Rod Parr displays the Golden Shovel Award

Generally when you hear the punch line “location, location, location” it has to do with the three most important criteria for choosing residential real estate.

What Rod Parr, owner of Bremerton’s Parr Ford-Parr Mazda and Parr Imports, discovered is that the same issues concerning quality of location held true for his business as well. read more »

“If we’re seeing any real trend right now,” said Reijnen, “it’s towards more expensive, more complex homes. Our clients and their architects are asking for home designs that have a complexity that used to be found in exclusive areas such as Mercer Island…they’re now looking for that same level of design here on Kitsap.”

The economy, Reijnen says, doesn’t seem to be having much of an impact on his company’s business, at least not in the residential market. “What we’re not seeing happen is a trend toward smaller homes and that surprises me,” said Reijnen. read more »

At eight years of age, Silverdale resident Ken Perry knew a lucrative business when he saw one. Today, at age thirty-five, Perry still knows better than to yawn when it comes to someone’s lawn. The business acumen he developed at age eight while mowing neighbors’ lawns for cash is the same acumen — enhanced by a degree in industrial psychology — that enables him to manage Team Innovative Services, a million-dollar a year landscape maintenance and management company. read more »

Although it might seem incongruous for a child to grow up in what’s traditionally been known as a “retirement home,” for Kitsap County business owner Rick Krueger it set the stage for his future career.

Krueger, his wife Leslie and Krueger’s parents, Les and Betty, own and operate five individual assisted living, independent living and nursing care facilities in Kitsap, Mason and Jefferson counties. read more »

One of the positive things that came to the light in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in Washington DC and New York City was the importance of community and the role that organizations — many of them non-profits — play in the communities we reside in.

Within Kitsap County, one of those organizations is Kitsap Mental Health Services, a non-profit agency providing educational programs, crisis counseling and in-center and out-patient treatment for youth, adults, seniors and families affected by mental illness. read more »

Barbara Stephenson

The statistics thrown out by the media in the weeks following the September 11 acts of terrorism in New York City and Washington DC were daunting.

From pints of blood needed to the numbers of people being assisted by the Red Cross, from relief dollars raised by the general public to the number of individuals taking advantage of mental health and crisis call centers, the specialty relief agencies who were in a position to step in during this national — and global — emergency were in the limelight as never before. read more »

Although they may be four-legged instead of two, the patients of Dr. William K. Holt get the same kind of quality dental and medical care as his two-legged clients get from their HMO’s.

Perhaps better.

Holt, who purchased the 54-year old Kitsap Veterinary Hospital in 1972 and now runs the hospital with partner Dr. Denny Christman and associate Dr. Sarah Buck King, claims that each patient is treated not as a member of a human household but as a member of a family. read more »

For 29-year old Shelley Ferguson, the best part of working at Thrift, Gift and Garden is the opportunity to meet people. “I like the people I work with…and the people who come in the store. I like to keep it all neat and clean so that people will come in.”

Shelley, who works part-time at the Port Orchard thrift store, is a terrific success story. As part of her on-site training with Peninsula Services, a not-for-profit Certified Rehabilitation Program, Shelley has learned to accept donations and prepare them for resale, maintain the store’s appearance and assist retail customers. read more »

Mention the words “timber” and “timber sales” here in the Pacific Northwest and most people immediately think of the professional Goliaths, names like Weyerhaeuser, Boise Cascade and Plum Creek.

But a surprising amount of the timber cutting and timber sales here in the Puget Sound region takes place on privately owned property, either owned by an individual, a commercial or residential developer or even a camp or retreat property operated for youths or church members. read more »