Local team headed to state tourney

“Brighton Stars,” a team of fifth-graders from Brighton School in Mountlake Terrace, won a North Sound Regional Tournament in the Destination Imagination competition, and advanced to compete in the state tournament on March 30 in Kennewick.

The team includes Noah Anderson, Nolan Walsh, Michael Usoltsev, Mia Leguizamon-McLean and Narinayse Vural and their coach Natalia Usoltseva.

Destination Imagination is an educational program where students solve open-ended STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics) and service learning challenges, and then present their solutions at tournaments.

This group choose community service as their challenge for the competition.

Over the few months they had been researching, “The Harms of Smoking and Vaping.” They created an interactive presentation based on their research that was incorporated into a story. Kids designed and created the costumes and props and presented their findings to more than 500 people. They also discussed the benefits of quitting smoking.

They said: “It does not matter that we got a first place in (the) competition. We will win only if everyone who listened to us will never touch a cigarette or vaping device,” according to a news release.

Mukilteo Boys & Girls Club grand opening

A Lifetime of Service award was presented to longtime Mukilteo Boys & Girls Club Club director Chuck Davis, who received a special plaque for his lifetime of dedication to the Mukilteo community and the club. Davis, who grew up and went to high school in Everett, has spent nearly 50 years helping to manage the Mukilteo club and its operations, and has been tirelessly working on the funding for the new building.

The club was named after Paul Shin, former Washington State Senator from the 21st District in Snohomish county. Shin was the first Korean American elected to the Washington State Legislature, and worked tirelessly to secure funding for this club. He had a lasting impact on the entire Mukilteo, Everett and South East Snohomish county communities.

The new facility features programming and activities to meet the changing needs of youth, including a large gymnasium, all-purpose ball fields, a teen center, Comcast Tech Lab, a STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineer, Arts & Mathematics) room to expose kids to robotics and other activities, a community room with an attached kitchen and a games room.

The 18,000-square-foot club is at 10600 47th Place W.

More info: www.imaginemukilteo.com

Lynnwood Kiwanis collect glasses

On March 18, 13 volunteers from Lynnwood Kiwanis, the Mountlake Terrace Key Club and their friends cleaned and packaged 848 pairs of glasses at College Place Optical in Edmonds.

The glasses will be sent to the EyeCare WeCare Foundation, which provides free eyecare and eyeglasses in the Philippines.

College Place Optical invites the public to drop off used eyeglasses with no missing or broken lenses from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays or 9 a.m. to noon Saturdays.

The Kiwanis Club of Lynnwood is a service club that also works with Casino Road Ministries in Everett, providing scholarships for Edmonds School District students, running canned food drives and supporting the Relay For Life Cancer Walk and Clothes For Kids. The club meets at the Lynnwood Fire Station at 7 a.m. Thursdays, and welcomes new members.

More info: www.lynnwoodkiwanis.portalbuzz.com