Vancouver Family Magazine October 2020

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October 2020

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COVID CRISIS:

One Local Family's Harrowing Experience

Community Collab: Creating a Culture of Health

FAMILY VOYAGE Sailing Away From the American Dream

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Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

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contents

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FEATURE ARTICLES

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Community Collab Supporting the health of our community's highest-risk individuals and families through creative collaboration

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COVID Crisis, Oceans Apart One local family desperately watches from another continent as their daughter fights COVID-19

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Mosaic Family Voyage Discover what happens when a Clark County family decides to live and travel full time aboard a sailboat

IN EVERY ISSUE

20 16

12

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October ‘20

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

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Editor’s Notes

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The New Domesticity A poetic farewell

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Renaissance Dad Life, liberty, and the pursuit of Wi-Fi

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Calendar of Events & Activities

ON THE WEB • Wide Open Spaces: Nature-Based Early Education Sprouts Success for Kids

It’s your moment.

From the moment you find out you’re pregnant to the moment you see that precious face.

At PeaceHealth, we know how exciting pregnancy can be, while understanding you may worry about COVID-19.

We are doing our part to make your stay with us worry free by taking every precaution to keep you and baby safe and healthy.

We take pride in Newsweek magazine recently naming PeaceHealth Southwest Family Birth Center one of the best maternity hospitals in the U.S. Our team is here for you, ready to provide exceptional, personalized care for your every moment.

Get your birthing questions answered at peacehealth.org/vancouvermom.

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

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EDITOR'S NOTES

Adventure, Ready or Not Photo by Scarlette Richards

“Into the unknowwwwwn,” Elsa sang to us all, way back in 2019 when theaters (and other places) were open, worldwide pandemics were relegated to history books and we had no idea just how prophetic her words were. Frozen II swept the box office with its tale of family bonds and political peace and plenty of adventure, even as Elsa sang, “I’ve had my adventure, I don’t need something new.” And here we stand, ready or not, in the middle of an adventure few of us need and none of us would have volunteered for.

www.VancouverFamilyMagazine.com

Volume 19, Issue 10 Publisher

Julie Buchan Julie@vancouverfamilymagazine.com (360) 882-7762

Editor

Nikki Klock Nikki@vancouverfamilymagazine.com (360) 882-7762

Associate Editor

Sarah Mortensen Sarah@vancouverfamilymagazine.com

Graphic Designer

And yet, hidden within each and every challenge is an inevitable opportunity. Learning and growth always await outside our comfort zone. Cry some tears, vent when you need to, then face the future with a heart and mind ready rise to the challenge.

This month, discover how local families and organizations found adventure, purpose and hope even within huge challenges. Meet a Clark County family who left behind most of what they knew to follow their dream of living and traveling the world on a sailboat (page 20), read another local family’s harrowing experience watching from another continent as their daughter fought COVID-19 (page 16), and learn how local organizations are creatively collaborating to cultivate a culture of health for our community’s highest-risk individuals (page 12).

Even during government-mandated shutdowns, adventure still abounds if we seek for it with intent. And when we don’t seek it, it will surely find us. Then, like Elsa, we’ll have the power to choose to go into the unknown and find the opportunity.

I-Shüan Warr Ishuan@vancouverfamilymagazine.com

Ad Designer

Philip Nerat addesign@vancouverfamilymagazine.com

Contributing Writers

Julia Antipol Hirsch, Julianna Lawson, Carrie Lynn, Rachel Messerschmidt, Perry P. Perkins

Ad Sales

sales@vancouverfamilymagazine.com Vancouver Family Magazine is published monthly by Vancouver Kidz Magazine, LLC Address: PO Box 820264 Vancouver, WA 98682 Tel: 360-882-7762 Copyright 2002-2020. All rights reserved.

No portion of Vancouver Family Magazine may be reproduced without the written permission from the publisher.

Vancouver Kidz Magazine, LLC and staff do not recommend or endorse any service, product, or content represented in this magazine or on our website.

The sole purpose of this publication is to provide information on available services and/or products. It is the consumer’s responsibility to verify the accuracy of information given. Vancouver Kidz Magazine, LLC, and/or Julie Buchan and Nikki Klock and staff do not assume and disclaim any liability to any party for any loss or damage caused by error or omission in this magazine or on our website. We reserve the right to refuse service to anyone.

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On the Cover: Nikki Klock, Editor nikki@vancouverfamilymagazine.com

The Shawcroft Family loves to explore and create. They love finding new places to adventure in and around Vancouver. When not playing outside, they can typically be found crafting or baking at home or running circles around mom.

Photo by Caley Marston Sweet Abandon Photography SweetAbandonPhotography.com

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Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

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THE NEW DOMESTICITY

the

NEW DOMESTICITY

1

Old Enough

By Julianna Lawson

With a riot of brown ringlets cascading over her shoulders

and gossamer wings fixed firmly in place, my 4-year-old pixie stood before friends and family, chanting the flower fairy lines she had committed to memory: Where do fairy babies lie, Till they’re old enough to fly?

Here’s a likely place, I think: ‘Mid these flowers blue and pink!

She continued on, delighting us with the story of Cicely Mary Barker’s “Forget-Me-Not Fairy.” Each fairy-ballerina in our homespun troupe shared a poem: it seemed only natural that dancing and poetry should go hand-in-hand for this year-end recital. (Incidentally, we referred to our girls’ ballet class as “The Beckoning Parlour Dance Troupe.” Rehearsals took place at a friend’s home, and the girls were regularly distracted by their brothers, who were invariably—and enviably—wrestling in the parlour.)

True to the poem’s title, my daughter never forgot those lines.

Indeed, our whole family committed them to memory, yet this was due more to hilarity than intention. My daughter was called upon to again share her poem, this time at a small piano recital. The recitation was captured on video, providing years of entertainment: the pixie-turned-pianist was recovering from a cold and therefore a little stuffy . . . but most memorable was the line containing an unexpected belch: “All alone—but no, you’re not, (burp!) You could never be forgot . . .” Indeed, that moment could never “be forgot.”

This pixie, now an adult, recently accompanied me on a walk around our neighborhood wetlands trail. Apples hung low on old orchard trees, and she caught their heady fragrance on the wind.

