Hobbit Week

Vashon Library welcomes islanders to a raft of hands-on Hobbit Week events at the library.

Attend an Elven Charm Necklaces workshop (age 6 and older) from 3:30-5:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 26. Nature Magic with Vashon Nature Center (all ages) from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, and make Lord of the Rings Shrink Art (all ages) from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28.

A mini-Renaissance Fair will also take place from 1-4 on Sunday, Sept. 29, at the Orbit youth space of Open Space for Arts & Community. Youths who are younger than 11 must be accompanied by an adult. The fair is not affiliated with the library events.

Senior Center

Vashon Senior Center will present a conversation hosted by Vashon Care Network volunteers Tory Haynes and Carol Spangler at 1 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27, at the Center. Attendees can learn about “age-friendly communities” that set goals and priorities around supporting older residents and people of all ages, and offer ideas about how to make Vashon safer and more livable for all ages.

At 1 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 30, Barb Gustafson will continue her Armchair Travel series. In this talk, listeners can learn about the Badlands, Black Hills and bison as Gustafson describes the Dakotas, Wyoming and Colorado.

Cider pressing

At the final Saturday Farmer’s Market of the season, Vashon Island Growers Association and the Vashon Island Fruit Club will host a free community cider pressing from 10-3 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, at the Village Green, including a smaller press for kids. Islanders should bring their own apples and containers.

Sign up for a time slot at tinyurl.com/mtdbcfud.

Overdose prevention

A presentation on saving lives and preventing overdose deaths from fentanyl and other opioids will be hosted by the Vashon-Maury Community Council’s Island Navigation Network at the Land Trust building from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sept. 28.

Two 20-minute sessions start at 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m., and you can drop in any time to talk to island organizations Vashon Island Fire & Rescue (VIFR), VARSA, the Vashon Health Care District (VHCD), and the Island Navigation Network. Attendees can sign up for youth mental health training, and learn about VIFR’s Mobile Integrated Health and VHCD’s urgent care provider, DispatchHealth.

Community cookout

Chef Dre Neeley, of Vashon’s restaurant, Gravy, will serve up a community cookout from 1-6 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 29, at The Country Store and Farm.

What’s the menu? The haul from Neeley’s win of Voice of Vashon’s three-minute Thriftway shopping spree raffle contest. The event will include grilled food, beer, wine, music and lawn games to celebrate the end of summer. A suggested donation of $25 will benefit the food bank — an organization Neeley enthusiastically supports as a board member.

Tramp Harbor Dock

A new Tramp Harbor Dock is possible with the work of the “Friends of Tramp Harbor Dock” group, which will have its second information session and fundraising discussion online from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 30.

It will include a 10-minute presentation regarding plans for the dock, a question and answer period, and an open discussion on strategies to build community engagement and how to raise the funds needed to make a new Tramp Harbor Dock a reality.

This event is organized by the Vashon Parks Foundation. Learn more and RSVP at vashonparksfoundation.org.

Brown Briefly

Join the Voice of Vashon Brown Briefly crew — Craig Beles, Truman O’Brien, Kevin Jones, Bruce Haulman and Amy Drayer — at 11 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 1 on 101.9 FM and streaming live at voiceofvashon.org and on the VoV mobile app. They’ll discuss the “National Day for Truth and Reconciliation,” also known as “Orange Shirt Day,” with Vashon activist Kim Kambak.

There were more than 523 government-funded, and often church-run, Indian boarding schools across the U.S. in the 19th and 20th centuries. Indigenous children were forcibly abducted by government agents, sent to these schools hundreds of miles away, and beaten, starved, or otherwise abused when they spoke their native languages. This sad chapter has largely been written out of our history books.

Vaccination clinic

Vashon Pharmacy will begin high-volume vaccination clinics on Wednesday, Oct. 2. COVID, flu, and RSV vaccines will be available.

With support from volunteers at Vashon Medical Reserve Corps and VashonBePrepared, the vaccination program will run for six weeks. Vaccinations will take place in the pharmacy’s new clinical services area, which will provide more space and privacy. Get more details by visiting vashonpharmacy.com/covid-vaccine.

VIFR Open House

The staff and volunteers of Vashon Island Fire & Rescue will host a family-friendly, fun-filled open house from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 5, at Station 55, 10020 SW Bank Road. The event will include pancakes and coffee, Sparky the Fire Dog, a fire station bounce house, fire prevention exhibits, and fire truck tours.

Cider Fest

Vashon’s annual Cider Fest, presented by the Vashon Island Chamber of Commerce, will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 5, at Vashon Village, located at 17205 Vashon Hwy SW.

In addition to offering tastings from award-winning regional producers, the Chamber will partner with the Vashon Fruit Club to present the 2nd Annual Vashon Island Amateur Cider Cup. The family-friendly event will also include a fruit pressing with the Vashon Island Growers Association, non-alcoholic beverages, food vendors, music, and educational activities all afternoon.

Cider makers in attendance will include Cockrell Cider Farm; Dragon’s Head Cider; Shawnee Hill Farm; Empyrical Orchard & Cidery; Nashi Orchards; Alpenfire Cider; Whitewood Cider Co.; and Liberty Ciderworks.

Find out more at thisisvashon.com/ciderfest.

PIE’s Phoneathon

Vashon Partners in Education (PIE) will hold its annual phoneathon during the week of October 7th. For 37 years, PIE has raised money to enhance education in Vashon’s schools, supporting enrichment initiatives created by educators and students. All money raised during the phoneathon will fund grants for the upcoming school year. PIE asks islanders to please answer the call. If you donate right away, volunteers will do their best to take you off the call list. Donations can be made online at vashonpie.org or by mailing a check to PIE at PO Box 1645, Vashon. PIE is also looking for more volunteers to staff the phones — contact info@vashonpie.org.

Comp Plan meeting

King County Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda and members of the county’s Comprehensive Plan staff will hold a virtual meeting from 12-1:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 8, to discuss community feedback, ideas and additional suggestions to be considered before the completion of the King County Comprehensive Plan. Register for the meeting at tinyurl.com/2dujps6h.

Museum talk

Join the Vashon Heritage Museum for a Zoom panel discussion inspired by its special exhibit, “We The People: the Gib Dammann Collection,” at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 8. The panelists will discuss the role of memorabilia in politics, Vashon’s voting history and why political ephemera speaks to voters. The panel is political scientist, Allison Jansen, local historian Bruce Haulman and collector Gib Dammann. Attendance is free with a suggested donation, but if islanders want to watch this Zoom session with friends, it will play in real-time in the Museum’s permanent gallery. Sign up for the talk at vashonheritagemuseum.org/events.