Arts & Entertainment Community

Harbor Happenings | Donations, volunteers sought for Thanksgiving Basket Brigade

Posted on November 12th, 2024 By: Charlee Glock-Jackson

It’s beginning to look a lot like the holiday season.

The Thanksgiving Basket Brigade is accepting donations to help fill approximately 700 baskets with Thanksgiving dinners for families in need.

They drive, organized by the Greater Gig Harbor Foundation, is also looking for volunteers to help pick up food, put together baskets and deliver them locally and at Naval Base Kitsap and Joint Base Lewis McCord. Basket-building will take place Nov. 26 and 27.

Gig Harbor resident David Cathers launched the Basket Brigade in 1993. As of last year, the Brigade has provided more than 26,000 Thanksgiving meals. Click here for information about how to donate money or volunteer.

A volunteer stacks food during the Basket Brigade campaign on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2022. Vince Dice

Make a pumpkin centerpiece

Learn to turn a pumpkin and a few succulent plants into a festive autumn centerpiece at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 14 at Locust Cider, 3207 57th Street Court. The workshop fee is $75 and covers instruction and all supplies. Sign up here.

Learn about salmon

Join Harbor WildWatch biologists Sunday, Nov. 17 for a free walk along Donkey Creek to learn about the chum salmon returning to the creek to spawn. Meet near the restrooms at Donkey Creek Park at 9:30 a.m. and walk through txʷaalqəł Estuary. Tour guides will talk about the salmon life cycle and how to be good stewards of the environment. Salmon walks will also take place Nov. 24 and Dec. 1.

Chum salmon

Art show at TCC

Artist Paige Pettibon’s show, “Two Sides of the Same Chip” runs through Dec. 6 at the Gig Harbor branch of Tacoma Community College. Pettibon is a mixed-race descendant of the Bitterroot Salish of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. She works in many media including painting, writing, digital design and jewelry, drawing on her life experiences to create images that highlight the complexity of Indigenous identities. Her work explores the impact of casinos — both on the vital economic support they provide and also the potential harm they cause through addiction. TCC is located at 3993 Hunt St.

At the library

Elsie Bill-Gerrish from the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe will discuss culturally rooted self-care for people from all walks of life at 2 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 16, at the Gig Harbor Library. The free “Healing the Sacred Circle” workshop is geared to ages 13 and older. The library is located at 4424 Point Fosdick Dr.

Live music

The Gig Harbor High School wind symphony performs at the district band festival Thursday, Nov. 14. Music starts at 6:30 p.m. in the gymnasium. On Tuesday, Nov. 19, the GHHS jazz band plays for South Side Jazz Night, 6:30 p.m. in the auditorium. Both concerts are free. GHHS is located at 5101 Rosedale St.
James Coates brings his blend of country, folk, soul and R&B to the Olalla Winery at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 15. Reserve tickets here. Annie Eastwood’s Allstars with Billy Stapleton take the stage at Kimball Coffeeshop on Friday. Doors open at 6 p.m. Music starts at 7. Free for all ages.

At the movies

The Flashback Cinema movie at the Galaxy Theatres Uptown on Wednesday, Nov. 13, is “Pulp Fiction” showing at 11:45 a.m. and 6 p.m. Sunday’s Flashback Movie is “The Polar Express.” It’s the story of a boy who takes a mysterious train bound for the North Pole on Christmas Eve, with Tom Hanks playing six roles including the train conductor and Santa Claus. Showtimes are noon and 6 p.m. Flashback movies are just $5.

Civic engagement

The Gig Harbor City Council meets at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 12, to hold public hearings on the 2025-26 budget. The council will also vote on property taxes for 2025.

The council conducts a study session on Thursday, Nov. 14. Agenda items include the city’s 2025 legislative agenda, an update to the senior utility discount program, proposed utility rate adjustments and code revisions. The study session starts at 3 p.m. at the civic center. Council meetings can also be accessed virtually via Zoom.

City council member Jeni Woock hosts County Council member Robyn Denson at Jeni Listens at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 14, at Cutters Point Coffeeshop in the Olympic Village shopping center, 5500 Olympic Drive. Woock will discuss potential development in Purdy and license plate-reading cameras that are currently under discussion by the city council.

Attorneys from tacomaprobono will offer free advice on landlord-tenant relationships, divorce and other issues at a free legal aid pop-up at the Civic Center, 3510 Grandview St., from 10 a.m. to noon Monday, Nov. 18.