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Tag: Family Events

  • Edmonds American Legion Post 66 and VFW Post 8870 Host May 9 Food and Hygiene Drive for Snohomish County’s 50,000+ Veterans

    Edmonds American Legion Post 66 and VFW Post 8870 Host May 9 Food and Hygiene Drive for Snohomish County’s 50,000+ Veterans

    Q: When and where is the Edmonds American Legion Post 66 and VFW Post 8870 veterans dropoff event?

    A: Saturday, May 9, 2026, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Wilcox Construction Red Barn at 5th Avenue and Maple Street in downtown Edmonds. Members of Edmonds American Legion Post 66 and VFW Post 8870 will accept donations of food, personal hygiene items, lightly used or new spring and summer clothing, socks and underwear, cash or checks made out to “American Legion Food Drive,” and used American flags in need of proper disposal. Food collected goes to the Edmonds Food Bank for distribution to local veterans, with help from representatives of the Lynnwood Heroes’ Café. For information call 833-924-4636.

    The Quietest Way to Help a Snohomish County Veteran This Month Is a Saturday Morning in Edmonds

    There are over 50,000 veterans in Snohomish County, according to the event announcement from Edmonds American Legion Post 66 and VFW Post 8870 — a number that includes everyone from World War II survivors in their late 90s to NAVSTA Everett sailors who hung up the uniform last year and are still figuring out the gap between active-duty pay and the civilian job market. Many of them, the announcement says plainly, “continue to need help due to difficult circumstances.”

    That is the context for what happens in downtown Edmonds on Saturday, May 9, 2026.

    From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., members of Edmonds American Legion Post 66 and VFW Post 8870 will be at the Wilcox Construction Red Barn — at the corner of 5th Avenue and Maple Street — collecting the kind of donations that veterans assistance programs need every month and rarely get all at once: food for the Edmonds Food Bank’s veteran clients, personal hygiene supplies, clothing, and money. Lynnwood Heroes’ Café representatives will help with distribution.

    It is the kind of community event that does not make the front page even when it should. So here is what is being collected, who runs it, why the food bank route matters, and how it fits into the broader picture of veteran services for Navy families and retirees living within reach of Naval Station Everett.

    What the May 9 Dropoff Event Is Collecting

    The event organizers have published a specific list of what is needed. None of it is a guess about what veterans want — it is what the partner agencies, the Edmonds Food Bank and the Lynnwood Heroes’ Café, have asked for based on what they actually distribute.

    Food

    All food donations are routed to the Edmonds Food Bank, which then distributes them to local veterans. Non-perishable items — canned proteins, pasta, rice, soups, peanut butter, shelf-stable meals — are the standard ask.

    Personal hygiene items

    The published list calls out, by name: deodorant, toothbrushes, toothpaste, razors, lotion, body wash, and sanitary napkins. These are the categories that food banks consistently report as the hardest to keep stocked, because federal nutrition programs cover food but not hygiene products. Every dollar a veteran spends on toothpaste at a regular grocery store is a dollar not spent on rent or utilities.

    Disposable diapers

    Diapers are also specifically requested. Veteran households with young children — including grandchildren in the care of grandparent veterans — face the same diaper-cost squeeze as any other low-income family, and diapers cannot be purchased with SNAP benefits.

    Clothing, socks, and underwear

    Lightly used or new spring and summer clothing is welcome. Socks and underwear are specifically mentioned, which is also the standard ask at most veteran-serving distributions — those items are almost never donated used because most people wear them out.

    Cash and credit/debit donations

    Cash and card donations are accepted on-site. Checks should be made out to “American Legion Food Drive.” Cash donations let the post commanders fill specific gaps after the event closes — usually the high-cost items the in-person drive did not collect enough of.

    Used American flags

    The posts will also accept worn or damaged American flags for proper retirement and disposal. This is a service American Legion posts perform under flag-code protocol, and it removes a real practical question — most people do not know what to do with a flag that has worn out and cannot legally just put it in the trash.

    Who Is Running the Event

    Two posts are co-hosting:

    Edmonds American Legion Post 66 is the Edmonds-area chapter of the American Legion, the congressionally chartered veterans service organization founded in 1919. Post Commander Dan Mullene said in the event announcement that “our Edmonds-area community always supports our vets, and we are pleased to provide this opportunity of them to do it once again.” That language — “once again” — is the operative tense. This is not a one-off. The posts have been running similar drives for years, and they have a track record.

    VFW Post 8870 is the local Veterans of Foreign Wars post serving the Edmonds area. Post Commander Duane Bowman said in the same announcement that “we greatly appreciate the continued community responses to our drives. Last year we brought in significant donations of food, hygiene products, clothing and money at similar events.” The VFW is a separate organization from the American Legion — membership is restricted to veterans who served in a designated overseas combat zone — but the two posts coordinate on community-facing events like this one.

    Wilcox Construction donates the venue. Matt Lessard, president of Wilcox Construction, makes the Red Barn available for the event. The Red Barn — at 5th Avenue and Maple Street in downtown Edmonds — is one of those community-asset properties that exists because someone with the means decided it should. Both post commanders specifically thank Lessard and his team in the event announcement.

    Edmonds Food Bank handles distribution of the food collected. The food bank has been the through-line for veteran food assistance in the Edmonds area for years and operates the actual logistics of getting groceries to veterans who have signed up for assistance.

    Lynnwood Heroes’ Café sends representatives to help with distribution. The Heroes’ Café is a community gathering space serving veterans, first responders, and their families in the Lynnwood area, and its presence at the May 9 event extends the reach of the donations beyond just Edmonds.

    Why a Food Drive Matters Inside a $340 Million Military Economy

    Snohomish County is home to one of the largest concentrations of military households in Washington state. Naval Station Everett is the third-largest employer in the county, and the total annual economic impact of the military presence in Snohomish County is estimated at roughly $340 million.

    That number represents wages, contracts, base spending, and the supplier ecosystem. It does not represent the gap between what active-duty pay covers and what civilian living costs in the Puget Sound region in 2026 actually are. It does not represent the gap between full benefits and the months immediately after separation, when a sailor who decided not to re-enlist is waiting for VA paperwork, looking for civilian work, and facing rent on the local market for the first time without a housing allowance.

    And it does not represent the older veteran population — the Vietnam-era and Korean War veterans, many of them on fixed Social Security and partial VA benefits — who make up a significant share of the 50,000-plus county total. For those households, a food drive is not a feel-good event. It is grocery money for the month.

    That is the gap the May 9 dropoff event is designed to close, even just for one weekend. The Edmonds Food Bank’s veteran-targeted distribution runs year-round; the May 9 event is a restocking surge.

    How This Connects to Other Veteran Services in Snohomish County

    If you are a Navy family member, a veteran, or a civilian neighbor who wants to do more than drop off a bag of canned goods on May 9, here is the broader landscape of resources that the dropoff event sits inside.

    Veteran benefits and claims help in Snohomish County is provided through several channels: the Snohomish County Veterans Assistance Program at the Robert J. Drewel Building in Everett, the VA Puget Sound Health Care System’s Everett clinic which began seeing patients in February 2025, and monthly visits by VBA service officers. The schedule of in-person VA claims help in Everett changed in February 2026 when VFW service officer hours at the Everett Vet Center were reduced — coverage of the current options is available here and the complete 2026 guide is here.

    Memorial Day 2026 services in Snohomish County are scheduled for Monday, May 25, with American Legion Post 181 in Lake Stevens hosting one of the most well-attended ceremonies in the county. A practical guide to Memorial Day events for military families and veterans new to Everett — including Tahoma National Cemetery, the County Eternal Flame at the Drewel Building, and the Lake Stevens, Floral Hills, and Evergreen ceremonies — is available here. The May 9 dropoff event is timed to land before Memorial Day, when public attention to veteran issues briefly peaks.

    NAVSTA Everett family resources — including the Fleet & Family Support Center at 425-304-3735 and the SAPR 24/7 line at 425-754-5977 — exist for active-duty families currently homeported at the base. The Fleet & Family Support Center coverage is here. These are different services than what the May 9 dropoff event supports, which is primarily aimed at veterans who have left active duty and the older veteran population, but they are part of the same ecosystem.

    What to Bring, What Not to Bring

    Based on the event announcement and the standard practice of veteran-serving food drives:

    Bring: non-perishable food in original sealed packaging, unopened hygiene products, sealed packs of disposable diapers, clean lightly used spring/summer clothing, new socks and underwear in package, cash, checks made out to “American Legion Food Drive,” and worn American flags for proper retirement.

