2017 Tulip Festival Guide

2017 Skagit Valley

Tulip Festival

A Supplement to the Skagit Valley Herald, Anacortes American, Courier-Times & The Argus

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SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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Welcome to the

2017 Skagit Valley Tulip Festival!

Visitors from all over the world flock to the Skagit Valley each spring to enjoy hundreds of acres of colorful blooms. Last year’s festival saw tourists from all 50 states, eight Canadian provinces and 93 other countries. The Tulip Festival topped the National Geographic’s list of “Best Spring Trips of 2016.” The Skagit Valley Tulip Festival welcomes these visitors with a wide array of activities for the whole family, spread throughout the month of April.

The mission of the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival is to coordinate and promote a countywide spring celebration of the tulip bloom, in commemoration of the valley’s annual tulip harvest, and to be an advocate for Skagit Valley agriculture.

The 2017 Tulip Festival kicks off on Thursday, March 30 with the Gala presented by Judd & Black Appliance and Peoples Bank. “The festival wouldn’t be possible without our volunteers and sponsors,” said festival director Cindy Verge.

During April of last year’s festival alone, 56 volunteers donated 608 hours. This included 26 students from Mount Vernon and Burlington-Edison High Schools and Edison Elementary school students 2

who collectively donated 130 hours on weekends.

Tulip Festival History In the early 1980s, then Mount Vernon Chamber of Commerce directors Jerry Digerness and Joan Houchen recognized that thousands

Cindy Verge has been working for the Tulip Festival since 1999 and has been its executive director since 2003, working alongside a 19-person volunteer board of directors. Cindy recently earned the title “Certified Festival and Event Executive” from the International Festival & Events Association (IFEA).

Tulip Festival College Internship

of people were coming to visit the tulips of Skagit Valley. They decided to form the official Tulip Festival and created a weekend of events and festivities meant to entice and enhance visitors’ trips to the area during the month of April. The Skagit Valley Tulip Festival was officially inaugurated by the chamber in 1984 and was run through that office until 1994 when the festival became its own entity. In 2002, separation from the chamber was completed when the organization moved to its own offices.

Madeline Cavanaugh is the Tulip Festival’s 2017 college intern. She graduated from La Conner High School in 2014 and is currently a senior graduating this March with an Economics major from The Evergreen State College in Olympia. Madeline began her internship in January 2017 and it will run through the Tulip Festival at the end of April.

When asked about what drew her to the Tulip Festival internship, Madeline said, “I was extremely interested in interning for the Tulip Festival because I decided I should pursue a quarter of education regarding marketing before I graduated. I was also intrigued by the festival’s outreach to travelers of all ages from near and far and saw it as the perfect opportunity to

SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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Contents

SKAGIT PUBLISHING 1215 Anderson Road Mount Vernon, WA 98274 ads@skagitads.com P: 360.424.3251 F: 360.424.5300 Restocking: 360.424.3251 ©2017 by Skagit Publishing LLC All rights reserved.

Photographer: Scott Terrell

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Welcome to the 2017 Skagit Valley Tulip Festival!

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Tulip Field Map

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2017 Official Poster & Artist

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Tulip Festival Suppliers

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Mount Vernon Downtown Association Tulip Festival Street Fair

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Tips on Touring the Festival

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Economic Boost

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New Special Events

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Anacortes Arts Festival Spring Fest

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Tulip Festival Official Products

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Thank You!

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2017 Key Bank Tulip Ambassadors

fea fe aturin turing g an all new

beer lineup Using only the finest Northwest grown ingredients in brewing 24 taps to choose from Open 7 days a week at 11 AM (Family Friendly)

We look forward to your next visit, Cheers!

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Happy Hour 3-6pm daily

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learn about local and international outreach through marketing. I also wanted practical experience in an office setting which made this an ideal internship because I would achieve both aspects of my learning goals.”

After college graduation in March, Madeline hopes to use the skills and networking she has gained in her internship at the Tulip Festival to help launch her career.

Said Madeline, “The internship has been amazing so far. I have gotten to meet so many great people that do so many amazing things for the Skagit Valley. I have learned so much in my short time here including public speaking skills, how to write and distribute my own press releases and how to implement a social media campaign through platforms such as Snapchat and Instagram. I was surprised by the amount of work that goes into a four week festival; there is truly something to be done every day of the year to make the festival a success.”

