THIS WEEK’S BUSINESS meetings on the North Olympic Peninsula (all are open to the public):
■ Port Angeles Regional Chamber of Commerce — Weekly luncheon meetings are held Mondays at noon in the second-floor meeting room of the Red Lion Hotel, 221 N. Lincoln St.
This Monday’s luncheon — the final one of the year — will review tourism details and marketing for 2013 and provide a glimpse into 2014.
Panelists will be Barb Maynes, Olympic National Park communications director; Ryan Malane, Black Ball Ferry Line marketing vice president; and Russ Veenema, chamber executive director.
Tickets for the luncheon are $15 and can be purchased from the meeting room cashier.
For those not having lunch, there is a $3 participation fee that includes a beverage.
The chamber will take a holiday break from Monday meetings Dec. 23 and 30, then resume Jan. 6 with its annual meeting for chamber members.
■ Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce — Weekly luncheon meetings are held Mondays at noon at the Port Townsend Elks Lodge, 555 Otto St.
This Monday’s program will feature Rich Stewart, Chimacum School District superintendent.
Lunch at $8 will be catered by Subway. The meeting sponsor will be Uptown Nutrition.
The chamber won’t meet Dec. 23 and 30, resuming its weekly Monday schedule Jan. 6 with a program by Peter Schrappen, government affairs director for the Seattle-based Northwest Marine Trade Association.
■ Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce — Luncheon meetings are normally held the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month at noon at SunLand Golf & Country Club, 109 Hilltop Drive, Sequim, but there will be no meeting Dec. 24 because of Christmas.
This Tuesday, the chamber will host its annual “after hours” holiday event at the chamber office, 1192 E. Washington St.
The 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. gathering will feature Santa Claus and refreshments.
Further information is available by phoning the chamber at 360-683-6197 or by emailing info@sequimchamber.com.
■ Forks Chamber of Commerce — Luncheon meetings are Wednesdays at noon at JT’s Sweet Stuffs, 80 N. Forks Ave.
Featured speaker this Wednesday will be Eduardo Jaramillo, director of the Bachelor of Applied Science in Applied Management program for Peninsula College.
Lunch costs $8; a bowl of soup, $4.75; and a cup of soup, $4. The entree is “grandma’s chicken.”
Wednesday’s chamber luncheon will be the finale for 2013; the chamber won’t meet Dec. 25 or Jan. 1.
■ North Hood Canal Chamber of Commerce — Representing the “Emerald Towns” of the Hood Canal, Quilcene and Brinnon, the chamber meets usually monthly on the third Monday of the month.
However, the December gathering was held last week and consisted of a holiday mixer Thursday night.
The next meeting, Jan. 20, will feature a program by Bob Bindschadler, one of Quilcene’s newest residents who is recently retired as senior fellow at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.
■ Port Angeles Business Association — Breakfast meetings normally are Tuesdays at 7:30 a.m. at Joshua’s Restaurant, 113 DelGuzzi Drive, Port Angeles.
This Tuesday’s meeting — the finale for 2013 — will be PABA’s annual Christmas party and will begin at 7 a.m. Guests will include members of the Port Angeles U.S. Border Patrol detachment.
There is a $3 minimum charge by Joshua’s for those who do not order breakfast.
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Jobless workers will lose federal benefits
OLYMPIA — The state Employment Security Department said an estimated 25,000 jobless workers — including 217 in Clallam County and 90 in Jefferson County — will get cut off from unemployment insurance benefits when a federal program ends Dec. 28.
Currently, up to 63 weeks of jobless benefits are available in Washington state, including 26 weeks of regular benefits and 37 weeks of federally funded emergency unemployment benefits.
Although Congress has extended the federal program 11 times in the past five years and has paid out about $6.3 billion to more than 452,000 jobless workers in Washington state, there is “no indication it will be reauthorized again,” the state Employment Security Department said in a statement last week.
The department will use email, robocalls and direct mail to remind those receiving federally funded jobless benefits that the program shuts down Dec. 28.
