Wednesday, September 23, 2026 | |
Congratulations to Our
2026 Business Awards Gala Nominees!
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GKC Business Awards Gala
Sponsorship Opportunities Available!
| | Help us celebrate the northern lights of our local business community and be a sponsor at the Chamber's 2026 Business Awards Gala! For sponsorship information contact us at (360) 692-6800 or hello@greaterkitsapchamber.com. | |
September Membership Luncheon
Wednesday, September 30, 2026, 11:00am
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The future of Kitsap’s workforce starts in our classrooms.
Join us for our next Chamber Luncheon, a State of Education in Kitsap, featuring leaders from the Bremerton School District, Central Kitsap School District, Olympic College, and WWU Peninsulas. Hear updates on what’s happening across our local education systems, the opportunities and challenges ahead, and how schools are preparing students for their next steps.
For our business community, these conversations matter. The work happening in our schools today directly impacts workforce readiness, our future talent pipeline, and the ability of local employers to find the skilled people they need to grow and succeed.
Come learn what’s happening in education - and what it means for the businesses and workforce that keep Kitsap’s economy strong and resilient.
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Chamber: Off the Clock
Tuesday, October 20, 2026, 5:05pm
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Secure You Spot in the Greater Kitsap
Chamber's Destination Guide
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There's still time to reserve your spot in the 2027 Greater Kitsap Destination Guide!
With 7,500 printed copies distributed throughout Kitsap County and mailed to visitors beyond the region, the Destination Guide is the Greater Kitsap Chamber's premier publication for showcasing local businesses and attractions.
Don't miss this opportunity to put your business in front of residents and visitors alike. Review the rate card and connect with our partners at Lunar Cow Publishing to secure your placement today.
| GKC Giving Away UW Football Tickets | | The GKC is giving away 20 tickets for the UW Football game on Saturday, September 26 at 8:00pm against Minnesota. Tickets are awarded on a first come first served based with priority given to GKC members. Email us here for a chance to get a ticket! | | RECAP: September Off the Clock | | |
This month, Chamber: Off the Clock brought attendees to Bremerton Foodline for an evening of networking and community building. Attendees had the opportunity to learn about the Foodline's incredible work, including the various programs it has implemented to support our community, while enjoying delicious charcuterie provided by Honeybee Horticulture.
Thank you, Bremerton Foodline, for sharing your space with us and reminding us of the importance of collaboration in building a stronger Kitsap.
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Accessible Healthcare with NICE
Business Health Trust Has You Covered
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You don’t have to wait for renewal.
A lot of employers assume benefits can only change at one specific time of year, but that’s not accurate.
If your current plan is causing frustration, summer is a smart time to ask questions. Maybe employees are struggling to find care. Maybe costs are up. Through our chamber’s partnership with Business Health Trust, members can review options, compare plans, and see whether a better fit is available now.
Many BHT medical plans include Nice Healthcare, which gives employees a simple first stop for care at $0. Same-day access for many needs, support for real-life health questions, and guidance on next steps can help employees avoid delays and keep moving.
🔗 Webpage Link: https://businesshealthtrust.com/products/nice-healthcare/
Questions? Contact BHT!
(425) 201-1972
nice@businesshealthtrust.com
Not a BHT member? Are you ready to build a better benefits package?
Visit bhtquote.com to learn more and get a free quote.
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Renew your membership today to ensure your benefits as a member of the Greater Kitsap Chamber! Questions about when to renew or how to upgrade your membership? Need a new membership window cling or digital badge? Contact us now!
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Missed a previous edition of the Chamber's Community Connections?
View all the past issues on our website HERE.
| | New Members - Welcome to the Chamber! | |
Kitsap Credit Union
Clover Mobile Showroom
Friday, September 25, 2026, 10:00am
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Leadership Kitsap Premier Institute Presents:
Who's Running You?
Grow Your Leadership from the Inside Out
Thursday, October 15, 2026
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We all have default habits that shape how we think, respond, and lead, but what if you had more choice in how you show up?
