Submitted by Christopher Evans.

The Healing Arts Center is proud to announce our participation in OICF’s GiveOrcas spring catalog, running from May 2 to May 16. This year, our project is one of seven that has been identified as a “critical need” for the community. The campaign is on now on and we’ve got a lot of work to do! Check us out at www.giveorcas.org.

Built in 1904, Healing Arts Center home is one of the oldest original structures in Eastsound and is a treasured, community-owned building. It was born in 1988, by a core group of visionaries, many of whom have passed beyond this world, such as Sandy Sanders, Marlene Dickey, Michael Sky and Ian Van Gelder. Incorporated into a 501(c)(3) in 1990, the Healing Arts Center is perhaps the oldest and largest continuously running holistic healthcare non-profit organization in the country, occupying one of the earliest houses in Eastsound. It has been sustained though a chain of over 100 member practitioners and the continued support of the community. Growing into our 34th year in 2022, the Healing Arts Center has provided over 100,000 holistic healthcare treatments, primarily to the Orcas Island community, as well as to visitors from around the world. In that same time, we have raised approximately $120,000 in service donations for island non-profits.

This summer, the Healing Arts Center seeks to complete the construction of its structural foundation project that began in 2020. While masterfully built in 1904, the farmhouse was nonetheless built on a flat beach rock and old-growth cedar stump foundation; shored up by pier blocks, and post and beams over time. Due to the location of the remaining foundation section yet completed, it becomes necessary to remove a 50 square-foot section of the building, as well as replace our exterior porch and stairs that provide access to the second floor of the building. The old section will be permanently removed while the porch and stairs will be replaced to match the existing footprint.

This is a project about long-term investment, sustainability and heart. After 6 years of planning, engineering, fund raising and construction, the completion of our buildings’ foundation will offer a tremendous sense of relief, and along with it, a renewed sense of mission for the Healing Arts Center. The project will provide a sound and stable foundation, while preserving our unique connection to the community and architectural aesthetic of Eastsound. Beyond metaphor; a well-built, long-lasting foundation is key to our organization’s footing into the future. With fewer houses existing in town from this turn of the previous century era, our unique home is an asset to the community and the islanders that we serve. Thanks for being part of our story at www.giveorcas.org.