(Photo by Gail Ann Photography)
Thanks to Gail Ann Photography in Fauntleroy for sharing this photo from last Sunday’s West Seattle Hi-Yu Tea, which doubled as this year’s Senior Court coronation, as the program is in transition to a new calendar, rather than lumping all events into the summer months. Gail Ann reports:

Kayli Schulz was officially crowned the 2012 Miss West Seattle Hi-Yu Queen at the annual Spring Tea and Auction held Sunday at the Hall at Fauntleroy. More than 150 guests were on hand to watch as Miss Seafair Veronica Quintero presented her with her tiara, sash, and flowers. In addition, the fundraiser will help support the West Seattle community float and the scholarship program for young women.

Kayli Schulz will represent our community this spring and summer at events and parades around the Pacific NW. She will also represent us at Seafair’s 2013 Scholarship for Women Program for the title of Miss Seafair.

In the photo Kayli is surrounded by the MC of the tea and auction – Seafair Pirate “The Marquis,” also known as Chuck Marcoullier, and her West Seattle Hi-Yu court – Junior Court Princess Elena Kline; Junior Court Queen Thea Pulido; Miss Seafair, Veronica Quintero; and Junior Court Princess Amanda Elders.

This year’s Hi-Yu theme is “Secret Garden” – the float is scheduled to make its debut in May at the Port Townsend Rhododendron Festival, with the court on board representing West Seattle.

It’s a West Seattle kind of weekend for Miss Seafair 2011, Veronica Quintero. This morning, we photographed her at West Seattle Bowl with (from left) Paul Davis, Bruce Bentley, and Kathryn Bohot, during the Seattle Seafair Commodores‘ 20th annual Bowl-a-Thon. Tomorrow, she will crown the new West Seattle Hi-Yu Festival Senior Court Queen, Kayli Schulz, during the Hi-Yu Spring Tea and Auction 2-4:30 pm at The Hall at Fauntleroy. Hi-Yu president James Kline notes: “We are planning a great event … catered by Tuxedos and Tennis Shoes. With over 150 items to choose from, auction items range from manicures to a Mexican condo vacation. It will be the perfect opportunity for you and your friends and daughters to enjoy the spectacle of a royal event.” To see if tickets are still available, e-mail info@westseattlehiyu.com.

Also shown at last night’s meeting – Diane Szender‘s winning design for the Hi-Yu trading pin – which you can look for at this year’s summer events, since it’s sold to the public as well as provided to royalty to trade with their counterparts from other festivals:

Diane explains that the goal was to incorporate the past pin design (which you can see on the Hi-Yu Facebook page) into the new one. Riley Fredericks also proposed a pin design (she’s behind this year’s float theme too).

Other discussions last night included fundraising logistics. Planning for the Tea is on track with donated auction items, and table captains, though they’d still love to have more donations. Other fundraising strategies are being brainstormed.

And the Hi-Yu Float is still in need of a storage site. Its undercarriage is in Everett at the moment; volunteers are going to help with locations to store supplies and build components, but Hi-Yu still would love to have a space donated where Seattle’s last remaining community-promoting float could be kept for easier access, maintenance, etc.

(2012 West Seattle Hi-Yu royalty, photographed by WSB in December – Senior Court Queen Kayli, Junior Court Queen Thea and Princesses Elena and Amanda)
New West Seattle Hi-Yu Festival president James Kline has been visiting community groups around West Seattle to get out the word that Hi-Yu is hoping more people than ever will support their work this year, and beyond. Hi-Yu isn’t just a collection of summertime events – it’s also a traveling ambassadorship of sorts that lets the rest of the region know about West Seattle, the last community in the city to have its own traveling float appearing in parades around Western Washington. Here’s one way to support Hi-Yu this year: Buy tickets and/or serve as a table captain for this year’s West Seattle Hi-Yu Spring Tea – which also will include a coronation, since Hi-Yu has made some calendar changes. Here’s the official announcement

This year’s Spring Tea and Auction will be held on Sunday, March 18th, 2:00-4:30. A rare event this year, the Spring Tea will also feature the official coronation of the West Seattle Hi-Yu Senior Queen Kayli Schulz, accompanied by her junior court, Queen Thea Pulido, Princess Amanda Elder, and Princess Elena Kline. We are planning a great event at The Hall at Fauntleroy, catered by Tuxedos and Tennis Shoes. Many wonderful auction items have already been procured that are sure to spark your interest. It will be the perfect opportunity for you and your friends and daughters to enjoy the spectacle of a royal event.