When Tulip Festival leadership discovered that 65 to 75 percent of visitors to the festival website were using mobile devices, they knew it was time for a new website with responsive web design that would make the website functional on any platform including desktops, cell phones and tablets. The board was able to secure partial funding from Skagit County, the City of Burlington and the City of Mount Vernon to help offset the cost. As an official Tulip Festival sponsor, Skagit Publishing supports the festival by hosting and maintaining

New Tulip Festival Website

the festival’s official website. They also stepped up to build the new website; the redesign was handled

by Skagit Publishing’s Digital Media Manager, Don Danielson. In Don’s first decade with Skagit Publishing he held the role of Web Developer.

During that time he designed, developed and maintained many versions of the Tulip Festival’s website along with a variety of websites and online solutions for clients ranging from the smallest business to some of the largest organizations in Skagit County. Said Don about the latest redesign, “I really wanted to knock it out of the park. Cindy Verge and her staff are such great people and they do so many amazing things for the community that I had to make their website properly represent them and what they mean for Skagit County. I hope it has met

YE

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32nd S OF SERVING YO

While You Are Enjoying The Tulip Festival

Saturday, April 8

Come and see our store filled with beautiful jewelry, crystal, and gifts.

7th & Commercial in Anacortes Washington 888-293-6469 • www.burtonjewelers.com REGISTERED JEWELER

AMERICAN GEM SOCIETY

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SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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their expectations.” It is safe to say that the festival’s president is pleased.

Cindy expressed her thanks to Don, “…for his excellent work in giving the website a fresh new look and responsive design.”

The 2017 Tulip Festival will run from April 1-30. Tulipfestival.org has a wide range of information to help you navigate the festival including a calendar of events, maps and places to stay, eat and shop.

Be sure to visit Christianson’s Nursery, Schuh Farms and tulip growers RoozenGaarde and Tulip Town.

You will be able to order bulbs, buy cut flowers and mementos, eat and take photos and much more.

• Avoid the crowds by planning a mid-week trip or arrive by 9 a.m.

and activities. The events are spread • The festival is a driving tour with throughout the valley in cities from events miles apart. Pick up a broSedro-Woolley to Anacortes, Mountchure with a map or visit tulipfesVernon, Burlington and La Conner. tival.org/map; note that the map Many events are fundraisers for identifies locations but is not to local charities including the Kiscale. wanis Salmon Barbecue (April 1-23 continued on page 7 from 11 a.m.-7 p.m. daily at Mount

Family owned & operated for 54 years.

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Always - Espresso, Ice Cream & Milkshakes, Homemade Pie, Cookies, Cheese, Jam, Pickles, Gourmet Foods Spring - Cut Tulips, Tulip Merchandise, Garden Gifts, Plants, Flowering Baskets, Rhubarb, Asparagus Summer - U-Pick/We-Pick Berries, Garden Produce, Pickling Cucumbers, Sweet Corn, Cherries, Apricots, Nectarines, Peaches, Melons, Tomatoes, Flower Bouquets Fall - Pumpkin Harvest & Family Fun! Local Cider, Apples, Sweet Corn, Winter Squash, Fall Decorations Winter - Trees, Wreaths, Garland, Holly, Ornaments & Nuts

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Festival Tips

Over the decades the festival has • When traveling to the festival use grown in length. The event began as Highway 20 and take exit 230 in a three day weekend; jumped to 10 Burlington. From there the side days, then 17 and has been a full 30 roads will provide easier access days since 2003. With the unpredictto the tulip fields with decreased ability of the weather, the full 30 days traffic congestion compared to the means that the tulips have a greater main roads. chance of blooming during the festival.

• Park FREE at the two main gardens, RoozenGaarde (on Beaver The festival has also grown in Marsh Road) and Tulip Town (on scope; this year there will be at least Bradshaw Road).

26 Tulip Festival sanctioned events

Schuh Farms

Take your home search on the road with

Mount Vernon

3018 Commercial Ave ~ (360) 424-4901 Windermere Real Estate/Skagit Valley www.WindermereSkagit.com

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What to See & Do

Vernon’s Hillcrest Lodge). Visit the events page on tulipfestival.org for a complete list of new and classic events.