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Fly

to

We reveled in that cider-scented moment, recalling Helen Hunt Jackson’s lines, The trees in apple orchards With fruit are bending down.

It was a fleeting moment, but one in which I was grateful to have a line of poetry from which to draw. We laughed as I continued with my favorite couplet, “From dewy lanes at morning the grapes’ sweet odors rise,” my voice bellowing down the path (and no doubt startling the girl we met around the bend). The familiar lines, like the “forget-me-not” stanza, were comforting: comforting in their rhythm, comforting in the way they described a scene so much more eloquently than prose ever could, comforting in the way they had woven their language into the fabric of our family life.

This past year, I’ve been drawn to such comfort. Ironically, I had started 2020 with the ambitious plan to read “Les Miserables.”

I got about halfway through when, in March, our world turned topsy-turvy. My brain grew heavy with the weight of current events and simply could not track with denser texts. So I returned to the familiar, to the comforting, revisiting old favorites. I strolled through wild birch woods via “Anne of Green Gables,” messed about in boats with Rat and Mole in “The Wind in the Willows,” experienced grand adventures in “The Chronicles of Narnia.”

Through these and other stories, I was struck by the authors’ familiarity with poetry. Of course it was no surprise to read of Anne Shirley, “The cows swung placidly down the lane, and Anne followed them dreamily, repeating aloud the battle canto from ‘Marmion’—which . . . Miss Stacy had made them learn off by heart.”

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

continued on next page

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Alas, girls today just don’t dreamily follow cows while quoting Sir Walter Scott (that I know of). But that doesn’t mean we can’t keep those lines tucked away in our hearts and minds for just the right occasion! For the past few years, I’ve delighted in dedicating each October column to poetry. What a gift we give—both to ourselves and to our children—when we grasp a line that perfectly describes a mood, scene, emotion or event! What depths of thought are forged when we stimulate our minds toward memorizing the greats!

We welcome another October and once again pay homage to the art of poetry, celebrating this “season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,” as described by Keats. Let us ease our rapid pace for a moment, that we might catch every hue as “autumn’s fire burns slowly along the woods.” (Can you just see the picture William Allingham paints with words?) Now is the time to curl up with Robert Louis Stevenson’s “Garden of Verses” while sipping hot cider with our loved ones.

I, likewise, will be slowing my pace, savoring the poetry of family life before my not-so-little pixies are “old enough to fly” and create homes of their own. Accordingly, I’ll be wrapping up “The New Domesticity” with a merry scarlet bow. It has been a joy and privilege to share my home thoughts with you these last several years, dear readers. Thank you for joining me in the pursuit of a new domesticity, one that celebrates the past and looks, ever hopefully, toward the future.

Julianna Lawson and her husband, Jamie, make their home in Vancouver with their four children, ages 15 to 22. Julianna believes that “every day should have a poem in it,” and seeks to find it, be it in the written word, the great outdoors, or a good, strong cup of tea.

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

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RENAISSANCE DAD

Photos courtesy of the author

By Perry P. Perkins

Like most of us,

I’ve been through some tough times in

my life.

So, I can face pandemics, political upheaval, seclusion, rioting, rationed toilet paper, and even being locked out of my favorite coffee shop.

But this morning (and I think this might really be the end) . . . I woke up with no Wi-Fi. It’s not me, you understand. No, I can happily spend days on end festering in my BarcaLounger with a thick book and an unlimited supply of potato chips.

No, what makes this a potentially apocalyptic situation is that I’m trapped in a wireless-less house with my 13-year-old daughter, Grace. For her, access to the internet is not simply a convenience, but a human rights issue. A physical necessity that should be written into the Hierarchy of Human Needs right between oxygen and drinking water.

Luckily, it’s only 9 a.m. (a period of time that she refers to as “the middle of the night”), so I still have a few hours to enjoy the peace and quiet, sip my coffee, and plan my escape.

Frankly, I’m surprised that her whole generation hasn’t risen up and gone “Lord of the Flies” on all of us . . .

Yet. Me? I’m lucky enough to have a job that allows me to work from home without being constantly lashed to the internet’s apron strings. OK, so the term “job” might be a bit hyperbolic for an activity which consists mostly of staring at a computer screen and trying to justify eating another donut after an exhausting hour of moving absolutely nothing but my fingertips.

Short of being a high-ranking political figure, there are few jobs that will pay you for doing so little actual work.

But the point is . . . it’s a job that I can do it with or without constant Wi-Fi access.

After six months of quarantine, if I’m not locked in my office, I’m probably locked in the bathroom. My family, after the same period of incarceration with me, don’t seem to mind my absence. When we do manage to escape the confines of the house, Grace’s first question, regardless of our destination is always the same, “Do they have Wi-Fi?”

I can’t really blame her. Like most of the teenage world, Grace has spent the last six months trapped at home with her parents. No church, no malls, no movie theaters, not even the dubious escape of school to get away from the geezers and just be chill with her peers.

My daughter can make a $250-per-night cabin on a lake sound like the solitary cell-block of Guantanamo Bay if there’s no internet access.

(Yeah, that’s right...I said “chill” . . . I know stuff!)

Me: “That’s nature, Honey.”

Despite the fact that she’s a beautiful, brilliant child, a voracious reader, and a sweet, caring soul, you can only be locked up with your parents for so long.

Her: “Ugh!”

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Her: “What’s that smell?”

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

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Now, some of my daughter’s obsessive need for internet access is, admittedly, my own fault. During her most formative years, I suffered from a crippling addiction—much to my personal shame—to the game Angry Birds. Nestled in my lap and holding my phone, Gracie would spend hours helping me blow up evil green pigs with fluffy yellow birds fired from slingshots (which, having just typed that, I realize is a pretty disturbing theme for a game . . .).

In hindsight, I probably should have let my wife handle our daughter’s introduction and assimilation into the digital world.

