr honored by the American Red Cross

Mercer Island resident Natalie Marr was honored on March 11 by the American Red Cross Serving King and Kitsap Counties at the 2010 Heroes Breakfast. Fifteen heroes were honored at the 14th annual breakfast with the Service in Action award.

When major windstorms hit the Seattle area in 2006, high school student Marr and her family were left with no electricity and little heat for eight days. Marr, now a senior, learned from the experience and decided to make preparedness her focus for earning a Girl Scout Gold Leadership Award. She created a project to educate students and teachers about emergency and disaster resources available in King County and helped them to create their own personal emergency plans.

Marr hosted a preparedness booth at her school for a week. She and her volunteer student advisory board provided information tables during lunch periods about disaster preparedness for earthquakes, winter storms and H1N1. She also organized a collection of supplies to assemble into disaster kits and donate to at-risk populations. “I think it is important to get everyone prepared for a disaster so when the time comes, they are ready,” Marr said.

CPA, former Island resident to focus on women’s finance

James Erickson & Co., P.S., Certified Public Accountants, has announced that Pamela Scholfield, Certified Public Accountant and Certified Financial Planner, has joined the staff at their Bellevue office. Scholfield worked for James Erickson & Co. 25 years ago before leaving to live and work in her own firm in Carmel, Calif. She is now back on Mercer Island with the rest of her family and is looking forward to staying for many years to come.

Scholfield believes that baby-boomer era single women are an underserved portion of the community. Besides tax preparation, she is interested in answering all the questions that a woman may not even know to ask when she is living alone after many years of relying on another person to handle financial matters. For the woman who is facing divorce or losing her spouse of many years, there are lots of worries that may be keeping her awake at night. Scholfield is the person who can answer those questions in an understanding and compassionate way. She can be reached by phone at (425) 451-8400 or by e-mail at Pamela@cpahotline.com.

Boy Scout food collection

Scouts in 10 counties will be collecting food in Puget Sound neighborhoods for local food banks.

On March 20, thousands of Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts will be visiting neighborhoods in one of the largest food collection campaigns ever mounted by troops in the Puget Sound area. The campaign, “Scouting for Food,” commenced on March 13 when Scouts toured neighborhoods with door hangers listing the most needed food items for local banks. The Scouts will return this Saturday, March 20, to pick up donations and deliver them to food banks.

Record numbers of people are visiting local food banks in the wake of news that Washington state’s unemployment rate rose to 9.3 percent in January. An estimated 373,000 children live in Washington state households struggling to put food on the table, according to Children’s Alliance and USDA reports. To meet the increased food shortage locally, the Chief Seattle Council is teaming up with the Pacific Harbor’s Council of Boy Scouts of America, making this their largest food collection campaign.

Goin’ Green

Help out from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. this Saturday, March 20, at Upper Luther Burbank Park to remove invasive plant species with the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust. Meet at the corner of 84th Avenue S.E. and S.E. 32nd Street. Please register at www.mtsgreenway.org.

Rain garden workshop

Attend a Rain Garden Workshop from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 1, at the Community Center at Mercer View.

Participants will learn how to build a rain garden, a planted depression that allows rainwater runoff from impervious urban areas, such as roofs, driveways and walkways, the opportunity to be absorbed. Those who attend will receive site-assessment instructions in advance and a rain garden handbook. Contact Stacey Gianas at Stewardship Partners to register and for more details: (206) 292-9875, or e-mail sg@stewardshippartners.org. Visit www.stewardshippartners.org for more rain garden information. Free advanced registration is required. (A $10 donation helps cover cost of materials.)

The workshop is a joint project of the IslandVision working group on Community Wildlife Habitat, Stewardship Partners, the City of Mercer Island and Friends of the Cedar River Watershed.

Spring recycling

The city is hosting its annual spring recycling event on Saturday, March 27, held at the Mercer Island Boat Launch (3600 East Mercer Way). The city will collect various electronic equipment, appliances and household items for recycling.

The boat launch will be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. for collection. For a list of acceptable and non-acceptable items, visit the city’s Web site at www.mercergov.org.

Mercer Island recycling events happen twice a year. For more information, call 275-7608.