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In case you missed them, here are some of the top stories of the weekend:
Jeanne Stewart’s eyes light up when she speaks of Dave, her husband of 40 years.
The manufacturing sales business they built together. His support during her many hours spent volunteering in schools and on the Coalition of Vancouver Neighborhoods. And then that strange thing he said shortly after New Year’s Day in 2014.
“You know what?” Stewart recalled her husband telling her after reading The Columbian one morning. “You should run for Clark County commissioner.”
That was a first for Stewart, a 68-year-old Republican. Not in 12 years on the Vancouver City Council had she ever recalled her husband encouraging her to run for elected office. Sure, he was supportive. Mostly, she said, he was ambivalent, being no real fan of politics himself.
“He’d put up with campaigns,” Stewart said. “He’d put up with me being tired and stressed. The only thing he would ever say is, ‘You are honorable and well-intended and we need people like that to run for office, but don’t get a single thing out of it.’ ”
But this was different. He kept bringing it up, pushing her and encouraging her to run for the seat left vacant by Democrat Steve Stuart.
“He basically thought something was missing that I could provide,” Stewart said.
Clark County’s growing beer culture is giving residents dozens more reasons to stay in the ‘Couv to enjoy a pint or two. From Washougal to downtown Vancouver to Ridgefield, the number of breweries has swelled to 18 — with a couple more set to open by year’s end and big hopes for 2016.
“I believe that by 2018 the number will be 30 to 35 breweries,” said Steve Bader, owner of Bader Beer and Wine Supply in Vancouver. “At that level, competition will push that number back to the mid- to high 20s.”
Bader has a front-row seat on the county’s beer boom. His shop has been servicing local brewers since 1992 and has sold enough malt, hops and yeast to homebrewers in the past 12 months to make 45,000 gallons of beer — which equates to Loowit Brewing’s estimated 2015 production.
From sour beer to fresh hop, bourbon barrel-aged to dry hop, wild ales and more, North Bank brewmasters have a style for every beer drinker and those who say they’re not, according to a few of them.
As the crowd counted down from 10, Vancouver Mayor Tim Leavitt picked up his pace and grabbed another paper bag from the stack in front of him.
It was a valiant effort on his part, but as the clock ran out, he had only made a dent in the stack.
Instead, Ridgefield Councilman Don Stose quite literally bagged first place, folding 70 shopping bags. He donned a sash that read “Bag Folder 2015.”
The light-hearted competition pitted Clark County city officials against one another to see who is the fastest at folding bags for this year’s Walk & Knock food drive. The competition Saturday highlighted the bag-folding event, which was estimated to bring out about 300 volunteers to the Clark County Food Bank to prepare for the Dec. 5 food drive.
Each November, volunteers fold thousands of Walk & Knock shopping bags for insertion into local newspapers. The bags are delivered all over the county. People are encouraged to fill the bags with food and place them on their porches for pickup on the first Saturday in December. Volunteers also knock on doors to ask for donations, all of which benefit the Clark County Food Bank.
On this Saturday, the politicians were given stacks of 25 paper bags and had five minutes to fold as many as they could.
Three apartment projects planned along Fourth Plain Boulevard could bring some much-needed affordable housing to the corridor, as well as fill vacant lots.
If downtown Vancouver is the heart of the community, then Fourth Plain is the backbone, said Mayor Tim Leavitt, who considers the area overlooked and undervalued.
“Fourth Plain should be a destination,” he said.
Additional housing would help revitalize the corridor, which has lots of commercial vacancies and is home to many cost-burdened renters and people in poverty. The corridor is often considered an eyesore.
Yet, it’s a strategic area for future housing projects because residents will have access to shopping, services and C-Tran’s future bus rapid transit system, The Vine. A group of Portland State University urban planning students dubbed the area Vancouver’s multicultural business district for its supply of international restaurants and markets.
It’s hard to be a Scrooge when you’re sipping hot cocoa and snuggling a fuzzy critter.
The Humane Society of Southwest Washington will bring a furry dose of holiday cheer to Clark County next month. In exchange for a generous donation, the Vancouver nonprofit agency will deliver a batch of friendly puppies, kittens, dogs or cats to your office party or gathering Dec. 16 or 17. Humane Society staff and volunteers will treat you to cocoa and cookies while you enjoy the Cuddle Squad’s wiggly antics.
“It’s a fun way to take our mission out to the public,” said Denise Barr, the Humane Society’s vice president and director of marketing. “It’s just a good little puppy and kitten fix.”
The visits also are good exposure for the animals, who will be up for adoption.
As any animal lover knows, the moments spent cradling a cute critter are priceless. But for the sake of fundraising, the Humane Society is requesting a donation of $200 for a 15-minute cuddle, $300 for 30 minutes and $600 for an hour.
It was an emotional scene in Superior Court on Friday as the driver who struck and killed 7-year-old Cadence Boyer while she was trick-or-treating Halloween night last year was sentenced to more than 16½ years in prison.
Cadence’s family called the sentencing a bittersweet ending.
Duane C. Abbott tearfully apologized for the first time to the Boyers, and to the other victims who were seriously injured in the crash.
“I’m very sorry for all the pain and suffering I’ve caused to the victims and their families,” he said, adding that he’s been unable to get that night out of his head.
“Saying I’m sorry isn’t enough, but it’s all I have,” he said.
Abbott, 48, was driving under the influence of marijuana and methamphetamine when his 1967 Ford Mustang struck Cadence; her mother, Annie Boyer; 30-year-old Chelina Alsteen; and 6-year-old Ava Carrodus while they were walking on a sidewalk along Northeast 112th Avenue in Vancouver.
The Vancouver man pleaded guilty earlier this month in Clark County Superior Court to vehicular homicide and three counts of vehicular assault.