I’m sure there would have been more educational value and less exploding pig parts. My wife and I have an understanding of our parental-influence territories based on our individual skills and gifts. My wife’s parenting responsibilities: clothing, school work, chore schedules, sex education, bedtimes, personal hygiene, social graces, and any activity involving polite interaction with other humans. My parenting responsibilities: killing spiders, and glowering at boys. (And, just between you and me, I’ve kinda dropped the ball on the whole “killing spiders” thing.)

Also, spending much of her younger years living in a remote rural area of Washington, online games and child-friendly messaging apps allowed our daughter some interaction with her friends, while assuaging our own guilt over forcing her to grow up in a beautiful, turn-of-the-century farmhouse, surrounded by clean air, fresh water, virgin timber, and teeming with wildlife and livestock . . .

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in the phone-shaped claws of her hands, begging that I “fix the internet!”

Fix the internet? Who am I . . . Al Gore?

But, for my daughter, I will try.

Using all my years of technical experience and computer savvy, I will crawl beneath the kitchen table (unless there are spiders), unplug the wireless router, and then plug it back in.

If that doesn’t work I’ll lock myself in my office.

If it does work, I’ll be in the bathroom playing Angry Birds.

Because, as long as I write about it . . . it’s my job.

Perry P. Perkins is a third-generation chef, award-winning writer, and a culinary instructor in Longview. He operates the MY KITCHEN Outreach Program for at-risk and under-served youth. His writing has appeared in hundreds of publications including many “Chicken Soup for the Soul” anthologies.

At the same time, in my own defense, it never occurred to me that a telephone would become so important. Growing up in a preinternet world, the phone was just something that I let ring until someone else picked it up, or used for the occasional painfully awkward conversation with long-distance relatives whom I couldn’t have picked out of a line-up.

Even as a teen, if I wanted to talk to a friend, I had to untangle 20 feet of spiral phone cord to reach the bathroom from the kitchen phone.

Frankly, it took less effort to simply ride my bike to my friend’s house.

But wait . . .

I hear stirrings from upstairs, muffled grumbling through the floorboards, the princess awakes, and it’s too late to make a run for it. Soon she’ll be down here, her robe clutched around her

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

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Feature: Community Collab: Creating a Comprehensive Culture of Health

Community Collab: Creating a Comprehensive Culture of Health

By Julia Antopol Hirsch

If you could enact change

that would most effectively and positively impact the health and well-being of the highest risk members of our community, what would you propose? This is just the question that Barbe West, executive director of Southwest Washington Accountable Community of Health (SWACH) was tasked with asking local organizations, agencies and nonprofits across Southwest Washington.

SWACH is one of nine organizations that are part of the Healthier

12

Washington Initiative to promote better health and access for our Medicaid population. In 2017, the state of Washington received a grant from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, a federal agency, to develop a five-year plan to improve the quality of health care for Medicaid beneficiaries and address the social determinants of health for this population. Regional Health Alliance (another name for SWACH) was chosen to administer this Medicaid Transformation Project for Clark, Klickitat and Skamania Counties. Seven total healthcare categories were targeted and each organization had to determine which and how many categories would have the greatest impact on positive change in their communities. SWACH chose to concentrate on Primary Care/ Behavioral Health Integration, Community Collaboration, Opioid Crisis Response and Chronic Disease. “We posed the question [to nonprofits such as PeaceHealth, Legacy Health, Council for the Homeless, Children’s Center and Share], ‘How can you make systemic change in any of those four areas that would improve

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

the health of the community in the future?’” says West.

The proposed solutions for these challenging problems show the magical thinking that can happen when everyone puts their collective heads together.

Primary Care/Behavioral Health Care Collaboration and Support

The challenge: PeaceHealth medically treats the homeless population, but once the patient’s medical needs are met, the patient may have nowhere to go. To whom does the hospital release them?

The solution: SWACH coordinated with PeaceHealth Southwest and Share, an organization that provides shelter, food and education for the homeless in Vancouver, to move patients who need it to a Share facility after release from the hospital. At the shelter, individuals are given any further medical care needed.

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The challenge: A doctor sees a Medicaid patient and after the visit, the patient has nowhere to go or perhaps no transportation. The patient may not even have a phone. Who can the doctor call?

The solution: SWACH established a Care Coordination System whereby the doctor, hospital or therapist can call a switchboard that will set the patient up with a Community Health Worker (CHW) who will, literally, connect with and “walk alongside” the patient until their needs are

met. This could encompass anything from arranging for transportation to working with the patient for months. If the patient experiences food insecurity, the CHW might introduce them to local food banks. If the patient has an alcohol problem, a CHW may connect them with an appropriate counselor and continue working with them throughout their journey of recovery.

These are just two examples that show how meeting the social needs of a person can not only change their lives but save the community money. Emergency rooms

are used less often, fewer homeless individuals are on the streets.

Community Health Workers, supported

by HealthConnect HUB, are the core element of keeping individuals engaged, active in their own care, and progressing toward health and well-being. CHWs have a uniquely close understanding of the communities in which they serve and the barriers to accessing care.

They have shared experiences that help create trusting relationships and enable these workers to serve as a liaison/ link/intermediary between health/social continued on page 14

The proposed solutions for these challenging problems show the magical thinking that can happen when everyone puts their collective heads together.

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

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Photo courtesy of SWACH

Photo courtesy of CVTV and SWACH

Feature: Community Collab: Creating a Comprehensive Culture of Health (cont'd)

continued from page 13

services and their communities. Use of CHWs is recognized as a fundamental strategy for the goal of increasing equity and culturally competent health care services.

COVID-19 Collaboration and Support

With COVID-19 the current top priority in every healthcare field, CHWs have become even more essential. The CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act) provided funds to Clark County to rent out all the beds in a local Motel 6 and turn it into a Q&I (Quarantine and Isolation) hotel. If a qualifying individual tests positive for the virus or has been exposed to the virus, they are quarantined in one of the hotel rooms.

SWACH has worked in partnership with Clark County Community Services to provide CHWs to work and communicate with COVID-19 patients on a

regular schedule to make sure their needs are being met.

Brandi Williams, lead CHW at the Q&I hotel, has been working with the homeless population for years. She knows the community well and knows how to navigate the system.

“We call the population at the hotel ‘unhoused,’” explains Williams. “They are not necessarily homeless. Maybe they were living with a family member and were exposed to someone who got COVID. They are high risk.”

