Allen Realtors will be conducting free home buying seminars at 7 p.m. tomorrow and 1 p.m. March 14 at their office in Lakewood. Information will be available about the local real estate market, the home search and buying processes, and financing. Call 582-6111 for more information.

Nonprofit organizations will be shown how to effectively use the rapidly growing Internet social media to benefit their organizations in a special workshop from 9 a.m. to noon March 10 at Thurston County Community Television, 440 Yauger Way SW, Olympia. The South Sound Partners for Philanthropy will host the workshop, "There's An App for That: Social Media and Community Development" presented by Laurie Cirivello. Seating is limited.  Call TCTV at (360) 956-3100 to purchase tickets. The training is free to South Sound Partners for Philanthropy member representatives. Member organizations can send additional staff for $12.50 each. Non-member tickets are $25. Click here for more information.

Environmental Science students at Clover Park Technical College, in conjunction with Pierce County Solid Waste and LeMay Enterprises, conducted a "waste audit" yesterday at the Lakewood Campus.

"This gives students a truly hands-on view of municipal solid waste,"  said Kathy Smith, Environmental Science instructor. "It's an excellent demonstration of what we can do in our homes and businesses."

Home values across the country declined again during the fourth quarter of 2009, as the Zillow Home Value Index fell 5 percent year-over-year, and 0.5 percent quarter-over-quarter, to $186,200. That marked the 12th consecutive quarter of year-over-year declines, according to the fourth quarter Zillow Real Estate Market Reports.

Despite home value declines seen across most of the country throughout 2009, some markets experienced what appeared to be a bottom in home value declines, or even increases in home values during the year. However, the fourth quarter of the year brought signs that the fledgling recovery of home values in many of these markets is slowing again. If the declines are sustained, the result will be a "double dip" in home values, defined as two periods of sustained declines in home values separated by a brief period of stabilization or recovery.

United Way of Thurston County is presenting "Mastering Crucial Conversations" from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Feb. 2 at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, 1601 N. Street SE in Olympia. Presentation topics include mastering crucial conversations; unlawful employment, discrimination, harassment and how to avoid related legal problems; and working with multiple generations in the workplace. The cost is $75 (and $50 for additional attendees from the same employer). For more information, click here or call (360) 943-2773, ext. 16.

The Lakewood Chamber of Commerce is hosting a coffee with state Sen. Mike Carrell from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. Feb. 2 in the Goodfella's Board Room at Great American Casino. Attendees will have the opportunity to discuss their concerns about state issues.

Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc. is hosting a health care reform town hall meeting from 2 to 4 p.m. Jan. 30 on the Tacoma Campus of Evergreen State College, 1210 6th Ave. David Flentge, president and CEO of Community Health Care in Tacoma, and other health care professionals from in and around the Tacoma and Seattle areas will lead the discussion, which is free and open to the public. For more information, or to RSVP, e-mail etamuzeta@gmail.com.

Artists Pierce Elaine Davis, Jenny Fillius and Leo Schmidt will display their works Jan. 30 through April 25 at the City of Tacoma EnviroHouse, where artwork made from recycled and salvaged material is showcased. The EnviroHouse art exhibit rotates three times a year and continually seeks applications from artists with recycled-content artwork. For more information, click here or call (253) 573-2426.

The Franciscan Health System has been ranked as one of the best-performing, most-efficient health systems in the nation for the seventh consecutive year.

Modern Healthcare magazine reports in its Jan. 25 edition that the Tacoma-based Franciscan organization is No. 12 on the annual list of the 100 most integrated health systems in the United States as determined by the independent information, research and analytics company SDI.

The Lakewood Chamber of Commerce is hosting Extreme Networking – "Pages" from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Jan. 25 at 4650 Steilacoom Blvd. SW. Attendees will learn how to use Facebook fan pages to promote their businesses. Call (253) 582-9400 for more information.

The Thurston County Chamber is hosting a member orientation seminar at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 26. Click here for more information.

The Business Examiner's first Who's Who? event provided the opportunity for about 120 South Sound business professionals to mingle and network with each other.

The mixer also celebrated the BE's 2010 Book of Lists. The event's participants were offered opportunities to get informed about the benefits of using the Book of Lists and to meet the Business Examiner's new editor, Mike Boyd.

Dr. Jon Geffen has joined Puget Sound Orthopaedics. He is a board-certified specialist in physical medicine and rehabilitation, and is fellowship trained in interventional pain management. After medical school at the Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine in Kirksville, Mo., he completed his residency at the Howard A. Rusk Rehabilitation Center at the University of Missouri-Columbia, followed by an interventional pain fellowship at the Alabama Orthopedic and Spine Center in Birmingham. He will be practicing at the Lakewood office.

Mark J. Burns, a financial adviser for Waddell & Reed in Kent has earned the nationally recognized Chartered Mutual fund Counselor designation. He joined the firm during 2007 and has a bachelor's degree from the University of Washington.