Tickets are now available for purchase. You can buy tickets individually or become a Table Captain and buy a table for 10 to share with your closest friends. For those who have filled tables in the past, thanks so much. Hopefully, you and your friends would love to come again. For those who are new to Hi-Yu, seriously consider becoming a Table Captain and purchasing a table to enjoy as a group. This is an event your friends/daughters will remember for years.

All purchases will be helping support the West Seattle community with family events to include Seattle’s last remaining community float and our scholarship program for women. This year’s theme is “Secret Garden.” You can read more about coming events at www.westseattlehiyu.com or view us on our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/WSHiYu. You will also find a link to buy tickets for the Spring Tea which you can share with your friends.

You have two options for purchasing your Spring Tea tickets, by mail or online. To purchase by mail, send a check for $25 each to West Seattle Hi-Yu, PO Box 16130, Seattle, WA 98116-0130. To purchase online, simply click one of the links below and you will be forwarded to our PayPal account, where you may use a major credit card or your own PayPal account. Online ticket purchases are $26, which covers all credit card transaction fees.

Click here to Purchase Individual Tickets

If you have any questions: (206) 388-8778 or lynaiapulido@gmail.com

For the second consecutive year, Riley Fredericks has the winning idea for the next West Seattle Hi-Yu Festival traveling parade float. Last year, while she was still a reigning Junior Court Princess, Riley’s “Sparkling Seattle” idea won the vote at the December Hi-Yu meeting – and last night, her proposal for the theme “Secret Garden” did the same. That’s Riley above with the concept model she brought to the Hi-Yu meeting/holiday potluck at St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church Hall; here’s a closer look at the model:

Other suggestions included “Sunlight Seattle” from current Junior Court Queen Thea, “The West Seattle Beach Party,” “Picnic in the Park,” and “Through the Emerald Looking Glass.” Next step: Riley’s concept will be turned into the official float design, and there’ll be a community-wide button-design contest too. Meantime, Hi-Yu’s new Senior Court royalty joined her Junior Court counterparts (Queen Thea, Princess Elena, Princess Amanda) at the meeting:

Kayli Schulz is a Holy Names student, looking ahead to studying biology in college, and takes lessons at Kathy’s School of Dance in The Junction. Hi-Yu, which has a new president – James Kline – plans more extensive outreach this year to businesses and the rest of the West Seattle community; WS is the last community in the city to have a traveling float, which represents our area all around the region, including the big Seafair Torchlight Parade every summer (by the way, the West Seattle Grand Parade date is set for next year – you’ll see Hi-Yu there too – mark your calendar for July 21, 2012). Hi-Yu’s online presence has changed, too; for now, find them at facebook.com/WSHiYu.

(WSB photo from July 2011 West Seattle Hi-Yu Community Breakfast)
Who will succeed Queen Kelsey and Princesses Victoria and Rosemarie? The first milepost on the newly rescheduled road to the West Seattle Hi-Yu Festival Senior Court selection is here: It’s application time. Hi-Yu members decided back in May (as reported here) to reboot the calendar and reschedule the process, with applications in the fall and coronation in spring. Now the application is ready to go, and most of the process is online – it starts here. Candidates must be high-school seniors or college students who live, work, and/or attend school in West Seattle. New this year: Hi-Yu has two informational sessions planned during the application process, so that prospective candidates can talk with board members and past royalty. Both have Facebook event pages: 2 pm October 2nd at St. John the Baptist Episcopal Church, and 6:30 pm October 6th at Prudential Northwest Realty. Applications have to be in by November 1st.

(“Sparkling Seattle” Hi-Yu float parked alongside Admiral Safeway before West Seattle Grand Parade 7/23/2011)
One of the many unique attributes about our wonderful part of the city is the fact it’s the LAST neighborhood in Seattle with its own traveling parade float. West Seattle Hi-Yu keeps afloat, so to speak, thanks to the hard work of a relatively small group of volunteers, and community support. Today, Hi-Yu has an urgent request for help with something that volunteers can’t just pull out of thin air – someplace to put the float:

West Seattle Hi-Yu has been having an amazing award-winning parade season with our “Sparkling Seattle” parade float and we are very proud that we have been able to represent West Seattle as the last community parade float in Seattle again this year.