To reach these people without knocking on their doors and coming into direct contact with them, Brandi created a flyer stating all her credentials and experience, put a picture of herself on the flyer, plus added her phone number. She began receiving calls right away.

“Meals on Wheels feeds these clients everyday but sometimes it’s not enough,” says Williams, “so I’ve used my connections to get them food boxes. I just called around and everyone wanted

to help. I was once given a $50 coupon to Fred Meyer, so I did the shopping for the client. Sometimes, a client needs transportation to a doctor or the VA, and I call Mercy-Mobile or C-Van. I’ve gotten canes and crutches for clients, picked up their mail, bought school supplies for their kids. I got a call from a woman who was looking after the kids of someone in isolation and needed benefits for them, so I helped her fill out the forms.”

Williams does all this because she relates to their struggles. “I’ve been homeless and I know what the stereotype is: that they’re lazy, they don’t want to work. When I was homeless, I had three kids, a college degree and two jobs. But rent was just too much. So, I understand the struggle.”

Chronic Health Collaboration and Support

Other SWACH programs are facilitated in our region as well. Washington State University was already conducting classes on healthy eating and active lifestyles through their extension program, so they proposed taking these classes into the communities. They now offer a “How to continued on next page

Go to VancouverFamilyMagazine.com for more information about supporting SWACH. 14

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

THANK YOU

Firefighters, Emergency Responders, Crisis Shelters and Suppliers for your courage in the face of fire. www.VancouverFamilyMagazine.com

continued from previous page

Eat Healthy on Little Money” class taking place at the Free Clinic of Southwest Washington, creating a solution to the Chronic Health category, since most of the individuals who sign up are people who suffer with chronic health problems such as diabetes and obesity and want to make lifestyle changes.

Opioid Crisis Response Collaboration and Support

“The opioid work group really took off like wildfire,” says West. “SWACH launched a group of behavioral health and primary care providers to see how they could better understand how to serve the Medicaid

population, and they came up with a great solution.”

Naloxone is a medication that can be administered to someone during an overdose and can often save their life.

The task force has gone through training and now have ensured that Naloxone is available in every emergency room and with all paramedics.

Continuing Collaboration and Support

These systemic changes don’t happen overnight. SWACH is already halfway through their grant period, and it may take years to fully analyze the results of these new methods. That’s part of the problem.

“We don’t want all this work to stop after the five-year grant is over,” says West who acted as Kaiser Permanente’s president of the Northwest region for 28 years and ran the Free Clinic of Southwest Washington for nine years. “We’re hoping for an

extension, but everyone wants data to prove changes are occurring and this type of data takes years to accumulate.”

SWACH is a powerful example of the kind of transformational change that can happen when government and agencies work together to provide a social safety net to our neighbors who may need, not a handout, but a hand up. And individual physicians, therapists plus the ordinary citizens who risk their lives by becoming Community Health Workers are the pillars who keep that net in place.

Let’s hope they are allowed to continue.

Julia Antopol Hirsch lives with her husband and two children in Vancouver, where she is working on her third novel. She is the author of “The Sound of Music: The Making of America’s Favorite Movie,” which was reissued in 2018.

She loves to swim and read, and has three mischievous dogs who insist on going to the dog park every day.

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

15

Feature: COVID Crisis, Oceans Apart

, risis C C OV I D a p A Oc e a n s

r

t

By Carrie Lynn

It’s not every birthday that a life dream comes true, but on February 6, 2019 my daughter, Elaine, got hers.

Photos courtesy of the author

Turning 26 was topped by an acceptance

email from the University of Glasgow, Scotland, to obtain her master’s degree in art history. We were over the moon for

museums. Completely fantastic, aside from the text messages urging travelers to avoid taking the underground due to the “Novel Coronavirus.” Ten days later when Clarissa arrived back in the States, the virus was turning to a pandemic.

On March 24, 2020, Governor Jay Inslee called for a statewide lockdown, making Washington the first state to do so. No one had ever heard of such a thing, let alone lived in one. Worksites and schools were closing. The world was tipping.

Eight times zones away, in Glasgow, the story was dire. Students by the droves were locking their flat doors, abandoning possessions, and taking any available flight out. We were in the process of arranging this for Elaine, when she called early one morning.

Elaine moving into her flat in Glasgow, 2019

her. Thirteen months later, we would live online, desperately watching from another continent as she fought a disease named COVID-19.

February of 2020 appeared to be as spectacular as 2019 had been. Elaine’s older sister, Clarissa, traveled to Scotland to celebrate Elaine’s birthday and Valentine’s Day. They took Scotland and London by storm, eating Scottish food, visiting Harry Potter hot spots, wandering castles and

Four days after Washington locked down, my husband woke me. “Family meeting right now. Elaine.” Due to the time difference, her day is almost over by the time we wake up. Stumbling into my husband’s office, wrapped in a bathrobe, I met a sight I hadn’t expected. All five of our faces staring at each other. Thank you, Zoom.

In the upper left corner of my computer screen, in a darkened square, sat my intrepid 27-year-old daughter, whispering from her bed in Scotland, “I haven’t been

able to breathe for two days. It’s getting worse. They want me in for testing. The transport is on its way.” Clarissa, who lives in Denver, dropped her head on her arms and sobbed. I looked back at the Elaine square. It was empty. Transport had arrived. None of us moved. We just sat and stared.

Minutes later our phones buzzed. Elaine, ever the student and historian, sent a photo from the transport van. Her face was covered in a blue mask and both hands were gloved. Masks weren’t statemandated yet, but the National Health Service (NHS) required them. She looked like a leper being exiled. My heart broke.

This was supposed to be an old people’s disease. At the time, washing hands and covering coughs and sneezes were the prime recommendations—not masks and gloves.

The lone passenger in the van, she was in the farthest back seat, socially distant from the masked, gowned and gloved driver.

