Kirkland is pitching a hitching for V-Day

It's a sweetheart of a deal.

Volunteers hope to make Kirkland the wedding capital of the Northwest on Valentine's Day. So far they've booked four weddings but have room for more.

The group, Kirkland Weddings (kirklandweddings.com), started during the city's centennial celebration in 2005. The ambitious goal then was to do 100 marriages or renewals of vows. Fifty-six couples participated.

It was so much fun the consortium of local businesses and parks department folks decided last year to keep up the marrying. Retired Judge Carolyn Hayek officiates the ceremonies. A couple of photographers, a florist and a wedding consultant complete the package. Stacy Kvam, a wedding planner, assigns tasks and keeps everything on track.

The weddings are held at Heritage Hall. The package deal costs $350 and includes the site, a bouquet and boutonniere, a photographer and harpist Anna Jenkins of Kirkland. So far the fee barely covers the cost of the flowers, photo supplies and promotion.

This year's wedding couples hail from Sammamish, Kirkland, Bothell and Maryland.

"Downtown Kirkland is known for its art galleries, restaurants and parks," said Hayek. "We want it to also be known as the Reno of the Northwest."

A sad note

I've occasionally written about the Redmond VFW group that mails care packages to our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Although it operates on a shoestring budget, the group has connected often with the young women and men it has adopted.

This week the group is mourning. One adoptee, a 24-year-old young man, was killed Friday in Afghanistan.

"We concentrate on front-line troops, and we get their names and addresses from friends and relatives," said John Kenny, the World War II vet who shepherds the care-package operation.

In three years the group has mailed more than 3,700 packages.

Pump it up

Dave Johnson was grateful. He only had to dance in the final heat of the Train the Trainer benefit at his Elite Fitness Training studio in Bellevue. Johnson, president of the company, hates dancing.

He staged the benefit for the Austin Foundation, a group that provides exercise programs for underserved children in Seattle. People "bought" trainers for five minutes at a time, commanding the exercises.

Even without dancing, Johnson was working. He said his by-the-minute heart rate ran 180-195 for the first hour. That takes a lot of cardio effort.

He calls the evening a success.

"I hoped to raise $10,000," Johnson said. "We're at $25,000 with donations still coming in."

Still ahead of the curve

The ad featuring comic John Keister was so popular during the Seahawks playoff game on Jan. 5 that Renton has booked another television slot. It will appear locally during Sunday's Super Bowl pregame show.

Keister used to talk trash about Renton on "Almost Live." In the ad he says the town now lives up to its slogan — "Ahead of the Curve."

Sherry Grindeland: 206-515-5633 or sgrindeland@seattletimes.com