The Puyallup Herald Blog

The Herald is currently inviting the public to e-mail sports editor Shaun Scott at shaun.scott@puyallupherald.com with sports story ideas for the months of July and August. The Herald welcomes your interest!

For The Herald’s July 1 issue, we will be spotlighting East Pierce residents who have recently become American citizens.  Anyone willing to sit down for an interview and photos with themselves are welcome to contact Reporter Avani Nadkarni at 253-841-2481 ext. 314 or by e-mail at avani.nadkarni@puyallupherald.com as soon as possible.

The June 15 quasi-judicial appeal hearing on the possible expansion of Sumner’s Calvary Community Church caused people to come in droves to City Hall.

Nearly 150 residents packed the overflowing council chambers, many waiting for an hour to get in and emotions ran high. Christina Powers, one of the seven residents formally appealing the conditional use permit that would allow the church to expand in size, even broke down in tears.

“This road (which would be created to allow traffic to enter and exit the expanded church) is going to lead directly to our family rom where our daughter plays,” Powers said, tearing up. “I’m concerned for the safety of my family.”

Church attorney Jack McCullough said that while he understands the resident concerns, there are no laws prohibiting the church from following through on their expansion.

For the full story, see the June 24 issue of The Herald.

It sounds hards to believe, but the prep football season is right around the corner. Football programs across East Pierce County are in the midst of spring football practice sessions this week in preparation for the opening of camp in August.

Be sure to check out the June 17th issue of The Herald to see spring football practice reports on the Emerald Ridge Jaguars, Sumner Spartans and Rogers Rams.

The races for Puyallup’s three open council seats heated up within the last week as the filing deadline with the Pierce County Auditor’s Office came and went.

In District 1, incumbent and Deputy Mayor George Dill will be looking for a second term but will get competition from Tony Aho, chairman of the city’s parks and recreation board, and Chris Weltzer, a Graham insurance representative who has been attending council meetings for the past two years.

District 2 will see incumbent Rick Hansen pushed by Christopher Taylor, a retired Tacoma police detective who worked some with Puyallup Councilmember John Knutsen during his days on the force, and Louise Workman, a freelance private investigator.

The council is guaranteed to gain one new face this fall as incumbent Mike Deal won’t run for a sixth term. The first-time candidates are entrepreneur and ex-Army Ranger John Alexander, radio personality and parks board member Kent Boyle, and Nicolla Tebao, an online instructor with the University of Phoenix.

The Herald will finish up its series of candidate profiles in two upcoming issues by talking with Boyle, Taylor and Workman. Past portraits of other candidates are available on The Herald Web site.

Vitt Ferrucci, who spent 38 years on the Puyallup School Board, passed away this week at the age of 90. Puyallup’s Ferrucci Junior High School was named in his honor in 1982.

Ferrucci was appointed to the school board in 1957 and successfully ran for re-election nine times, eventually leaving the board in 1995. A graduate of Washington State University, Ferrucci was also a longtime local veterinarian, running his own practice for 41 years. Ferrucci’s wife, Mary, preceded him in death in 2005.

For The Herald’s June 17 issue, we will be spotlighting Father’s Day. We are looking for dads who will be celebrating their first Father’s Day this year…in other words, anyone who has become a dad since Father’s Day 2008. Anyone willing to sit down for an interview and photos with themselves and their baby are welcome to contact Reporter Neil Pierson at 253-841-2481 ext. 313 or by e-mail at neil.pierson@puyallupherald.com. The deadline for submissions is next Friday, June 5. Any e-mails need to include contact information for the new dad.

For this month’s Student Spotlight feature, which will appear in Wednesday’s paper, The Herald interviewed a dazzling young lady named Alex Mattich, a ninth-grader at Ferrucci Junior High School. Ferrucci’s loss next year will be Emerald Ridge High School’s gain.

The 1971 Puyallup boys basketball team will be inducted into the Tacoma-Pierce County Sports Hall of Fame at 5:30 p.m. on June 4 at the Tacoma Dome. For more information about acquiring tickets to the event, contact Marc Blau at blaumarc@qwest.net or by phone at 253-677-2872.

Issaquah advanced to the second round of the Class 4A soccer state playoffs registering a 2-1 victory against Rogers in a loser-out state tournament game on May 19 at Issaquah High School.

Rogers didn’t get on the board until Stephen Dutson scored in the 63rd minute after receiving a pass from Josh Carbullido. The Rams had a few more opportunities to tie the game up in the final 17 minutes, but were unable to cash in on those chances.

For more on this story, be sure to check out the May 27 issue of Puyallup Herald.