Her destination? The Victoria Infirmary, to be poked in the brain with a long cotton swab. The hospital was stripped to bare bones and devoid of people. City Center Glasgow was silent as the grave. She texted, “I feel like I am fleeing before WWII.” Somehow each of us crept away from Zoom. We couldn’t close the link, it felt like continued on next page

16

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

Camas Opening October 20

internal medicine, family medicine, pediatrics, urgent care, vision center, lab and imaging 4500 SE Columbia Palisades Drive, Camas, WA 98607 360-882-2778 | tvc.org/camas continued from previous page

shutting her out. Life took on irrelevancy I had never known. Whatever I tried to do to occupy myself slipped through me like air. I would live in this arrested state for six weeks. My husband, ever the planner, began searching travel restrictions. Could we get her home? Could we get us to her?

There were just enough stories of families isolated from loved ones who died alone to chill your heart. This wasn’t going to happen to us.

wasn’t any better. Los Angeles and New York were exponentially bad. The world was in crisis and we were a dot on its statistic model. Entombed in an 11-foot square studio apartment lay a girl gasping for every breath. Her only activity was holding nightly vigils for those who had died. She knew their loneliness. It was the least she could do from her sickbed.

By the time she returned from the test completely exhausted, we learned that travel was no longer an option. No matter the results, she was required to remain in Scotland. As she settled in her room, the results arrived. Positive. Our beautiful, young daughter had contracted COVID-19.

Now it felt like I couldn’t breathe. She slumped over for sleep, we left Zoom open to watch her.

Five thousand miles away, we were determined to win this war. First objective: no hospitalization. The mortality rate there was horrendous. Less than 50% of those hospitalized made it out. If she was hospitalized, she would need to surrender her technology, her lifeline to us. Screen time became our bridge. Taking shifts, we watched her labored breath and ravaged body fight a war with an assailant no one had defense for. My husband’s shift ran midnight to early morning. I took early morning hour until midday. Then we would switch. Whether she was alert or asleep, we were vigilant. If she wanted company we would message or briefly talk. Sometimes it was just hand signals.

Second task: help her heal. COVID-19 didn’t arrive with a sheet of instructions.

Daily the demands and requirements kept changing. The age limit of the contractors, the list of possible symptoms, the precise path it would take. We shifted with every

The UK’s numbers were out of sight. Their numbers jumped hourly. United States

continued on page 18 Zoom watch, March 2020

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

17

Feature: COVID Crisis, Oceans Apart (cont'd) continued from page 17

new development. Gloves, masks, “Happy Birthday” while you wash. Anything and everything for her body and our hearts.

Days into the fight, food became a problem. She’d lost the sensations of smell and taste. Her body was shriveling.

Asking her when she had last eaten or hydrated often produced a confused look while she searched to recall when or what she’d had. The issue was heightened by dual problems of physical exhaustion and accessibility. Mere microwaving of food wore her out. Napping on the floor became her new normal. By week two she’d run out of food. Her flat held a hotel-sized fridge and one cupboard for food. Now that she was infected, she couldn’t go out to shop. The majority of the students in her building had fled. No one was around to grab a couple things for her if they were out shopping. Eventually she found a workaround with the building manager.

Her few items would be dropped off out front of the building. The manager would glove up, deliver them to the door outside her flat, text her. Elaine would crawl to the door, bring it in, put it away, and nap on the floor. Definitely not the college experience we’d imagined a year earlier.

Final objective: optimism. There was a lot of “fake it till you make it” on this one.

An ugly knot of fear lived in my soul. The numbers grew worse every day. Week two was the worst. A new rattle had entered her breath. We asked if she thought she should get oxygen? Painfully, and nearly immobile, she shook her head, and whispered, “If I get oxygen, I have to go in.”

Gaunt, ashen and depleted, she lived in her bed, barely existing. Nothing satisfied or soothed. Every cell in her fighting to prevail. One night I realized she was fighting for all of us.

On Easter Sunday, NHS sent transport to bring her back for testing. Hope was on the horizon. We waited anxiously for 48 hours for the results. Then . . . all clear!

It took 30 more days before she returned to normal. Her younger brother, Mitch, who gets off work at midnight, caught a glimpse of her waking up three weeks after the final COVID-19 test. He was happy to report, “She looks like Elaine.”

Four months passed before any of us could visit her. Two-week sheltering in place was required for whoever visited. I went. I needed to cross the sea and hug,

Elaine in Glasgow during her final days at college, and after beating COVID-19

18

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

Elaine on her way to the hospital for COVID-19 testing, March 29, 2020

hold, and cry tears of joy with her. Today we find it remarkable that our historian of a daughter would be the one to contract the dreaded COVID-19 and live to tell about it.

Carrie Lynn is an avid reader and emerging writer living in Vancouver. Her first memoir, “Finding Fitzgerald,” is now available at www.widopublishing.com. When not reading or writing, she can be found coordinating Vancouver’s nonprofit Winter Hospitality Overflow (W.H.O.) or traveling with her family.

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19

Feature: Mosaic Family Voyage: Sailing Away From the American Dream

Sailing Away From the American Dream

By Rachel Messerschmidt

In 2014

I was a regular, young Clark County mom with a husband, a 4-year-old son, a newborn daughter, a full time job and a home in Battle Ground, complete with mortgage and mounting expenses. Little did my husband and I know then that watching a single documentary would change the entire course of our lives and land us living on a 40-somethingyear-old sailboat and preparing to cast off the dock lines to go sail the world.

By 2014, Brenden and I had become quite disillusioned with our life. We were both working full time jobs and had a roommate to help spread the financial load, and yet we were still barely scraping by each month. Most of my wages were going to pay for daycare for our son and we didn’t know how we would manage when it came time to add our daughter’s daycare expenses into the mix once my

20

maternity leave expired. I had already started dreaming of downsizing into a tiny home and living mortgage-free when we happened upon “Maidentrip,” a documentary about a 14-year-old Dutch girl named Laura Dekker who sailed solo around the world on her 40-foot sailboat.

My husband, Brenden, commented that she seemed normal—not the superwealthy type we’d imagined for sailing enthusiasts. He became curious.

When he suggested that our tiny home might be a sailboat, allowing us to travel and see the world, work less, and spend every day with our kids, I was all in.