All this year, the Bills Family has kindly been parking and storing the float in their yard, Hi-Yu thanks them for graciously providing us with this space. As the parade season draws to a close, it is necessary for us to vacate, and we are again faced with the dilemma of finding a storage location for our float and trailer. To store the float we would require space in the dimensions of 25′ x 10′ and it could be indoor or outdoor. We are pretty desperate, so if you have space, own or work for a company that has a secure parking lot, or know of anyone who may be able to help us, please contact Tim Winston 206-938-2088 as soon as possible.

Thank you for your support and for helping to keep this community tradition going strong!!

While it’s not the “Hi-Yu Parade” any more, it wouldn’t be the West Seattle Grand Parade without the West Seattle Hi-Yu Festival float and volunteers. West Seattle is the last neighborhood in the city with a community float, and every year, Hi-Yu chooses a new theme for its float and button (always open to public suggestions, so watch for the announcement here and on the Hi-Yu Facebook page in wintertime!). This year, it’s “Sparkling Seattle.” The current Junior and Senior Courts rode on the float in today’s parade, while the newly coronated Junior Court whose reign starts this fall carried another Hi-Yu banner in the West Seattle Rotary Kiddie Parade:

(From left, the incoming Junior Court’s Princess Elena, Queen Thea, and Princess Amanda.) Along the parade sidelines, HI-Yu volunteers sold buttons as a fundraiser as usual, and Hi-Yu president Tim Winston wanted to share these words of appreciation:

Hi-Yu is very appreciative of all the people who bought Hi-Yu buttons and pins today along the parade route and, for that matter, all the people who purchased buttons and pins earlier in the month at Pirates Landing, Summer Fest, Concert in the Park, etc.. We thank all for their support! Proceeds help both the Scholarship and Float Programs. The Festival does not happen without the support of our community. Thank you so much!

7:24 PM: If you’re not already among the 100 or so people here – c’mon over to Hiawatha’s east lawn. The West Seattle Big Band is playing what Jim Edwards quipped is the “Hi-Yu FALL Festival Concert in the Park” (added, that’s Jim with the mike in the center background, in the next photo):

And the program so far has included songs evocative of the weather, like “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” The concert’s scheduled to continue till about 8:30, and we’ve even seen sunbreaks. Bring a blanket to sit on and another one to wrap yourself in, and you’ll be fine (and a dollar for a Hi-Yu fundraising button – the royalty and volunteers are here). We’ll add more photos later as well as video.

ADDED EARLY WEDNESDAY: A sample of the sounds:

More outdoor music ahead for West Seattle this summer – even if you might need a sweater to enjoy it! – the Summer Concerts at Hiawatha series presented by the Admiral Neighborhood Association (co-sponsored by WSB) start July 28 (full schedule here), and Friday Night Summer Concerts at the Mount start August 5 (full schedule here). Back to Hi-Yu – cheer the float, royalty, and volunteers in this Saturday’s West Seattle Grand Parade, 11 am, California SW from Lander to Edmunds.

(WSB photo of the West Seattle Big Band during the 2010 Hi-Yu Concert in the Park)
Might be some clouds, but no rain forecast for tomorrow (Tuesday) night – which is good news for the next big summer event, the West Seattle Hi-Yu Festival Concert in the Park. You’re invited to the east lawn at Hiawatha Community Center, 7-8:30 pm tomorrow – bring your own blanket/chair, picnic dinner if you feel like it, and enjoy the West Seattle Big Band (celebrating its 15th anniversary). If you haven’t been there before – Hiawatha’s address is 2700 California SW, just north of West Seattle High School, but the concert area is on the east side, which is bordered by Walnut. (Parking is generally plentiful in the high-school lot, entering from California SW, however.)

