Past Events
York and Sehome Neighborhood Information Fair
Easter in the hood!
Come join us on Saturday March 30th for an Easter Egg hunt – there could be games, there might be chocolate and maybe even be an appearance by the Easter Bunny himself! The gig kicks off at 10AM at the corner of E Laurel and Mason St. and goes until it’s all gone!
First Meeting of the Year
Join us at our first meeting of the year on Tuesday, February 27th at First Presbyterian Church-5:30 social/kids activity 6:00 meeting
Join us in welcoming our new Mayor, Kim Lund! We’ll be discussing major issues in the neighborhood and catching you all up on recent activities. This is the first meeting of the year, and typically it is a good time to support us by becoming a member. While board members are elected typically at this meeting, there are openings on the board so we are only soliciting new board members for 2024.
Location: First Presbyterian Church Community room at 1031 N Garden St. Entrance is behind the church off the alley between the YWCA and the church. Ample parking is available in the lot adjacent to the alley and E Laurel St, half a block west off E Laurel.
Zoom Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89675138984 At this location we will have video and you will be able to ask questions through the chat function, but there is no screen so folks in the room will not be able to see or hear you.
Yard Sale Saturday September 9th 10AM-2PM
Location: Anywhere in the Sehome Neighborhood
What: A neighborhood-wide yard sale anywhere in Sehome. You put your stuff out, add signage as you like and wait for visitors to arrive! If you want to be included on our map, email us at snabellingham@gmail.com and let us know your address. We encourage engagement in the form of offering treats, lemonade or anything you enjoy sharing with your community. If you don’t have offerings, please walk around and greet your neighbors, and maybe pick up some treasures.
Our QR code links to a live google map that you can access using this link, the code below or on our signs https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1C7lUnwnMCr2BKTnSQWQllbXllubqDUY&usp=sharing
Sehome Arboretum is our Jewel
December 6th General Meeting with Parks and WWU Staff 6:30PM
First Presbyterian Church at 1031 N Garden St (enter through alley, park in lot at Laurel&Garden)
On Zoom at 7PM: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89675138984
How many of you moved to Sehome because the Arboretum offered a respite from city life, a place to take the dog, a place to walk and be in the forest close to home? We are in a period of high growth in our close-in neighborhoods, and 70% of all new housing (as of Oct) were within walking distance of the Arboretum. Management is split between WWU and Bellingham Parks, and both will be on hand to talk about challenges and new projects at our Dec 6th meeting. We all have a role to play in keeping the arboretum healthy and an asset to our community.
Join us as we once again get back to in person routines by returning to meetings at the First Presbyterian Church at 1031 N Garden St. The important thing to note about this location, is that you will enter by the rear door, in the ally opposite the YWCA. Look for our A-board signs. We will meet in the congregation hall which is in the basement of the church. As in the past we will provide pizza and have social time starting at 6:30PM. We will have a brief update on happenings in the neighborhood, followed by the presentation about the Arboretum.
Pumpkin Carving Photo Contest
We had some great pumpkins in the hood – and a few mentions here!
Welcome to the new Armory Pickleball facility
In our September newsletter we introduced you to Slice of Heaven bakery on Samish Way. In October we celebrated the opening of a Pickleball facility in the Armory building. There is more to come over near the Armory with an apartment building and small hotel, perhaps a brew pub or restaurant. Stay tuned!
General Meeting September 27th
We met at McKay’s for our first in-person gathering since the beginning of the Covid pandemic. Thanks to everyone that came, and to those that joined us on zoom. We had good discussion and were glad to support McKay’s after a long stretch away!
Whatcom City Zen Presenter Steve Avila
Steve lived in the Edgeview neighborhood of Auburn WA in 2015. He was an average guy, didn’t know his neighbors and thought that crime wasn’t really a problem-until his house and car were robbed. Determined to do something about the problem Steve began to get to know his neighbors and created a neighborhood watch program that ended up doing food drives, creating enduring bonds and lowering crime. Today Steve lives in Bellingham and got started helping people during flooding last year. He started Whatcom City Zen, a group that watches trail head parking areas by setting up welcome stations while also being present while people are out hiking. They also do projects for the food bank, and have supported Lydia’s Place. Steve has creative ideas for ways for neighborhoods to work together, and will tell us his story.
