Welcome to the reboot of The Vashon Loop! We are honored to have you join us. The Loop has a 20+ year long history. Launched initially as The Ticket by Hamish Todd, Marie Browne and Troy Kindred took ownership in 2004, and The Ticket became The Vashon Loop. Steve Allen joined the team, and in time became owner/editor. Steve produced this beloved island paper until Summer 2021, where it has been in dry dock until now.
With sincere respect and appreciation, we extend our gratitude to Steve for his generous and encouraging support as we’ve stepped into his gargantuan shoes. As you may imagine, producing a newspaper is an involved process. Very quickly, we asked ourselves, how on earth did Steve do all of this on his own? Thank you, Steve, for all your years producing The Vashon Loop and bringing it to Islanders, We tip our hats to you!
Who are we, you ask? Andy Valencia, Jane Valencia, Marc J. Elzenbeck, Caitlin Rothermel, and March Twisdale. If you’ve been on the island longer than a year (or two), chances are we’ve crossed paths, as our exploits run the gamut! We are authors, musicians, sheep wranglers, ballroom dancers, tech wizards, nature teachers, ham radio operators, radio show producers, homeschoolers, farmers, activists, community organizers, and now, we are The Vashon Loop Editorial Team.
We couldn’t be here without our contributors! We’re grateful for our returning columnists, and excited to hear from new voices. Visit our website, VashonLoop.com, to find out more about how the contribute to The Vashon Loop.
Our heartfelt thanks to our community of advertisers. Printing costs have more than doubled since the last issue of The Loop! Thank you, John de Groen and Windermere, for getting us off the ground, and to all the businesses within these pages for your encouragement and support. Our advertisers are you, our fellow islanders and business owners. You are the store owner who remembers our name, favorite drink, our favorite author or artist. You are our community members, devoting your time, hard work and ingenuity to offering your goods and services that improve our lives. It is no small feat to stay in business during these times!
When businesses advertise here, they make it possible for The Vashon Loop to be freely available to all. Let’s thank them by keeping our dollars on the island whenever possible, and by treating local business owners, staff and employees as the awesome neighbors we’re lucky to have.
Last but not least, we thank you, dear Readers, for your curiosity as you pick up the newly rebooted Loop, and for your thoughtfulness as you read the words of your fellow Islanders. We hope that the words you find here will help enlarge our conversations, deepen our kindness to one another, provide enjoyment, inspire us to work together to solve problems, strengthen our community and respect for one another, and help us grow as islanders together.
Read more about “Why The Loop Now” on page 3.
