SEATTLE — Summer reservations for the Port Townsend/Coupeville and Anacortes/Sidney, B.C., state ferry routes will be available starting today.
The Washington State Ferries’ online vehicle reservation system crashed last week because it couldn’t handle the large volume of customers hoping to make summer reservations.
To avoid a repeat of that system failure, officials will release summer reservations to and from the San Juan Islands in smaller segments.
They hope this will help shorten the wait times online and on the phone.
Officials estimate that tens of thousands of customers tried to access the site April 14.
The system confirmed only 4,441 reservations before shutting down.
Officials say the new program will allow them to provide better customer service.
The Anacortes/San Juan Islands summer schedule runs from June 14 to Sept. 19.
The first third of space on all sailings will be released in six increments. Those release dates start April 28.
Earth Day fete
PORT ANGELES — The Earth Stewardship Ministry at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church invites the public to its special Earth Day celebration and lunch at 11 a.m. today.
The Rev. Pam Hunter of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Forks will be the guest celebrant, while the Rev. Dr. John Maxwell will be the homilist at St. Andrew’s, 510 E. Park Ave.
Right after the service, a lunch featuring locally grown produce will be served at no charge.
Then at 12:45 p.m., Bob Lynette, a local man who has received the “Energy Pioneer” award from the U.S. Department of Energy, will give a talk on energy and climate change.
For more information, phone St. Andrew’s at 360-457-4862.
Human trafficking
PORT ANGELES — Andrea Krook, marketing director for The Genesis Project, will speak about human trafficking at the Port Angeles Senior & Community Center, 328 E. Seventh St., from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. today.
This event is hosted by Olympic Peninsula Soroptimist clubs.
A suggested $10 donation will go to The Genesis Project and Soroptimist International of the Americas for programs to help women and girls.
Attendees will learn about The Genesis Project, a shelter and drop-in center with the mission of helping young women out of commercial sexual exploitation, as well as GP Java, The Genesis Project’s coffee stand on International Boulevard in Seatac.
Its purpose is threefold: to offer further job training and provide paychecks for survivors, to provide sustainable income for The Genesis Project’s drop-in center and to promote The Genesis Project’s anti-trafficking efforts through citizen consumerism.
If you suspect human trafficking, phone the confidential National Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-373-7888.
Library board meet
PORT ANGELES — The board that oversees the public libraries in Clallam County will consider policies concerning library partnerships and gifts and donations when it meets Thursday.
The North Olympic Library System board will meet at 5:30 p.m. at the Port Angeles Library, 2210 S. Peabody St.
The board oversees public libraries in Port Angeles, Sequim, Clallam Bay and Forks.
Reception Friday
PORT TOWNSEND — A free opening reception for the new “Art in the Library” show at the Port Townsend Library and nearby venues is set for this Friday evening.
Art lovers are invited to the event from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the library, 1220 Lawrence St.
“This is a very lively and thought-provoking show with lots of color and variety. I can’t wait for Port Townsend Public Library patrons to see it,” said coordinator Polly Lyle.
A volunteer at the Northwind Arts Center in downtown Port Townsend, Lyle has worked with the library staff to mount the show in three spaces: the Carnegie Library itself, its annex and the Charles Pink House Library Learning Center nearby at 1256 Lawrence St.
Northwind has selected work by Jefferson County artists Linda Jarvis, Kathy Constantine, Wanda Mawhinney, Julia A. Eastberg, Mitchel Osborne and Counsel Langley for the show, which will stay up through July 17.
The exhibit of Jason Gould’s Port Townsend art, titled “Dream City,” will also stay on display in the Pink House through mid-July.
For more details, phone the library at 360-385-3181.
Auditions set
CARLSBORG — Auditions for “Redeeming Hope,” a play about the conflicts between belief, science and faith, are set for this Friday at Eastern Hills Community Church, 91 Savannah Lane.
Adults and children age 8 to 12 are encouraged to try out between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. Friday.
Eight roles are available in this drama about a terminally ill cancer patient and the relationships among a hospital’s staff and the people in their care.
For more information, see www.FishnetTheatre.com.
Civic center bricks
SEQUIM — The deadline to buy an engraved commemorative brick paver for the community plaza at the Sequim Civic Center now under construction has been extended to April 29.
Submissions turned in by that time will be included in the initial installation of the plaza. The project is expected to be completed by the middle of this year.
Each 7.5-square-inch brick costs $100. They can be engraved with three lines with up to 13 characters per line. They will be installed on the floor of the $466,982 plaza.
The $14.5 million civic center replaces the 1973 City Hall at 152 W. Cedar St.
To purchase a brick paver, visit the city administration office at 226 N. Sequim Ave. on Mondays through Fridays between 7:30 a.m. and 4 p.m.
For more information, contact City Clerk Karen Kuznek-Reese at 360-681-3428 or kkuznek@sequimwa.gov.
Airport security
SEATTLE — Officials are tightening security for airline and airport employees at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport after a baggage handler in Atlanta was accused of smuggling guns on to a plane.
KIRO TV reported that the Transportation Security Administration also will conduct criminal background checks for aviation workers, including airline employees.
Workers will now have to pass through screening before they board a flight.
The number of access points to secure areas also will be reduced.
Scholarship offered to high schoolers
PORT ANGELES — The Olympic Peninsula chapter of the Surfrider Foundation is offering Clallam and Jefferson County high school seniors the opportunity to apply for a $500 scholarship.
The application deadline is Saturday and requires students to write a 500- to 700-word essay answering one of two questions.
For more information and to view the scholarship application, visit http://olympicpeninsula.surfrider.org.
The scholarship was created to promote more interest in marine and beach focused stewardship, as well as reward an area student who has already been active or taken an interest in working for a healthier environment.
For more information about the scholarship or general inquiries, email opcsurfrider@gmail.com.
Seeds support bees
PORT ANGELES — The Clallam County Noxious Weed Board is offering free seed packets of noninvasive flower mix seeds that attract bees, butterflies and other pollinators to control noxious weeds.
Certain weeds can provide pollen and nectar sources for honeybees but are capable of spreading beyond their intended area, ruining pastures, displacing native plants, disrupting riverbed habitat for fish and damaging infrastructure.
The seed packets are available at the WSU Extension and community development offices, located in the Clallam County Courthouse, 223 E. Fourth St.; the Conservation District office, 228 W. First St.; and the city halls in Port Angeles, 321 E. Fifth St., and Forks, 500 E. Division St.
Packets also will be given away at the Master Gardener Foundation plant sale, 2711 Woodcock Road, on Saturday, May 2.
The seed packets contain seeds for lupine, sunflower, coreopsis, purple coneflower, crimson clover, lemon mint, bee balm, butterfly milkweed and other species.
For more information, phone Cathy Lucero at 360-417-2442 or 360-417-2279.
Grange flea market
SEQUIM — The Sequim Prairie Grange Flea Market and Bake Sale will be held Saturday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
There will be lots of vendors, and lunch will be available.
The grange hall is located at 290 Macleay Road.
Spring plant sale
SEQUIM — The Sequim Prairie Garden Club will hold its annual spring plant sale at Pioneer Memorial Park, 387 E. Washington St., from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday.
There will be a selection of tomatoes, veggie starts, perennials, annuals, shrubs, trees, garden art, baked goods, raffles and more.
Proceeds go to scholarships and for maintenance and beautification of Pioneer Memorial Park.
For more information about the club, membership, programs and clubhouse rental, phone 360-808-3434 or email sequimprairiegardenclub@hotmail.com.