    Do not bring: opened or expired food, used hygiene products, used socks or underwear, heavy winter coats (the request is specifically spring and summer clothing), perishables that need refrigeration without coordinating in advance, or items the announcement did not list.

    If in doubt, the post information line is 833-924-4636.

    The Bigger Pattern: How Veteran Service Organizations Bridge a Gap Federal Programs Cannot

    The federal veteran benefits system — VA health care, disability compensation, GI Bill education benefits, VA home loans, VA pension — is the largest and most comprehensive veteran support apparatus in the world. Snohomish County veterans access it through the VA Puget Sound system, the VBA regional office in Seattle, and a network of accredited service officers.

    What that system does not do well is provide groceries on a Tuesday afternoon when the rent is due Friday. That is the niche American Legion posts, VFW posts, food banks, and community partners like the Heroes’ Café have always filled. The May 9 dropoff event is a representative example of how that informal network operates: a venue donated by a local business, two veteran service organizations organizing the drive, a food bank running the distribution, and a community gathering space helping with reach.

    The Edmonds-area community — and the broader Snohomish County community within driving distance of downtown Edmonds — has a low-effort, high-impact way to participate this Saturday. The barrier to entry is a bag of canned goods and a parking spot at the Red Barn between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    When and where is the Edmonds veterans dropoff event on May 9, 2026?

    The event is Saturday, May 9, 2026, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Wilcox Construction Red Barn, located at the intersection of 5th Avenue and Maple Street in downtown Edmonds, Washington. Edmonds American Legion Post 66 and VFW Post 8870 are co-hosting.

    What items are being collected at the May 9 Edmonds veteran food and hygiene drive?

    The event is collecting non-perishable food (routed to the Edmonds Food Bank for distribution to veterans), personal hygiene items including deodorant, toothbrushes, toothpaste, razors, lotion, body wash, and sanitary napkins, disposable diapers, lightly used or new spring and summer clothing, new socks and underwear, cash and credit/debit donations, checks made out to “American Legion Food Drive,” and used American flags in need of proper retirement.

    Who runs the May 9 dropoff event?

    The event is co-hosted by Edmonds American Legion Post 66, with Post Commander Dan Mullene, and VFW Post 8870, with Post Commander Duane Bowman. The venue is donated by Wilcox Construction, whose president is Matt Lessard. The Edmonds Food Bank handles food distribution, and Lynnwood Heroes’ Café representatives assist with distribution.

    How can I make a financial donation if I cannot attend the May 9 event in person?

    Cash and credit/debit card donations are accepted on-site at the event. Checks should be made out to “American Legion Food Drive.” For donation arrangements outside event hours, contact the post information line at 833-924-4636.

    Can I drop off a worn American flag at the Edmonds dropoff event?

    Yes. American Legion Post 66 will accept used American flags in need of proper retirement and disposal. American Legion posts are authorized under flag code protocol to perform formal flag retirement ceremonies, which is the legally and traditionally correct way to dispose of a U.S. flag that is no longer fit for display.

    How does the May 9 dropoff event fit with other Snohomish County veteran services?

    The dropoff event provides immediate-need supplies — food, hygiene, clothing — through the Edmonds Food Bank’s veteran distribution channel. It is complementary to the formal VA benefits system accessed through VA Puget Sound’s Everett clinic, the Snohomish County Veterans Assistance Program at the Drewel Building, and accredited VSO claims help. The dropoff event addresses the day-to-day gap that federal benefits do not always cover, especially for older veterans on fixed incomes and for veterans in transition from active duty to civilian life.

    Are veterans the only people who can donate at the May 9 event?

    No. The event is a community drive open to all donors. Civilian neighbors, businesses, and community members are encouraged to participate. The 50,000-plus Snohomish County veteran population is the beneficiary; the donor base is intentionally the broader community.

    Why does the food go through the Edmonds Food Bank instead of directly to veterans?

    The Edmonds Food Bank already operates a year-round veteran-targeted distribution program with intake, eligibility verification, and ongoing client relationships. Routing the May 9 donations through the food bank ensures the items reach veterans who are already enrolled in assistance, that the distribution is equitable, and that the volume is matched to actual demand. It also extends the impact beyond a single Saturday — the supplies feed into the food bank’s stockroom and are distributed over the following weeks as veterans request assistance.

  • Kasch Park: Everett’s Premier Athletic Complex Just Got a Major Turf Upgrade — A Local’s Guide to South Everett’s Most-Used Park

    Kasch Park: Everett’s Premier Athletic Complex Just Got a Major Turf Upgrade — A Local’s Guide to South Everett’s Most-Used Park

    Q: What is Kasch Park in Everett?

    A: Kasch Park is the City of Everett’s premier athletic complex, located at 8811 Airport Road in the Westmont area of south Everett. It features four lighted multi-sport synthetic-turf fields, a four-field lighted softball complex, one Little League field, basketball courts, a Weevos-style playground, picnic shelters, restrooms, and walking trails. The park is open daily from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and connects via trail to the nearby Loganberry Lane Dog Park.

    Kasch Park is the south Everett athletic complex everyone in town has played at — even if they did not know its name

    Kasch Park sits on Airport Road just past the Boeing fence line, inside the Westmont area of south Everett. If you have ever played adult-league soccer in Snohomish County, watched a kid’s softball tournament under the lights, or pushed a stroller through a quiet weekend afternoon while teenagers ran a flag-football scrimmage, there is a strong chance you have been here. It is the kind of public park that becomes invisible because it works. The fields show up on hundreds of league schedules every year. The playground stays full on summer weekends. The parking lot empties at 10 p.m. and refills at 6 a.m. the next morning, every day, year-round.

    And quietly, over the last few years, it has become a much better park than most south-Everett residents realize. Here is what makes Kasch Park the city’s premier athletic complex, what got upgraded recently, and what locals should know before their next visit.

    The basics: address, hours, parking

    Address: 8811 Airport Road, Everett, WA 98204
    Hours: 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily
    Parking: Free, ample on-site lot

    The park sits between Airport Road and 100th Street SW, a quick drive from Boulevard Bluffs, Pinehurst-Beverly Park, Glacier View, and Westmont — and convenient to Boeing, Paine Field, and the Cascade High School zone for Casino Road and Pinehurst families.

    What Kasch Park has — by the field

    Kasch Park is the City of Everett’s flagship athletic facility. The amenity list is long enough that it is worth grouping by use case.

    Multi-sport turf fields. Four lighted, synthetic-turf fields sized for soccer but lined for multiple sports. After the most recent surface replacement, the fields are now playable for soccer, lacrosse, ultimate frisbee, flag football, and kickball. The lights mean evening league play continues year-round; the synthetic turf means rain rarely cancels a game.

    Softball complex. A four-field lighted softball complex with bleachers anchors the eastern half of the park. This is where most of Everett’s adult coed leagues, men’s leagues, and tournament play happens. Under a recent management agreement with NWS Holdings, the previously dirt infields on softball fields one through four are being upgraded with turf surfacing, additional fencing, and safety netting — improvements that bring the complex closer to tournament-grade specification.

    Little League field. One dedicated Little League diamond serves the park’s youth baseball programming.

    Basketball courts. Outdoor courts available for casual pickup play.

    Playground. The park’s playground, designed and built by PlayCreation, features a Weevos-brand structure with a Cozy Coaster Slide, Wee Pod Climber, and Boppity Bridge — the kind of contemporary play equipment designed for both motor-skill development and durability. Restrooms are immediately adjacent.

    Picnic shelter. A reservable picnic shelter is available through the City of Everett’s facilities reservation system at everettwa.gov.

    Walking trail. A short on-site loop connects the parking, playground, fields, and the trail spur that links to nearby Loganberry Lane Dog Park.

    Restrooms. Permanent restroom facilities are available on the playground side; portable toilets supplement the field areas during peak league season.

    Recent upgrades: what changed and why it matters

    The biggest change in the last few years has been the synthetic-turf replacement on the multi-sport fields. The original turf had aged out of safe play; the replacement re-lined the fields for soccer plus multiple secondary sports, expanding the park’s usable league bookings dramatically. The Wildlife Recreation Coalition lists the project among its supported recreation grants for the region.

