Seattle Sun Newspaper - Vol. 7, Issue 5, May 2003
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Healthy Living Briefs
Boys & Girls Club fund-raiser
The Wallingford Boys & Girls Club will hold a fund-raising dinner on Tuesday, April 15, from 5-10:30 p.m. at the Greenlake Bar & Grill.
Fifty percent of the money spent on meals and beverages during that evening will benefit the Club's programs for youths. Dinner, which includes salad, entree and dessert, is $20 for adults and $10 for kids who can order off the kids menu. The Greenlake Bar & Grill is located at 7200 E. Greenlake Drive N. The restaurant's phone number is 729-6176.
For details, call Wallingford Boys & Girls Club Executive Director Jamie Flaxman at 547-7261 or e-mail her at jflaxman@positiveplace.org.
UW doctor named to board
Ray M. "Bud" Nicola, a researcher and health professional at the University of Washington School of Public Health and Community Medicine, is one of three new appointees to the King County Board of Health.
Nicola has served as Health Officer in Seattle and Tacoma and worked on the impacts to ground water of Superfund sites in Puget Sound.
Joining Nicola on the policy-setting Board of Health are Frankie T. Manning and George W. Counts. The three new advisers replace Joseph Pizzorno, Alvin Thompson and Karen Van Dusen.
The 14-member board includes officials from the County Council, Seattle City Council and the suburban cities of King County.
Lecture on infertility
Resolve of Washington State, a nonprofit advocacy group, is hosting a meeting and discussion in Laurelhurst about unexplained infertility. Dr. Lorna Marshall, Director of the Fertility and Reproductive Endocrinology at Virginia Mason Medical Center, will lecture on how individuals can know when they have done enough testing for infertility, and what factor age plays.
The meeting will be Monday, May 12, at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, 4805 NE 45th St. Refreshments will be served at 7 p.m., with the discussion starting at 7:30. There is a $3 charge per person, or $5 per couple, for non-members.
Resolve is a national volunteer organization that provides support and education to those dealing with infertility. Marshall is the advocacy coordinator for Resolve of Washington State.
Laurelhurst Curves opens
A new Curves fitness center for women opened for business in Laurelhurst in January. The franchise is operated by four partners, all of whom are physicians: Tom Ballard, Kim Celmer, Cindy Phillips and Eileen Stretch. The center is located in Union Bay Plaza, behind University Village. Stretch, who also owns a Curves center on Queen Anne Hill, said the company's 30-minute fitness routine fits with her holisitic approach to health care. "Fitness is integral in whole-patient wellness, prevention and self care," she said. Curves memberships are $39 a month for a year, or $49 for those who opt to pay month to month. There is a one-time joining fee that varies depending what special the center is running. Curves has independently owned franchises throughout North Seattle.
Yoga with a jazz twist
Dara McKinley, a recent transplant to the Ravenna neighborhood from Boulder, Colo., brought with her a new exercise alternative called The Nia Technique that is getting increasing attention around the country.
McKinley, who arrived here in September, was surprised to find few Nia practitioners here, so she's taken it upon herself to spread the word.
Nia, according to McKinley, blends "Eastern and Western movements, concepts and theories" in a non-impact cardiovascular workout. It combines concepts in Tai Chi, dance, jazz, yoga and martial art, and it's done to music.
McKinley, 32, has taught classes at the University of Washington and the Phinney Neighborhood Center. For details, contact her at dara@niaseattle.com.
Children's Hospital moves forward with Laurelhurst building
Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center is making progress on its new $60 million inpatient facility in Laurelhurst.
The building, once completed, will reflect changes in child impatient care over the past three decades, said hospital administrator Ruth Benfield.
Thirty years ago, the hospital's in-patient rooms were akin to hostels, with several beds to a room and no privacy for families. In Children's Hospital's new facility, said Benfield, the rooms will be almost exclusively one-bedroom affairs.
Only the sickest children become in-patients now, said Benfield, meaning that the new facility will have to focus on intensive care.
Construction on the five-story building is expected to be completed by January 2004, and is a substantial addition to the hospital's 21-acre Laurelhurst campus.
The community has generally welcomed the structure, said Jeannie Hale, president of the Laurelhurst Community Council, because Children's has gone out of its way to get residents' input, "which is very nice for the neighborhood," she said.
"They're very conscientious of their impact on the neighborhood," she said.
Benfield said Children's wanted to ensure its new building was one that nearby residents could live with.
"One of the struggles of being in a residential community is we are a big and growing institution, and we want to be a good neighbor," said Benfield.
The 90,000-square-foot building will have 96 beds on three floors, bringing the hospital's total number of beds up to 250. The bottom two levels of the new building will house amenities such as a chapel, deli and gift shop.
The building was designed to meet families' increasing demands for privacy in their inpatient facilities.
"We try to create an environment," said Benfield, "that meets the medical, psychological and emotional needs of these patients and their families."
U-District YMCA seeks support
The University District YMCA recently launched its 2003 Partners for Youth Campaign with the ambitious goal of raising $100,000 to fund youth and family programs in North Seattle. About 50 volunteers are participating in the fund drive. For details, call fund-raising campaign chairman Jeff Ramsey at 354-7006.