The Business Examiner will host its first Who's Who? event Wednesday evening. Attendees will learn about the benefits of using the 2010 Book of Lists and have the opportunity to meet BE's new editor, Mike Boyd.

There also will be time to network with fellow South Sound business leaders.

The City of Lacey is seeking public comment about updates to its Comprehensive Plan for Outdoor Recreation and the Shoreline Master Program at an open house from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 19 at City Hall, 420 College St. SE. If you are unable to attend the open house but would like to provide comments or receive additional information, contact Lori Flemm at lflemm@ci.lacey.wa.us or David Burns at dburns@ci.lacey.wa.us.

Lacey Chamber of Commerce will start out the year with Andy Wappler from Puget Sound Energy addressing the subject of Wind and Solar Power on Wednesday, Jan. 6 at the January 2010 Forum held at Saint Martin's University, Worthington Center. Registration begins at 11:30 a.m. and the program begins promptly at noon. RSVP by e-mail to agraham@laceychamber.com or calling 360-491-4141.

January's monthly luncheon for Kent Chamber of Commerce will also be held at the ShoWare Center on Jan. 6. Speakers will be Sen. Karen Keiser and Rep. Tina Orwall and the focus will be on Joint Underwriting Association draft legislation and a 2010 legislative preview. JUA might create a mechanism to offer more insurance options, particularly as the Kent Valley worries about potential flooding. Click here for more information and to register.

In an editorial published this morning by Association of Washington Business, the group's President Don Brunell said lawmakers are in need of a reality check.

"With voter confidence dropping like a rock in a pond, it is time Congress stopped this runaway train called health care reform," Brunell wrote. "It is time to take a break, take a deep breath and look at the right-of-way ahead to make sure they are not running the taxpayers, and our nation, over a cliff."

Rebecca Anderson-Clements of Lakewood has been ordered in Pierce County Superior Court to repay $58,600 in workers' compensation benefits to the state Department of Labor and Industries. In addition to the repayment, she was ordered to serve 30 days in jail.

She pled guilty last week to one count of theft after joint investigation by L&I and Social Security Administration revealed she was illegally collecting state workers' compensation benefits and federal Social Security benefits.

Lisa Furman, as newly appointed VP risk management officer, will oversee compliance, security, Bank Secrecy Act and internal audit for Heritage Bank. Most recently, she was with First Citizens Bank, after nine years as SVP Risk Management Officer for Venture Bank.

Christy Green joins the Heritage Bank risk management division, where she will be responsible for both deposit and loan compliance. Her most recent position was with Washington Mutual.

This week's freezing temperatures pushed Puget Sound Energy customers' natural gas usage to a new high yesterday, surpassing the record set last December.

The utility's natural gas usage reached 791,096 million British thermal units for the 24-hour period ending today at 7 a.m., surpassing by about 6,000 BTUs the record set Dec. 20, 2008. Monday's peak electricity usage of 4,750 megawatts, which occurred at 7 p.m. yesterday, fell just shy of the record peak set Dec. 15, 2008.

Rusty George Creative has announced recipients of its non-profit grants for 2010. World Trade Center Tacoma, Lakewood Area Shelter Association and Northwest Leadership Foundation will receive the aid.

Each year, the employees at Rusty George Creative choose as a team which organizations to support during the year. This year, 18 qualified organizations submitted applications, each seeking up to $25,000 in graphic design and advertising services.

UPDATE: WSDOT announced that all lanes and ramps at SR 512 and I-5 are open to traffic. Westbound SR 512 left turns are open to South Tacoma Way.

Those commuting home from work in the Tacoma and Lakewood area today may encounter slowdowns due to the memorial for slain Lakewood Police Sgt. Mark Renninger, and Officers Ronald Owens, Tina Griswold and Greg Richards being held at Tacoma Dome.

More bystanders showed for the procession this morning than planners had anticipated, as residents wanted to show their respect and appreciation to the victims' families and law enforcement personnel.

Dallas-based 7-Eleven Inc. plans to add some 15 new stores in the Puget Sound area by the end of 2011, after opening just two local stores during the last two years.

St. Louis-based Colliers Corporate Solutions is its exclusive broker, in partnership with the Colliers Puget Sound retail team in Tacoma, for this North Pacific development project that includes assisting with adding 50 stores in northern California.

Low-income weatherization funds for qualifying Puget Sound Energy customers will more than double next year as a result of the utility receiving more than $2.1 million from the 2005 Enron settlement reached with the state Attorney General's Office.

The money will be added to the $3.25 million budgeted in 2010 for the utility's Low-Income Weatherization Program, which helps qualifying customers save money by upgrading their homes with insulation, duct sealing and weather stripping. In 2009, PSE budgeted $2.5 million for this program.