    The second change is the softball management partnership. NWS Holdings now manages softball fields one through four under an agreement with the City of Everett, with infield turf upgrades, fencing improvements, and additional safety netting in progress. For league players, the difference is noticeable: fewer rainouts on dirt infields, better backstop coverage for tournaments, and a more consistent maintenance cadence.

    What has not changed: dogs are still prohibited from all field areas. The trail connection to Loganberry Lane Dog Park gives dog owners a nearby alternative for off-leash play.

    Who actually uses Kasch Park

    If you visit on a weekday evening between April and October, the parking lot will be mostly league players — adult coed soccer, men’s softball, kickball nights, and the occasional ultimate frisbee tournament. Weekend mornings tilt toward youth: Little League, youth soccer, and the occasional flag-football clinic. Weekday afternoons before 5 p.m. lean stroller crowd — the playground area is genuinely well-shaded in the summer and the layout works for parents with multiple kids of different ages.

    For visitors driving in from outside south Everett, the park is also a reliable rainy-day option. The combination of synthetic turf and field lights means scheduled play continues through Pacific Northwest spring weather that would shut down a grass-field park entirely.

    How to book a field or shelter

    The City of Everett handles all field reservations through the Parks Department. Reservations open seasonally; the most popular weekend slots fill quickly. Field permits are typically required for any organized group play of more than a casual pickup game. Picnic shelter reservations follow the same process. Both can be initiated through everettwa.gov/parks.

    NWS Holdings handles the softball-fields-one-through-four scheduling separately under its management agreement. League organizers should reach out through the City Parks office for the current contact path.

    Why Kasch Park belongs on every south Everett family’s short list

    The Everett park system has more famous names — Forest Park draws the headlines, Howarth gets the Instagram shots, Sullivan at Silver Lake has the destination amenity, Garfield is the playground showpiece. Kasch is none of those things. It is the working park. It is where Everett actually plays. And after the recent turf and softball-field upgrades, the working park works even better than it used to. For families in Westmont, Boulevard Bluffs, Pinehurst-Beverly Park, Glacier View, and Twin Creeks, Kasch Park is probably the single most-used piece of public infrastructure in the neighborhood. It is worth knowing the address, the hours, and the booking process the next time a Saturday plan goes sideways and the kids need a field.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Where is Kasch Park located?

    Kasch Park is at 8811 Airport Road, Everett, WA 98204, in the Westmont area of south Everett. It is convenient to Boeing, Paine Field, and the Cascade High School attendance zone.

    What are Kasch Park’s hours?

    The park is open daily from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. The lighted fields support evening league play through the posted closing time.

    Does Kasch Park have a dog park?

    No. Dogs are prohibited from all field areas inside Kasch Park. The on-site trail connects to the nearby Loganberry Lane Dog Park, which is the closest off-leash option.

    Are there pickleball courts at Kasch Park?

    Not currently. Kasch Park’s primary courts are basketball and the multi-sport synthetic-turf fields. Pickleball courts in Everett are located at other parks; the City of Everett maintains a pickleball-court list at everettwa.gov/parks.

    How do I reserve a field or picnic shelter at Kasch Park?

    Field permits and picnic shelter reservations go through the City of Everett Parks Department at everettwa.gov/parks. Softball fields one through four are managed by NWS Holdings under a separate agreement; the City Parks office can route league organizers to the current contact path.

    What sports can be played on Kasch Park’s turf fields?

    After the synthetic-turf replacement, the four multi-sport fields are lined and approved for soccer, lacrosse, ultimate frisbee, flag football, and kickball.

    Is Kasch Park a good park for young children?

    Yes. The Weevos-brand playground, designed and built by PlayCreation, includes a Cozy Coaster Slide, Wee Pod Climber, and Boppity Bridge — equipment well-suited for early-childhood and elementary-aged kids. Permanent restrooms are immediately adjacent. The picnic shelter is reservable for parties.

  • Mukilteo School District in South Everett: A 2026 Family Guide to the District That Serves Half of Casino Road

    Mukilteo School District in South Everett: A 2026 Family Guide to the District That Serves Half of Casino Road

    Last updated: April 30, 2026 | South Everett families have two school district options depending on which side of Mukilteo Speedway and Casino Road they call home. Here’s what to know about the one most outsiders forget exists.

    The short answer: Mukilteo School District serves more than 15,200 students across 24 schools — including a sizable chunk of south Everett residents who live south of Casino Road, along Picnic Point Road, around Lake Stickney, and west toward the Mukilteo waterfront. After voters narrowly rejected a $400 million capital bond in February 2026, district staff recommended bringing the measure back to the ballot in November. South Everett families will pay attention.

    Two Districts, One Everett

    Most coverage of Everett schools focuses on Everett Public Schools — the 19,000-student district that runs Cascade, Everett, Jackson, and Sequoia high schools and serves the bulk of the city. But a real piece of south Everett — the streets where Casino Road, Evergreen Way, and Mukilteo Speedway funnel commuters toward Boeing and Paine Field — actually lives inside the boundaries of Mukilteo School District No. 6, headquartered at 9401 Sharon Drive in Everett 98204.

    If you live in Boulevard Bluffs, the western half of Pinehurst-Beverly Park, the Picnic Point corridor, or the streets around Lake Stickney, your kids likely catch a Mukilteo SD bus, not an EPS bus. The two districts share a city, but operate as completely separate institutions with separate boards, levies, and bond cycles.

    The District at a Glance

    Mukilteo School District was organized in 1878 — the same decade Everett itself was being plotted by James J. Hill’s railroad interests on Port Gardner Bay. Today the district enrolls more than 15,200 students across:

    • 12 elementary schools: Challenger, Columbia, Discovery, Endeavour, Fairmount, Horizon, Lake Stickney, Mukilteo, Odyssey, Olivia Park, Picnic Point, and Serene Lake
    • Four middle schools: Explorer, Harbour Pointe, Olympic View, and Voyager
    • Three high schools: Mariner (opened September 8, 1970), Kamiak (opened September 8, 1993), and ACES/Big Picture (alternative)
    • One kindergarten center

    The district’s service area covers all of Mukilteo, a portion of south Everett, Picnic Point, the majority of Lake Stickney, and a portion of Martha Lake. To the north and east, the boundary hands off to Everett Public Schools. To the south, it hands off to Edmonds School District. The Emander district — a one-room schoolhouse founded in 1919 near what is now Mariner High School — was consolidated into Mukilteo SD in 1945, which is how the district’s service area first stretched into south Everett.

    A District Built by South Everett Families

    Mukilteo SD’s student population is a different mix than the district’s name suggests. Per the most recent federal data, the district’s minority enrollment runs about 70 percent, and roughly 39.5 percent of students are economically disadvantaged. Those numbers reflect the families packed into the apartment corridors along Casino Road, around Mariner High School, and through the south Everett neighborhoods that have absorbed decades of immigration from Latin America, Southeast Asia, the Pacific, and East Africa.

    If you’ve read the desk’s coverage of Stations Unidos and the Casino Road anti-displacement work, the same demographic picture is showing up at the schoolhouse door. The students riding Mukilteo SD buses out of south Everett are part of the same community story — just a different institution telling it.

    February 2026: The Bond That Almost Passed

    On February 11, 2026, Mukilteo SD voters considered a $400 million capital bond — the district’s biggest ask in years. The measure landed at 57.2 percent yes. In any normal democratic context, that’s a comfortable margin. But school bonds in Washington require a 60 percent supermajority to pass, so the measure failed by 2.8 percentage points.

    That outcome triggered exactly the conversation any district has after a near-miss: redo it, or rework it. On March 25, 2026, the Mukilteo school board received a staff recommendation to put the bond measure back on the ballot in November 2026. The proposal would impact several sites across the district, including Mariner High School — the campus that anchors south Everett’s Mukilteo SD experience.

    The financial impact, as presented by district staff: passage of the 2026 bond plus renewal of the existing Educational Programs & Operations (EP&O) levy would add about 38 cents per $1,000 of assessed home value. For a home assessed at $659,200 — roughly the median in the district — that pencils out to about $5 a week.

    Why South Everett Should Pay Attention

    For families in Twin Creeks and the south Everett apartment corridors who fall inside Mukilteo SD lines, the November vote is a property-tax decision and a school-quality decision in the same breath. Aging buildings on the bond list include classroom additions, seismic upgrades, HVAC replacements, and program-space modernizations — the kind of work that determines whether a 1970s-era Mariner classroom feels like 2026 or like the year it was built.

