ONE: Shop locally: Unique, affordable, convenient … there are a lot of reasons to buy your gifts right here at home. Plus, you support our island’s economy. Spending $100 locally keeps $68 circulating in our community, according to the Andersonville Study of Retail Economics. Spending $100 on the mainland keeps $0 in our community.
Many island shops are offering great deals and sales this season to encourage local shoppers to darken their doorways.
TWO: Get into the holiday spirit: From concerts to plays, Orcas is having a banner year of holiday offerings. Upcoming musical events include a carolers sing-along with Orcas Brass, Orcas Community Band holiday performance and Susan Osborn’s annual Christmas concerts at Victorian Valley Chapel. The Actors’ Theater is producing “The Farndale Avenue Housing Estate Townswomen’s Guild Dramatic Society’s Production of ‘A Christmas Carol.’” Emmanuel Church and Orcas Community Church are offering holiday events as well.
THREE: Donate to the food bank: The Orcas Island Food Bank needs canned meats, peanut butter, soups, jelly, cold cereal, canned vegetables and fruit, vegetable oil, and prepared box mixes. Through the end of December the following real estate offices are drop-off spots: Cherie L. Lindholm Real Estate; Offshore Properties LLC; Orcas Island Realty LLC; T Williams Realty; Windermere Real Estate. Items can be left at the food bank during its hours: Tuesdays, 12:30 to 2 p.m. and Thursdays, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Food can also be left in drop boxes at the Orcas Senior Center, Orcas Post Office, Deer Harbor Post Office and Key Bank. For more information, visit www.orcasislandfoodbank.org.
FOUR: Buy a holiday wreath or tree: Orcas Montessori School’s holiday fundraiser features hand-made, noble fir wreaths decorated with blue-berried juniper, yellow-tipped incense cedar, pinecones and a red velvet bow. The 24-inch wreaths are $25 and the 36-inch ones are $35 each. Go to Orcas Montessori School, visit www.orcasmontessori.org or call 376-5868. Wreaths will be sold at Island Market on Nov. 19, along with ready-to-bake apple crisps.
Salmonberry School’s Annual Christmas Tree Sale is at the corner of Henry Lane and North Beach Road, 3-5:30 p.m. Fridays, 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays, or by appointment (376-4454). The trees are harvested from small family farms located in the Skagit Valley and Snohomish. They will also have Orcas grown “wild crafted” and live trees for sale.
FIVE: Pick a tag from the Giving Tree: The Giving Tree at Island Market is providing Christmas gifts for local children who may otherwise go without. Due to the economy, the number of tags has increased. Stop by the tree to pick up a tag by this Friday and help out an island child in need. There are three gifts per tag, so consider going in with a friend to divvy up the items. To donate money for gifts, call the Orcas Family Resource Center at 376-3184.
