Last Friday morning, the email from Rebecca Wittman, who owns The President of Me clothing store, arrived in her customers inboxes before 9 a.m.

“It’s been a wonderful place to launch the TPOM line, but now it’s on to the big time in New York,” she wrote in her message, which contained the subject line, “Farewell, Vashon.”

The email also mentioned a farewell party that evening and $1 off everything.

When a Beachcomber reporter called to inquire about the drastic turn of events, Wittman came clean, revealing that the scheme was an April Fool’s Day joke.

It turns out her mother was “legendary” for such pranks and year after year played the same joke on Wittman’s father.

“The nut did not fall far from the tree,” Wittman added, making the family connection clear.

Last year, she celebrated the spirit of the day as well, posting a sign indicating everything in her shop would be free for one day only.

“I was kind of amazed at how many bit on that one,” she said.

This year she received a large response as well.

“My computer has been smoking all morning,” she said. “I feel guilty.”

Despite the joke, she promised the party advertised on a banner hanging above TPOM’s door, the $1 off sale and a letter of apology the next day.

“In reality I am here to stay,” she said. “Vashon is stuck with me.”

Plenty of other island-related pranks circulated online last Friday.

The Passport to Pain bicycle ride organizers posted on Facebook that the ride this year is full thanks to early registrants.

“So unexpected!” they quipped.

On the Facebook group Vashonites, Nancy Morgan posted news of a roundabout to be built at Vashon’s main intersection, already approved and funded.

“Public art or fountain proposals welcome,” she wrote.

Top honors go to Tyrel Stendahl, who created a Beachcomber front page online, breaking the news that Amazon would buy the K2 building, test drones at the old Nike campus and expand south of town, eventually taking over and tearing down the Roasterie building to make room for “Amazon Zoom.”

“We’re confident this building meets our needs, is zoned appropriately, and now our focus is … on the community,” he wrote.