REPORTER
Mercer Island
Wednesday, January 2, 2013 | 75¢
Serving the Mercer Island community since 1947
Long haul begins for Hurricane Sandy victims
Tree recycling Want to recycle your Christmas tree now that the holiday is over? The Mercer Island boys lacrosse program is still picking up trees on Mercer Island to be recycled. Make a reservation at www. mercerislandlacrosse.com. Trees should be set by the curb by 9 a.m. Tie a donation (suggested $20) to the tree. Trees will be picked up on Jan. 5-6.
The numbers tell the story of online reading By Reporter Staff
The regular Thursday meeting of the Mercer Island Kiwanis is set for noon, Jan. 10, at Aljoya. The meeting will include a special presentation by Robert Munger about piloting U-2 surveillance aircraft during the Cold War. The public is invited. Please RSVP by emailing hdingwall@msn.com or calling Dr. Harry Dingwall at (206) 232-0672 before noon on Wednesday, Jan. 9.
Chamber meeting Thursday, Jan. 10 The Mercer Island Chamber of Commerce will hold its first 2013 meeting on Thursday, Jan. 10, at noon at the Mercer Island Community and Event Center. The lunch will feature King County Executive Dow Constantine and Deputy King County Executive Fred Jarrett. The lunch is $15 for members and $20 for nonmembers. RSVP by Jan. 7 by calling (206) 232-3404 or by emailing info@mercerislandchamberofcommerce.org.
Photo by Liz Roll/FEMA
Piles of debris remain weeks after Hurricane Sandy flooded these homes in New Jersey. FEMA is working with state and local officials to assist residents who were affected by Hurricane Sandy.
Islanders at Sandy work, drive, pray Islander Jim Pearman and former resident Tom Joyce are on the ground with FEMA in New Jersey By Mary L. Grady
editor@mi-reporter.com
It was supposed to be a threeor four-week deployment for former mayor-turned-consultant, Jim Pearman. A FEMA reservist, Pearman left just after Thanksgiving for the East Coast to help run FEMA operations after the Hurricane Sandy storm. But, he missed Christmas here at home with his wife and two daughters. Stationed in New Jersey, Pearman has run into a former Island neighbor, Tom Joyce, a
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emergency management as a Peace Corps volunteer in 1961. From there he joined other service organizations such as VISTA and Americorps. He has worked for the federal government for 39 years, he noted, primarily in 20-year resident of the Island who emergency management. He now retired and moved to Bend, Ore., organizes volunteers in a new organization called FEMA Corps, several years ago. The days have been long, and a national service program for young adults who are trained the work is nonto work in disaster stop. areas. Talking by Joyce explained phone, the pair, that he has worked who were joined 34 disasters in 13 by a FEMA comyears for FEMA munications offisince his so-called cer, did not sound retirement. The devweary even after Tom Joyce, FEMA astation brought by Former Islander yet another storm Hurricane Sandy is had pounded the second only to that Jersey shore just hours before. They work out of a huge opera- caused by Hurricane Katrina, he tions facility in Lindcroft, that said. According to reports, Sandy houses over 2,000 FEMA employbecame the largest Atlantic hurees and volunteers. Joyce, who has been in New ricane on record (as measured Jersey since the storm hit, start- by diameter, with winds spanning
“Of 34 disasters in 13 years, Sandy is second only to Katrina.”
ed out his career in service and
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The Mercer Island City Council will hold its first meeting of 2013 on Monday, Jan. 7. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall.
It is the click of a mouse or the flick of a finger across an iPhone that tells us what Islanders want to know. In 2012, the most-read stories on the Mercer Island Reporter website were about accidents, tragedy and crime. Data collected by Google on the number of page views for each story on the Mercer Island Reporter website offers a snapshot of what topics held the attention of Islanders this past year. Through Dec. 26, the 20 stories with the highest number of page views on www.mi-reporter. com included a real estate sale, teen drinking parties and accidents. Five of the top-read stories
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