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Lake GoIf & Casting
to open Memorial Weekend
STEDMAN
Lake Golf & Casting
magnificent blend of
unique establishment,
offers 18 holes of golf and
for fly fishing, is set to
28.
7,150 yard, par 72 course
to score a hole in one with
golfers. Technically lo-
in Port Orchard at 3900
lClora Road, Trophy Lake
is just a chip shot
Another Belfair tie
club's first assistant golf
Mark Knowles, who's
graduate of North Mason
a former All Pac-10
at Washington State Uni-
and Brady Hatfield, head
at Trophy Lake, gave
at last month's
Mason Chamber of Com-
meeting on the newest
golf course.
want to provide a first-
experience, or country
)here for the public,"
atfield. "We want you to
you are a guest at our
thus we extend the red
to everyone."
OF THAT red carpet
can be seen upon driv-
} to the aesthetically-pleas-
Lake Golf & Casting
greet you at
and carry your clubs
A full-service restaurant
fishing theme is also
"People will find the
f service and quality of
is much different than
g else in the area," said
Trophy Lake
Open House: Sunday,
May 23, noon to 4 p.m.
Location: 3900 SW Lake
Flora Road, Port Orchard
Information/tee times:
(360) 874-8337
Group outings informa-
tion: (360) 876-6193
Web site: www.trophy
lakegolf.com.
Official opening: May 28
(It will be closed to the pub-
lic June 1-4 and will reopen
to the public on June 5.)
yard par 5, has a 60-foot-long
bunker across the fairway that of-
fers different strategies depend-
ing on the tee shot direction. Go
right, and it's a three-shot hole; to
the left, it might be two for the
longer hitter. Either way, it's a
challenge to any golfer.
And if it's a challenge you're
looking for then consider that
Trophy Lake has an incredible 70
sand traps on the course. Com-
pare this to the modest 32 on the
Gold Mountain Olympic Course.
According to Knowles, Golf Digest
Magazine recently selected the
Gold Mountain Olympic Course
as the third best golf course in the
state behind Sahalee in Redmond
and Desert Canyon in Wenatchee.
Knowles anticipates that Trophy
Lake will record about 50,000
rounds of golf annually and serve
as a terrific venue for future tour-
naments.
In fact, the North Mason Boys
and Girls Club was the first
group to sign up for a tournament
at the new facility. The second
annual Boys and Girls Club Golf
Classic will take place at Trophy
Lake July 10. (Details will be
published in the near future.)
In addition to golfing, fly fish-
ing is the other attraction at
Trophy Lake. The club has two
lakes: a 30-acre lake and a 1-acre
lake. The 30-acre lake borders
several holes, but it is obscured
by trees as it winds around the
18th on the left, with stumps and
wetlands giving it an old-growth
look.
ONE LAKE WILL be stocked
with bass, the other with rainbow
and cutthroat trout. A fly-fishing
academy is planned for the fall.
Fishing derbies will also be held
regularly.
Cost for a round of golf will
vary, from $25 to $70 depending
on the time of day and day of the
week.
For those wishing to simply get
an idea of what Trophy Lake Golf
& Casting Club looks like, a May
23 (Sunday) open house is
planned from noon to 4 p.m. "We
encourage everyone to come out
and see our club," said an enthu-
siastic Knowles. "You won't be
disappointed."
believes that other
in the area will im-
Lake in full services
see the excellent level
amenities include a
nat-
practice facility with
greens, practice putting
and bunkers, private and
instruction, full-service
banquet pavilion with
200+, and on-course
cart.
Lake's 60,000-square-
range is innovative to
doubling as a 19th
Sorts. Practicing golfers
can take aim at a cut-out
Complete with .bunkers,
on accuracy. The most
aspect of the driving
is that you pay by the
of time you spend there
by the number (buckets)
hit.
tower and waterfall are
3 to the clubhouse
area. If you're
a spectacular view, try
seventh, or twelfth
affords a panoramic
Olympics on one side
des and Mount
on the other.
SEVENTH hole, a 547-
MARK KNOWLES takes a chip shot on the ninth hole at
the Trophy Lake Golf and Casting Club. The 7,000-
square-foot clubhouse sits in the background.
rcoming the c :lds
THOMSON
You're born 15 weeks
you spend a lifetime
:atch up. And even then,
not be enough time.
