News in Brief

Deception uncovered
After sending the police on a wild goose chase, the manager of the Northwoods Motel finally broke down and confessed to police that he did, indeed, steal money from the motel. On April 9, the motel manager reported a robbery at the motel claiming a black male had entered inquiring about room rates and then demanded money from him. Brian K. Bolieu, age 34, was arrested and booked into jail on Friday, April 16 after detective Daniel Sartain’s investigation uncovered inconsistencies in the statements the manager had made to police.
Bolieu was charged with felony theft and false reporting violations and is being held at Whatcom County Jail.

Farmers market reopening
The Birch Bay Farmers Market is back for its second year and promises to be better than ever. Opening day is May 6 and will run through October 21. The market is located at Birch Bay Garden Center, 5087 Lincoln Road.
Owner Kathy Norman has been in contact with more suppliers this spring and hopes to have additional vendors at the venue to add variety. Customers will be able to purchase fresh from the fields fruits and vegetables.
The market is open every Thursday from 3-7 p.m.

Dean’s lists announced
The quarterly dean’s lists have been released by the University of Washington and Seattle Pacific University. To make the dean’s list, a student must get a grade average of 3.5 or better and be enrolled in at least 12 credits.
At the University of Washington, Joseph Ryan Button, Brian Chang, Charles Chris Chang, Kevin Michael Hastings, Sarah Shore, and Eythor Clinton Westman all made the list. At Seattle Pacific University, Shannon Maria Colacurcio and Julianne Erin Gibson made the list.

City announces new recycling program
The city of Blaine has been recycling empty printer cartridges and used cell phones in an effort to keep these items out of landfills. As a reward for their efforts the participants in the Funding Factory Recycling Program are earning free playground equipment.
The cartridges and cell phones collected by the city are sent to Funding Factory, where the cartridges are inspected and then sold to reputable recycling companies to be remanufactured. These cartridges are later sold to secondary markets, including retailers and office supply stores.
Cell phones that enter the Funding Factory warehouse are either donated to nonprofit markets such as women’s shelters, sold to refurbishers who sell them back into the domestic market, or sold to foreign markets.
The city of Blaine is among more than 24,000 organizations nationwide that are helping the environment by collecting empty laser and inkjet cartridges and used cell phones from the community and sending the waste products to Funding Factory. They are putting a dent in the more than 300 million cartridges and 30 million cell phones that are thrown away each year.
Companies interested in demonstrating a commitment to the environment can participate free of charge in the Funding Factory Business Support Program. Funding Factory will send each supporting business free, postage-paid shipping boxes for the return of collected cartridges and cell phones. Plus they will be helping the environment by keeping those waste products out of landfills.
Community and business supporters can also drop off cartridges and cell phones at city hall.
To learn more about supporting the city of Blaine, please call Cheryl at 332-8311, cfishcher@cityofblaine.com. For more information, visit www.FundingFactory.com or call, toll-free, 800/888-8237.