A Dream is Born Brenden dove headfirst into researching the sailing lifestyle, which we came to understand was known as “cruising.” He

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

read blogs and books on the technical aspects of sailing, and how to live on a boat and cruise on a tight budget with a family. We watched sailing YouTube channels back when this type of content was extremely limited, and we were always left hungry for more. continued on next page

continued from previous page

Summer turned to fall, and fall to winter, and we fell more and more in love with the idea of selling our home and moving our family onto a sailboat. Gradually, we introduced our extended families to the idea, knowing that we might meet some resistance. Thankfully, they gave us complete support in following our dreams—with the expectation that we would plan properly and thoroughly, especially for the safety of ourselves and our kids. After all, neither of us had ever even been sailing. We honestly had no idea if we would even like it. But we were bound to try.

In the spring of 2015, we bought a small sailboat in a Portland marina with the intent of learning to sail. Over that summer, we took a few lessons and learned the basics. But to even get out on the water, we needed the stars to align perfectly for a free afternoon and evening, with good wind and weather, and childcare lined up. Those stars aligned only about a dozen times that season.

Nevertheless, we remained utterly enthusiastic. Throughout the following fall and winter, we continued to pour every free moment into learning and preparing to sail full time.

Falling in Love With the Fuji 40 In late October, we drove to Seattle to view the very first boat, in person, which could feasibly house our little family. The boat was named Amazing Grace and was a 1978 Sparkman & Stephens designed, Japanese-built Fuji 40. Brenden, of course, had

The author and her fam ily enjoying the warm wat er at Puget Sound’s Penrose Point State Par k in August 2019. Photo cour tesy of the auth or.

researched the design and build of the vessel, and as we made the 3-hour drive, we discussed its potential. We loved the layout and knew that the boat was a strong, capable, bluewater cruising sailboat. Only about 13 of these boats had been made because the company had gone out of business in the second year of their continued on page 22

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

21

Feature: Mosaic Family Voyage: Sailing Away From the American Dream (cont'd) continued from page 21

construction. We knew that if we liked this boat, we would need to make an offer quickly or risk losing our chance at a Fuji 40 forever.

Upon stepping foot onto Amazing Grace, we immediately fell in love. The boat seemed to truly have a soul and I could imagine my children growing up within her safe and sturdy hull. We pondered how that boat might change the course of our lives. But we finally agreed that while we loved the boat, we weren’t financially ready to make an offer. We needed to sell our house first. It was time to get serious.

For Christmas that year, our respective parents banded together and purchased tickets for Brenden and I to go north to the San Juan Islands in March of 2016 and take a weeklong course living on and learning to sail a large sailboat. As we anticipated that trip and worked hard to prepare our house to be put up for sale, we suffered a difficult blow when we learned that Amazing Grace had sold. The boat that we wanted so badly was no longer available.

Despite the heartbreak, we maintained course and put our house up for sale in March. Thankfully, we were selling at a good time and got full asking price, even finalizing the sale remotely during our sailing class and coming away with approximately $70,000 which became our “boat budget.”

Top: Kali, age 5, relaxing aboard Mosaic while anchored near Bainbridge Island in May 2020. Bottom: Evan, age 10, smiling during a dinghy driving lesson in June 2020. Photos courtesy of the author.

Sailboat Hunting As soon as we returned from our time in the San Juans, having loved every second that we spent on that 40-foot boat and soaking up every bit of knowledge we could, we kicked it into high gear to find our perfect boat.

on the very same day, destiny found its way into our lives when Brenden happened across a listing of a Fuji 40 just put up for sale in San Diego. We called and put an offer in, sight unseen, and booked a plane ticket to sunny southern California for Brenden.

We spent the spring and summer living with my parents and traveling all over Oregon and Washington looking at dozens of sailboats with the potential to be our new home. Unfortunately, none of them lived up to our memories and the emotions evoked by that very first boat, Amazing Grace. She was the Fuji 40 that had gotten away and we mourned the missed opportunity.

I waited at home with the children, seemingly holding my breath the entire day that he went to see the boat for the first time. I’m sure I jumped for joy when I got his initial text message, “The boat looks good. I think this might be it.”

Becoming desperate to find a boat, we put in an offer on a sailboat in Portland. She was a beautifully maintained Tartan 37.

She sailed like a dream and checked many of the boxes for us. But, during our survey and sea trial, we found some concerning issues which brought the purchase process to a screeching halt.

Amazingly, though,

22

Two weeks later, and after dozens of phone calls and emails to make arrangements, Brenden and I flew together to California to do our survey and sea trial aboard the big blue Fuji 40. I remember seeing her for the first time, stepping aboard and feeling my chest constrict with emotion and my breath catch in my throat. This boat, too, had a soul.

She came through her survey with a few issues (she was nearly 40 years old, after all), but nothing too concerning and we ecstatically decided to move forward with the purchase of the sailboat that we would rename Mosaic and which would become our beloved home.

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

continued on next page

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Saturday, October 3rd, from 9am-12pm (ish) Marshall Community Center, conference room 1009 E. McLoughlin Blvd, Vancouver WA (kitty corner from Clark College) Tuesday, October 6th, from 5pm - 8pm (ish) Marshall Community Center, Conference room 1009 E McLoughlin Blvd, Vancouver WA (kitty corner from Clark College) Saturday, October 17th, from 12pm-3pm (ish) Vancouver YMCA, conference room 11324 NE 51st Circle, Vancouver WA (corner of SR500 & Gher Road/112th Ave).

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www.learningtobuyahome.com

www.traciedemars.com (link for upcoming classes)

360.903.3504

continued from previous page

Moving Aboard Our New Home

By October of 2016, we had shipped Mosaic north over land to Portland and we eagerly moved aboard shortly before Halloween.

We had two weekends of decent weather on the boat before being slammed with one of the worst Pacific Northwest winters in recent history.

The learning curve was steep, trying to figure out how to live aboard a sailboat in the cold and wet weather. We suffered through months of freezing cold temperatures with ice and snow storms every other week. The water of the marina even froze three inches thick around Mosaic’s hull. Condensation rained from our ceiling and walls as we didn’t yet understand the difference a really good dehumidifier could make for us. Due to faulty old wiring, we caught the engine on fire and had to move off of Mosaic for a weekend, then spend weeks getting everything put back together to have a functional boat again.

