Updates: Gathering of Neighbors 2010 at Chief Sealth IHS

The banner’s been hung by the Chief Sealth International High School Galleria front doors with care – in hopes that you and many other West Seattleites soon will be there! (Apologies to the original author!) The 2010 Gathering of Neighbors is under way, till 4 pm today. Workshops and even a keynote speaker for the first time – plus a food truck available at lunchtime – just c’mon over and wander through. (Workshops, including our social-media primer, are in the classrooms on the west side of the Galleria, at 11:30 and again at 1:30.) More soon!

11:22 AM UPDATE: There’s a Galleria overview from about 10 minutes ago. Among the organizations in our line of sight – West Seattle Chamber of Commerce (here’s Patti Mullen):

Also, Ventana Construction (WSB sponsor), Kiwanis Club of West Seattle, Sustainable West Seattle, West Seattle Blockwatch Captains Network (here’s Karen Berge):

Plus: West Seattle Be Prepared, 34th District Democrats, Morgan Community Association, WestSide Baby, Highland Park Action Committee, Lafayette Elementary Play It Forward Project – to name just a few. Also the West Seattle Community Orchestras, West Seattle Food Bank, Alaska USA, Chief Sealth PTSA … and the Nature Consortium and DNDA (whose executive director Derek Birnie is on the right in this next photo):

We’re told the Pai’s Thai/Hawaiian food truck is already set up here, too.

12:58 PM UPDATE: We’re done with our first social-media-primer workshop (and the three workshops including food-growing, solar energy, and “kid zone”) – another round of all four is coming up in half an hour – we’re in the classroom at the far southwestern corner of the Sealth Galleria (through the front door, extreme left turn. Principal John Boyd is now speaking – talking about what it really means to be an international school, teaching “global perspectives” and world languages, among many other things – and will be introducing former Seattle Mayor Norm Rice shortly.

1:04 PM UPDATE: Former Mayor Rice is talking about the community-building work he now does with the Seattle Foundation, after remarking on the strength of the West Seattle community, and the aspects of a strong community that he’s seen around the Galleria here at the Gathering of Neighbors.

He urges everyone to stay focused on “what’s good for the community” – the same way that in our families we focus on “what’s good for the family.” He concludes – “Keep on doing the work that you’re doing … everyone has a role to play and a place to stand” to strengthening a community. “We’ll say at the end, ‘all is well, all is well’.”

3:06 PM UPDATE: Update – the event’s ending now – rather than going till 4. So if you haven’t been here yet, we’ll see you next year! Thanks to everybody who joined us for the social-media discussion/workshops – they were a blast.

Alice Kuder November 6, 2010 (1:51 pm)

How disappointing that I didn’t see any promotion of this event unti it was well under way this morning. I don’t know if I just didn’t have my eyes open or if it was poorly publicized? Perhaps a combination of the two? Looks like a neat event. Wish I could have been there.

WrightAndLeft November 6, 2010 (2:01 pm)

It won’t be over until 5:00 p.m. so you still have time.

WSB November 6, 2010 (3:27 pm)

As we noted in the story, it wound up ending at 3 instead of 4 – there were some differences in the publicity material and so the earlier time apparently won out – our apologies as participants if anybody was hoping to come by in the ‘final hour’! – TR