    It’s also a useful contrast point. Everett Public Schools’ record 96.3 percent graduation rate and Cascade High’s IB Program sit at the top of the district’s page. Mukilteo SD has its own headline numbers — Mariner’s comeback story over the past decade, Kamiak’s consistent placement on state academic recognition lists, and the district’s capacity to absorb the demographic complexity of south Everett. Different districts, different dashboards, but same kids in the same city.

    How to Find Out Which District You’re In

    The simplest way: pull up your address on the Mukilteo SD “Which School Should Your Child Attend?” tool at mukilteoschools.org. The tool returns the assigned elementary, middle, and high school in seconds. If your address comes back blank, you’re probably inside Everett Public Schools’ boundaries instead — and the EPS lookup at everettsd.org will confirm.

    For new south Everett residents arriving from outside Snohomish County, the most common moment of confusion: assuming “Everett address” means “Everett Public Schools.” It often doesn’t. The Casino Road and Evergreen Way corridors, in particular, have addresses that read as Everett 98204 but feed into Mukilteo SD elementaries and Mariner High School. Knowing the difference before September is worth the ten minutes it takes to look up.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Does Mukilteo School District serve Everett?

    Yes. Mukilteo SD’s service area includes a portion of south Everett — most prominently the apartment corridors along Casino Road, the Lake Stickney area, the Picnic Point Road corridor, and parts of the western edge of south Everett near Mukilteo Speedway. The district shares Everett with Everett Public Schools, which serves the rest of the city.

    How big is Mukilteo School District?

    The district enrolls more than 15,200 students across 24 schools: 12 elementary schools, four middle schools, three high schools (Mariner, Kamiak, and ACES/Big Picture), and one kindergarten center. Mariner High School, opened September 8, 1970, is the district’s south Everett anchor.

    Did Mukilteo’s bond pass in February 2026?

    No. The $400 million capital bond received 57.2 percent yes votes — strong support, but short of the 60 percent supermajority Washington requires to approve a school bond. On March 25, 2026, district staff recommended putting the measure back on the November 2026 ballot.

    What would the 2026 bond cost a typical homeowner?

    According to district staff figures presented in March 2026, passage of the bond plus renewal of the EP&O levy would add about 38 cents per $1,000 of assessed home value — roughly $5 a week on a home assessed at $659,200.

    How do I find out which Everett school district my address is in?

    Use the Mukilteo SD school lookup at mukilteoschools.org/37434_3, or the Everett Public Schools attendance area tool at everettsd.org. Both tools return your assigned schools by address. If you’re between districts, your assigned school will determine which lookup shows results.

  • Wolfpack Host Defending Champions Saturday: Albany Firebirds Come to AOTW for Teacher’s Night (May 2, 3 PM)

    Wolfpack Host Defending Champions Saturday: Albany Firebirds Come to AOTW for Teacher’s Night (May 2, 3 PM)

    When do the Washington Wolfpack play next at Angel of the Winds Arena? The Washington Wolfpack host the Albany Firebirds on Saturday, May 2 at 3:00 PM PT at Angel of the Winds Arena in Everett. It’s Teacher’s Night with a drawstring bag giveaway. The game airs on VICE TV nationally and Fox 13+ locally.

    The Washington Wolfpack’s home season kicks into gear on Saturday, and the opponent couldn’t be more significant.

    After a rough Week 3 road opener — a 48-3 loss to the Nashville Kats that the Wolfpack would like to forget — Everett’s indoor football team returns to Angel of the Winds Arena on Saturday, May 2 at 3:00 PM PT to face the Albany Firebirds, the defending Arena Crown champions. It’s Teacher’s Night, there’s a drawstring bag giveaway for the first fans through the door, and the game airs on VICE TV and Fox 13+.

    Who Are the Albany Firebirds?

    Let this sink in: in 2025, the Albany Firebirds went 10-0 in the regular season. Undefeated. Then they beat the Nashville Kats 60-57 in the Arena Crown championship.

    They are, in every sense, the defending champions — and they are very good. Coming into 2026, Albany enters as the team everyone is chasing. A perfect regular-season record plus a championship means they carry a target on their back, but they’ve earned every bit of it. For the Wolfpack, hosting the Firebirds this early in the season is a chance to make a statement — or a measure of exactly where the roster stands after the Nashville result.

    The Wolfpack Need a Statement Right Now

    Let’s be direct: a 48-3 loss on the road in Nashville was a rough start to Arena Football One play. Nashville’s Kats had already shown they were one of the hotter early-season teams in the league, but getting held to three points against anyone is a tough look for a team building a fanbase in Everett.

    The good news about indoor football: it’s fast, it’s high-scoring, and one game of good execution changes the narrative entirely. A competitive showing — or better, a win — against the defending Arena Crown champions at AOTW would do exactly that.

    The Wolfpack home building is a different animal from a road trip to Nashville. Everett fans who fill Angel of the Winds Arena are loud, and indoor football’s compact atmosphere makes crowd noise a genuine factor. Saturday is the moment to flip the script.

    Teacher’s Night — Bring an Educator You Know

    It’s Teacher’s Night at AOTW on May 2. The Wolfpack are rolling out a drawstring bag giveaway — Applebee’s is the presenting sponsor for the promotional night — so arrive early if you want one. These giveaways go fast at Wolfpack home games.

    If you’ve never brought a teacher, coach, or educator friend to an AF1 game, this is the Saturday to do it. Indoor football at AOTW moves at a pace that hooks first-timers: constant action, walls in play, scoring drives that take 30 seconds. A Saturday afternoon 3:00 PM kickoff with a giveaway and defending champions on the field is about as good an introduction as you’ll find.

    Watch on VICE TV or Fox 13+

    Can’t make it in person? The game airs nationally on VICE TV and locally on Fox 13+ in the Seattle-Everett market. Arena Football One’s partnership with VICE has been one of the surprises of the league’s broadcast strategy — it reaches a young, sports-curious audience that’s perfect for AF1’s brand of football. Fox 13+ keeps local fans covered.

    Kickoff is at 3:00 PM PT on Saturday. Set a reminder.

    Getting to Angel of the Winds Arena

    Angel of the Winds Arena is at 2000 Hewitt Avenue in downtown Everett — on the main transit corridor, a short walk from Everett Station. Downtown parking garages are available nearby. Tickets are at ticketmaster.com or the AOTW box office. Group tickets and fundraising packages are available through the Wolfpack’s website at washingtonwolfpack.com.

    The Bigger Picture for Indoor Football in Everett

    The Washington Wolfpack are building something in a market that loves sports and has been underserved in the spring and early-summer sports calendar. While the AquaSox are on the road at Tri-City and the Silvertips are in their pre-Championship Final waiting period, the Wolfpack are holding down the arena on Saturday afternoon.

    This spring in Everett sports has been unusually stacked — Silvertips heading to the WHL Championship Final, AquaSox in a competitive Northwest League season, and now a Wolfpack team that has a chance to make a real statement against one of the best teams in AF1.

    Saturday is one of those afternoons worth clearing your schedule for. 3:00 PM. Angel of the Winds Arena. Teacher’s Night. Defending champions.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    What time do the Washington Wolfpack play on May 2?

    Kickoff is at 3:00 PM PT on Saturday, May 2 at Angel of the Winds Arena, 2000 Hewitt Avenue, Everett.

    What is Teacher’s Night at the Wolfpack game?

    Teacher’s Night on May 2 is presented by Applebee’s (“A is for Applebee’s”) and features a drawstring bag giveaway for fans attending the Washington Wolfpack vs. Albany Firebirds game at Angel of the Winds Arena.

    Who are the Albany Firebirds?

    The Albany Firebirds are the defending Arena Crown champions. They went 10-0 in the 2025 regular season before beating the Nashville Kats 60-57 for the championship.

    How can I watch the Wolfpack vs. Albany game?

    The May 2 game airs on VICE TV nationally and Fox 13+ locally in the Seattle-Everett market. Kickoff is 3:00 PM PT.

    What is the Wolfpack’s 2026 record?

    The Washington Wolfpack are 0-1 in 2026 after a 48-3 road loss to the Nashville Kats in Week 3.

    Sources: Washington Wolfpack official website (washingtonwolfpack.com), OurSports Central, Arena Football One / VICE TV broadcast partnership announcement, Fox 13 Seattle, Ticketmaster.