After that date, only 26 weeks of regular benefits will remain available for Washington workers who haven’t already exhausted them.
Energy Lunch on Tuesday
PORT TOWNSEND — Stephen Crolius, head of the Clean Tech practice at Alliance Consulting Group in Boston, will speak at this month’s Jefferson County Energy Lunch program on Tuesday (Dec, 17).
The brown-bag lunch is held on the third Tuesday each month at the Port Townsend Community Center, 620 Tyler St., from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.
It is free and open to the public.
Crolius recently returned to Alliance after six years with the Clinton Climate Initiative, where he led a program that focused on reducing the carbon intensity of transportation fuels and propulsion systems.
His talk will focus on how Jefferson County can move away from fossil fuels to local energy, and what that energy mix might look like in 2025.
Crolius posits that electricity and anhydrous ammonia will be primary local energy forms in the near future.
He has advocated for anhydrous ammonia on the global stage for many years, describing this energy form as “the other hydrogen” because hydrogen-based ammonia has none of the major problems of storage, flammability or handling attached to pure hydrogen, he says.
Anhydrous ammonia can provide alternative fuels for transportation and heating and be a means of storing excess electric power.
These brown-bag lunches are aimed at increasing awareness of how energy, energy technology and energy policy affect life and business in Jefferson County.
The programs are sponsored by Power Trip Energy Corp., Sunshine Propane, Alaska Power & Telephone Co., the Port of Port Townsend, Frederickson Electric, Port Townsend Paper Corp. and Huber’s Inn, and produced with the assistance of Local 20/20’s Energy Action Group, the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce and WSU Jefferson County Extension.
Learn more and view the video archive of past programs at tinyurl.com/pdn-energylunch.
Asian Buffet opens
PORT ANGELES — Asian Buffet has opened in Port Angeles Plaza at 1940 E. First St., Suite 160.
More than 200 all-you-can-eat items are offered daily, including Chinese cuisine, Mongolian grill items, sushi and desserts.
Items are cooked in 100 percent vegetable oil, and no MSG -— monosodium glutamate — is used, the restaurant’s owners said.
Asian Buffet is open seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and from 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
A 10 percent discount is available for seniors. The restaurant also will be open Christmas Day.
For more information, phone the restaurant at 360-797-1882.
Lavender oil wins at national conclave in Virginia
SEQUIM — Lavender oil produced by Sequim Lavender Growers Association members Julie and Mike Greenhaw was selected as Best Lavender Oil at the United States Lavender Growers Association’s national conference in Richmond, Va.
The award was judged by nearly 200 lavender growers, enthusiasts and entrepreneurs.
The Greenhaws are the owners of Martha Lane Lavender.
Mike is president of the growers association.
In addition, the Greenhaws won in another category for best photograph of a working lavender farm.
“This recognition is gratifying and reassuring that we are doing things properly — cultivating selected plants, adhering to certified organic standards and taking the necessary and patient steps in distilling our crops in specially made copper distilling apparatus,” said Mike.
“The growers association is our inspiration,” said Julie. “Collectively, this group is the trendsetter as a promoter of agri-tourism and producer of high-quality lavender.
They’ve kept us competitive and on an even keel without cutting corners.”
PA chamber hires Web, membership services manager
PORT ANGELES — Charlie Comstock has been hired as the new Web and membership services manager for the Port Angeles Regional Chamber of Commerce.
With a focus on the tourism industry, Comstock will manage the Internet and social media presence for the chamber.
Comstock also will work as the primary contact for new members and membership upgrades. He will assist in the coordination of special events throughout the year including the fourth Seafood Festival, Ride the Hurricane and Concerts on the Pier.
“Charlie brings to the chamber a comprehensive understanding of business communications issues and an extensive background in business marketing and advertising,” said chamber Executive Director Russ Veenema.
As the primary contact for the chamber’s Ambassador Committee and the Peninsula Young Professionals Network, Comstock also will participate in the welcoming of new businesses into the community.
