About Town: St. Andrew's Housing Group: Low Profile, Big Help

One of the most interesting - but low-profile - Eastside non-profit groups started in Bellevue. It is the St. Andrew’s Housing Group. The non-profit provides 325 apartment units of low-cost housing to more than 900 individuals and families. Known to insiders by its initials – SAHG – expects to have another 100 units open this year.

When I was a newspaper reporter, I suggested that we do a story on the St. Andrew’s Housing Group but felt I couldn’t write about it because I belong to the church that founded it in 1987 – .  I realized recently I could relax that rule because SAHG became an independent 501-C-3 non-profit in 1989.

The group owns 10 apartments in Bellevue, Issaquah, Redmond, Kirkland and Mercer Island. Two of the facilities – Ellsworth House on Mercer Island and Kirkland Plaza in Kirkland – are senior-only facilities. One of the cool parts of the whole operation is SAHG provides tenant support services to help many of the formerly homeless residents develop skills to become self-sufficient.

The only downside – even with all the work SAHG and other groups such as Hopelink and Habitat for Humanity do – the demand for low cost housing outstrips the need. Life can be difficult in this economically-challenging time. If you have some spare cash or time to help, consider donating. You can find out more about SAHG at www.sahg.org.

Mr. Potato Head: Did you see where Chris Voigt was just named the National Potato Council Potato Man of the Year? Voigt, the head of the Washington Potato Commission, earned a lot of publicity for spuds and himself a couple months ago by going on a potato-only diet. He ate nothing but potatoes for 60 days.

Turned out the diet was not just OK. He was quite healthy and a bit slimmer after two months of nothing but potatoes.

I’m volunteering right now to go on the chocolate diet for 60 days. My only stipulation – it has to be nothing but . Amore Chocolates are made in a small shop on Bellevue’s Main Street. I’ve been a fan since shortly after they opened in 2003. Check them out at http://www.amorechocolatesonmain.com.

Local – not! I try to support local businesses – not just Amore Chocolates. That’s one reason why I signed up for cell phone service through T-Mobile. Their home office is located in Bellevue just south of Interstate 90, in the Factoria neighborhood.

So can someone please tell me why, when I pay my bill, the mailing address is somewhere in Texas?

Windblown: Darn wind. Not only did the windstorm keep me awake off and on Sunday night/Monday morning, I now have to deal with the aftermath. Lots of branches were blown down and about in our yard. Guess January storms are Mother Nature’s way of taking care of those holiday cookies I ate in December. The weather provides me with extra exercise – bending and picking up all the debris.