By Marc J. Elzenbeck My friend Valeo put a deposit down for a RAV-4 Prime, a ride in more demand than a Lamborghini. After waiting unfulfilled for almost 2 years, he sprang for a 5th-Gen Prius Prime. Both these plug-in vehicles are huge upgrades on Toyota’s solid hybrid tech, real game-changers in convenience and flexibility….
This might seem like a charming local story: Vashon has a practitioner whose advanced studies in psychiatric nursing are a great benefit to Islanders. But the old saying, “if you want to change the world, start locally” could not be more applicable. Just recently, Dr. Marli Parobek APRN DNP FNP PMHNP, was recognized by her…
Vashon Island, WA Weslie Rodgers, maker of smile dispensers Weslie Ann Rodgers passed away on June 23rd, 2025. Perhaps best known for her “Please do not eat animal” sign campaign, her touch can be found almost anywhere you look on Vashon. She and her husband Saul first reached Vashon in 1979, and have been permanent…
The Vashon Care Network and Vashon Senior Center, in partnership with the Presbyterian Church, are launching the Vashon Island Old Friends Club, a daytime program for adults living with dementia or cognitive decline. Based on the successful Old Friends Club model (www.OldFriendsClub.org), the program offers engaging, meaningful activities for participants while giving family caregivers consistent, scheduled…
By Rich Osborne Eight years ago, my buddy Karen Dale came up to me and said “Rich, you have got to come out next Tuesday afternoon and sing and play guitar with this group of musicians at 1:30 at the Vashon Community Care Center (VCCC). We have a sing-along for folks living with Alzheimer’s or…
By Dave B. MPH. What does this acronym mean and what does it mean on Vashon? Theatrically, in the Washington State Driver Guide, crafted carefully by our genius government officials, it means miles per hour. Posted on signs all over our great country and Island are suggested speed criteria for our gas-guzzling and hybrid, semi-hybrid, all-electric cars, trucks,…
By Michael Shook Civilized. While wandering the streets of Paris back in May, that was the word that I thought of. Why civilized? Goodness knows, France has as many misguided actions as any other nation, but that only places them with humans in all countries and cultures. If we were to disqualify a nation on…
By Cynthia Delgado While one may imagine that the Vashon of yesteryear was an innocent and bucolic existence marked by wholesome and simple endeavors, the truth is our little green Island has always been eccentric and touched by controversy. Why, just a glance at these headlines from 1905, 1922, and 1908, respectively hints at just…
By Pam (Gates) Johnson Sometimes, living in an apartment doesn’t seem like a bad idea. Let me give you a little backstory. I’ve been living on my little farm since 1975. It has a house (duh), a barn, an orchard, a garden, a big lawn, and fenced pastures. My life-long dream was to live on…