A graduate of Texas Tech University, Comstock’s experience spans a variety of industries, including publishing, advertising, composites, outdoor sporting goods and tourism.
His more recent work with Port Angeles’ Victoria Express and Expeditions NW allowed Comstock to work with the various local and regional tourism organizations.
“I look forward to working closely with Port Angeles’s business community to ensure an economic vitality of the Olympic Peninsula,” Comstock said.
A resident of the Clallam County for the past 10 years, Comstock’s interests include hiking and stereoscopic photography. He recently opened a 3-D photography gallery InSpired! Gifts, 124 W. First St. in Port Angeles.
Manager, VP appointed at Kitsap Bank
PORT ORCHARD — Kitsap Bank has named Paul Sabado as senior vice president and Small Business Administration, or SBA, manager.
Sabado comes to the bank with more than 39 years of experience in business banking, commercial lending and SBA lending.
He has spent his career in the Puget Sound marketplace, most recently as president and CEO of Pacific International Bank.
Sabado is a graduate of the University of Washington, the National Commercial Lending School, Northwest Banking School and Pacific Coast Banking School.
“Paul brings an extensive range of experience and a wealth of knowledge in SBA lending,” said Steve Politakis, chief executive officer.
“He is dedicated to providing the personalized customer service that is Kitsap Bank’s hallmark. We are very pleased to welcome him to the team.”
Kitsap Bank has locations in Port Angeles, Sequim and Port Townsend.
Federal conservation program
SPOKANE — The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service has announced the beginning of the fiscal year 2014 enrollment period for the Conservation Stewardship Program for 2014.
Now through Jan. 17, producers interested in participating in the program may submit applications to NRCS.
“Through the CSP, farmers, ranchers and forest landowners are going the extra mile to install innovative conservation practices on their lands,” NRCS state conservationist Roylene Rides at the Door said.
“With their additional conservation actions, landowners are ensuring that their operations are more productive and sustainable now and into the future.”
CSP is a farm bill conservation program that helps established conservation stewards “take their natural resource management to the next level to improve both agricultural production and provide valuable conservation benefits such as cleaner and more abundant water, as well as healthier soils and better wildlife habitat.”
The program emphasizes conservation performance.
For more information on CSP, visit www.nrcs.usda.gov.
Licensing exam passed
PORT ANGELES — Erika Kerschner, the newest staff member at Callis & Associates Insurance, 806 S. Vine St., has passed the Washington State Property and Casualty licensing exam.
Kerschner recently was licensed for life, health and disability insurance and has been working with customers since September as a certified producer for the wahealthplanfinder.org health insurance exchange.
She is able to assist customers in placing coverage for their auto, home, boat and other personal lines of coverage.
Kerschner previously worked as an underwriter for a major insurance carrier in California.
For more information, visit the office or phone Kerschner at 360-452-2314.
New mini-storage
SEQUIM — All Safe Mini Storage has added a new mini-storage location at 710 Washington Place on the east side of Sequim.
The Washington Place facility has three one-story buildings containing 70 storage units.
It will be managed from the All Safe Mini Storage main office at 101 Grant Road.
Office hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays.
All Safe also sells a variety of packing supplies. For more information, phone All Safe at 360-683-6646.
New skin-care line
PORT TOWNSEND —Licensed esthetician Jennie Townsan recently launched her new natural, organic and “wild-crafted” skin-care line, LilaJune Skincare, named for her youngest daughter.
“Our natural ingredients promote healthier and younger-looking skin, leaving a rejuvenated and invigorated you,” Townsan said.
LilaJune Skincare is available for purchase at Posh Hair Salon and Day Spa in the Flagship Landing building at 1025 Water St. or at Uptown Nutrition at the corner of Lawrence and Tyler streets.
It’s also available at www.LilaJuneSkincare.com along with more information about the product line.
To contact Townsan, email jennie@lilajuneskincare.com.
