Thank You JZ Knight Humanities Foundation for Our New Floors!

 A Special "Thank You to JZ Knight Humanities Foundation" & Lowe's 

Dear Seniors & Friends,

The new flooring in the dining room, rest rooms and office were installed by Ted Hanks and his wife last weekend.  They're beautiful!  They did a great job.  We couldn't be happier with the job they did and how it transforms our Senior Center.

We sent a donation letter to the JZ Knight Humanities Foundation, asking for a donation for new flooring.  Terri Stuart called us and asked for 3 bids.  We got 4 bids.  The last bid was from Ted Hanks Construction.  We were impressed with their kindness and presentation.  We got back to Terri Stuart and they reviewed the bids.  We were pleased that Ted and Nicki won the bid.  

Nicki & Ted worked with Lowe's Home Improvement to get a discount on the flooring and they donated a special Shark floor cleaning machine, so we can maintain it properly.  We had time when the Senior Center would be closed due to Christmas and New Year's, so we were able to schedule the installation during the holidays.

Many of our members helped us to empty out the dining room to get ready for the new floors.  Then they came back in to help us put everything back together.  Bruce & Trish Palmer, Wil Speight, Terri & Bill Rendahl, Dawn Kenney, Debbie Henson, George & Linda Johnson, just to name a few people. 

The JZ Knight Humanities Foundation donated the funds to paint the outside of our building and finish the upstairs a few years ago.  Their foundation has been generous and supportive of the Senior Center of Rainier.  We are grateful and appreciate their commitment to us.  

Sincerely,

Linda & George Johnson

P.S.  We still have work to do before we reopen.  We hoped to reopen this Wednesday.  Reopening has been postponed until Monday, January 8, 2024.  We look forward to seeing everyone then!  LJJ

Pictures are below:

New Floor in the Senior Center Kitchen!

 A Special Thank you to the Community Foundation of South Puget Sound for their grant that provided us with a much needed new floor in our kitchen.  We couldn't have done this without their help.

We purchased the flooring at LL Flooring in West Olympia.  The flooring was installed by Sheldon Flooring Systems.  

You will see in the before and after photos that the old floor was coming up in several areas.  Many of our volunteers have had hips and knees replaced.  Others have arthritis.  We were tripping on these areas and it was a liability.  Replacing the flooring is greatly appreciated by all of us who work in the kitchen.  Now it's safe, easier to clean and sanitize.

Thank you Community Foundation of South Puget Sound!

New Appliances Donated to the Senior Center!!!

Dear Seniors & Friends,

We use two stoves and ovens to prepare our meals.  Our stoves and fridge were old and we needed new appliances.  Left to our own devices, it looked like they were not in our future.  Our senior center needs a new roof, so buying appliances was not on our agenda.

And then....

Last week someone donated a brand new side-by-side refridgerator and glass top stove to our Senior Center.  Pastor Pat and Crew - delivered them on Wednesday morning.  We had everything ready for them to be put right in place. 

A special "Thank You" goes out to our ananoumous donor of the fridge and stove, as well as to the crew that delivered them to us.  

We still needed a gas stove.  We were designated as an emergency shelter in 2001 by the City of Rainier, with the blessings of the Board of Directors at that time.  Most emergencies in our area are  power outages.  Most of these occur during bad weather when trees fall on power lines.  With a gas stove, we can open as a heating/cooling shelter and provide hot meals to our seniors.

We found a brand new gas range, offered by Christy, on Offer-up.  She and her husband, donated it to our senior center.  We picked it up Friday morning.  Thank you to Christy & her family for donating the gas range.  It is a tremendous blessing to the Senior Center of Rainier.  We really appreicate your donation!

All of our appliances are Whirlpool.  They're beautiful and are hooked up and ready to use on Monday! 

We appreciate everyone who contributes to our Senior Center in Rainier.  Thank you from the hearts of our seniors in Rainier!

The Vikings Were Here!

A Special Thank You from the Senior Center of Rainier to Bill Koutrouba and the Vikings Festival Crew!

When Captain Bill Koutrouba mentioned holding a Viking Festival in Rainier,  my husband George and I thought it was a wonderful idea.  George is an original "idea fairy".  He knows ideas can be great, but they take a tremendous amount of work to bring them to fruition.  After months of planning and just plain hard work, Bill and his crew, along with Tony Cox (Bear) brought the Viking Festival to life!   

George and I enjoyed going to the Viking Festival.  Bill showed us around and introduced us to vendors and reenactors in Wilkowski Park.  It was amazing!  People from all walks of life meandered through the crowd watching everything from a beaver being skinned to swords being forged.  They had mock fights and cannons that shot water balloons.  There were tents, horses, people dressed up in Viking gear - all surrounded with artifacts from the Viking era.  The booths were filled with amazing items that were handmade.  One of our favorite leather booths was the "Hawk & Dove" which had custom leather crafts.  They made quality purses, wallets, belts, and Viking gear.  Several of the vendors said this was the best event they'd worked all year!  They enjoyed being in Rainier because the people here are friendly and they look forward to coming back next year.  

During the planning of the festival, Bill told us that the Vikings crew would buy food for the Senior Center of Rainier's pantry with the proceeds they earned from this year's festival.  After the festival, he called George and asked him for a shopping list.  Wednesday Bill and members of the Viking Festival Crew, Scott & Samantha Kammerson, Tony Cox (Bear) and Eileen Largen, came to the Senior Center with a truck and van filled with the food to donate to our pantry.  

We've never seen anything like it!  Six tri-tip roasts, cases of canned vegetables, 2 large bags of rice, beef & chicken broth, toilet paper, paper towels, facial tissues, gallons of syrup, mayonnaise, pasta, as well as #10 tins of tomato sauce and diced tomatoes.  They brought in cases & cases of food.  The pantry had boxes stacked from one end to the other with food!  Bill and his crew didn't just buy the items on our list, they bought those items in large quantities!  They also brought in fresh vegetables from our own Rainier Community Garden!  

We look forward to next year's Viking Festival in Rainier.  We hope to see you there!

Check out our Viking Festival pictures on "WeLoveRainierWA" Facebook page, too.