They’ve had their crowns and sashes for less than 24 hours (here’s our coverage of Friday’s coronation), and it’s already time to get busy being royal and selling fundraising buttons for newly crowned West Seattle Hi-Yu Junior Court members Princess Elena, Queen Thea, and Princess Amanda. They don’t officially start their reign till fall, but you’ll find them joining all the Hi-Yu fun, along with the current courts:

From left, back row, the current Hi-Yu Junior Court – Queen Taylor, Princess Riley, Princess Kaitlin – front row, Queen Kelsey, Princess Victoria, and Princess Rosemarie. You can join them and other members of the Hi-Yu team for breakfast till noon (fundraiser, $6 adults/$3 kids) at Admiral Congregational Church Hall (California/Hill) – next event, Hi-Yu Concert in the Park at Hiawatha, Tuesday night at 7 with the West Seattle Big Band (free!), and you’ll see the Hi-Yu float in the West Seattle Grand Parade next Saturday, 11 am, California SW from Lander to Edmunds.

(Coronation video, added 3:56 pm)
Hiawatha Kids’ Fun Fest continues till 3 pm – but a big event that’s always part of it wrapped up about an hour ago: The West Seattle Hi-Yu Summer Festival Junior Court Coronation. Congratulations to Queen Thea Pulido, Princess Amanda Elder, and Princess Elena Kline. Click ahead for photos!

That’s a stage full of royalty – from left, current Senior Court Queen Kelsey Bills, current Junior Court Princess Riley Fredericks, new Junior Court Princess Elena Kline, current Junior Court Princess Kaitlin Lindell, new Junior Court Princess Amanda Elder, current Junior Court Queen Taylor Nichols, new Junior Court Queen Thea Pulido, and this year’s West Seattle Hi-Yu representative for the Miss Seafair competition, former Senior Court Princess Veronica Pupava.

Veronica Szender, former Hi-Yu Junior Court royalty, emceed one last time (before heading off to college):

She’s daughter of Diane Szender, who coordinates the Junior Court application process and coronation:

In the foreground there are all six girls who contended for the court this year. Here they are during their group photo-op:

At left, Audrey Kimball; then the new court, Princesses Elena and Amanda and Queen Thea; then, Madison Stanley-Jones and Callie McFadden.

Each of the contenders spent the morning interviewing with the judges. Then they got a chance to introduce themselves to the audience before the big moment. Their reign officially starts in fall, but you’ll see them at the Hi-Yu events to come – tomorrow morning, join Hi-Yu for the Community Breakfast at Admiral Congregational Church (California/Hill), $6 adults/$3 kids under 12, breakfast served 9 am-noon; Tuesday night, it’s the Hi-Yu Concert in the Park, 7 pm on the east lawn of Hiawatha, with the West Seattle Big Band.

Then on Saturday, it’s the Hi-Yu Community Breakfast – 9 am to noon at Admiral Congregational Church Hall, California/Hill, $6 adults/$3 kids, proceeds benefit the Hi-Yu Scholarship Program. (Donations also will be accepted for WestSide Baby and West Seattle Food Bank.) And on Tuesday, July 19th, it’s the Hi-Yu Concert in the Park with West Seattle Big Band on the east lawn at Hiawatha, 7-8:30 pm. (Plus you’ll see the Hi-Yu float, royalty, and volunteers in the West Seattle Grand Parade at 11 am July 23rd, along California SW from Lander to Edmunds! Our photo, by WSB contributor Stephanie Chacharon, shows the Sparkling Seattle Hi-Yu float at West Seattle Summer Fest last weekend.)

(June 28th photo by Ellen Cedergreen for WSB)
Last week, the 2010-2011 West Seattle Hi-Yu Junior Court – from left, Princess Riley, Queen Taylor, and Princess Kaitlin – reigned royally at the White Rose Reception (WSB coverage here). Next week, they will crown their successors – and interested candidates need to apply *now*. The coronation will happen during the Hiawatha Fun Fest, 1 pm on Friday, July 15th, just nine days away. The deadline for applications to be received is next Tuesday, July 12th; the application packet is here, including a full explanation of the rules (including that girls must be no younger than 7 nor older than 11 as of this September 1st).

And be on the lookout for Hi-Yu royalty and volunteers during West Seattle Summer Fest in The Junction this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (with the Sparkling Seattle float), at Alki for the Seafair Pirates’ Landing on Saturday, as well as in the West Seattle American Legion Post 160 Grand Parade on July 23rd, and the Seafair Torchlight Parade a week later (among other parades during this busy summer season).