Business owner to speak
SEQUIM — Mindi Blanchard, owner and founder of Bridge Builders Ltd., will be a speaker at the Third World Congress on Adult Guardianship in Arlington, Va., on May 28-30.
Bridge Builders Ltd. is a 10-year-old guardianship, care-management and fiduciary agency located in Sequim and serving Clallam, Jefferson and Kitsap counties.
The World Congress on Adult Guardianship is an international gathering of guardianship advocates.
Blanchard is also developing The Guardian Institute to provide support services for professional and lay guardians, including establishing a foundation to help with the needs of low-income adults who are involved in a guardianship.
For more information, phone 360-683-8334, email info@bridgebldrs.com or visit www.bridgebldrs.com.
Practitioner joins Sequim sleep center
SEQUIM — Marna Butler is now seeing patients at Olympic Medical Sleep Center in Sequim.
Butler joins center medical director Dr. Michael McDonald in providing care for patients who may suffer from disruptive sleep disorders, specifically insomnia.
Butler and Clinical Sleep Educator Lindsay Johnson will provide cognitive behavioral therapy for patients suffering from insomnia.
“Marna is an excellent resource for sleep health education, as well as a quality provider of sleep medicine,” McDonald said.
As a registered nurse for more than 30 years, Butler obtained her nurse practitioner credentials to allow her to provide more advanced care to patients.
“As a nurse practitioner, I have the opportunity to spend time with patients, listen to their concerns and work with each patient to develop a plan to address their specific needs,” said Butler.
“I work with a strong sleep center team and my patients’ referring physicians to provide coordinated care for our mutual patients.”
Certified by the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, Butler received training at Idaho State University.
Butler is accepting referrals for all sleep disorder conditions.
For more information on sleep medicine services or to make an appointment, phone 360-582-4200.
Chiropractor retires
PORT ANGELES — Chiropractor Lee Jacobson will retire from Angeles Chiropractic effective Dec. 20.
Jim Halberg will be taking over his practice.
As a way of saying “thank you,” Jacobson will give free adjustments at Halberg Chiropractic Clinic, 430 E. Lauridsen Blvd., all day Thursday.
To make an appointment, phone 360-457-3430.
Grill’s winter hours
SEQUIM — Winter hours for the Dockside Grill at John Wayne Marina have been set.
The restaurant is open Wednesday through Sundays from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. for lunch and 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. for dinner with happy hour from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
The restaurant will be closed Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
It is open for New Year’s Eve on Tuesday, Dec. 31, and will be closed from Jan. 1-7.
For more information or reservations, phone 360-683-7510.
Therapist earns art certification
SEQUIM — Sequim resident Kristin Warner has completed the process required to become a board-certified art therapist through the Art Therapy Credentials Board Inc.
Employed by Peninsula Behavioral Health as a child mental health specialist, Warner, a licensed mental health counselor, joins a group of about 2,600 art therapists worldwide who hold this distinction.
Warner earned a master’s degree in psychology at Antioch University in Seattle in 2008 through the Child, Couple, Family and Art Therapy program.
Art therapy uses the process of artmaking to promote the physical, mental and emotional well-being of individuals.
Warner earned the registered art therapist credential in 2012.
Preschool to open
QUILCENE — Beginning Jan. 7, a new Quilcene preschool will open for 3- to 6-year-olds at the First Presbyterian Church, 294433 U.S. Highway 101.
The preschool will offer classes from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
Proprietor and teacher Viviann Kuehl is a state-certified teacher with a primary special education endorsement.
She will be drawing on more than 20 years of experience in cooperative preschool, public school, ECEAP and Waldorf school to create a appropriate curriculum for 3- to 6-year-olds.
“Preschool is my passion, and it’s a great fit for me,” said Kuehl. “I love enhancing the children’s amazing natural learning at this age. It’s great to see the enthusiasm of students and families.”
Each day starts and ends with a circle time and includes a nature walk, classroom activities, free play, snack, lunch and storytime.
Cost is $150 per month, including snacks and materials.
For information and enrollment, phone 360-765-4321.