Join Doug Nathan on October 15 for Who’s Running You?, a four-hour interactive LKPI workshop that takes a deeper look at the Inner Team Dialogue framework. Through the Inner Team Assessment and guided exercises, you’ll explore the patterns influencing your leadership and learn practical ways to lead with greater intention, adaptability, and effectiveness.
Whether you’re leading a team, an organization, or simply looking to grow in how you show up as a leader, this workshop is an opportunity to better understand what’s driving you and how to take the lead.
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Changing Faces, Changing Places
Share your business news today
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Has your team recently welcomed a new hire, celebrated a promotion, or marked a retirement? Kitsap Business magazine's Changing Faces, Changing Places section highlights the people powering our local business community. Chamber members are invited to share their staff updates for inclusion in an upcoming issue.
Send your announcements to news@kitsapbusiness.com and let us help you recognize the faces behind your success.
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The Greater Kitsap Chamber is honored to announce our Member of the Quarter: Honeybee Horticulture! Since 2023, Mariah Mendez and her team have created unique, elegant, and creative floral and charcuterie designs for occasions ranging from weddings and corporate events to Chamber: Off the Clock gatherings. We are excited to recognize Mariah and Honeybee Horticulture for their creativity, community involvement, and dedication to helping people connect through memorable experiences across Kitsap and beyond.
Fostering Business Connections Through Charcuterie
The Chamber regularly uses Honeybee Horticulture’s services at our Chamber: Off the Clock after-hours networking events. Mariah not only provides a selection of delicious, fresh food, but intentionally designs a spread for each Off the Clock location. These spreads serve as much more than refreshments. They become natural gathering points where attendees connect, start conversations, and build new business relationships.
Elevating Events Across Kitsap and Beyond
Honeybee Horticulture strives to create celebrations that feel effortless, intentional, and fully experienced. Through planning and coordination services, floral design & installations, and luxury charcuterie catering, they remove the stress of hiring multiple vendors and ensure there are no gaps in an event’s vision. They proudly serve clients throughout Kitsap County and across the Puget Sound region.
Celebrations Designed with Intention
Intentionality is at the heart of Honeybee Horticulture’s philosophy, whether that be crafting a charcuterie spread or a flower arrangement that reflects a specific individual, event, or venue. Mariah and her team excel at creating meaningful experiences that reflect an event’s unique identity.
Whether you're planning a wedding, corporate event, or community celebration, Honeybee Horticulture brings creativity, intentionality, and professionalism to every detail. We are proud to recognize Mariah and her team as our Member of the Quarter and encourage you to check out their services!
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2026 Eggs & Issues Candidate Forum
Tuesday, September 29, 2026, 8:00am
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Join us for the Chamber’s Eggs & Issues Candidate Forums at the Cloverleaf Bar and Grill, a long-standing tradition started by the Bremerton Chamber over 25 years ago. Open to the public; breakfast available for purchase.
Questions? Contact the Chamber at (360) 692-6800.
Forums are every Tuesday morning beginning September 22nd and running through October 27th.
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WA 'Millionaires Tax' Is On the Line:
Here's How to Watch the Debate
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Published in The Bellingham Herald, September 17, 2026
The future of Washington's "millionaires tax" lies in voters' hands. If approved, Initiative 645 would repeal a law that introduces a 9.9% tax on annual household income that exceeds $1 million. The tax was passed this year and is set to start on income earned in 2028, with the first taxes due in 2029. The initiative, backed by Let's Go Washington, will appear on ballots Nov. 3.
Former U.S. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler will argue in favor of the initiative, and April Sims, president of the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO, will argue against it. The pair will face off in an hourlong debate at 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 8. You can watch the livestream online at seattletimes.com or on television on KONG, the affiliate station of KING 5.
Seattle Times politics reporter Jim Brunner and KING 5 evening news anchor Joyce Taylor will moderate the conversation.