  • Hood Canal Salmon Run 5K Returns to Belfair June 6 — Registration Open at The Salmon Center

    Hood Canal Salmon Run 5K Returns to Belfair June 6 — Registration Open at The Salmon Center

    Six Saturdays from now, our corner of Hood Canal will fill up with running shoes, dog leashes, strollers, and a whole lot of neighbors who care about salmon. The third annual Hood Canal Salmon Run 5K is on for Saturday, June 6, 2026 at The Salmon Center in Belfair, and registration is open right now at pnwsalmoncenter.org. Check-in opens at 8 a.m. and the staggered run/walk start is 9 a.m.

    If you’ve ever pulled into the gravel lot at 600 NE Roessel Road and walked out to the Union River Estuary on a clear morning, you already know what kind of course this is. Flat. Unpaved. Quiet enough to hear the geese. The 5K loops around the estuary on the Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group’s working salmon farm and conservation property — the same property our community has been helping HCSEG restore for more than thirty years.

    What the run actually pays for

    Every entry, every t-shirt, every dollar from the Hood Canal Salmon Run goes to two summer day-camp programs that quietly do some of the best youth work in North Mason: Farm Stewards for kids ages 7 to 11, and Explore the Fjord for kids 12 to 16. Both camps run out of The Salmon Center campus in Belfair. Both rely on community donations to keep tuition reachable for local families.

    That’s the whole math: a Saturday morning trail run pays for a kid from Belfair, Allyn, Tahuya, or Shelton to spend a week of summer learning the watershed they live in. Hard to beat that exchange rate.

    The details you need

    • Date: Saturday, June 6, 2026
    • Location: The Salmon Center, 600 NE Roessel Rd, Belfair, WA 98528
    • Check-in: 8:00 a.m.
    • Run/walk starts: 9:00 a.m. (staggered)
    • Course: 5K, flat, unpaved trail around the Union River Estuary
    • Youth policy: Runners 14 and under must be accompanied by an adult
    • Weather: Rain or shine
    • Register: pnwsalmoncenter.org/hood-canal-salmon-run

    2026 race t-shirts are sold separately from registration; every shirt purchase rolls back into youth environmental education. There’s also a sponsor wall on the Salmon Run page if your business wants its logo standing alongside the rest of the Hood Canal supporters.

    Want to volunteer instead of run?

    HCSEG runs this race on volunteer power. Course marshals, check-in tables, water stops — all neighbors. The 5K Volunteer Coordinator is Almi, and the email to send is americorps1@pnwsalmoncenter.org. If you’ve got a Saturday morning to spare and want to see what the Salmon Center actually looks like behind the scenes, this is the easy way in.

    Why we’re spotlighting this one

    The Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group has been one of the quiet pillars of our town for decades — operating out of Belfair, running Salmon in the Classroom in our schools, hosting story times for babies on their campus, and now anchoring Sweetwater Creek Waterwheel Park across Highway 3 from the Theler Wetlands. The Salmon Run is their annual ask of the community that they’ve been giving to for years. Six weeks is plenty of time to train up a 5K, talk a friend into signing up with you, or pencil June 6 onto the calendar as a volunteer day.

    See you on the estuary.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    When is the 2026 Hood Canal Salmon Run?

    Saturday, June 6, 2026. Check-in opens at 8 a.m. and the staggered 5K run/walk starts at 9 a.m. at The Salmon Center, 600 NE Roessel Rd, Belfair.

    Where does the money go?

    Proceeds support HCSEG’s two youth summer camps held at The Salmon Center: Farm Stewards (ages 7–11) and Explore the Fjord (ages 12–16).

    Is the course stroller- or dog-friendly?

    The course is a flat, unpaved trail loop around the Union River Estuary. Runners 14 and under must be accompanied by an adult. The race runs rain or shine.

    How do I volunteer?

    Email Salmon Run Volunteer Coordinator Almi at americorps1@pnwsalmoncenter.org.

  • Skate America Returns to Everett November 13-15: All-Session Tickets On Sale Today

    Skate America Returns to Everett November 13-15: All-Session Tickets On Sale Today

    When is Skate America 2026 in Everett? November 13-15, 2026 at Angel of the Winds Arena in downtown Everett. All-session tickets went on public sale Thursday, April 23, 2026, with prices from $100 to $600. The event also includes an open practice day on Thursday, November 12 for all-session pass holders.

    Elite figure skating is coming back to Everett, and today is the day tickets got real.

    Skate America 2026 returns to Angel of the Winds Arena on November 13-15, marking the event’s return to Everett after previous stops in the city. All-session tickets went on public sale Thursday, April 23 — the same Thursday that has the Silvertips playing Western Conference Final Game 1 across town. Two major Everett sports moments on the same calendar day. That is what the downtown entertainment district has been building toward for years.

    What you get with an all-session ticket

    An all-session pass covers every competition session from Friday through Sunday, and it also grants access to the Thursday, November 12 practice day — which is not sold separately. That is a four-day figure skating experience with a single ticket, including every discipline: men’s, women’s, pairs, and ice dance, short programs and free skates both.

    Prices run from $100 on the low end to $600 for premium seats. The middle bands are where most Everett fans will land, and the $100 seats are the best value Skate America has ever offered at Angel of the Winds Arena for a full four-day event.

    The session-by-session schedule

    Thursday, November 12: Practice day, all-session pass holders only. Friday, November 13 (Session 1): Men’s Short Program and Pairs Short Program. Saturday, November 14 (Session 2): Women’s Short Program and Men’s Free Skate. Saturday, November 14 (Session 3): Rhythm Dance and Pairs Free Skate. Sunday, November 15 (Session 4): Free Dance and Women’s Free Skate.

    That is four competition sessions across three days, and each session features multiple disciplines. Saturday is a full day — two sessions, so bring snacks or plan dinner around the arena. Sunday’s Free Dance and Women’s Free Skate traditionally draw the biggest television audiences in the U.S. figure skating calendar.

    How to buy

    Tickets are available at the Les Schwab Box Office at Angel of the Winds Arena or online at angelofthewindsarena.com. The exclusive presale opened Wednesday, April 22 for eligible fans using the presale code FANS26. General public sale is open as of Thursday, April 23.

    History says the mid-tier ($200-$400) seats will sell first. The $600 premium seats and the $100 upper-bowl seats tend to hang on longest. If you are trying to go with a group, buy together and buy early — Skate America pulls figure skating fans from across the Pacific Northwest and from British Columbia, and the Everett event has historically filled the building.

    Why Skate America in Everett matters

    Skate America is one of the six ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating events held each fall, and it is the only one on U.S. soil. Winning a Grand Prix event qualifies skaters for the Grand Prix Final in December. For Olympic-quality figure skating, this is the highest level of competition you will see in Washington state all year.

    Everett hosting the event speaks to how far the downtown arena has come since it opened. Angel of the Winds Arena is now a regular stop on the national figure skating circuit, and the combination of the 10,000-capacity venue, hotel density in downtown Everett, and the quick Sounder/light-rail access from Seattle has made Everett a preferred host city for U.S. Figure Skating.

    What else is happening that weekend

    November 13-15 is a Friday-through-Sunday that should make for a full downtown weekend. Hotels around the arena and along Broadway will book up fast — figure skating crowds tend to lock in lodging months in advance. If you are coming from Seattle, the Sounder train to Everett Station runs on weekends with limited service, and the light-rail extension to Everett is still in planning.

    If you are local, plan to park early and walk. The arena’s east lot fills first. The city garages on Wetmore and Rockefeller are usually the smartest play for weekend event traffic.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    When does Skate America 2026 take place?

    November 13-15, 2026, with a practice day on Thursday, November 12 for all-session pass holders. Four competition sessions across three days.

    Where is Skate America 2026?

    Angel of the Winds Arena at 2000 Hewitt Avenue in downtown Everett, Washington.

    When did Skate America 2026 tickets go on sale?

    Exclusive presale began Wednesday, April 22, 2026 with presale code FANS26. General public on-sale opened Thursday, April 23, 2026.

    How much are Skate America 2026 tickets?

    All-session tickets range from $100 to $600 depending on seating section.

    What does an all-session pass include?

    Entry to every competition session Friday November 13 through Sunday November 15, plus access to the Thursday November 12 practice day (not sold separately).

    Where do I buy Skate America tickets?