.year-old Jo-
Hoff was dealt
such a hand. Though he's no long-
er medically fragile, his life is still
a challenge - but you wouldn't
know by talking to him.
The Grapeview School second-
grader was born on June 18,
1990, at Tacoma General Hospi-
tal. "I was supposed to be born in
October," he shared. His parents
are Vance and Lisa Hoff, and he
is an only child.
LISA HAD SUFFERED a
few miscarriages before becoming
pregnant with Jonathan. In the
25th week of her pregnancy, she
went into labor. They discovered
that she had a strep infection,
and that the baby was also infec-
iiii
Serving Belfair -- Allyn -- Grapeview -- Tahuya -- Mason Lake -- South Shore -- Victor
.Thursday, May 20, 1999
Section of the Shelton-Mason County Journal
#
At NMHS:
Father of the Bride opens tomorrow
The North Mason High School
Drama Club, under the direction
of Kara Beloate, will present Fa-
ther of the Bride at 7:30 p.m. on
Friday and Saturday, May 21 and
22, and then at 2 and 6 p.m. on
Sunday, May 23.
Like the movie of the same
name, this is a comedy in which
the father learns of his daughter's
plan to marry, and over the
course of the story, comes to
terms with it. The trials and trib-
ulations of planning a wedding
create the setting to show the
family relationships, and how
they change.
Mr. Banks will be played by
Jason Thayer, and Mrs. Banks by
Kelly Cliber and Nicole Soder-
berg. A few positions are double-
cast, according to Beloate, to al-
low more students to participate,
with only one person per charac-
ter in each performance.
Other cast members are: Sarah
Ortiz and Bree Whybark as Kay
(the bride), Kyle Hopkins as Ben,
Bryan Stansbury as Tommy, Wes
Watson as Buckley (the groom),
Ryan Werdall as Buzz, Mallory
Smith as Peggy, and Amanda
Harris and Becca Oberholtzer as
Delilah.
Also in the play are Erin Mc-
Cracken and Jennifer Camp as
Miss Bellamy, Jon Kaiser as Mr.
Massoula, Adam Temple as Joe,
Lindsey Newsome as Mrs. Pulitz-
ki, Richard McKimson as Red,
Matt Schiemer as Pete, Leslie
Cruz as Mrs. Friska, and Lindsey
Morris and Ryan Werdall as ex-
tras.
The student directors for the
production are Danny Carroll and
Scott Otto, with Tim Gray as
stage manager and Lindsey Mor-
ris as his assistant. Other crew
members include Nick Hernandez
and Tyler Ude.
Tickets will be available at the
door, at $6 each, with children
age 5 and under being admitted
for $2 each.
FATHER OF THE BRIDE cast members include Jason
Thayer as Mr. Banks, Kelly Cliber as Mrs. Banks, Sarah
Ortiz as Kay and Wes Watson as Buckley.
Russian teachers visit local school
By RICK STEDMAN
Staff members at Belfair Ele-
mentary hosted two Russian edu-
cators recently, exchanging ideas
and philosophies on teaching
from their respective countries.
Dr. Gall Davis, a teacher at
Belfair Elementary, opened her
home to the visiting Russians,
Vera Kisselova and Vera Vozha-
gova. The Russian teachers were
part of a teacher exchange pro-
gram called Accent on Under-
standing.
According to Davis, Accent on
Understanding is a fellowship be-
tween the United States and Rus-
sia. The program started as a re-
sult of the Goodwill Games, which
Seattle hosted in 1990. The Good-
will Games, media mogul Ted
Turner's version of the Olympics,
were aimed at fostering goodwill
and understanding between Rus-
sia and the U.S.
DAVIS HERSELF HAS vis-
ited Russia on several occasions.
"I find it to be so rewarding in
terms of trying to understand the
Russians and their approach to
teaching," she said.
Kisselova and Vozhagova both
are from the town of Ekaterin-
burg, formerly known as Sver-
dlovsk, the third largest city in
Russia after Moscow and St. Pe-
tersburg.
This was the first trip to the
U.S. for the Russian women, who
discovered after arriving here
that they are practically neigh-
bors back home.
"We were very excited to find
out that we come from the same
town," said Vozhagova, a petite
blonde woman with piercing blue
eyes. This was only one discovery
in what turned out to be a list of
many during her stay in the U.S.
OF COURSE THEY were
nervous when they first arrived.