2022 Yard Sale Success
The community yard sale expanded this year and it was lovely to see so many neighbors walking around, chats and informal cafes of lemonade! I hope everyone sold stuff they wanted to get rid of, and enjoyed meeting folks. We were particularly happy to have so many of our renters join in the action. Help is definetely appreciated to make this an ongoing event next year. Here is the map, along with the link:
What SNA Provides
- Online yard sale advertisements
- A map of sale participants that buyers can access using a QR code
- Posters and signs around the neighborhood on main thoroughfares
What You Provide
- Place sale items in a visible location in your yard or parking strip by 10 AM on August 27th
Optional
- Adding signs near your home will help direct people to your specific location
- Provide giveaway items (e.g. snacks, drinks, flowers, smiles) or anything that help makes the sale a community event!
May 24 Meeting – cancelled
The spring meeting was cancelled, to be rescheduled for fall.
Celebrate Spring in Sehome with an Easter Egg Hunt, and yard games, plant giveaways. Saturday,April 16th 11AM-1PM
This year we were finally out of covid masking mandates and held our annual Easter celebration in the Historic District, on Key, Liberty and Mason sts, from E Maple up to Myrtle St. Our Easter Bunnies were in attendence and there were games and plant giveaways. We’d like more participation for the event and are looking for suggestions – this is not a just for children event, and we welcome all residents of the neighborhood to our core host area. We look forward to celebrating spring next year.
Annual Membership Meeting on Zoom February 22- membership voting at 6:30, meeting at 7PM
This year we had 4 board positions up for re-election and we took a vote on updated Bylaws. The new bylaws were passed unanimously, and are posted in our documents section.
At 7PM we started with a presentation from our Police Chief Flo Simon. She answered questions we had sent in advance, and then we opened the floor to discussion. Meeting notes are also posted in our notes section.
October 31 – Halloween Jack-O-Lantern Decorating Contest and Gathering
We gathered with neighbors at on the corner of Mason and Laurel to drink hot cider and eat donuts. Folks brought along their pumpkins and we judged them. We met several new neighbors who we welcomed. Thanks for all who participated in this first time trial of doing this event.
General Meeting October 5th–social starting at 6:30 and meeting at 7-
We had a lot of new folks along with some of our longest residents attend the zoom meeting. Mayor Fleetwood answered questions of concern from our neighborhood for most of the meeting, and Sage Jones did a very concise 15 minute presentation about the upcoming initiatives on our ballots. Link to the recording coming soon.
Sehome Neighborhood Garage Sale
SAT. AUGUST 28, 2021, 10-2
We had a fabulous garage sale this year, after many years of hiatus. There were a great variety of offerings, from folks with a single “free” table, to people that really sold alot of goods. The neighborhood was alive and busy for a few hours. Timing was the weekend before student move out, perhaps we’ll try for a sale when our new neighbors are getting settled in. Thanks for everyone that participated, it was fun to see everyone!
Sehome Neighborhood Meeting June 14th at 7PM
We met on a Monday night with guest speaker Chris Comeau, Director of Transportation speaking about the Lincoln/Lakeway Transportation changes, updates on the Samish Way Urban Village (you’ve all seen the new buildings!) and an update on a new food pantry. You can find the zoom link to the recording in the News section of this website! Sorry for all of you that either had trouble with links, or just could not make it!
Easter Egg Hunt in the Historic Neighborhood
Saturday April 3 from 11AM to 1PM
We had a fabulous day of visiting with neighbors, exchanging seeds and plants. Everyone was so creative! Folks set up games on the sidewalk or yard and there were lots of eggs and candies for the kids. Sidewalk chalk, cookies, giant bunny rabbits with their imaginary friends… Thanks so much for everyone that participated! This was our first year and the reception was great, so expect to celebrate spring again with your community next year.
Our Winter meeting
Our winter meeting was held on Zoom on Tuesday, February 23rd. If you missed us you can hear about housing issues by watching the recording of the meeting. These were the presentations:
- Historic home presentation from city representatives
- Homelessness in our community from the Homeless Outreach Team
- Renting in Bellingham from the Tenants Union
- Presentation from Bellingham Police Outreach