Articles

Please join us in welcoming James Marsh, the new Executive Director of the Vashon Island Chamber of Commerce.

Jim brings a wealth of experience to Vashon businesses and the community. He has been a private business owner, the President of the Board of the Evanston Illinois Chamber of Commerce and was co-founder and organizer of the Evanston Grand Prix.

There. I said it. I’ve been sitting and staring at the screen- getting up and walking out into the garden- coming back in and sitting and staring at the screen. The only thing that keeps returning to the forefront of my attention is a geranium. It is a word that takes me two places at once. Primarily right here it references the seedling strain that is currently dotting my border with a range of foliage color in varying shades of all green, green infused with red or edged in an accent of burgundy.

Vashon Park District, in collaboration with Vashon Allied Arts, opens the free Summer Concerts in the Park Series 6:30 p.m., Saturday, June 23, at Ober Park with a double bill of world music from Avaaza and Manooghi Hi.

Our Island Theater has been a community mainstay since 1947. The unique Art Deco structure with the signature murals by long gone islander, Jack Tabor, is in danger of closing. The movie industry is switching to a digital only format by the end of the year, and owner Eileen Wolcott is faced with the need to purchase a digital screening system. The system costs around $60,000. She will not be able to afford to make that investment on her own, and, if it is not made, she may have to close the theater.

Father’s Day. Whew! As I think I’ve shared before, in our family my youngest dubbed it Moofa Day about ten years ago . It stands for Mothers Who Are Fathers Day. True to form, my beloved daughter sends me Moofa greetings every year.

Climate change is so not interesting. First of all, nothing is supposed to happen until 40 years from now. Couldn’t somebody come up with a fix sometime before then? And there are the people that don’t even think it is happening or, if they do think it is happening: "hey, what’s wrong with a little more heat?"

That’s what people ask, Joan Hanna smiles. What goes on at the Barn? Joan, the tall, elegant 70-something dynamo who opened space at her family home in 1978 and then in the Barn in 1994, has created a unique community resource. In the renovated barn at her family home on Maury Island, she offers workshops, camps, concerts, and readings.

Church of the Holy Spirit is honored to present internationally acclaimed harpsichordist Jillon Stoppels Dupree, in a benefit concert on Friday, June 22nd, at 7:30 p.m. She will be performing a full solo recital, including a harpsichord/organ duet with CHS Director of Music Paul Swenson. We are very fortunate to be able to host a musician of Ms. Dupree’s stature.

The young cowboy lays face down in the mud. If it weren’t for the high-speed twitching of his legs causing the fringe on his chaps to dance like pennants on a windy day you might think he is dead. Four paramedics and two clown-suited bullfighters race up to the trembling body to assess his chances. He is the first saddle bronc rider of the rodeo and has unfortunately drawn an inexperienced mare.

In spite of their finest efforts at remaining teenagers, the Vashon Island High School Class of ’82 is now confronted with the reality that it’s been thirty years and their childhood plans of perpetual youth have fallen through. But being a hearty lot, they’ve decided to work with what they have and hold their thirtieth anniversary reunion.

All eyes will be on California as they campaign for the first-ever initiative vote on whether to label GM (genetically modified) food products. Regardless of opinions about their safety, according to a Thomson Reuters poll in 2010, 90% of Americans think that GM foods should be labeled.

Get inspired when plant expert, author and renowned speaker Daniel Hinkley shares insights into the joys and challenges of creating beautiful, low maintenance gardens in Northwest landscapes 3 p.m., Sunday, June 10 at VAA. Known for his sense of humor and deep knowledge of plants, Hinkley has written several resource books including The Explorer’s Garden: Rare and Unusual Perennials, and another on shrubs and vines.