Vozhagova shared about crossing
a creek with the children her first
day on campus. A child reached
out a hand to help her across, and
she realized that it felt just like
her own students' hands, "and I
wasn't so nervous anymore."
In observing teaching methods
at Belfair Elementary, Vozhagova
was very impressed with the re-
cent visit students made to the
forest. Fortunately for Vozhago.
va, she was able to observe stu-
dents when they participated in
the fifth-annual Students in the
Watershed program at Tahuya
State Forest.
"This is a wonderful program,"
said Vozhagova "We have forests
all around our city back home and
this is something we could possi.
bly do there as well."
Her counterpart, Kisselova,
was also impressed with the pro-
gram. "I think it is important to
make learning meaningful," she
said. "I think this program cer-
tainly makes it meaningful for
the children."
BOTH RUSSIAN teachers of-
fered their praise of the high-
school students from North Ma-
son who assisted in teaching the
200 fourth-graders from Belfair
and Sand Hill Elementaries dur-
ing the one-day class held at the
Tahuya River Horse Camp.
"They were like university stu-
dents," Vozhagora observed.
"They were very clever and kind,
and showed responsibility for the
younger students. Our students
are not accustomed to making
such judgments and decisions.
Russian students are not so inde-
pendent."
In addition to spending a great
deal of time at Belfair Elementa-
ry with Gaff Davis and other
teachers, the Russians also
availed themselves of the oppor-
tunity to visit other area schools,
including some in Seattle, Olym-
pia, and North Kitsap. "It was
very enlightening to see the vari-
ous schools and the teachers' ap-
proach to teaching at each one,"
said Kisselova.
A 25-year veteran teacher,
Vozhagova explained that prior to
Perestroika (an opening up) and
the dissolve of the Soviet Union,
all classes in Russia were taught
exactly the same. "A student
could move from one city to
another during the middle of the
school year and pick up exactly
where he left off," explained Voz-
hagova. "In some ways, that is
very good for students."
BUT THINGS have changed
with this new openness. Kisselo-
va, who's been a teacher in Rus-
sia for 20 years, said that there
are now several different types of
schools available, some less struc-
tured than others, while some op-
erate like The Evergreen State
College, offering more creative op-
tions for students. But it hasn't
been easy. "Freedom is a very
hard thing," said Kisselova. "You
have to think and choose. It is a
cultural shock to have to decide."
Regardless of the shifting
structure of classes in Russia, one
class is tops in nearly every
school - and that is English. "It is
mandatory for all to learn
English," said Vozhagova. In fact,
in their home town of Ekaterin-
burg, there are no less than five
English language schools.
Off the subject of education,
Kisselova made a few other ob-
servations about America. "I find
recycling to be very good here,"
she said. Kisselova also made
notes from her conversations with
numerous Americans regarding
their feelings on topics like the
best and worst things about the
U.S., impressions of NATO and
the crisis in Kosovo, and whether
bombing in that part of the world
is justified.
Kisselova and Vozhagova re-
turned home a few days ago, tak-
ing with them a host of new ideas
gathered during their two week
visit to the Pacific Northwest.
While in the U.S., each kept a
daily journal that will later be
used in class and for discussion
purposes. "I will most likely share
parts of my journal entries with
fellow teachers and students,"
said Vozhagova.
Kisselova summed up for edu-
cators from both nations, saying,
"We have met teachers with
whom we will have long, long con-
nections. I have new friends now."
Thanks to e-mail, the Russian
women will be able to stay in
touch on a regular basis with
their new American acquain-
tances. Nearly overcome with
emotion, she concluded, "With my
host family, language was not the
most important thing."
Linda Thomson contributed to
this report.
HOFF, 8q2, of Grapeview, has overcome
problems. "He's an absolutely de-
mg man," said Jim Snyder, principal at
ted, so they proceeded with the
delivery. Jonathan weighed 1 Russell receives doctorate
pound, 13 ounces, and was 133/4
inches long at birth.
Then began a lifetime of hospi-
talizations, surgeries and medical
appointments. Regarding all the
help from so many doctors, Jon-
athan remarked, "I wish I could
do something to help them."
"He's a neat kid who carries on
intellectual conversations with
adults," said Jim Snyder, Grape-
view's superintendent/principal.
"He's an absolutely delightful
young man."
For the first three months of
his life, the tiny baby was on a
ventilator. His respiratory system
had not had a chance to develop
yet. There were a number of other
shortcomings in his physical de-
velopment as well.
