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Permission to Start Dreaming Foundation continues

May 18, 2020
4 min

Pull for a Soldier

May is the time many Gig Harbor locals mark their calendars and prepare for a day trap shooting at the Pull for a Soldier event. This year, due to COVID-19, the event is rescheduled for October 30, giving us all a little extra time to sharpen our aim. This year marks the fourth year of the event, started by the Permission to Start Dreaming Foundation with community leader and former board member Scott Sabo, owner of LaborWorks. Sabo wanted to contribute to helping provide bet

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Events postponed, but commitment to a healthy

Apr 13, 2020
3 min

PenMet Parks Puts Public Health First

In the midst of the COVID-19 virus, our lives have been upended. From school closings and social distancing, to the more serious case of loved ones getting sick, many of the things we take for granted have become strikingly obvious. Faced with closures of public events and in light of the pandemic, PenMet Parks was forced to reevaluate its events, including the beloved annual Spring Egg Hunt. As things play out, the board will consider whether to postpone the event or ultimat

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Gig Harbor’s Danielle DeMott is nominated for LLS

Mar 16, 2020
3 min

Show Your Heart

Our own Danielle DeMott of Gig Harbor has been nominated to compete in the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s (LLS) 2020 Woman of the Year. Across the country money is being raised for the LLS in honor of blood cancer survivors. Candidates in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska chapter compete with other candidates across the country to fundraise the most money between March 27 and June 5. The winner is subject to much fanfare and will be featured in Forbes magazine and honored at

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Doug Nelson brings both experience

Feb 17, 2020
4 min

New Leader at PenMet Parks

For the first time in nearly a year, Gig Harbor Peninsula’s park district has a permanent executive director. Doug Nelson, a native of Bainbridge Island and former recreation manager for the City of Federal Way, beat out three other parks directors vying for the job and took his place at the helm of PenMet Parks in December. Prior to Nelson’s hiring, consultant Glenn Akramoff had been acting director. The district’s last permanent director, Richard Fink II, left in March 2019

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Gig Harbor paddler in a class of her own. By Colin

Jan 13, 2020
4 min

Master Class

The Gig Harbor Canoe and Kayak Racing team is nationally renowned. Each year the team sends members to national and international events, and championships and medals always seem to come home with them. While the youth and adult levels, individuals and teams continue to dominate, it’s in the Master’s Class that you find one of the more incredible stories on this team. It’s the offseason, so Bee Dietz is in the gym three times a week training for the upcoming race season, with

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City hosts dozens of events this month. By Anneli

Dec 2, 2019
3 min

Holidays in the Harbor

It’s December. The sun rises at 7:30am and sets just after 4pm. The temperatures remain below 50 degrees most days. Clouds, fog and rain have come to stay, and finding light can be a challenge, even during the holiday season. Thankfully, the City of Gig Harbor, Chamber of Commerce, Waterfront Alliance and PenMet Parks offer a wide variety of events to help residents and visitors alike feel the warmth of the holiday spirit. From baking cookies with Mrs. Claus and meeting Sant

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Local Business reflects on its history Interview.

Oct 14, 2019
4 min

50 Years Strong

Owning and operating your own business can bring about long hours and stress but also incredible triumphs and rewards. Much has changed in Gig Harbor over the past 50 years, but you’ll still find the iconic Beach Basket Gift Shop. We recently caught up with General Manager Kim Stokke to find out what it’s been like to have a family run business for half a century. How did the shop get started, how has it changed over time, and what it is like today? My family moved to Gig Har

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Gig Harbor’s SUP Festival Returns. Story &

Sep 16, 2019
4 min

Walking on Water

Have you ever stood on shore, watching people glide by on stand-up paddle boards (SUP), longing to try it for yourself? Well, mark your calendar for September 22’s SUP in the Harbor festival, which features a race and parade. The Gig Harbor SUP event was started by Stand Up for Peninsula Schools (also known as SUP) in 2017 as an annual celebration to bring awareness to concerns over school maintenance and overcrowding, and also to have fun. “People of all ages come together t

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Gig Harbor organization celebrates 25 years. By

Aug 12, 2019
3 min

New Neighbors

It’s 1994, and Barbara Burrows, a military wife new to Gig Harbor, has placed an ad in the newspaper inviting residents to have coffee at her home. She wants to make friends and find out what there is to do in this small town on the western banks of Puget Sound. On the day of the gathering, dozens show up for the coffee. It’s such a success she had another event later that month. Now, 25 years later, Barbara’s neighborly spirit has grown into an established membership-based s

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Gig Harbor’s Kensington Gardens expands. By Anneli

Jul 15, 2019
3 min

A Natural Addition

Occupying 27 acres in northwest Gig Harbor, Kensington Gardens is a labyrinth of sculptured hedges, topiaries, lush manicured lawns, and flowering plants and trees that mimics its London namesake. Within these gardens, people can be found reading in nature nooks, strolling the pathways past ornate fountains or boarding a passenger coach for a day of adventure. Meanwhile, beyond the gardens in the Georgian Manor and Carriage House, others are practicing music, preparing lunch

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Free plant swap keeps gardens growing. By Colin

Jun 18, 2019
4 min

Wanna Trade?