If the initiative fails, the state is expected to collect $3.7 billion through the tax from fiscal year 2030. While $1 billion would go toward eliminating taxes on businesses and individuals, the other $2.7 billion will support the state's operating budget, which pays for education, prisons, healthcare and other services. The state's fiscal year begins on July 1 each year and ends June 30 the following year.
Read the article here
| Business & Professional Development Committee | | Member Education & Training Resources | | |
SBDC: How to Launch Your
Business Successfully
Thursday, September 24, 2026, 12:00pm
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This no-cost webinar is hosted by the Washington SBDC at Green River College (GRC).
In this class, the presenter will outline steps on how to successfully launch a new business. It can be confusing to know which steps to take or what agencies to contact.
This class will address those issues in order to provide you with a clear direction. Having this information will save you time in moving forward with your business opening.
Peppered with practical stories and examples, this interactive class will give you concrete ideas on how to make your business start as successful as possible.
Participants will also learn more about the resources provided by the Small Business Center at Green River College. You can schedule a future appointment with an SBDC (Small Business Development Center) counselor for one-on-one business advising. This is available at no cost to the small business owner.
Registration Fee: FREE
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SCORE: Marketing Strategy
Saturday, September 26, 2026, 10:15pm
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In this **FREE Webinar**, you will learn that Marketing is more than advertising. Marketing Strategy provides you with an introduction to marketing methods & tools to maximize your customer reach.
This session covers pricing strategies, positioning, the difference between features and benefits, and different marketing strategies.
At the end of this session, you will know how to:
* Outline your marketing strategy
* Test your marketing message
* Choose the right sales channel
* Implement your marketing strategy
Registration Fee: FREE
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Evergreen Business Capital Community Finance
Taller: Plan De Negocios
Wednesday, September 30, 2026, 12:00pm
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Español
Acompañe a Alex Alvarez, Asesor de Negocios de EBCCF, en un taller virtual de plan de negocios presentado en español.
Los participantes aprenderán los fundamentos para desarrollar un plan de negocios y cómo utilizarlo para apoyar las operaciones de su empresa, las estrategias de marketing y ventas, y las conversaciones con prestamistas o inversionistas.
English
Join EBCCF Business Advisor Alex Alvarez for a virtual business plan workshop presented in Spanish.
Participants will learn the fundamentals of developing a business plan and how to use it to support business operations, marketing and sales strategies, and conversations with lenders or investors.
*Presented in Spanish.
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Business News & Resources | | |
KEDA's 2026 Fall Forum
Wednesday, October 21, 2026, 8:30am
| Expect a packed lineup: local Kitsap businesses sharing what's worked (and what hasn't), capital sources, technical assistance providers, and more — plus hands-on sessions on moving from chaos to efficiency, prompting AI effectively, and managing the rising cost of doing business. | |
WA High Court Tosses Natural Gas
Measure Approved by Voters
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Published in the WA State Standard, September 17, 2026
Photo: Jerry Cornfield/WA State Standard
The state Supreme Court on Thursday delivered the final blow to a controversial 2024 ballot measure pushed by builders and passed by voters that sought to halt Washington’s shift away from natural gas.
In a 6-3 decision, the justices affirmed a lower court ruling, finding Initiative 2066 “unconstitutional in its entirety” because it runs afoul of a provision limiting such citizen initiatives to no more than one subject.
Chief Justice Debra Stephens, writing for the majority, said the initiative violated the single-subject rule by including “several provisions with markedly distinct purposes and regulatory effects. It is not possible by judicial construction to sever and save any of the separate provisions and therefore I-2066 is unconstitutional in its entirety.”
Justice Sal Mungia, in his dissent, didn’t fully disagree. He identified sections that he would have struck because they “silently amend the law” in a way that voters could not understand their impact. But he would have upheld the rest of the initiative.
“Courts are required to construe initiatives in favor of constitutionality when possible. This court can uphold much of I-2066 as constitutional and should do so,” Mungia wrote in a dissent joined by Justices Sheryl Gordon McCloud and Charles Johnson.