WHILE HOSPITALIZED at
8 months, his temperature spiked
to 106.8 degrees. The anticipated
four-day stay turned into a month
at Mary Bridge Children's Hospi-
tal in Tacoma.
For about the first half of his
young life, he suffered with
(Please turn to page 3.)
Krystel Russell, a 1993 gradu-
ate of North Mason High School,
will receive her doctorate from
the University of Washington
(UW) School of Pharmacy in
June.
Beginning with the class of
1999, pharmacists are required
by the UW to obtain a doctorate
rather than a Masters. They go
through an intensive four-year
program requiring students to
learn every facet of pharmacy.
The final year, students are re-
quired to perform eight months of
rotations at various institutions.
Russell has worked at the
Puyallup Indian Council, Madi-
gan, St. Joseph and Harrison
Hospitals, and other institutions.
She has been employed as an in-
tern at Group Health in Kitsap
County for the past four years.
Russell passed the Washington
State Pharmacy Board in May to
obtain her pharmacy license. She
plans to work in clinical pharma-
cy.
Russell is the daughter of Don
and Sue Russell of Belfair, and : :
was a recipient of scholarships
from the Nuel Curtis VFW Post
5372 and the Evergreen Garden :
Club.
Krystel Russell
VERA VOZHAGOVA and Vera
weeks visiting from Russia.
Kisselova spent two
Karen Lippy receives
award in excellence
Karen Lippy, science teacher
for North Mason High School
(NMHS) has been selected as a
recipient of the Washington
Award for Excellence in Educa-
tion, awarded by the Superinten.
dent of Public Instruction. She
has been recognized for her out-
standing leadership, contribution
and commitment to education.
The awards ceremony will be
held on Thursday, May 27, in the
House Chambers at the state cap-
itol in Olympia.
Lippy teaches both Aquatic
Worlds and Hood Canal Institute,
the two science courses taught at
the Theler Wetlands classroom. It
has been her mission since join-
ing the NMHS staff in 1984 to
"get students out experiencing
science in the real world," accord-
ing to Principal Mark Flatau.
"Through Karen's leadership and
direction, our students have con-
ducted several scientific research
projects which government agen-
(Please turn to page 3.)
Lake GoIf & Casting
to open Memorial Weekend
STEDMAN
Lake Golf & Casting
magnificent blend of
unique establishment,
offers 18 holes of golf and
for fly fishing, is set to
28.
7,150 yard, par 72 course
to score a hole in one with
golfers. Technically lo-
in Port Orchard at 3900
lClora Road, Trophy Lake
is just a chip shot
Another Belfair tie
club's first assistant golf
Mark Knowles, who's
graduate of North Mason
a former All Pac-10
at Washington State Uni-
and Brady Hatfield, head
at Trophy Lake, gave
at last month's
Mason Chamber of Com-
meeting on the newest
golf course.
want to provide a first-
experience, or country
)here for the public,"
atfield. "We want you to
you are a guest at our
thus we extend the red
to everyone."
OF THAT red carpet
can be seen upon driv-
} to the aesthetically-pleas-
Lake Golf & Casting
greet you at
and carry your clubs
A full-service restaurant
fishing theme is also
"People will find the
f service and quality of
is much different than
g else in the area," said
Trophy Lake
Open House: Sunday,
May 23, noon to 4 p.m.
Location: 3900 SW Lake
Flora Road, Port Orchard
Information/tee times:
(360) 874-8337
Group outings informa-
tion: (360) 876-6193
Web site: www.trophy
lakegolf.com.
Official opening: May 28
(It will be closed to the pub-
lic June 1-4 and will reopen
to the public on June 5.)
yard par 5, has a 60-foot-long
bunker across the fairway that of-
fers different strategies depend-
ing on the tee shot direction. Go
right, and it's a three-shot hole; to
the left, it might be two for the
longer hitter. Either way, it's a
challenge to any golfer.
And if it's a challenge you're
looking for then consider that
Trophy Lake has an incredible 70
sand traps on the course. Com-
pare this to the modest 32 on the
Gold Mountain Olympic Course.
According to Knowles, Golf Digest
Magazine recently selected the
Gold Mountain Olympic Course
as the third best golf course in the
state behind Sahalee in Redmond
and Desert Canyon in Wenatchee.
Knowles anticipates that Trophy
Lake will record about 50,000
rounds of golf annually and serve
as a terrific venue for future tour-
naments.
