Kudos

The Mukilteo Way Garden Club was pleased to select Gig Harbor resident Francesca Hall for one of their $1000 Horticulture scholarships for the 2024-25 school year. Francesca is a sophomore at Western Washington University pursuing studies in agricultural and environmental sciences. Moving to the PNW from Texas as a teenager, Francesca had a love of farming but her passion with science made for a strong combination toward her dream of helping farmers sustain their livelihoods and nourish communities. She sees science and data control, DNA and gene studies in particular, as an aid in engineering agriculture to combat climate change.

The Mukilteo Way Garden Club established their annual Horticulture Scholarships in 2007 with proceeds from the first Mukilteo Garden and Quilt Tour. The Tour has been presented biennially with the Mukilteo Lighthouse Quilters since with great success. The next Tour will be presented this summer on July 20-21. www.mukilteogardenandquilttour.org. Check for the next annual scholarship information in April, 2025 on the Mukilteo Way Garden Club’s website www.mwgc.org .

Janae Lewis of Gig Harbor was among four Linfield University soccer players to earn post-season Northwest Conference honors following the end of the 2023 season.

Lewis, a Peninsula High graduate and sophomore psychology major, earned an honorable mention selection. Anna Dazey earned second-team All-NWC and Jenna Stanley and Riley Omonaka were tabbed honorable mention selections.

Lewis played sparingly in 2023. The sophomore appeared in only six matches due to injury. In her six matches, Lewis scored three goals and played in a total of 255 minutes. Lewis tallied 11 shots with six being on goal.

The Wildcats finished the season 6-8-6 and 4-7-5 in NWC play. Linfield finished with 17 total points to finish fifth in the conference, one point ahead of George Fox and Lewis & Clark and 12 points back of fourth place Whitman.

Linfield University is an independent, nonprofit university with campuses in McMinnville and Portland, Oregon, as well an eCampus for online learning.

Daniel Kasperbauer, a student in Des Moines University’s Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine program, was a participant in the university’s 2023 White Coat Ceremony on Sept. 15. Kasperbauer is from Gig Harbor, WA.

Among the members of the program’s Class of 2027, Kasperbauer received the white coat as a symbol of the training aspiring health professionals receive and the accompanying responsibilities they’ve accepted for their future roles.

Across the country, the White Coat Ceremony is a rite of passage for students as they begin their medical education and prepare to become compassionate, competent health care providers. Participating in DMU’s ceremony were 149 students in the College of Health Sciences’ Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies, Doctor of Occupational Therapy and Doctor of Physical Therapy programs; 56 students in the College of Podiatric Medicine and Surgery’s Doctor of Podiatric Medicine program; and 226 students in the College of Osteopathic Medicine’s Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine program.