Island boys come home: Class of 2024 grads return to Orcas for summer adventures | Two lifelong islanders trade college campuses and international service for familiar fireworks and 4-H memories

By Darrell Kirk

Sounder contributor

The Fourth of July on Orcas Island brought more than just spectacular fireworks over Deer Harbor this year — it brought home two of the island’s brightest Class of 2024 graduates, both sporting bigger smiles and even bigger dreams than when they left.

Moose Kinsey and Theo Vaccarello have traveled far from their San Juan Islands roots this past year, but both made sure to return to the place that shaped them for the summer’s biggest celebration. And judging by their enthusiasm, you’d think they never left.

“My favorite Fourth of July was probably when I was twelve, staying at a friend’s house with a great view of the Eastsound fireworks,” recalls Kinsey, now a mechanical engineering student at Princeton University. It’s a memory that clearly still brings joy to the young man who moved to Orcas when he was just 3 months old, after his mother finished graduate school at Cornell.

Vaccarello, who arrived on the island at age 7, shares a remarkably similar favorite memory. “My favorite Fourth of July was also when I was twelve—we were at a friend’s house with a nice view of the East Sound fireworks. You could see the barge where they launched them behind Indian Island. It was spectacular.”

What makes the Fourth of July special on an island? According to these two, it’s the tight-knit community spirit. “When you go down to watch the fireworks, you know a lot of people,” explains Vaccarello. “You can meet them, say hi to your friends and neighbors in the community.”

While Kinsey is diving into the rigorous world of engineering at one of the nation’s top universities, Vaccarello has taken a different path entirely. He’s currently serving in Singapore, where he’s spending two years in national service as a firefighter — not exactly his choice, he admits with a laugh, “but yeah, so I’m doing that for two years, and then I plan to go to college after.”

Both young men credit their island upbringing and local programs for preparing them for their post-graduation adventures. Kinsey has particular praise for 4-H, the youth development program that shaped his childhood.

“4-H is an amazing youth development program that I went through all the way from childhood through graduating,” he says. “It opened up a lot of awesome opportunities for me, and it’s great to come back and go to some of the club meetings and present some stuff back to the kids. It’s really just an amazing opportunity for any child growing up on the islands.”

Now that they’re back for the summer, both plan to soak up island life. With the Friday Harbor Fair approaching, they’re looking forward to attending “just like everyone else on the islands should,” as Kinsey puts it — a refreshingly humble attitude from two young men who’ve already ventured far beyond the ferry routes.

From Princeton classrooms to Singapore fire stations, these Orcas Island graduates are making their mark on the world. But this Fourth of July proved that no matter how far they roam, there’s still no place quite like home — especially when the fireworks light up Orcas Island and you’re surrounded by the community that watched you grow up.

Welcome home, boys. The island missed you.