The initiative filled 21 pages and contained more than a dozen sections. Some of those dealt with unwinding changes to the state energy code that offer builders incentives in the permitting process for choosing electric heat pumps – which provide both heating and cooling in the same unit – instead of natural gas furnaces.
Read the article here
| | The Greater Kitsap Chamber is proud to serve as a resource partner with the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries. Stay tuned to this section quarterly for education, resources and more from L&I. | | Check Equal Pay Compliance for Free | | |
L&I offers free, customized consultations to help employers understand the impact the Equal Pay and Opportunities Act might have on their organization and employment practices, and provide an evaluation of possible risks.
The Equal Pay and Opportunities Act includes things like:
- Equal pay and career advancement opportunities
- Open wage discussions
- Wage and salary history privacy
- Disclosing salary range
- And more!
To request a consultation, complete this request form. You can also call the Employment Standards Program at 360-902-6625.
| | Nonprofit News & Resources | |
WA Department of Commerce
Federal Grants Workshop - Port Angeles
Thursday, October 1, 2026, 10:00am
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Learn how to build stronger grant applications at the Washington State Department of Commerce Federal Grants Workshop!
Join us for a free, informative, and interactive workshop provided by the Washington State Department of Commerce’s Federal Funds Grant Writing Assistance Program (FFGWAP)! Morning refreshments (coffee and pastries) and lunch will be provided!
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Kitsap Community Foundation
Estate Planning 101
Wednesday, October 21, 2026, 2:30pm
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Just in time for National Estate Planning Awareness Week, Kitsap Community Foundation's CEO, Tina O'Brien will use a broad scope of knowledge grounded in a consultative, planning-based philosophy to walk attendees through:
- Why estate planning matters — and why so many of us put it off
- The four estate planning documents everyone should have
- Wills, and how they help you maintain control of your assets during your lifetime
- Trusts, and how they can save on taxes while passing down assets
- Donor-advised funds, which offer an immediate tax benefit while letting you support causes on your own timeline
- How to create your will for free in just 20 minutes
When: Wednesday, October 21, 2026, 2:30 - 4:00pm
Where: Kitsap Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 4418 Perry Ave, Bremerton, WA
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Townhome Development Possible for
Former Bremerton Hospital Site
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Published in the Kitsap Sun, Sept. 18, 2026
Photo credit: Meegan M. Reid/Kitsap Sun
Nearly two years after the former Harrison Hospital building was demolished, early plans have emerged for a new 238-unit residential development on the 9.48-acre site in Bremerton along Cherry Avenue.
According to a preliminary site plan submitted to the City of Bremerton, the project called Harrison Heights could include 210 "stacked flats" and 28 townhomes. The plan was filed with a pre-submittal meeting request by D.R. Horton, the same company that built the Kitsap Landing single-family home development in recent years off Wheaton Way near Riddell Road. The meeting with city development staff, which was held Sept. 9, would be the possible first step toward redeveloping the site left vacant since the hospital was torn down in 2024.
The project shares its name with the City's 2020 Harrison Heights subarea plan, a broad city framework designed to guide growth and redevelopment through the surrounding neighborhood -- roughly 30 acres bordered by the Warren Avenue Bridge and Madrona Trails forest preserve -- following the hospital's demolition. The preliminary plan and subarea plan are differing projects.
Read the article here
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Help Shape a Stronger Kitsap Community
Take KCR's Community Needs Assessment Survey
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Kitsap League of Women Voters
General Election Candidate Forums
September 28 - October 7, 2026
| For the November 3rd General Election, the League of Women Voters of Kitsap will invite all candidates for the following races to participate in candidate forums: State Representatives for Legislative Districts 23 and 26, State Senator for Legislative District 26, US Representative for Congressional District 6, as well as the following Kitsap County races: County Commissioner District 3, Assessor, Clerk, Prosecuting Attorney, and Sheriff. They will also conduct a forum for the Kitsap County PUD proposal. | |
Kitsap Aging Expo @ The Kitsap Mall
Saturday, September 26, 2026, 10:00am
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Kitsap Fix-It Fair in Poulsbo
Saturday, October 3, 2026, 11:00am
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Do you have something broken at home? Instead of throwing it away, see if it can be repaired at the next Fix-it Fair! This free community repair event helps reduce waste by extending the life of household items through repair rather than replacement.
