You can demonstrate the West Seattle Giving Spirit today for a nonprofit that’s worked tirelessly for more than a century to connect and uplift neighbors: The Highland Park Improvement Club. We’ve been bringing you this special holiday-season opportunity to learn about, and support, some of our area’s nonprofits, in partnership with the Learning Communities Foundation, and today, HPIC is telling its story:

When a tragic fire was started outside the Highland Park Improvement Club (HPIC) building in 2021, the community mourned a gathering place that, in the words of one of our neighbors, “is open and welcoming to all and respects where everyone is in their life.” The club is much more than a building. HPIC has been a community-owned non-profit for over 100 years. We exist to enhance the quality of life in the neighborhood by providing an inclusive gathering place, hosting neighborhood programs that celebrate the diverse arts and culture we represent, and fostering community engagement.

We are now fundraising for the HPIC Rebuild Project, which will construct a new performing arts and community event space on the foundation of the old building. The rebuilt HPIC will have an elevated performance stage with an expansive dance floor, a brand-new accessible mezzanine, an improved community kitchen, rain gardens, and solar energy generation. The new upper level includes additional gathering space, administrative offices, and storage.

Before the pandemic, HPIC hosted low- to no-cost concerts, art shows, holiday markets, dance classes, and celebrations with as many as 530 participants in a month. HPIC used the pandemic shutdown to start a vital food distribution program, while accomplishing necessary renovations. We were almost ready to reopen, only to be closed by the fire.

Even without a building, HPIC has been working hard to stay connected within the community, growing organizational capacity, and hosting community events. HPIC’s 2022 Reset Fest at Riverview Park drew over 300 people with games, arts and crafts, community speakers, and three bands, including Eva Walker of The Black Tones, who is a KEXP DJ and author of The Sound of Seattle: 101 Songs that Shaped a City.

We asked Eva what she thought about the need for all-ages community arts spaces like HPIC. “As someone who was born, raised and Seattle-bred, I owe my success to the opportunities I had as a young musician performing in all-ages spaces. I was able to develop my music confidence, as well as connect with lifetime colleagues. As a new mother, my priority is to hand down music opportunities for my little girl Hendrix (yes like the guitar player). Community-led, all-ages venues like Highland Park Improvement Club are extremely valuable and necessary.”

This year, HPIC expanded the organization by adding nine new highly qualified and dedicated board members, all of whom live in the neighborhood. Four long-standing and experienced Board members remain.

In 2025 HPIC will restart programming to engage our neighborhood! We plan to offer free, all-ages community programming while opening our “doors” to partnerships with local artists and other arts and culture organizations. Please visit our website to become a sustaining HPIC member, sign up to volunteer, or donate to our Rebuild Project.

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QUESTIONS? Emily Schauer fundraising@hpic1919.org

We have two more West Seattle Giving Spirit spotlights for you – next one on Friday. Learn about all the nonprofits we’ve already featured by scrolling through this archive!