In short, that first winter was absolutely miserable. But, through it all, we came out on the other side still utterly devoted to our dream. We decided that if we could make it through that winter, we could make it through anything we put our minds to.

lives, our boats, our plans are all at the mercy of the wind, weather, and water. We cannot predict what next week will bring so we have to learn to be patient and flexible. We have to adapt. But our plans from the beginning have included steps on a path to sailing into the sunset. At this writing, we are cruising in the Puget Sound while working remotely and schooling the kids from the boat, all while preparing to depart the Pacific Northwest waters and sail south to Mexico’s Sea of Cortez. Beyond that, who knows? Maybe cross the vast Pacific Ocean to explore the thousands of islands of the South Pacific? Maybe transit the Panama Canal and take the boat east to the Caribbean? We’ll see. Only time will tell.

Rachel Messerschmidt and her family are Clark County natives currently living and cruising full time aboard their sailboat, Mosaic, in the Pacific Northwest. Rachel blogs about her life and journey at w w w.mosaicvoyage.com and will share her family’s adventures in a monthly column in Vancouver Family Magazine.

There’s a saying that sailors live by, “Plans are best written in the sand at low tide.” We’re rarely able to plan well in advance and our Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

23

CALENDAR OF EVENTS & ACTIVITIES

Calendar

October ‘20

S M T W T F S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

1 THURSDAY

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

Admission includes one free pumpkin, corn maze admission, kids’ activities, bale maze and bale pyramid, free apple cider sampling, live music on weekends and more. General admission (age 3+) $10, Seniors (65+) $8, age 2 and under free. Open Tue-Fri 2-6 pm, SatSun 10 am-6 pm, throughout October. 2-6 pm Page Turners Online Book Club for 4th6th-Graders through Camas Public Library.

More info, including book title and registration at www.cityofcamas.us/camaspubliclibrary.

6:30-7:30 pm

2 FRIDAY

of events

Have a community event that you want to share?

Go to www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com and click on “Calendar” to submit your event. Deadline for print calendar submissions is the 1st of the month prior to the issue.

Events are subject to change. Please contact organization directly to confirm. All library events are free and open to the public.

Blvd., Vancouver. “Ghostbusters” (1984). Cost: $20 per vehicle (Vancouver resident) or $23 per vehicle (non-resident).Registration: Tickets must be purchased online through the Parks and Recreation registration site. 8-11 pm

3 SATURDAY

Vancouver Farmers Market in Downtown Vancouver, at 8th St and Esther St. Physical distancing required, masks encouraged, send one person per household. Go to www. vancouverfarmersmarket.com to learn more about safety restrictions to this year’s market, and to access the market’s new online store with curbside pickup. First hour of each day is reserved for seniors and individuals with underlying medical conditions. Saturdays and Sundays through November 1. 9 am-3 pm Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 10-6 pm

Friday Night Flicks: A Drive-In Movie Experience from Vancouver Parks & Recreation at Tower Mall, 5411 E Mill Plain

Lights, Camera, Auction! Virtual Fundraising Event for Humane Society for Southwest Washington. Due to COVID-19

FRIDA

2

Y

Photo courtesy The City of Vancouver, Washington

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

24

activities Check out our website for even mo re local events .

and the safety of you and our staff and volunteers, we aren’t able to gather this year.

This isn’t stopping us! The show must go on and the animals are counting on you! Pick up your dinner on the morning of October 3. It will be complete with bubbly. Be ready at 5:30 pm for the virtual half hour happy hour. Live auction begins at 6 pm. Buy tickets at www. southwesthumane.org. 5:30-7 pm Hooked on Nature Online Fundraising Event for Columbia Springs. Live Event: Watch our live YouTube program from the comfort of your own home! Purchase individual tickets or a table to receive 10 access codes.

Come to celebrate and support Columbia Springs as you learn about the ways we have been adapting our programs this year. Food & drink: Pick up or request a delivery for dinner from Jimmy Johns. Silent auction: When you join our live program, you’ll receive first access to our silent auction items! You’ll have the opportunity to buy items outright. By bidding early, you will be able to sign up to be notified when others bid on your items. Tickets: $35 single, $300 patron sponsor (2 tickets), $1000 table sponsor (10 tickets). Tickets and more inforamtion at www.columbiasprings.org.

7-8 pm

4 SUNDAY

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 10-6 pm Vancouver Farmers Market in Downtown Vancouver. (See Oct. 3) 10 am-3 pm continued on next page

Pop some popcorn, it’s movie night in Vancouver! Friday Night Flicks presents family friendly movies from the comfort and safety of your vehicle.

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

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continued from previous page

6 TUESDAY

Salmon Creek Farmers’ Market at Legacy Salmon Creek Hospital, 2211 NE 139th St., Vancouver. Every Tuesday Jun 16-Oct 6, 2020. Face coverings and physical distancing required. 11 am-3 pm Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

7 WEDNESDAY

Craft ‘n’ Chat Online (Wednesdays through FVRLibraries). Solo crafting got you down? Drop in weekly for our no-stakes craft sessions! Meetings are informal, and we welcome all projects and skill levels. This is a safe and inclusive space intended for creating and connecting (at a safe distance). This is a social group–not an instructional class, and geared toward teens and adults. 10-11 am Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

8 THURSDAY

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

9 FRIDAY

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm The Cinema of Horrors Drive-In at Clark County Fairgrounds, 17402 NE Delfel Rd., Ridgefield. Live-action horror movie experience Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays in October. Tickets $49-$59. Details and movie schedule at www.cinemaofhorrors.com. 7:159:30 pm

10 SATURDAY

Vancouver Farmers Market in Downtown Vancouver. (See Oct. 3) 9 am-3 pm Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 10-6 pm

11 SUNDAY

Girlfriends Half Marathon / 10K / 6K Virtual Race. Supports breast cancer awareness, and kids run free! Run any time between October 11-18 in this virtual race. Registration $40-$80 at www.whyracingevents.com.

