Two institutions of Vashon Island life — the Park District and Vashon HouseHold — have chosen their new executive leaders.

Amy Drayer, former executive director of the Vashon Chamber of Commerce and current leader of Islanders for Ferry Action, will be Vashon HouseHold’s next executive director, the organization announced Tuesday. Tim Stapleton, a manager with experience across the state Fish and Wildlife and Natural Resources departments, will head Vashon Park District, the district announced last week.

Vashon HouseHold

Amy Drayer

Amy Drayer comes to the leadership role at the island’s housing nonprofit with a wealth of experience in island nonprofits.

She took the helm of the island Chamber of Commerce in 2022 as its executive director. Last year, she took on a new role leading the Chamber-sponsored “Islanders for Ferry Action” group, in which she organized island activism and partnered with other Salish Sea groups to lobby for improved ferry service.

Since she took on that role, Vashon has seen improved water-taxi service, the addition of a third “ghost” boat on the Triangle route, and just this month, the announcement from Governor Bob Ferguson that three-boat service will return to the Triangle this summer.

Drayer is also a Vashon Island Fire & Rescue commissioner and assistant coach for the island high school’s fast-pitch softball team. Her experience includes political and nonprofit work in Denver and Washington D.C.

“Amy’s reputation, both on Vashon and across the region, is stellar,” VHH Board President Anne Atwell said in a prepared statement. “She’s considered a thoughtful, versatile collaborator who gets things done. She’s a savvy nonprofit leader. We could not be more excited about her leading Vashon HouseHold into our next chapter.”

Drayer will ease into the role this spring part-time, while focusing on her role in ferry advocacy during the current state legislative session, which runs through most of April.

VHH staff and the board will help train her during that time, with Interim Executive Director Kari Dohn Decker leading the organization. Drayer will fully take over her new role leading Vashon HouseHold in June.

In a statement, Drayer said it was “an incredible honor” to take on the new role.

At press time, Vashon HouseHold was scheduled to share more about Drayer and her new role during their Tuesday evening housing forum at Vashon Center for the Arts, which will be covered online this week and in next week’s newspaper.

“The entire team at VHH is thrilled to have her join as our next ED,” Decker said in a statement.

Park District

The Vashon Park District board has officially hired Tim Stapleton to be the district’s next leader, starting April 9.

Stapleton has recently been a manager of conservation and recreation lands at the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Department of Natural Resources.

Stapleton said he and his partner decided to move Vashon after visiting the island in 2020.

“My partner and I happened to be looking for a more rural setting to raise our kids, and during our first few hours on the island we met so many wonderful, kind people,” he wrote in an email. “That same year, we bought a lot and started the process of building a home.”

With their new home on schedule to be finished this year, Stapleton said the Park District role matched his desire to serve the island community and help maintain sustainable recreation.

“I’m very excited to start in this role and look forward to getting to know all of our neighbors [who] utilize, care for, and support the work of the park district,” he said.

”The board was impressed with his extensive relevant experience and successful approach in facility maintenance, state grant funding, stakeholder collaboration, budgeting and staff support, and other relevant areas,” said Park District board member Hans Van Dusen.

Stapleton follows in the footsteps of Elaine Ott-Rocheford, who took over as executive director in 2013 and led the Park District out of a troubled period in which it struggled to pay contractors. Ott-Rocheford announced her plans to retire late last year.

Timothy Stapleton