In fact, the North Mason Boys
and Girls Club was the first
group to sign up for a tournament
at the new facility. The second
annual Boys and Girls Club Golf
Classic will take place at Trophy
Lake July 10. (Details will be
published in the near future.)
In addition to golfing, fly fish-
ing is the other attraction at
Trophy Lake. The club has two
lakes: a 30-acre lake and a 1-acre
lake. The 30-acre lake borders
several holes, but it is obscured
by trees as it winds around the
18th on the left, with stumps and
wetlands giving it an old-growth
look.
ONE LAKE WILL be stocked
with bass, the other with rainbow
and cutthroat trout. A fly-fishing
academy is planned for the fall.
Fishing derbies will also be held
regularly.
Cost for a round of golf will
vary, from $25 to $70 depending
on the time of day and day of the
week.
For those wishing to simply get
an idea of what Trophy Lake Golf
& Casting Club looks like, a May
23 (Sunday) open house is
planned from noon to 4 p.m. "We
encourage everyone to come out
and see our club," said an enthu-
siastic Knowles. "You won't be
disappointed."
believes that other
in the area will im-
Lake in full services
see the excellent level
amenities include a
nat-
practice facility with
greens, practice putting
and bunkers, private and
instruction, full-service
banquet pavilion with
200+, and on-course
cart.
Lake's 60,000-square-
range is innovative to
doubling as a 19th
Sorts. Practicing golfers
can take aim at a cut-out
Complete with .bunkers,
on accuracy. The most
aspect of the driving
is that you pay by the
of time you spend there
by the number (buckets)
hit.
tower and waterfall are
3 to the clubhouse
area. If you're
a spectacular view, try
seventh, or twelfth
affords a panoramic
Olympics on one side
des and Mount
on the other.
SEVENTH hole, a 547-
MARK KNOWLES takes a chip shot on the ninth hole at
the Trophy Lake Golf and Casting Club. The 7,000-
square-foot clubhouse sits in the background.
rcoming the c :lds
THOMSON
You're born 15 weeks
you spend a lifetime
:atch up. And even then,
not be enough time.
.year-old Jo-
Hoff was dealt
such a hand. Though he's no long-
er medically fragile, his life is still
a challenge - but you wouldn't
know by talking to him.
The Grapeview School second-
grader was born on June 18,
1990, at Tacoma General Hospi-
tal. "I was supposed to be born in
October," he shared. His parents
are Vance and Lisa Hoff, and he
is an only child.
LISA HAD SUFFERED a
few miscarriages before becoming
pregnant with Jonathan. In the
25th week of her pregnancy, she
went into labor. They discovered
that she had a strep infection,
and that the baby was also infec-
iiii
Serving Belfair -- Allyn -- Grapeview -- Tahuya -- Mason Lake -- South Shore -- Victor
.Thursday, May 20, 1999
Section of the Shelton-Mason County Journal
#
At NMHS:
Father of the Bride opens tomorrow
The North Mason High School
Drama Club, under the direction
of Kara Beloate, will present Fa-
ther of the Bride at 7:30 p.m. on
Friday and Saturday, May 21 and
22, and then at 2 and 6 p.m. on
Sunday, May 23.
Like the movie of the same
name, this is a comedy in which
the father learns of his daughter's
plan to marry, and over the
course of the story, comes to
terms with it. The trials and trib-
ulations of planning a wedding
create the setting to show the
family relationships, and how
they change.
Mr. Banks will be played by
Jason Thayer, and Mrs. Banks by
Kelly Cliber and Nicole Soder-
berg. A few positions are double-
cast, according to Beloate, to al-
low more students to participate,
with only one person per charac-
ter in each performance.
Other cast members are: Sarah
Ortiz and Bree Whybark as Kay
(the bride), Kyle Hopkins as Ben,
Bryan Stansbury as Tommy, Wes
Watson as Buckley (the groom),
Ryan Werdall as Buzz, Mallory
Smith as Peggy, and Amanda
Harris and Becca Oberholtzer as
Delilah.
Also in the play are Erin Mc-
Cracken and Jennifer Camp as
Miss Bellamy, Jon Kaiser as Mr.
Massoula, Adam Temple as Joe,
Lindsey Newsome as Mrs. Pulitz-
ki, Richard McKimson as Red,
Matt Schiemer as Pete, Leslie
Cruz as Mrs. Friska, and Lindsey
Morris and Ryan Werdall as ex-
tras.