    Online at angelofthewindsarena.com or in person at the Les Schwab Box Office inside Angel of the Winds Arena.

    What disciplines are part of Skate America?

    Men’s, women’s, pairs, and ice dance — all four Olympic figure skating disciplines, with both short and free programs across the weekend.

  • Month of the Military Child Turns 40: How Naval Station Everett Supports Navy Kids in 2026

    Month of the Military Child Turns 40: How Naval Station Everett Supports Navy Kids in 2026

    Q: What is Month of the Military Child, and how does Naval Station Everett mark it?
    A: Month of the Military Child is a national observance every April that recognizes the children of U.S. service members. Designated by Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger in 1986, 2026 marks its 40th anniversary. At Naval Station Everett, the observance is anchored by the base’s Child and Youth Programs, the School Liaison Office, Fleet and Family Support Center, and community partners like the Lake Washington & Everett Council of the Navy League. Purple Up Day — when the Navy, Marine Corps, Army, Air Force, Coast Guard, and Space Force communities all wear purple to represent every service branch — fell on April 15 this year.

    Month of the Military Child Turns 40: How Naval Station Everett Supports Navy Kids in 2026

    April is Month of the Military Child, and in 2026 it is a milestone observance — 40 years since Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger first designated April as a dedicated month to recognize the children of U.S. service members. For Naval Station Everett and the Navy families who live on base and throughout Snohomish County, that 40-year anniversary hits differently than a typical April.

    Navy kids move an average of six to nine times before they graduate from high school. They say goodbye to a parent for a deployment that often stretches past seven months. They change schools, lose friends, and start over — and then do it again. Month of the Military Child exists because somebody, four decades ago, recognized that the sacrifice inside a military household is not carried by the sailor alone.

    Here is what the observance looks like at the Naval Station Everett level in 2026, and where Navy kids and the parents who love them can plug into local support.

    Why April, and Why Purple

    The designation of April as Month of the Military Child goes back to 1986, when Caspar Weinberger — then Secretary of Defense under President Reagan — formalized the observance. The choice of the color purple came later and has stuck because purple combines the traditional colors of every military branch: Army green, Marine Corps red, Navy and Coast Guard blue, Air Force blue, and Space Force grey all blend into one. When everyone wears purple on Purple Up Day, it is a visual way of saying: the military child belongs to every service, not just one.

    Purple Up Day in 2026 landed on Wednesday, April 15. Schools across Snohomish County that serve military-connected students — the Mukilteo, Everett, and Marysville school districts in particular — mark the day with purple shirts, purple ribbons, and classroom activities that let military kids be seen for the specific thing they are.

    Naval Station Everett Child and Youth Programs

    The hub of base-level support for Navy kids at NAVSTA Everett runs through the installation’s Child and Youth Programs office. Three pieces matter most to families:

    The Child Development Center

    The Everett Child Development Center provides center-based care for children ages six weeks through five years. The CDC is primarily structured around full-time care for working Navy families — a critical need when one parent is underway and the other is holding the line at home. Availability at CDCs across Navy Region Northwest has been tight for years, and Everett is no exception. Families relocating to the area are encouraged to put their names on the waitlist the moment they receive orders.

    Youth Programs

    For school-age kids, Youth Programs runs a monthly calendar that covers classes, 4-H, field trips, special events, sports clinics, and summer camp. During Month of the Military Child, youth programming typically leans into themes of resilience, connection, and celebration — giving Navy kids a space where everyone in the room understands what a duty station change or a deployment countdown actually feels like.

    The School Liaison Office

    Perhaps the most underused resource at NAVSTA Everett is the School Liaison Office. The School Liaison serves as the subject-matter expert on K-12 issues for the installation commander and, more importantly, for every Navy family that has to navigate a school transfer mid-year. The office helps with inbound and outbound school transfers, information on local school district boundaries, Individualized Education Program (IEP) continuity across state lines, and the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children — the legal framework that protects military kids from losing credits or being forced to retake coursework when they move.

    The School Liaison office is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., by appointment. Families can follow @EverettFFR on Facebook and Instagram for updates.

    Fleet and Family Support Center: The Parent-Facing Half

    Month of the Military Child focuses on kids, but the reality is that military kids do well when the parent at home is supported too. The Fleet and Family Support Center (FFSC) at NAVSTA Everett carries that weight through programs that serve the whole household: Family Employment Readiness, deployment readiness, new-parent support, counseling, and relocation assistance.

    FFSC is reachable at 425-304-3735. For a spouse arriving in Everett for the first time with two kids in tow and a sailor about to go underway, that phone number is the single most useful thing in this article.

    The Community Side: Navy League, School Districts, and Local Partners

    Naval Station Everett is not an island. The Lake Washington and Everett Council of the Navy League of the United States is one of the most active community partners supporting sailors, Marines, Coast Guardsmen, merchant mariners, and their families across the region. The council’s advocacy and education work touches Month of the Military Child each year through ship sponsorships, school programs, and public events that connect the civilian side of Snohomish County to the Navy families who live here.

    Mukilteo School District, which serves the largest share of NAVSTA Everett’s school-age kids, is a Purple Star-designated district — a Washington State designation that recognizes schools going above and beyond to support military-connected students. Everett Public Schools and Marysville School District also serve significant populations of Navy families.

    What a Navy Kid Actually Deals With

    The statistics behind Month of the Military Child are worth sitting with. A military child’s school day is not the same as a civilian child’s. Deployments, duty-station moves, and the constant background hum of a parent’s underway schedule layer an extra weight on top of the normal stuff kids have to handle — friendships, grades, growing up.

    The upside is that Navy kids — military kids generally — grow up with a kind of resilience and worldliness that is hard to replicate. They know how to walk into a cafeteria full of strangers on day one. They know airports. They know how to make friends fast, because the alternative is to not have friends at all. But that resilience is not free; it is built on top of real loss, and it takes a village of programs, teachers, school liaisons, youth directors, and neighbors to make sure the weight does not become too much.

    Month of the Military Child, at its 40-year mark, is the moment each year when the country is invited to notice.

    How Everett Residents Can Show Up

    For civilian neighbors in Everett and broader Snohomish County who want to do something concrete this April, a few practical options:

    • Wear purple — even after Purple Up Day. Ribbons on mailboxes, purple porch lights, and purple-themed local business promotions are simple visible signals.
    • Support the Lake Washington and Everett Navy League Council — membership and volunteer work directly funds programs for military families.
    • Check in on a Navy family you know — especially one with a sailor currently underway. An offered meal, a ride for the kids, or a Saturday of childcare in April is worth more than a social media post.
    • Thank a teacher who serves military kids. School counselors, classroom teachers, and school liaison personnel carry a lot of this weight invisibly.

    The 40-Year Thread

    When Weinberger designated April as Month of the Military Child in 1986, the Cold War was not yet over, the Navy’s destroyer force looked nothing like it does today, and Naval Station Everett did not yet exist as a commissioned base. Forty years later, the fleet has changed, the missions have changed, and the ships homeported at Everett have rotated through generations of crews.

    What has not changed is the kid waiting at the pier with a hand-lettered sign. Or the teenager who transferred in mid-semester and has not figured out where to sit at lunch yet. Or the six-year-old drawing a picture of a destroyer to mail to a parent who is somewhere they cannot be named. Those are the kids this month belongs to.

    Forty years in, and the work is not finished.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    When is Purple Up Day in 2026?

    Purple Up Day for Month of the Military Child in 2026 was Wednesday, April 15. The designated day varies slightly year to year but consistently falls in mid-April.

    What is the School Liaison Office at Naval Station Everett, and how do I contact it?

    The School Liaison Office serves as NAVSTA Everett’s expert on K-12 school issues for military families. It helps with inbound and outbound school transfers, IEP continuity across state lines, and the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children. The office is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., by appointment. Follow @EverettFFR on Facebook or Instagram for updates.

    How do I get on the Everett Child Development Center waitlist?

    Families should contact NAVSTA Everett Child and Youth Programs as soon as orders are received. The Child Development Center provides care for children six weeks through five years, and demand exceeds capacity across Navy Region Northwest, so early waitlist placement is important.

    What does the Fleet and Family Support Center do for military families in Everett?

    The FFSC at NAVSTA Everett runs programs covering spouse employment, deployment readiness, new-parent support, counseling, and relocation assistance. Contact: 425-304-3735.

    Why is the color purple used for Month of the Military Child?