Search “Windermere Real Estate Search App” to download. Apple,

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SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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5 Mi. North

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Bellingham 19mi.

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Pets aren’t allowed in the gardens.

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Donnelly Rd

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Barrett Rd

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Jungquist Rd

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Dodge Valley Rd

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By Guy D. Corp, DBA grafixCORP. Reproduced with permission of the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival.

★ Tulip Festival office ★ RoozenGaarde ★ Tulip Town 1

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6 Anacortes Arts Festival 6 Anacortes Quilt Walk Puget Sound Refinery 6 Anacortes Spring Wine Festival 6 Anacortes Brewery 6 Orcas Eclipse Charters Judd & Black Appliance/ 7 Taylor Shellfish Farms Peoples Bank Gala Dinner Swinomish Casino & Lodge 8 Golden Glen Creamery Key Bank Ambassador Event 9 Columbia Bank Reception 10 Burlington Scrapbooking Children’s Museum 10 Kid’s Giant Garage Sale COUNTRY Financial Tulip 10 O Canada! Reception and Princess Party Keynote/Historic Tour of Woodfest Burlington Kiwanis Salmon BBQ 11 Downtown Mount Vernon Art in a Pickle Barn Street Fair Azusa Farm & Gardens

11 Forte Artisan Chocolates 11 Lincoln Theatre 11 Skagit River Brewery 11 Garage Sale, Antiques & More 11 Used Book Sale 11 Valley Shine Distillery 11 SICBA Home Show 12 Seattle Premium Outlets 13 Daffodil Festival 13 Tulip Pedal 13 US Bank Parade 13 La Conner Sculpture Tour 13 La Conner Quilt & Textile Museum 13 La Conner Brewing Company

13 Museum of Northwest Art 13 Seattle Heli Tours 13 Skagit County Historical Museum 14 Pasek Cellars Winery 15 Warren Jewelers 16 O Canada! Genealogy Seminar 17 Tulip Run 17 Heritage Flight Museum 17 Schmooze Fair 2017 17 Chuckanut Brewery 18 Psalms, Hymns & Spiritual Songs 19 Skagit Valley Gardens 20 Padilla Bay Estuarine Reserve

Starbird Rd

37 14 Mi. South, 12 20 Mi. South, Exit 212

21 The Skagit Casino Resort 22 The Outlet Shoppes at Burlington 23 Christianson’s Nursery 23 Art at the Schoolhouse 24 Seattle Heli Tours 24 ART BASH 25 Rexville Grange Art Show 26 Sauk Mountain Pottery 27 Schuh Farms 28 Tulip Country Bike Tours & Rental 28 4-H Petting Farm 29 Skagit’s Own Fish Market 30 Snow Goose Produce

SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

Exit 202

31 WSU Discovery Garden 32 Carpenter Creek Winery 33 Tulip Valley Winery 34 Fidalgo Bay Cofffee Roasters 35 Eaglemont Golf13 Course 36 PACCAR Open House 37 Canopy Tours Northwest 38 Chuckanut Brewery 39 Deception Distillery 40 Skagit River Produce 41 Farmstrong Brewing 42 Vintage Aircraft Museum

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• Tulip fields are usually muddy.

Wear rubber boots and clothes that you don’t mind getting wet/ dirty. Bring garbage bags for dirty clothes and muddy boots and a change of clothes and footwear.

camera and indulge in the tulip extravaganza! You will experience the exquisitely arranged gardens at Tulip Town and RoozenGaarde as well as the multi-colored tulip fields. You will learn about the tulip industry • Pets are not allowed in the gardens. including its origin and history; plus tulip varieties, characteristics and the • Tulip crops rotate every year and meaning of the tulip. Rubber boots blooming fields vary based on weather conditions. Before you go check tulips.com/bloommap or call 360-428-5959 to make sure you are going to the fields with blooming flowers.

are supplied when fields are muddy.

Tour times are set to accommodate the Amtrak Cascades train schedules from Seattle and Vancouver into the Mount Vernon station where all Skagit Guided Adventures Tulip Tours begin. www.skagitguidedadventures.com

Tulip Festival Tours Are you looking for a small group Tulip Tour led by a knowledgeable local guide? Skagit Guided Adventures is the official local tour operator and sponsor of the 2017 Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. Bring your

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Come visit RoozenGaarde’s beautiful Display Garden this spring!

