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Posts Tagged ‘Coupeville’

Whidbey News-Times returns to Oak Harbor

Posted in Everything changes, tagged , , , , , on June 2, 2020| Leave a Comment »

After a ten-year absence, the Whidbey News-Times is moving back to its old stomping grounds in Oak Harbor. (Photo property Garage of Blessings)

You can go home again.

A decade after taking up residence in Coupeville, the Whidbey News-Times is moving its base of operations back to Oak Harbor.

And when the newspaper returns to the Island’s biggest city, it’s landing back in the building from where it came.

The News-Times will occupy the top floor at 800 SE Barrington Drive, right next to the Oak Harbor police station, but this time around reporters and ad salespeople will share the residence.

Back in olden days, like when I was Sports Editor for a hot moment from 1992-1994, the WNT used the entire building, with printing presses camped out in the back half of the ground floor.

The downstairs is now occupied by Garage of Blessings, a non-profit thrift store which relocated there in 2018.

Sound Publishing, the parent company which owns the News-Times, also owns the Barrington building, and has chosen to move the newspaper staff back to Oak Harbor.

The WNT moved its base of operations to Coupeville in early 2010, and has been the anchor of the Coupe’s Village development on S. Main Street ever since.

At first, the News-Times shared office space with its sister paper, the South Whidbey Record, though later the Record returned to its own roots, opening an office on the South end of the Island.

After Sound Publishing purchased the previously-independent Coupeville Examiner, that newspaper also operated out of the S. Main Street location until the paper was discontinued.

Later, after a change in staffing, the Record returned to the building as well.

With the COVID-19 pandemic shutting down most Washington state businesses, and throwing the brakes on print advertising, Sound Publishing combined the News-Times and Record into one paper, which still publishes twice a week.

It’s expected the papers will return to operating as separate publications at some point down the road.

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Little town, big message

Posted in Black Lives Matter, tagged , , , on June 1, 2020| 2 Comments »

(Lori Taylor photo)

For those who drove under the highway overpass Sunday in Coupeville, there was a message which could be seen in both directions.

We live on a rock in the middle of the water, several states away, but the death of George Floyd, the black man murdered on-camera by a Minneapolis police officer, should rock all of us to our core.

Remember his name, and remember the names of the men and women who came before him – those whose deaths made the news, and those who did not.

It shouldn’t be hard to say “black lives matter.”

But we also need to go beyond words, and prove the same with our actions.

There is no other way.

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Coupeville Arts and Crafts Festival cancelled

Posted in coronavirus updates, tagged , , , , on May 6, 2020| Leave a Comment »

For the first time in 56 years, downtown Coupeville will not be overrun by artsy types this summer.

Central Whidbey’s biggest shindig has been taken off the calendar, with the 2020 edition of the Coupeville Arts and Crafts Festival being cancelled.

This year’s event was scheduled to run August 8-9, but the festival was called off as the world battles the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The Board of Directors for the festival issued a statement Wednesday.

“Believing that the Arts and Crafts Festival should be a time of celebration, not anxiety, the board did not enter into this decision lightly,” they said.

“Public health and safety has been and always will be a top priority. In addition to our guests, there is a responsibility to provide a safe experience for volunteers, vendors and the community.

“The 2021 Coupeville Arts and Crafts Festival will be held on August 7 and 8, 2021. Please join us at that time and until then, be safe.”

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Coupeville Farmers Market plans for safe opening

Posted in Not sports? Tough!, tagged , , , on March 30, 2020| Leave a Comment »

The Coupeville Farmers Market plans to open this Saturday, April 4 – with changes to answer coronavirus concerns.

**UPDATE – The market opening has been postponed from April 4 to April 18.**

 

The market will go on.

At least that’s the plan, as the Coupeville Farmers Market announced it intends to open for its 41st season 10 AM Saturday, April 4.

There will be numerous changes, however, as the world deals with the coronavirus pandemic.

In a statement on their Facebook book, market organizers laid out their plan.

“First, please know that the health and well being of everyone in our community is a priority issue for the market as a whole as well as individual vendors,” the statement said.

“We trust you to be aware and work with us as we all seek to stay healthy and local.”

Changes put in place:

*Customers may not enter the market until 10 AM and “we are open” is publicly announced.

*Use one of the three marked entrance/exit points only. There will be a hand cleaning station at each entrance/exit.

*New, unused packaging for all items. No reusable containers or bags.

