2006 MS Walk

Thanks to the generous help of many friends,
we were able to walk in two different cities and make a
combined donation of $580 to the National MS Society this year!

 

We are back again in Tacoma's beautiful Point Defiance Park. A little drizzly this year, but we don't care! We are Washingtonians! And besides, the Klingons were back to assist us with bottled water and such. They are really sweet. That's me in blue, my son Sam on the left, and our favorite Klingon on the right.

This year she had a targ with her. That's a Klingon monster-dog. See it? With the row of large spines on its back?

(Click on any image for a larger view.)

That's our friend Gary on the right. He joined us in the walk again this year. MS Walks are a fun way to spend some time with a friend! And that's a new Klingon with him.

Now, honestly. Why do Klingons have such a rough reputation? Look at that gentle little Klingon!

Gary is petting the targ.

Gary shows the Littlest Klingon a photo he just captured on his "communicator." Notice in the larger photo that the "shuttlecraft" in the background lists a destination of "special." Right on!
OK, this Klingon does look a bit formidable.

And they are off! the crowd surges past the Japanese Pavillion and under the cherry blossoms.

There was an excellent turnout in Tacoma this year in spite of the drizzly weather.
Note the crowd snaking back around the curves of Five Mile Drive.
Here's the balloon-arch finish line . Lots of earthling dogs do the walk, too.

Luckily for us, the Salem Oregon MS Walk was scheduled for a different Saturday from the Tacoma walk. So we went down to Salem to walk with my big brother Paul and his family.

Sam did the Tacoma walk, but my elder sone Isaac came with me to Salem. That's me in the back row left, and Isaac back row right. Brother Paul is in the center. His wife Karen is on the right, and their daughter Katy is on the left. We are under the starting balloon arch. Tacoma had a red balloon arch and Salem had a white and green balloon arch. If there is a color code to these things, I'm not aware of the significance.

There is a cool new structure in Salem's Riverfront Park. It is a nice timberframe pavilion donated by Rotary International. Brother Paul is an active member of Rotary.
I like the Belle Epoque style of the new pavilion. People are forming up to start walking. Weather was excellent.

Here's another nice thing in Riverfront Park. It's called the Acid Ball. It was a piece of industrial equipment when the area was used for manufacturing wood products. Now it has been covered with ceramic tiles and made into a large and attactive public art object.

Here's a link wich shows it before and after.

The walk was a pleasant loop around the park and then off to the state capitol building and back.

He's not wearing it in this photo, but Brother Paul always gets a special jacket for being in the top tier of fundraisers. He has an amazing network of friends through his work, church, choirs, and community activities. What a great guy!

OK, that's it for 2006. Thanks everybody, and see you next year!

 

If you want to see our MS Walk photos from past years, here are the links:

2004

2005