FICRA Flash September 2019

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Fox Island Upcoming Events:

Click on the Calendar icon (left) to view the all-island event calendar. If you have a Fox Island event that you would like to include, send email to ficranews@gmail.com .

Possibly the Best Fair Ever!

What a great turnout for the annual FICRA Fair on August 10th! We had a small amount of rain early that morning leaving us us with a beautiful and warm day. The music provided by Sara Tweet, Stephanie, Dan Spencer, Ruthie Craft and the Gene Sievers Band was excellent and provided a great atmosphere for the Music and Food Court. 

Many thanks to Peninsula Light Company for their sponsorship of the fair. There were many food and craft vendors and informational booths. We sold out of hamburgers, hot dogs and beer! This year's Grand Marshals were George and Patty Metzger who were honored for their many years of support and involvement in Fox Island community organizations. 

Special thanks to Hal Goodell and all of the volunteers who worked to make the annual FICRA Fair a success and thanks to everyone who came out to enjoy this wonderful community event!

Two More Eagle Projects!

We've done it again - times two! Boy Scout Troop 27 has two more Eagle Scout candidate projects completed.

FICRA Building Trust sponsors Cub Scout Pack 27 for boy and girls, Scout Troop 27 for boys (from which they can achieve the rank of Eagle Scout), and Scout Troop 727 for girls (who can also achieve the Eagle Scout rank.

The Trust Board members are very proud of the successes of our BSA units. If you have a child that would enjoy the adventures and skills learning of Boy Scouts of America, write info@ficra.org and we will connect you with the program that fits by age.

Saturday, September 28th at 10:30am

Nichols Community Center

Free for FICRA Members

$5.00 for non-members

Join us for this fun family concert event! Recess Monkey is a Grammy-Nominated family music band from Seattle.

Hurry! Visit ficra.org/recessmonkey2019.htm to reserve your spot for this fun concert! Here's what people say about them:

" These kids’ songs are awesome! There are bands you can’t go wrong with, and this is one of them." – USA Today

" RECESS MONKEY: If Seattle is the new bastion of kindie rockers, then the trio of elementary school teachers are the city's breakout stars." – Time Magazine

" RECESS MONKEY, The Final Funktier: The clever trio kick it space-age style on a boppy set with songs like ‘Ukulalien’ and “Beat-Box-a-Robot’ that future astronauts will find irresistibly fun. 4 Stars" – People Magazine

" BEST KIDS’ CDs OF THE DECADE: This trio of teachers (who have even garnered Beatles comparisons) has become a force to be reckoned with in kid's music." – AOL ParentDish

Shopping Online?

By using smile.amazon.com instead of amazon.com, Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of your eligible purchases to the charitable organization of your choice. Please go there and search for and select FICRA Building Trust. During the last quarter, we made $40 from Amazon by doing nothing else but shopping using that special link.

AmazonSmile is the same Amazon you know. Same products, same prices, same service. Support FICRA by starting your shopping at smile.amazon.com!

Fox Island Amateur Radio Club (FIARC)

The Fox Island Amateur Radio Club (FIARC) holds their meetings on the 4th Saturday of each month at the Nichols Community Center. The meetings begin with a social gathering with coffee and treats and a chance to get to know one another at 9 am. The business meeting starts at 10 am and usually last about an hour. The FIARC ham members will provide the main island communications for our Emergency Preparedness team if and when an emergency occurs. 

 

FIARC had a booth at the FICRA Fair and demonstrated amateur communications with contacts being made throughout the United States. The FIARC will be sponsoring another Technician Amateur Radio Class over the weekend of September 21 and 22 at the Nichols Community Center. If interested please send a email to info@ficra.org and we will get back to you.

Citizens' Patrol Tip of the Month

School has started and our kids are back hitting the books. Please be aware that some of them will be walking along the side of the road to their respective bus stops. Slow down – we want to ensure their safety in the early mornings and late afternoons. If you are a parent and waiting at a stop, take notice of those kids who don’t have someone dropping them off for the bus. You can be the extra pair of eyes at these stops!

