News Briefs
Published 1:30 am Tuesday, May 21, 2024
Plihal qualifies for 2024 Paris Olympics
Vashon’s Jacob Plihal placed second in his final Olympic qualifying regatta last weekend, meaning the rower will compete in Paris for the 2024 Olympics. More coverage will appear in a future edition.
Help design an adult “social respite” program
The Vashon-Maury Island community is aging, and more residents are facing health challenges that can keep them at home, isolated from friends and activities and dependent on family or friends as caregivers.
The Vashon Senior Center and the Vashon Care Network want to help by launching an “adult respite” program providing safe, fun, varied and stimulating social engagement and supervised care for islanders with dementia, chronic illness or mental decline. Currently, no such place exists on the island, according to the organizations.
They aim to start the program in late 2024 or early 2025, pending grant funding. It would initially operate four hours per day, one day per week. A professional coordinator would manage the program.
The organizations want to hear input from islanders, especially those involved in caregiving. Stop by the Senior Center or visit vashoncenter.org to take a short, 10 minute confidential survey. Questions? Contact Fran Brooks at villages@vashoncenter.org or Ann Lewis at annvblewis@gmail.com.
VIFR responds to fire, water emergencies
Vashon Island Fire & Rescue crews responded to emergencies spanning the elements of fire, water and wind last weekend.
On Thursday, May 16, VIFR responded to a residential fire at about 5:32 a.m. in the 7200 block of 240th SW on Maury Island. Flames were roaring from a detached garage, which housed a high-value collection of motorcycles and cars, Fire Chief Matt Vinci said.
A crew and engine from Burton arrived, and “within two minutes of arrival” were getting water on the fire, Vinci said, leading to “a quick knock-down” on the fire and saving much of the valuables in the garage. The fire was the first residential structure fire to test the capabilities of the newly-staffed Burton station, Vinci said, and “it just worked very seamlessly.”
Quick action from two engines, with a total crew of 11 (made up of volunteer and career staff) had the fire down quickly.
“The fruits of our labor, the investments the community made through the levy, they really were on full display,” Vinci said.
One resident was treated for minor smoke inhalation; no other injuries to humans or pets were reported.
On Friday, VIFR received a call around 2:41 p.m. in the area of Point Piner Road that a boat was in distress and taking on water. The boat beached, and crews from VIFR’s Burton station helped the two occupants of the boat who were on shore.
Not long after, in the same general area, another boat began taking on water while struggling to navigate the wind and tides, Vinci said. VIFR staged their boat at Jensen Point, but didn’t end up needing it — the Coast Guard and South King Fire made contact and got the boat to shore.
The incidents, which thankfully included no injuries, are a reminder that anyone out on the water should use personal flotation devices and watch the weather, Vinci said: “The weather can change quickly, and in a small craft, it can impact your ability to navigate … and turn into a tragic situation quickly.”
Senior care on the island gets county grant
The Vashon-Maury Senior Center has received $306,000 from the county Veterans, Seniors and Human Services Levy. Voters approved the levy first in 2017 and re-authorized the levy for the fourth time in 2023.
This year, the levy will disburse $16.6 million across 39 providers in its Senior Center Awards, helping support inclusive and thriving spaces for seniors and their caregivers, according to the county.
The award will function from July this year through the end of 2026, and will support Senior Center operations, programs and activities, Senior Center director Maria Glanz said. That includes partially funding Senior Village services and working with the Care Network to provide scholarships for home care aides.
Vashon man serves in U.S. Navy helicopter squadron
Petty Officer 3rd Class Jacob Gateman, who is from Vashon Island and graduated from Vashon Island High School in 2012, is serving in the U.S. Navy as a member of a helicopter squadron forward deployed to Japan, according to a Navy media release sharing the sailor’s story.
Gateman joined the Navy four years ago. Some of the most common operations in his role in a Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) include search and rescue, air assaults, medical evacuations, supply transport and hunting submarines, according to the Navy. He serves in Japan as part of a group of naval forces working with U.S. allies and partners in that region.
“My hometown is a very tight-knit community and is a very politically active place so I think the biggest thing I took away was that if you believe in something go and follow that passion,” Gateman said in the Navy release. “I had a lot of mentors growing up who lived their life that way.”
Vote for Vashon’s Unofficial Mayor
The hunt for Vashon’s next unofficial mayor is on. The Vashon-Maury Chamber of Commerce partners yearly with island non-profits to host the campaign, in which one dollar donated to a nonprofit translates to one vote for a given candidate.
Nonprofits can now sign up; they have until June 15 to do so, and campaigning starts July 1.
“Election day” for the unofficial mayor is Saturday, July 20 during Strawberry Festival. The person with the most donated dollars wins.
Candidates need not be homo sapiens. Last year’s winners were Jolene and Moose, a baby longhorn steer and her guardian dog, representing the the Old Goats Home island animal sanctuary. (The precise division of mayoral duties between the two animals is unknown.)
