We are FIDO, a small non-profit organization committed to securing a safe, fenced off-leash park for dogs and their owners.

Since our first discussions about this goal in 2021, we have been dutifully obeying these most-recognized commands for dogs: Sit. Stay. Wait.

When we explained our interest in a dog park to the Vashon Park District (VPD) board in 2021, it was not really a new idea.

Other activists have pursued this objective over the past 10 years. We were advised that the 2022 budget had already been adopted. We were told, “Get organized. Get ready to write a grant. Prepare to fundraise. Come back to us.”

That’s what we’ve done. We initiated a survey to gauge interest in a dog park. (Yes, go for it!) We participated in a King County process to gauge interest in a dog park. (Yes, we want a dog park!)

We officially became a non-profit in Washington last May. We identified discrepancies in VPD rules and regulations for dogs in the parks and signage for those parks. The VPD board responded graciously with a promise for consistency in signage at kiosks that would be constructed in May. And then in the fall.

And now? Stay. Wait. Woof. You can find a current list of parks and locations on Vashon where dogs can be off-leash on our website.

We identified a prospective location for a park for small dogs in an existing VPD park, and made our case at the Nov. 17, 2022 board meeting. At the end of the meeting we were told, “You’re in the budget.” (The contingency budget)

Two weeks later, we were out of the budget for 2023 and bounced to 2024 for deliberations. Stay. Wait.

Meanwhile, we learned that King County was in negotiations for purchasing acreage that might work for a dog park. And we were advised to stay mum until the sale was complete. We did – stay, and wait. Success — for King County, and for dogs on leash. We have another trail for dogs and owners to enjoy in the temporarily-named Wax Orchards Park.

We learned there would be a community process to determine how the property would be used. We partnered with Maggie McClure of Sheep Dog Classic fame to create a proposal that would preserve the meadows for the trials each year, and provide an area, separate from those meadows, for big dogs for the remaining 51 weeks of the year. Small dogs would have a place to run too, separate from the larger dogs.

And now we are waiting once more. We hope to learn details and dates for the King County process soon, so that, at a minimum, the Sheep Dog Classic can go forward in 2024.

If you’re interested in keeping tabs on our progress, don’t wait: Go to friendsintodogs.org to join us.

Katrin Fletter, Ethan Russo, Sylvia Soholt and Carol Ellis are members of FIDO’s board of directors.