We want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has donated to Citizens’ Patrol this year. So far, we have had a very successful year. We are continually looking for Citizens' Patrol volunteers. You do not have to commit to any specific amount of time; every little bit helps all of us on the island. If you are interested, call the hotline (253-549-7744) or email us at FICP98333@gmail.com.

Pierce County Sheriff's Dept. 253-798-4721 (non-emergency calls).

Your Citizens' Patrol

No Rest for the Weedy!

Sunday, Oct 6th at 1:00pm

Nichols Community Center

Join us for a special presentation by Melody Meyer of the Pierce County Noxious Weed Board. She will discuss noxious weeds in our area and what to do about them.

The Fox Island bridge was given its periodic health check by Pierce County on August 27th and there were no surprises. They reportedly did a little work on the bridge deck spalling. Additional work on the bridge will begin Monday, Sept. 9 and continue into the next day. In order to accommodate school start and end times, work will not begin until 9:30 a.m. and will stop at 2:00 p.m. During work hours, the road will be reduced to one lane with alternating traffic.

The County Council has not reviewed the final engineering report on the bridge repair/replacement so the best guess on when we will hold a meeting to review that on Fox Island is November, 2019.

Built in 1954, the Fox Island Bridge is constructed of cast-in-place concrete and steel beams. At 1,950 feet, it is the longest vehicle bridge maintained by Pierce County. It carries approximately 6,875 vehicles a day.

Fox Island Emergency Preparedness

2019 Update

THE UPDATED Emergency Plan for Fox Island is at ficra.org/emergency-planning.htm for you to read and download. This year's update includes many new and interesting accomplishments and emergency supplies that have been purchased. Your understanding of the component parts of THE PLAN is essential to knowing what to expect should a major event occur and the need for each family to be SELF-SUFFICIENT. Your Fox Island Emergency Preparedness Teams will respond, in time and assist, as needed.

Do you know who your Block Coordinator is? Please check our online interactive map to see who your block coordinator is. Click here to see the map. The map controls are in the upper left corner (see brief description below). Note that more data turns on as you zoom in.

If you area isn't covered, you can e-mail fiblockcoord@gmail.com to have us help you get the coverage (we are working to get the greatest coverage we can). You can help, too - consider volunteering to be a block coordinator. It's a great way to meet your neighbors and is not a complicated, nor time consuming, job.

Block Coordinators

Please consider volunteering as a Block Coordinator! The two chief duties are not demanding in time and are as follows:

That's it!

If there is ever a major event, every minute spent in preparation will be paid back in hours of reduced trouble and stress. You will receive a monthly newsletter on preparation topics, training opportunities, and news concerning EP. No regular meetings, no dues, just neighbors being there for neighbors!

Please e-mail fiblockcoord@gmail.com if you are interested in helping.

Party Planners

We are seeking some fun-loving people to help organize the annual FICRA Trust "Party with a Purpose" that will be held in January. Please reply to this email if you can help out.

Publicity

Seeking someone new to step up to take over FICRA publicity. This includes creating this newsletter monthly. Other tasks include updating the FICRA Facebook page with information on events and the Instagram account with photos, creating flyers and posters for the FICRA window at the store and creating and posting the bridge signs. If you are interested in all or part of these tasks, please reply to this email.

Annual Membership Party

The annual Chapel Membership Party will be held on Sunday, September 15th at 5:00pm. It’s a Tailgate Party theme...after the Seahawks game. Join us for free refreshments and fun. Not a member? Join that night for just $25. Your membership helps us preserve our historic chapel. RSVPs for the party are appreciated for food planning purposes: to info@foxislandchapel.net.

Save the Date!

Our annual Christmas concert fundraiser will be Saturday, December 14th with Puget Sounds Wind Quintet. Mark your calendar and stay tuned for more info.

Annual Cruise Around Fox Island

Saturday, September 7th  

The cruise is SOLD OUT! For those lucky people with tickets, here are the details:

Date: Saturday, September 7th

Time: Board at 2:30pm at the Fox Island Yacht Club;

Cruise from 3-5pm

"My Girl" will be our boat this year (photo below).