Customers may not bring/use their own totes, bags, etc.

*There will be a marked grid over the entire site (six-foot squares), as a physical distancing reminder.

*There will be minimal product display. Only the vendor can retrieve secured/protected product when customer makes a purchase.

Customers should point, with absolutely no touching of product(s). And no sampling of any kind.

*Continual sanitizing of surfaces within booths will occur, including after each use for electronic payment devices.

*The picnic tables are off limits – to everyone.

“We will most happily smile and greet you – from the safe physical distance,” organizers wrote. “We encourage you to stroll more slowly through the market (however small), wave and smile at neighbors, friends, and vendors.

“Enjoy the beauty of the site, the view, and all the wonderful folk who call this place home. And thank you – so much – for your love and support!”

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A love letter to Coupeville

Posted in Not sports? Tough!, tagged , , , , , on March 29, 2020| Leave a Comment »

McKenzie Meyer, Renaissance woman. (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

My 12 years working at Videoville was by far the best job I’ve ever had.

Midway through my run, which went from 1994-2006, McKenzie Meyer popped into the world, the daughter of Frank and Sarah, and granddaughter of my boss, Miriam.

I could go on for hours about what a truly wonderful person she is, but instead I’m going to turn the mic over to her, and let her tell you about her town.

 

For those of you who don’t know me, my name is McKenzie Meyer.

I was born and raised in Coupeville and graduated from Coupeville High School as a Valedictorian for the class of 2018.

David Svien has known me for most of my existence so I want to dedicate the first part of this message as a thank you to him.

From birthday posts to athletic updates ever since middle school I looked forward to seeing your updates on the famous “Coupeville Sports” blog.

Nothing quite beat the rush of reading an article and seeing my name in bold black after an epic save or new record.

Even our non-athletic events such as the theatre program and Science Olympiad, which often go unnoticed, were given a spotlight on your blog.

Yet right now we are all in a very weird time; there are no athletic events or shows to promote, no follow up scores or competitions to attend.

So you instead have reached out to us to give you something to keep “Coupeville Sports” alive, an open invitation for anyone who has something to say.

I have something to say.

I want to say thank you to the town of Coupeville.

As I go out and explore life on my own I find myself so grateful for the place that I call my hometown.

Whidbey Island was an incredibly beautiful place to grow up; I took for granted how easy it was to go to a beach or find a beautiful place for a hike or a walk no matter where you were.

Coupeville wharf will forever be one of my favorite places to watch the sunset over the water and there’s nothing quite like walking downtown into the family-owned shops and having a conversation with a familiar face.

But, the thing that makes Coupeville a place I am proud to call home is the people.

Those such as the aforementioned David Svien are what makes this town so incredible.

I am thankful for my teachers who were willing to put in the time and energy it takes to really teach their students.

And for those teachers who pulled extra duty coaching sports and leading extracurricular events; they were alongside us for 6 am bus trips and late-night set strikes.

They gave up weekends and evenings to help us to be the best that we could be at whatever we were passionate about and they did it with a smile and a passion that stays with you long after the season has ended.

The parents of Coupeville are a whole other story; some of these people grew up in and graduated from Coupeville themselves and that makes their connection to this town all the more powerful.

The Booster Club was out at football games rain or shine (and trust me there was rain) and at graduation time you not only hugged your parents but also the parents of your friends and classmates, because they had been there the whole time watching you grow as well.

There are hundreds of specific moments, people, and interactions I’ve had that I could ramble on about for days, from pep band to Big Brothers Big Sisters, to the wonderful people in the CHS office and so on and so forth until I reach the word limit on David’s blog.

I had a support system unlike any other.

Coupeville was and is by no means perfect; life is about improvement and we should always strive to make our town a better place.

There are places in which we can and should improve but ideally will come with time.

But, overall I love where I grew up; if I could describe Coupeville in one word it would be “community.”

Our little town embodies a sense of community and support that I strive to replicate in my everyday interactions as I go out into the world.

I grew up in a small town, the kind of town where if you put yourself out there, everyone knows your name.

You can walk down the street and wave at every car you pass and eventually, you’ll be waving at someone you know.

In these strange times, I find comfort in reminiscing on the town that I grew up in and how thankful I am for the time I had there.

Though this is a love letter to Coupeville, it is really a love letter to the community that raised me.

They say it takes a village to raise a child and I’m so happy with the village I had.

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