    Purple combines the traditional branch colors — Army green, Marine Corps red, Navy and Coast Guard blue, Air Force blue, and Space Force grey — into one unified color that represents every service branch. It signals that military children belong to every branch of the armed forces, not just one.

    Which local school districts serve Naval Station Everett families?

    Mukilteo School District serves the largest share of NAVSTA Everett’s school-age children and is designated a Purple Star district by Washington State. Everett Public Schools and Marysville School District also serve significant populations of Navy families in Snohomish County.

    How can civilians in Everett support military children in April?

    Wear purple, support the Lake Washington and Everett Council of the Navy League, check in on neighboring Navy families (especially those with a sailor deployed), and thank teachers and school staff who support military-connected students.

    When was Month of the Military Child established?

    Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger designated April as Month of the Military Child in 1986, making 2026 the 40th anniversary of the observance.

  • Jetty Island Ferry Returns July 8: Your Complete 2026 Guide to Everett’s Best Free Beach

    Jetty Island Ferry Returns July 8: Your Complete 2026 Guide to Everett’s Best Free Beach

    Q: When does the Jetty Island ferry open in 2026?
    A: The Jetty Island passenger ferry runs July 8 through September 6, 2026, Wednesday through Sunday. Reservations are required and cost $4 per person Wed-Thu and $7 Fri-Sun. Children 2 and under ride free. The ferry departs from Jetty Landing at 10th Street and W. Marine View Drive in Everett.

    Jetty Island Ferry Returns July 8: Your Complete 2026 Guide to Everett’s Best Free Beach

    Mark July 8 on the calendar. That’s the day the Jetty Island ferry season officially starts in 2026, and that’s the day Everett’s two-mile-long sandy island park becomes accessible again to anyone who can get to the marina. The ferry runs through September 6 — exactly two months of the only beach in Western Washington that actually feels like a beach.

    If you’ve never made the trip, here’s the short version: Jetty Island is a man-made, two-mile-long sandbar just off the Port of Everett, separated from the mainland by a narrow channel. There’s warm water on the inner shoreline (the channel side warms up in the summer sun), wind for kiteboarders on the outer shoreline, miles of walking, and almost no infrastructure. Bring what you need, take what you brought. That’s the deal.

    The 2026 Ferry Schedule

    The passenger ferry runs Wednesday through Sunday from July 8 through September 6, 2026. Operating hours by day:

    • Wednesday and Thursday: 10 AM to 5:45 PM
    • Friday and Saturday: 10 AM to 6:45 PM
    • Sunday: 10 AM to 5:45 PM
    • Monday and Tuesday: No ferry service

    The ferry departs from Jetty Landing, which is right next to the boat launch at the corner of 10th Street and W. Marine View Drive in Everett. There’s parking near the launch, but on a hot weekend in August it fills up fast. Get there early or be prepared to walk a few blocks.

    Reservations Are Required (Yes, Even on Weekdays)

    This is the part that trips up first-timers. You cannot just show up. All ferry rides require advance reservations through the Port of Everett’s reservation system. Walk-up tickets are not sold at the dock.

    Pricing for 2026:

    • Wednesday-Thursday: $4 per person
    • Friday-Sunday: $7 per person
    • Children 2 and under: Free

    Applicable taxes and a small booking fee apply at checkout. Reservations open up at portofeverett.com — and for prime weekend slots in July and August, they go fast. If you know you want to be there a particular weekend, book it the moment the schedule goes live.

    What You Need to Know Before You Go

    Jetty Island is intentionally left rustic. There are no concessions. There is no drinking water. There are vault toilets and that’s it. Pack:

    • Water — more than you think you need. Two miles of beach in August sun without shade is a long day.
    • Sunscreen and a hat — there is genuinely zero shade on most of the island.
    • Snacks/lunch — and a trash bag. Pack out what you pack in.
    • Wind layer — even on hot days the outer beach gets a steady afternoon wind off the Sound.
    • Beach toys, a kite, or a paddleboard — the channel side is calm and warm enough for all-day water play.

    Pets are allowed, but they need to stay on leash. There’s no lifeguard service. Watch the tide schedule — at extreme low tides the channel between the mainland and the island gets shallow enough to expose long stretches of mudflat, which is fascinating to look at and miserable to walk through.

    Why the Ferry Closes Early on Hot Days

    This is the one operational quirk to plan around. When the island reaches maximum capacity — which happens on hot weekends in late July and August — the ferry can stop running new round-trips early. The return ferries still operate to bring everyone back, but if you show up at 2 PM on a 90-degree Saturday and the ferry is paused, your reservation may not get you across. Earlier is better.

    Inclement weather can also cancel ferry service. The Port posts updates on the day-of through their site and social channels.

    The Things People Don’t Realize About Jetty Island

    The water is actually warm. The channel side, sheltered from the Sound, gets shallow and sun-heated through the day. Kids can wade for hours. It’s the warmest swimming water you’ll find anywhere in Snohomish County.

    It’s a kiteboarding hotspot. The outer shoreline catches a consistent westerly afternoon wind in summer, and the local kiteboarding community treats Jetty as one of the best spots in the region. If you’ve ever wanted to watch the sport up close, head to the south end of the island in the late afternoon.

    The bird life is wild. Jetty is on the Pacific Flyway and is a Snohomish County designated wildlife area. Bald eagles, herons, oystercatchers — bring binoculars if you’re into that.

    You can paddle there. If the ferry is full or you’ve got your own kayak or paddleboard, the channel from the marina is short, calm, and well within reach for a casual paddler. Bring a leash for your board and a PFD.

    Getting to Jetty Landing

    Jetty Landing is at 1700 W. Marine View Drive, right next to the Port of Everett’s 10th Street boat launch. From I-5, take exit 193 (Pacific Avenue) and head west until Marine View Drive, then turn north. The boat launch parking lot is signed.

    Everett Transit’s Route 7 stops within about a half-mile walk if you’d rather not deal with parking. On weekends the bike racks at Jetty Landing fill up too, which tells you something about who knows what they’re doing.

    What to Do After the Beach

    Coming back from a Jetty day around 5 or 6 PM puts you right at the Port of Everett’s Waterfront Place — which has the best dinner options in the area and is about a five-minute walk from where you’ll dock. Tapped Public House, Rustic Cork, and the new Sound to Summit taproom on the south side of the marina are all right there. The Net Shed Fish Market & Kitchen is another great option for a casual dinner with a view.

    Make a day of it: ferry over for a morning swim, beach lunch, kite-watching afternoon, then dinner on the waterfront when you get back. That’s an Everett summer Saturday done right.

    The Big Picture: Jetty Days 2026

    The Port of Everett’s Jetty Island Days programming runs alongside the ferry season July 8 – September 6, with naturalists, environmental education programs, and family activities scheduled throughout. The full programming calendar typically goes live in mid-June. Watch portofeverett.com for the schedule.

    This is a free island park (the only cost is the ferry ride). It is a genuinely unusual asset for a city the size of Everett. And once you’ve been once, you’ll find a reason to go back every summer.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    When does the Jetty Island ferry open in 2026?
    July 8, 2026.

    When does the ferry season end?
    September 6, 2026.

    How much is the ferry?
    $4 per person Wednesday-Thursday, $7 per person Friday-Sunday. Children 2 and under ride free.

    Where do I make ferry reservations?
    Through portofeverett.com. Reservations are required — there are no walk-up tickets.

    Where does the ferry leave from?
    Jetty Landing at 10th Street and W. Marine View Drive in Everett, next to the Port of Everett boat launch.

    What days does the ferry run?
    Wednesday through Sunday. No ferry service Monday or Tuesday.

    Can I bring my dog to Jetty Island?
    Yes, dogs are allowed but must be on leash.

    Is there food on Jetty Island?
    No — bring your own food, water, and pack out all trash.

    Can I kayak or paddleboard to Jetty Island?
    Yes. The channel from the marina is short and calm in good weather. Wear a PFD and use a board leash.

    Are there bathrooms on the island?
    Yes, vault toilets only. No running water.

    Can the ferry be canceled?
    Yes, the ferry may close due to weather or when the island reaches maximum capacity on busy days. Check portofeverett.com for day-of updates.

