Griffin School Invites Parents and Children to the Kindergarten Round Up

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The Griffin School invites parents and their soon-to-be-in-kindergarten children to a special event on May 11th and May 12th. Also, kindergarten registration is now open on the school’s website.

Wednesday, May 11
2:45 to 3:45 PM

Thursday, May 12
5:30 to 6:30 PM

Griffin School reminds parents to “register your child for kindergarten as soon as you can.” Registration is online at www.griffinschool.us.

If you have questions, email the school at kindergarten@griffinschool.us.

Upcoming Plant Sales to Benefit Feline Friends

Feline Friends logoIn a welcome sign of the return to some semblance of normalcy, local resident Diane Jacob of Cameron Gardens has announced an upcoming series of plant sales for the benefit of Feline Friends.

These sales feature perennials, a few dahlias, herbs, some vegetables, and a large variety of unusual plants at great prices. Your support will be helping dedicated organizations in Thurston and Mason Counties in the never-ending quest to find homes for and spay and neuter all pets to save hundreds of lives every year. Please pass the word about these events.

Feline Friends Plant Sale
Saturday, April 30th
9 AM to 2 PM
Griffin School
6530 33rd Ave, Olympia, just off Hwy 101 at Steamboat Island Road exit

Adopt-A-Pet Plant Sale
Saturday, May 7th
9 AM to 3 PM
Our Community Credit Union parking lot, 2948 Olympic Hwy N, Shelton

These plants are supplied by Cameron Gardens and many other local gardeners. Many thanks to Diane Jacob and all the volunteers who make these plant sales so successful, year after year!

“Steamboat Neighborhood” Stickers Available Again

Thanks to generous contributions from three local businesses, the Griffin Neighborhood Association is once again able to distribute the iconic, oval “Steamboat Neighborhood” stickers free to area residents. Soon you will be able to pick up your sticker at businesses such as Companion Cove, the Island Market, Steamboat Island Coffee Shop, Urraco Coffee Company, Tipsy Whale, Our Community Credit Union (Steamboat Peninsula branch), the Griffin Fire Department Headquarters, and more.

These stickers are provided at no cost to the Association because of the support from these local businesses:

Our Community Credit Union

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At OCCU you’ll find a variety of financial services including checking and savings accounts, personal loans, auto and RV loans, home improvement and land loans, financial education, online banking services, and more. Find out why OCCU says, “We’re community strong since 1941.”

Missy Watts, Realtor®, of Watts Property Group

When it comes to your real estate needs, the most important decision you will make is which broker to choose. Local resident Missy Watts has received the prestigious “Certified Residential Specialist (CRS)” designation, which only 5% of all Realtors have obtained. She has a deep familiarity with this region and she heads up an experienced and aggressive team of real estate experts.

“Having a broker in your corner who understands the area ensures that you will love where you live.”

Steamboat Tennis and Athletic Club

With the recent announcement that they’ll be opening a new fitness facility, STAC truly has become “your one-stop health and fitness solution.” They already offer a wide range of adult and junior tennis classes, private and group tennis lessons, and tennis events. Their new fitness facility will feature a training floor with strength and aerobic equipment, an indoor saltwater pool with 3 lanes for lap swimming, group fitness classes including yoga and spin, personal training, and much more.

Our Steamboat Neighborhood stickers have been seen on cars, trucks, boats, laptops. . . you name it. We’ve heard of area residents “finding” one another by spotting these stickers while traveling out of state.

Over the next week or so, GNA volunteers will be working to deliver supplies of these stickers to local businesses. Get your sticker while you support the businesses operating here in our neighborhood.

Read more about the history of the distinctive Steamboat Neighborhood sticker on our website.

Jim Hutchins, of South Sound IT, Retires and GNA Website Seeks a New Home

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Jim Hutchins, a long-time supporter of our neighborhood and the Griffin Neighborhood Association, has announced his retirement. Over the years, many of us have relied upon Jim and his company, South Sound IT, to provide a variety of technology services meeting our business and personal technology needs. All of us at the GNA wish Jim the very best as he moves on to write the next chapter of his life with his wife, Meredith Hutchins. Meredith, of course, has served for many years as one of the three members of the Board of Fire Commissioners at the Griffin Fire Department. Jim and Meredith are avid world travelers, and we hope this announcement will portend many more adventures for the two of them.

For a number of years, Jim and South Sound IT have donated hosting services for this website to the GNA. This is no minor feat as the Association has operated online since 2003. A website that started using Microsoft FrontPage was ushered into WordPress maturity thanks to Jim’s generous donation beginning many years ago. We will be looking for a new WordPress host but it’s unlikely we’ll find another benefactor who has been as giving as Jim, to the Association and its webmaster.

It is possible, around April 12th, that we’ll go dark here. Between now and that date, we will be looking for alternative hosting arrangements. If we’re successful there will probably be only a relatively short interruption as we set up shop in the new location. However, if we cannot find another host for our WordPress site, you will continue to find us on Facebook, Twitter, a little on Instagram, and on Nextdoor. Email services will continue. Eventually, we’re sure to find a new home and we’ll bring our archive of years of online history back to the Internet.

Thank you, Jim Hutchins and South Sound IT, for your support of the GNA over many years. You will be missed here in cyberspace but we hope to continue to see you, hereabouts in the real world, for many years to come.