The student directors for the
production are Danny Carroll and
Scott Otto, with Tim Gray as
stage manager and Lindsey Mor-
ris as his assistant. Other crew
members include Nick Hernandez
and Tyler Ude.
Tickets will be available at the
door, at $6 each, with children
age 5 and under being admitted
for $2 each.
FATHER OF THE BRIDE cast members include Jason
Thayer as Mr. Banks, Kelly Cliber as Mrs. Banks, Sarah
Ortiz as Kay and Wes Watson as Buckley.
Russian teachers visit local school
By RICK STEDMAN
Staff members at Belfair Ele-
mentary hosted two Russian edu-
cators recently, exchanging ideas
and philosophies on teaching
from their respective countries.
Dr. Gall Davis, a teacher at
Belfair Elementary, opened her
home to the visiting Russians,
Vera Kisselova and Vera Vozha-
gova. The Russian teachers were
part of a teacher exchange pro-
gram called Accent on Under-
standing.
According to Davis, Accent on
Understanding is a fellowship be-
tween the United States and Rus-
sia. The program started as a re-
sult of the Goodwill Games, which
Seattle hosted in 1990. The Good-
will Games, media mogul Ted
Turner's version of the Olympics,
were aimed at fostering goodwill
and understanding between Rus-
sia and the U.S.
DAVIS HERSELF HAS vis-
ited Russia on several occasions.
"I find it to be so rewarding in
terms of trying to understand the
Russians and their approach to
teaching," she said.
Kisselova and Vozhagova both
are from the town of Ekaterin-
burg, formerly known as Sver-
dlovsk, the third largest city in
Russia after Moscow and St. Pe-
tersburg.
This was the first trip to the
U.S. for the Russian women, who
discovered after arriving here
that they are practically neigh-
bors back home.
"We were very excited to find
out that we come from the same
town," said Vozhagova, a petite
blonde woman with piercing blue
eyes. This was only one discovery
in what turned out to be a list of
many during her stay in the U.S.
OF COURSE THEY were
nervous when they first arrived.
Vozhagova shared about crossing
a creek with the children her first
day on campus. A child reached
out a hand to help her across, and
she realized that it felt just like
her own students' hands, "and I
wasn't so nervous anymore."
In observing teaching methods
at Belfair Elementary, Vozhagova
was very impressed with the re-
cent visit students made to the
forest. Fortunately for Vozhago.
va, she was able to observe stu-
dents when they participated in
the fifth-annual Students in the
Watershed program at Tahuya
State Forest.
"This is a wonderful program,"
said Vozhagova "We have forests
all around our city back home and
this is something we could possi.
bly do there as well."
Her counterpart, Kisselova,
was also impressed with the pro-
gram. "I think it is important to
make learning meaningful," she
said. "I think this program cer-
tainly makes it meaningful for
the children."
BOTH RUSSIAN teachers of-
fered their praise of the high-
school students from North Ma-
son who assisted in teaching the
200 fourth-graders from Belfair
and Sand Hill Elementaries dur-
ing the one-day class held at the
Tahuya River Horse Camp.
"They were like university stu-
dents," Vozhagora observed.
"They were very clever and kind,
and showed responsibility for the
younger students. Our students
are not accustomed to making
such judgments and decisions.
Russian students are not so inde-
pendent."
In addition to spending a great
deal of time at Belfair Elementa-
ry with Gaff Davis and other
teachers, the Russians also
availed themselves of the oppor-
tunity to visit other area schools,
including some in Seattle, Olym-
pia, and North Kitsap. "It was
very enlightening to see the vari-
ous schools and the teachers' ap-
proach to teaching at each one,"
said Kisselova.
A 25-year veteran teacher,
Vozhagova explained that prior to
Perestroika (an opening up) and
the dissolve of the Soviet Union,
all classes in Russia were taught
exactly the same. "A student
could move from one city to
another during the middle of the
school year and pick up exactly
where he left off," explained Voz-
hagova. "In some ways, that is
very good for students."
BUT THINGS have changed
with this new openness. Kisselo-
va, who's been a teacher in Rus-
sia for 20 years, said that there
are now several different types of
schools available, some less struc-
tured than others, while some op-
erate like The Evergreen State
College, offering more creative op-
tions for students. But it hasn't
been easy. "Freedom is a very
hard thing," said Kisselova. "You
have to think and choose. It is a
cultural shock to have to decide."