Join us on Saturday, October 3, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Poulsbo Kitsap Regional Library, 700 NE Lincoln Road.
Hosted by the Kitsap County Solid Waste Division in partnership with the Poulsbo Kitsap Regional Library, the Fix-It Fair connects residents with skilled volunteer fixers who will attempt to repair items while sharing practical repair tips and techniques.
Kitsap County residents can bring up to two items for volunteer fixers to assess and attempt repairs.
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Share Your Professional Insights
Wednesday, October 28, 2026, 1:05pm
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Greetings from Central Kitsap High School!
We are looking for professionals to speak with students at our October 28 College and Career Fair. Presenters will host a 20-minute sessions highlighting their career field, career pathway, and experiences in the workforce.
If you currently work, or have worked extensively, in a particular profession, we would love for you to share your insights with our students.
Please use this GOOGLE FORM to let us know whether wish to participate in the CKHS College and Career Day on 10/28/26.
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Clearwater Casino Presents:
Lucky Town - Bruce Springsteen Tribute
Friday, September 25, 2026, 8:30pm
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Whiskey River - Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute
Saturday, September 26, 2026, 8:30pm
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The Ultimate Doors: Tribute to The Doors
Admiral Theatre Bremerton
Friday, October 2, 2026
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The Ultimate Doors has long been celebrated as one of the most authentic and powerful Doors tribute bands in the country. Described by fans and critics as “uncannily true to the original” and “the closest you’ll get to seeing The Doors live today,” the band has built its reputation on delivering a raw, electrifying, and immersive experience that captures the spirit of Jim Morrison and The Doors with uncanny accuracy.
What sets The Ultimate Doors apart is their obsessive attention to authenticity. From the period-correct instruments and vintage gear that recreate The Doors’ unmistakable tones, to the styling, stage presence, and energy that mirror the original band, every detail is crafted to transport audiences back to 1968. The four musicians of The Ultimate Doors combine to create a sound so faithful that fans often remark they feel as though they’re at a real Doors concert. It’s not just a tribute….it’s a time machine.
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Bremerton Night Market
Friday, October 2, 2026, 5:00pm
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Within/Earshot Jazz Festival
Camila Ferrari
Friday, October 2, 2026, 7:00pm
| Uruguayan singer-songwriter Camila Ferrari brings her intense, emotionally raw sound to BIMA during Within/Earshot Jazz Festival! This is a rare chance to catch this rising voice of South American indie music before her growing international career takes her even further from reach. | |
Port Gamble Theater Presents:
Anne of Green Gables
October 2 - October 18, 2026
| | Anne of Green Gables follows the story of the feisty orphan, Anne Shirely. Adopted from an orphanage in Nova Scotia. Anne’s acclimation to life in Avonlea isn’t exactly smooth sailing. The Cuthbert siblings wanted a quiet boy to help out around their farm, but instead they receive Anne, a redheaded, freckle-faced, free spirit who turns their lives upside down with her quirky behavior. Follow Anne as she navigates school, friendship, and life in Avonlea through this charming coming-of-age tale. | |
Stay in the know with what's happening for events
in Central Kitsap by checking out and liking the
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Have something to share? CLICK HERE to submit stories and
events for our weekly Community Connections!
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Office (360) 479-3579 | 705 Pacific Avenue in Downtown Bremerton
Silverdale Office (360) 692-6800 | Kitsap Mall
PO Box 1218 Silverdale WA 98383
If you need assistance, please contact us directly.
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