This is a fully narrated 2-hour cruise by our local historian and Rachel from Harbor Wildwatch. Snacks are included in ticket price. Beer and wine will be available at a cash bar on board.

All-Island Garage Sale

Saturday, S eptember 14th  

Get ready for the biggest garage sale in the area! Due to construction at the Museum, the 2019 all-island garage sale will take place at the Nichols Community Center (NCC). Hold a sale at your home or reserve space at the NCC. The cost is $15 for home sales and $25 for a site at the NCC. We will advertise the Garage Sale online at Craigslist, Facebook & local websites/blogs and sell maps to all sale locations. To be on the map, you need to register.

Garage Sale fees from the NCC will go to the Fox Island Historical Society. Fees from Home Sites will go to the FICRA Building Trust. Maps will be sold the day of the sale starting at 8:00AM for $2 each at the Fox Island Alliance Church, Fox Island Fire Station, and the NCC, with proceeds benefiting the FICRA Trust Citizens' Patrol Program. The Museum will provide food service (hot dogs) at the NCC. Note: if you have a Garage Sale space at the NCC, you are responsible for bringing your own tables, chairs, etc.

Applications are available at the Museum during open hours (Wed, Sat, Sun from 1-4pm) and available online at ficra.org. Registrations are due by Wednesday, September 11 to be included on the map.

Men's Coffee @ NCC

Men's Coffee is every Wednesday morning from 9:00 to 11:00am. Bring your friends and meet new ones. Get and share expert opinions on all sorts of topics and stay for the camaraderie.

Nature Center Work Parties

You're invited to help keep our Nature Center in shape. Work parties are held once a month on the 3rd Saturday at 9:00am.

Guitar Clinic 

Tuesdays at 10:00am at the Nichols Community Center. Free!

Quilters  

The Fox Island Quilters meet on the first and third Thursday of the month at the Nichols Community Center 10-2. We took a short break over the summer months and will start again with our first meeting on September 5th. If you are new to the area and love to quilt or play with fabric stop by to see what we are doing. We're very informal. Some of us will be sewing, others doing hand work or just stopping by for a visit. Bring lunch if you want! Contact: Sue Lester, 253-549-4428, suelester61@hotmail.com

Monthly Adult Game Night @ NCC

Trivia is held on the last Friday of the month. Mark your calendars to attend the next one on September 27th.

Island Yoga & Exercise Schedule:  (all classes are on a donation basis)

Note : The Tuesday Strength & Balance Class with Kristi is suspended for the summer.

Sand & Soil Garden Club Meetings

Meetings held the 2nd Thursday of the month at 11:00am followed by potluck luncheon.

Fox Island Art Group

Wednesdays at 10:00 at the NCC 

FICRA & FICRA Trust Board Meetings

Second Thursday of the month at 7:00pm at the NCC.

Fox Island Historical Society Museum Board Meetings

Normally the last Monday of the month at 7:00pm at the museum.

We have had a great response to our annual call for FICRA Membership renewal via the July FICRA Flash and at the FICRA Fair. The current membership period runs from August 1, 2019 to July 31, 2020. If you haven’t had a chance to renew your membership or if you wish to join FICRA you may do so via the online membership form at ficra.org/dues.htm and pay via PayPal with a credit card. Forms and envelopes are also available at the Fox Island Store along with a drop box. FICRA Membership dues support the many FICRA activities that happen throughout the year. Join/renew and become part of our Island community!

FICRA and the FICRA Building Trust are always looking for volunteers to assist with our various programs. Come join us in making Fox Island the wonderful place that it is. Please also consider a tax deductible donation to FICRA Building Trust and/or the Citizen Patrol Program along with your FICRA Dues payment.

For those of you that have paid your dues for the 2019-2020 FICRA membership and have not yet received your Directory, go to the Museum during their business hours (Wed, Sat, Sun, 1-4 PM) and ask for your copy. The Museum has the member list. For non-members, Directories are available for $5 at the Museum.