Regardless of the shifting
structure of classes in Russia, one
class is tops in nearly every
school - and that is English. "It is
mandatory for all to learn
English," said Vozhagova. In fact,
in their home town of Ekaterin-
burg, there are no less than five
English language schools.
Off the subject of education,
Kisselova made a few other ob-
servations about America. "I find
recycling to be very good here,"
she said. Kisselova also made
notes from her conversations with
numerous Americans regarding
their feelings on topics like the
best and worst things about the
U.S., impressions of NATO and
the crisis in Kosovo, and whether
bombing in that part of the world
is justified.
Kisselova and Vozhagova re-
turned home a few days ago, tak-
ing with them a host of new ideas
gathered during their two week
visit to the Pacific Northwest.
While in the U.S., each kept a
daily journal that will later be
used in class and for discussion
purposes. "I will most likely share
parts of my journal entries with
fellow teachers and students,"
said Vozhagova.
Kisselova summed up for edu-
cators from both nations, saying,
"We have met teachers with
whom we will have long, long con-
nections. I have new friends now."
Thanks to e-mail, the Russian
women will be able to stay in
touch on a regular basis with
their new American acquain-
tances. Nearly overcome with
emotion, she concluded, "With my
host family, language was not the
most important thing."
Linda Thomson contributed to
this report.
HOFF, 8q2, of Grapeview, has overcome
problems. "He's an absolutely de-
mg man," said Jim Snyder, principal at
ted, so they proceeded with the
delivery. Jonathan weighed 1 Russell receives doctorate
pound, 13 ounces, and was 133/4
inches long at birth.
Then began a lifetime of hospi-
talizations, surgeries and medical
appointments. Regarding all the
help from so many doctors, Jon-
athan remarked, "I wish I could
do something to help them."
"He's a neat kid who carries on
intellectual conversations with
adults," said Jim Snyder, Grape-
view's superintendent/principal.
"He's an absolutely delightful
young man."
For the first three months of
his life, the tiny baby was on a
ventilator. His respiratory system
had not had a chance to develop
yet. There were a number of other
shortcomings in his physical de-
velopment as well.
WHILE HOSPITALIZED at
8 months, his temperature spiked
to 106.8 degrees. The anticipated
four-day stay turned into a month
at Mary Bridge Children's Hospi-
tal in Tacoma.
For about the first half of his
young life, he suffered with
(Please turn to page 3.)
Krystel Russell, a 1993 gradu-
ate of North Mason High School,
will receive her doctorate from
the University of Washington
(UW) School of Pharmacy in
June.
Beginning with the class of
1999, pharmacists are required
by the UW to obtain a doctorate
rather than a Masters. They go
through an intensive four-year
program requiring students to
learn every facet of pharmacy.
The final year, students are re-
quired to perform eight months of
rotations at various institutions.
Russell has worked at the
Puyallup Indian Council, Madi-
gan, St. Joseph and Harrison
Hospitals, and other institutions.
She has been employed as an in-
tern at Group Health in Kitsap
County for the past four years.
Russell passed the Washington
State Pharmacy Board in May to
obtain her pharmacy license. She
plans to work in clinical pharma-
cy.
Russell is the daughter of Don
and Sue Russell of Belfair, and : :
was a recipient of scholarships
from the Nuel Curtis VFW Post
5372 and the Evergreen Garden :
Club.
Krystel Russell
VERA VOZHAGOVA and Vera
weeks visiting from Russia.
Kisselova spent two
Karen Lippy receives
award in excellence
Karen Lippy, science teacher
for North Mason High School
(NMHS) has been selected as a
recipient of the Washington
Award for Excellence in Educa-
tion, awarded by the Superinten.
dent of Public Instruction. She
has been recognized for her out-
standing leadership, contribution
and commitment to education.
The awards ceremony will be
held on Thursday, May 27, in the
House Chambers at the state cap-
itol in Olympia.
Lippy teaches both Aquatic
Worlds and Hood Canal Institute,
the two science courses taught at
the Theler Wetlands classroom. It
has been her mission since join-
ing the NMHS staff in 1984 to
"get students out experiencing
science in the real world," accord-
ing to Principal Mark Flatau.
"Through Karen's leadership and
direction, our students have con-
ducted several scientific research
projects which government agen-
(Please turn to page 3.)