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 10-6 pm

Vancouver Farmers Market in Downtown Vancouver. (See Oct. 3) 10 am-3 pm

12 MONDAY

Genealogy Club (Online through FVRLibraries). Researching ancestry can be challenging. Where do you start? Which of the 60,000 websites will give you the information you want? With the help of the FVRL Virtual Genealogy Club, led by experienced genealogist John Lake, you can join your neighbors in learning how to explore your past. Any level of experience is welcome, from the long-time genealogist to those interested in starting a search. October’s topic: Top 10 guidelines for quality genealogy. Register at fvrl.librarymarket.com. 2-3 pm

13 TUESDAY

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

14 WEDNESDAY

Craft ‘n’ Chat Online (Wednesdays through FVRLibraries). (See Oct. 7) 10-11 am continued on page 26

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

25

Calendar of Events & Activities (cont’d) continued from page 25 Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm Food for Thought Cookbook Discussion (Online through FVRLibraries). Each month, focus on a different cuisine or theme. Find recipes and downloadable cookbooks from Overdrive, online magazines (try the Food & Cooking magazines in Flipster), or any other source and share virtually with the group.

Register at fvrl.librarymarket.com. 6-7 pm

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

22 THURSDAY

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

join others to learn how to make stuff! Monthly project will feature a variety of projects and tools, including recycled crafts, sewing and basic mending, 3D design, fiber arts, paper-making, stamp-carving, watercolor, embroidery, cooking, baking, painting, and more. Projects are suitable for older teens and adults. No experience is necessary. See the monthly program description to learn about that month’s project and the tools you’ll need to create along with us: fvrl.librarymarket.com/ make-anything-handicraft-toolbox-0.

6-7:30 pm

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

Doing the Work: An Anti-Racist Media Discussion Circle (Online through FVRLibraries). Do you want to be a part of the fight for equity, but don’t know where to start?

Join us for a monthly moderated discussion group focused on anti-racist literature and other media. All assigned materials will be freely available online with an FVRL library card. Register at fvrl.librarymarket.com. 6-7:30

16 FRIDAY

23 FRIDAY

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

17 SATURDAY

24 SATURDAY

28 WEDNESDAY

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 10-6 pm

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 10-6 pm

18 SUNDAY

25 SUNDAY

15 THURSDAY

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

Vancouver Farmers Market in Downtown Vancouver. (See Oct. 3) 9 am-3 pm

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 10-6 pm Vancouver Farmers Market in Downtown Vancouver. (See Oct. 3) 10 am-3 pm

20 TUESDAY

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

21 WEDNESDAY

Craft ‘n’ Chat Online (Wednesdays through FVRLibraries). (See Oct. 7) 10-11 am

Vancouver Farmers Market in Downtown Vancouver. (See Oct. 3) 9 am-3 pm

Scary Run Half Marathon / 10K / 5K Virtual Race. Kids run free! Run any time between Oct 25-Nov 1 in this virtual race. Registration $24.50-$49 at www.whyracingevents.com.

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 10-6 pm Vancouver Farmers Market in Downtown Vancouver. (See Oct. 3) 10 am-3 pm

27 TUESDAY

Scary Run Half Marathon / 10K / 5K Virtual Race. Kids run free! Run any time between Oct 25-Nov 1 in this virtual race. Registration $24.50-$49 at www.whyracingevents.com.

Craft ‘n’ Chat Online (Wednesdays through FVRLibraries). (See Oct. 7) 10-11 am Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

29 THURSDAY

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

30 FRIDAY

Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 2-6 pm

31 SATURDAY

26 MONDAY

Make Anything: Handicraft Toolbox (Online through FVRLibraries). Get creative and

Tuesdays - Sundays

Vancouver Farmers Market in Downtown Vancouver. (See Oct. 3) 9 am-3 pm Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival at 9504 NE 119th St., Vancouver.

(See Oct. 1) 10-6 pm

Through

October Find that perfect pumpkin and enjoy other fall activities at Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch and Harvest Festival, open Tuesdays-Sundays through October. (Subject to change in accordance with Washington State COVID-19 requirements.)

26

Vancouver Family Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • October 2020

R RE F

GIRLFRIENDS

VI R RA TU CE AL !

VI R RA TU CE AL !

SCARY RUN

L

Oct. 25–Nov. 1, 2020

•

AWESOM E UPGRADE D SWAG!!

N S RU KID’ REE! 6K F

S KID’ 5K N U R EE! FR

REGISTER AT WHYRACINGEVENTS.COM SAVE 10% USING PROMO CODE WHYVANCOUVERFAMILY

Vfamily.indd 1

advertiser index Camps, Parties & Entertainment Naydenov Gymnastics Fun Center................25 Events Girlfriends Run...............................................27 Scary Run.......................................................27 Fitness Naydenov Gymnastics Fun Center................25 Vancouver Parks and Recreation.....................3

K

0K •1

• HALF MAR AT HO

N

5

A

RATHON • 10 MA K F

6K

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OCTOBER 11–18, 2020

AWESO E UPGRADM E SWAG!! D

REGISTER AT WHYRACINGEVENTS.COM SAVE 10% USING PROMO CODE WHYVANCOUVERFAMILY

9/21/20 10:54 Vfamily.indd PM 2

Health Adventure Dental............................................21 Barnick Chiropractic.........................................9 Child and Adolescent Clinic..............................2 Evergreen Pediatrics......................................19 PeaceHealth.....................................................5 Priority Life Chiropractic and Massage...........11 Storybook Dental............................................19 Vancouver Clinic.............................................17 Legal Schauermann, Thayer, Jacobs, Staples & Edwards PS.....................................7

9/21/20 10:54 PM

Resources Applied Team Insurance.................................19 ESD 112.........................................................13 Home Buyer’s and Seller’s Seminars.............23 Retail ArchCrafters.....................................................2 Kazoodles Toys................................................2 Vancouver Mall...............................................25 Schools, Education & Child Care ESD 112.........................................................13 St. Andrew Preschool.......................................9 Southwest Washington Learning Center........28

Vancouver Vancouver Family Family Magazine Magazine • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com • December • October 2016 2020

27

Where LifeLong Learning Begins

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e Part-tim lso rates a ! le availas bat:

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Schedule a Tour or Pre-register Online!!

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