While some dread weekend yard work, gardeners look forward to every chance they can get to create a colorful and unique life-filled space around their yard. Those who do it as a profession or a hobby are always making adaptations to their gardens and plants that no longer fit the look or need to be scaled back and often find themselves in a garbage can. However, a couple of like-minded ladies have found a solution to keep these plants alive and appreciated. Master Gardener Ch

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Camp Stand by Me continues a special mission. By

May 13, 2019
4 min

Camp for All

For adults, reminiscing of a week at summer camp can stir up some very fond memories. Carefree summers paddling the canoe and jumping into a cold lake. There were the games of capture the flag, meeting new friends and perhaps a first crush. Camp is a great time for kids to develop, and one particular camp in Western Washington is making sure every kid has a chance at these lifetime-changing experiences. Since 1974, Camp Stand by Me has been dedicated to providing a genuine su

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Local writer and artist takes her love of nature

Apr 15, 2019
3 min

“WA is Water: An Intimate Portrait”

“I’m constantly exploring and pushing the boundaries between visual art and literary craft.” Jennifer Chushcoff has been creating art and writing articles, poetry and children’s books—with a focus on nature—for more than 20 years. Growing up in Southern California, she attended UC Berkeley, where she received her B.A. in art history. After her mother, grandmother and younger siblings moved to Gig Harbor 22 years ago, Jennifer would spend her holidays and vacations here, and a

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The three Rotary Clubs of Gig Harbor gathered to

Mar 18, 2019
4 min

Celebrating the Honorees

On February 1, 2019, the three Gig Harbor Rotary Clubs gathered together to honor three Gig Harbor citizens for their dedication and contributions to the local community. The annual Rotary Star Awards honors non-Rotarians who exemplify Rotary’s motto of “Service Above Self.” The 2018 Rotary Star Award honorees for 2018 are Guy Hoppen, Anne Nesbit and Danna Webster. The event took place at the Canterwood Golf Club in Gig Harbor and raises money for charities chosen by the hono

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Recognized For Their Service to Gig Harbor

Community comes together at the 2019 Chamber of

Feb 12, 2019
3 min

Recognized For Their Service to Gig Harbor

Every year since 1984, Gig Harbor Chamber of Commerce members, community leaders, elected officials and Gig Harbor residents come together to celebrate those individuals who are making a positive impact in our wonderful city with their annual Awards Dinner. The 2019 event took place Saturday, January 12, at Ocean5. “[At this year’s event] we wanted to recognize and experience the new Ocean5 facilities while also recognizing the impact a specific group of individuals have on t

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Ballots due February 12th. By Colin Anderson.

Feb 5, 2019
4 min

School Bond Vote

It was 2003 the last time in which Gig Harbor passed a school bond. That original bond is set to expire this year, and another is currently up on the ballot. To make your voice heard on the issue, you’ll need to submit your ballot by February 12. School bonds address facilities throughout the district. This is different from a levy that addresses shortcomings in operational costs of the school when all state funds have been allocated. Under the proposed 2019 bond, the school

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Gig Harbor Living Local. By Patty Hutchens.

Feb 1, 2019
3 min

Creating | Connecting | Living Local

When we first launched Gig Harbor Living Local in January of 2014, we knew it would take time to grow our publication and establish relationships within the community. The unexpected surprise, however, was how quickly we were embraced by the businesses and residents of Gig Harbor. The relationships we have built and the people we have come to call our friends have been nothing short of amazing. We attribute our success to you, the community of Gig Harbor. We enjoy bringing to

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Pacific Waves Receives National Attention

Synchronized swim team instills discipline into

Feb 1, 2019
4 min

Pacific Waves Receives National Attention

The president of one of the top five synchronized swim teams in the country laughs when she compares her duties with the nonprofit organization to selling illegal drugs on a dark street corner. Lisa Jump does not deal with contraband. But she believes she offers something that is equally addictive. “We offer the first class for free,” said Jump with a smile. “We make the offer because we know once the girls get a taste of the competition and the team work of synchronized swim

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Inspire More Kids with Lessons from an Escape Room

Harbor WildWatch’s creative approach to learning.

Jan 21, 2019
4 min

Inspire More Kids with Lessons from an Escape Room

An innovative educational program based on teamwork and problem-solving inspired by attempts to break out of an Escape Room will be expanded with the $25,000 grant recently awarded to Harbor WildWatch from the Windows of Hope Foundation through the Gary E. Milgard Foundation. The creative approach to learning was developed first as a test for the imaginative methods utilized by the outreach division of the nonprofit environmental education organization based in Gig Harbor. “W

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Historic Boatyard Provides Tangible Link

The people and heritage of the Gig Harbor

Dec 17, 2018
4 min

Historic Boatyard Provides Tangible Link

About a dozen brave souls recently braved the cold night and frigid waters along shoreline of Gig Harbor to lie belly down in the mud as part of the effort to salvage steel for a second set of tracks to restore the marine railway that helped transport commercial fishing boats for one of the last commercial shipyards on the West Coast. Volunteers from the nonprofit Gig Harbor Boatyard Foundation got their hands, arms, legs and most of their bodies dirty to help preserve the ri

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