Biweekly Community Spotlight:
Summer Is in Full Swing
Summer camp is officially underway, and every weekday between 45 and 55 Lopez youth in kindergarten through eighth grade are learning, exploring, and growing together. Camp Huckleberry continues to be the heart of our elementary summer programming, while Camp BuildAbility provides a welcoming and supportive environment where youth with disabilities can thrive alongside their peers.
For middle school students, this summer has already been packed with opportunities to try something new. Campers practiced lifesaving skills during Intro to First Aid, learned focus and discipline through Taekwondo, and headed outdoors for adventures in the Marine Explorers and Tree Climbing Camps. Others gathered each week for the peer-led Slopez Café, where youth leaders are creating space for connection, conversation, and community.
One of the highlights so far was a day at Odlin Park, where elementary campers explored the shoreline in search of marine critters before cooling off with their feet in the Salish Sea.
Living Traditions Comes to Lopez
Summer learning also took campers beyond the classroom and into music, culture, and living traditions.
Guest instructor Clarissa filled the Music Park with songs, rhythm, and joyful movement, while more than 210 community members visited the Burke Museum’s Living Traditions BurkeMobile exhibit.
Together with Samish artists and weavers Pat and Diana Dunn, visitors explored Indigenous cultures of the Pacific Northwest through hands-on exhibits, storytelling, and demonstrations that brought generations of cultural knowledge to life.
Children were encouraged to touch, ask questions, and discover connections between the past and present. One camper excitedly pointed to an adze—a traditional woodworking tool—and explained that people still use it today to smooth logs, just as they had seen while the new island park was being built.
The youngest visitors delighted in “cooking” camas bulbs and salmon over a pretend fire, while others compared traditional fishing hooks and lures with those used today or marveled at life-sized salmon models. The morning opened with a quiet, reverent drum circle. Later, Pat and Diana shared how cedar is gathered and prepared for weaving baskets. Their stories left a lasting impression. One young attendee was so inspired that he went home and wrote down everything he could remember because he didn’t want to forget what he had learned.
Moments like these remind us that some of the most meaningful learning happens through curiosity, conversation, and shared experience. Programs like these are made possible through the 21st Century Community Learning Center Grant, support from the Lopez Thrift Shop for healthy snacks, generous private donors, and many community partners.
We are especially grateful to the Lopez Island School District, Lopez Library, Lopez Fire/EMS, our talented guest instructors, and the donor whose generosity brought the BurkeMobile to Lopez this summer. Together, they are helping create a summer where young people discover new interests, build confidence, strengthen friendships, and deepen their connection to the place they call home.