  • Millwright District Phase 2’s Retail Vision: Movie Theater, Mini Golf, and Bowling on Everett’s Waterfront

    Millwright District Phase 2’s Retail Vision: Movie Theater, Mini Golf, and Bowling on Everett’s Waterfront

    What is planned for retail in Millwright District Phase 2? The Port of Everett and Lincoln Property Company are targeting family-entertainment retail for Phase 2 of the Millwright District at Waterfront Place — including a movie theater, miniature golf, an arcade, bowling, plus smaller shops, gyms, and salons. Retail is anticipated to be completed by mid-2029, behind the up-to-120,000 sq. ft. of Class-A office space currently in pre-leasing.

    We’ve spent a lot of time on the office side of the Millwright District story — the up-to-120,000 square feet of Class-A space across three interconnected buildings, the 5,000 sq. ft. minimum suite, the pre-leasing campaign Lincoln Property Company has been running since 2025. It’s a real story and we’ll keep covering it. But the part we get asked about more often, by people who actually live in Everett, is the other part: what’s going to be on the ground floor?

    Now we have at least a directional answer. According to recent Port presentations and Phase 2 planning materials, the family-entertainment retail vision for Millwright is starting to come into focus — and it’s a meaningful departure from the Restaurant Row playbook the Port used at Fisherman’s Harbor. Phase 1 went all-in on dining. Phase 2 is leaning toward things you do, not just things you eat.

    What’s on the wishlist

    The Port has publicly described the Millwright Phase 2 retail mix as family-entertainment-style retail, with specific concepts named in planning conversations including:

    • A movie theater — the kind of anchor Everett has been thin on since the closure of older downtown screens. Whether that’s a multiplex format or a smaller boutique theater isn’t yet specified, but the floorplate at Millwright supports either.
    • Miniature golf — likely indoor or partially-indoor given the Everett rain calendar, leaning into the date-night and family-outing market.
    • Arcade and bowling — both commonly bundled in modern entertainment retail concepts (think Pinstripes or Bowlero in larger markets, or smaller independent operators in mid-size cities like ours).
    • Small shops, gyms, and salons — the day-to-day service retail layer that an apartment cluster of this size needs to function.

    That’s the menu. None of it is signed yet — the Port and Lincoln have not announced specific tenants for Phase 2 retail as of late April 2026 — but the program direction is set, and that direction tells you a lot about how the next five years on the waterfront are going to look.

    Why the entertainment-retail pivot makes sense

    Here’s the math the Port is working with. By the time Phase 2 opens, the immediate Waterfront Place neighborhood will have:

    • The 266 existing apartments at the Sawyer and Carling (currently 95% occupied)
    • The 300+ new units breaking ground in Millwright Phase 2
    • Two existing hotels
    • 1.6+ million annual visitors based on 2024 numbers
    • 14 existing food and beverage venues with five more opening in 2025-2026

    That’s a lot of people who already eat here. What they don’t have within walking distance is somewhere to go after dinner that isn’t another bar. The entertainment-retail pivot answers that gap directly. It also pulls in a market the Port hasn’t aggressively chased yet — families with kids old enough to want their own thing — and it gives apartment residents a reason to stay on the waterfront on a Saturday afternoon instead of driving to Lynnwood or Alderwood for a movie.

    The math also works for retail tenants. Ground-floor entertainment concepts need foot traffic and parking. Waterfront Place provides both: 1.6M annual visitors, free public parking through the lots and garages, and a captive resident population growing toward 600+ units within a five-minute walk. That’s a stronger pre-opening pitch than most ground-floor retail in suburban Snohomish County can offer.

    How the Port is staging the buildout

    The current sequencing on Millwright Phase 2 is roughly:

    • 2025-2026: Office pre-leasing campaign with Lincoln Property Company. Targeting up to 120,000 sq. ft. of Class-A space across up to three buildings.
    • 2026: 300+ apartment units breaking ground.
    • 2027-2028: Office and apartment delivery. Vertical construction across the Millwright site.
    • Mid-2029 target: Retail phase completion — including the family-entertainment tenants the Port is now pursuing.

    The retail trails the office and residential delivery on purpose. You don’t open a movie theater into an empty district. You open it once the residents are moved in, the office workers are filling the cafes at lunch, and the foot-traffic baseline is established. Mid-2029 lines up roughly with the Sawyer/Carling stabilizing fully and the new 300+ units hitting their first turnover cycle.

    Where this fits in Everett’s bigger entertainment-retail picture

    Everett doesn’t have a lot of entertainment retail right now. The closest comparable concepts are scattered: Round1 at Alderwood Mall, the AMC at Alderwood, a couple of bowling centers, the venues that anchor the Mill Creek and Lynnwood ends of the county. Within Everett city limits, the nearest movie theater operating today is the Stanwood Cinemas/Galaxy chain reach, plus the historic Everett Theatre downtown for a different kind of programming.

    What that means is Millwright’s family-entertainment vision doesn’t have to fight an existing concentration in the immediate area. It can fill a real gap. The downtown stadium project, if it moves forward, will pull additional event-night traffic to the same general district. The Eclipse Mill Park signature park project will add green-space programming in the same corridor. Combine those and you start to see the outlines of an actual entertainment district — waterfront restaurants, ballpark, family-entertainment retail, signature park — within a 15-minute walk of each other.

    That’s the bet. It’s a long bet — mid-2029 is three years out — but the supporting pieces are stacking up.

    What could change this

    Three things to watch:

    1. Office pre-leasing momentum. If Lincoln signs anchor office tenants ahead of schedule, the entire Millwright timeline pulls forward and retail gets in faster. If office pre-leasing stalls, the retail phase slides right.

    2. The downtown stadium decision. The April 29 City Council vote on the additional $10.6M design funding will tell us a lot about whether the stadium becomes the second anchor of the entertainment district or gets restructured. Either way, it shapes the foot-traffic math the retail tenants will run.

    3. Tenant economics. Modern entertainment retail concepts — especially anchor formats like movie theaters and full bowling centers — have been navigating real headwinds nationally. A signed deal with a national anchor would meaningfully de-risk the timeline. A series of smaller independent operators is also possible and would shape the district differently.

    The bottom line for Everett

    The Millwright Phase 2 retail vision is one of the more interesting development bets currently on the table for Everett. It’s not a guarantee — none of the named concepts are signed, and the timeline runs into 2029. But the Port is signaling clearly where they want this to go, and that signal matters because it’s directional information for everyone else: prospective office tenants, restaurant operators looking at the last Fisherman’s Harbor parcels, residential developers eyeing parcels north and south of Millwright, and small-business owners thinking about whether the waterfront is where they want their next location.

    Three years from now, if all of this lands, walking Waterfront Place on a Saturday night could mean dinner at Tapped Public House, a movie at the Millwright theater, a round of mini-golf, and a beer at Sound to Summit before heading home to a Sawyer apartment. That’s a different city than the one we have today.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    What kind of retail is planned for Millwright District Phase 2?
    Family-entertainment-style retail, with specific concepts including a movie theater, miniature golf, an arcade, bowling, plus smaller shops, gyms, and salons.

    When will Millwright District Phase 2 retail open?
    The Port has indicated mid-2029 as the target for retail phase completion, behind the office and residential delivery scheduled for 2027-2028.

    Have any specific retail tenants been announced?
    Not as of late April 2026. The Port and Lincoln Property Company have described the retail vision and program direction publicly, but no signed tenants have been named for Phase 2 retail.

    How much office space is in Millwright Phase 2?
    Up to 120,000 square feet of Class-A office space across up to three interconnected buildings. Suites range from 5,000 sq. ft. up to the full 120,000 sq. ft. Pre-leasing is being run by Lincoln Property Company.

    How many apartments will Phase 2 add?
    300+ new residential units, which will join the existing 266 units at the Sawyer and Carling — bringing total Waterfront Place housing close to 600 units when Phase 2 stabilizes.

    How does this compare to Phase 1 at Fisherman’s Harbor?
    Phase 1 led with dining — Restaurant Row now hosts Fisherman Jack’s, South Fork Baking Company, Rustic Cork, The Net Shed, Tapped Public House, with Marina Azul and Menchie’s opening soon. Phase 2 is leaning toward entertainment retail rather than additional restaurants, on the theory that the dining base has been established and residents now need somewhere to go after dinner.

    Where is Millwright District located?
    Just north of Fisherman’s Harbor at the Port of Everett’s Waterfront Place. It’s part of the same 65+ acre waterfront redevelopment, walking distance from Boxcar Park and the Central Marina esplanade.