Tulips are fresh from the field.

Buy 4 bunches and get the 5th bunch FREE! Take home a bouquet of fresh-cut flowers, stroll our Garden planted with 1/4 million blooms, and enjoy the beauty of our valley!

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SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

Open Year Round!

Hours: Mon-Sat 9am-6pm Sun/Holidays 11am-4pm 15867 Beaver Marsh Rd. 360-424-8531 www.tulips.com 7

2017 Official Poster thousand snow geese on the move…I definitely had to include a murmuration in my painting, which is a sight that haunts me to this day. My challenge was speaking to all of these images and at the same time showing the tulip as queen!”

Unique to the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival, each year a committee of community volunteers selects an artist to create the official Skagit Valley Tulip Festival poster.

Local artists submit their applications and the winner is free to choose their medium and style in a way that will interpret their vision of the festival and the tulips of Skagit Valley. In a testament to the quality of the art, the 2015 poster received the Gold Pinnacle award from the International Festival & Events Association.

When asked what being selected as the poster artist means to her, Trish said, “… being selected as the official 2017 Tulip Festival poster artist is a unique honor in itartist in August, 2015. The poster, which self, but also for me, a lifetime achievewas revealed in November 2016 at Skagit Valley Gardens in Mount Vernon, ment...an opportunity to go down in tulip history along with many other is oil on canvas. It is a reflection of the incredible Northwest artists. I am paintBellingham artist Trish Harding was artist’s fascination with living in close ing 50 small originals to have available selected as the 2017 Tulip Festival poster proximity to Mount Baker, described at the festival and eight more major

by Harding as “our very own volcano,” pieces for a show at Scott Milo Gallery the promise of spring and her love of in Anacortes where I have been asked Skagit County bicycles. to be featured artist for the month Fairgrounds The artist used her first impression of April. ‘The work’ has changed my 25th Annual of tulips blooming in Skagit County for work in ways that I never could have Spring Garage Sale inspiration: “watching over the burst of anticipated.” cadmium reds and yellows and cobalt Bring your family violets, I was surprised to see that the Trish’s Bellingham studio and fine art & friends and enjoy tulip rows are not flat at all but, in fact, gallery is called Studio UFO and opend vendors galore, undulate up and down gently over mild 15 years ago. The gallery features Trish’s original oil paintings that use refood, live music & slopes. Old poplar trees dominate the gional landscapes to represent symbolic much more! landscape and I witnessed a hundred

Over 150 vendors and 6,000 visitors each year attend this event.

Friday, April 7th, 2017 9:00 am ~ 4:00 pm Saturday, April 8th, 2017 9:00 am ~ 4:00 pm

At The Framemaker

Admission: $3.00 On site parking: $3.00

For more information visit our website at:

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420 CommerCial • anaCortes • 360-293-6938 www.sCottmilo.Com

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Pacific Northwest images and important issues concerning the community.

Her studio is home to Trish Harding School of Art where students learn the importance of basic fundamentals in painting and drawing. Invested in her students’ success, Trish facilitates art shows and teaches business development skills including building a great portfolio and how to approach art galleries to present and sell their work.

Jody Bergsma of Bergsma Gallery worked with Harding to transform her painting into the Tulip Festival poster.

Bergsma will also be designing official apparel and many other products using the poster art.

Meet the artist: Trish will be available to meet and sign posters on Saturdays and Sundays in April from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.:

RoozenGaarde, 15867 Beaver Marsh Road, Mount Vernon on April 1, 9, 15, 23 Tulip Town, 15002 Bradshaw Road, Mount Vernon on April 2, 8, 16, 22

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Trish’s small original paintings and the official poster will be available at Tulip Town and RoozenGaarde Gift Shop during the festival.

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SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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Tulip Festival Suppliers Festival Merchandiser Bellingham artist Jody Bergsma returns as the official Tulip Festival merchandising supplier. Jody began visiting the beautiful Skagit Valley tulip fields as a child, brought her children there in the 1980s to take pictures in the fields and continues to this day.

Said Jody, “As a person of Dutch heritage I am doubly privileged to create the merchandise for the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. Not only am I able to spend the entire month of April among my favorite flowers, it also gives me the opportunity to promote Skagit County; which is one of the most beautiful places on Earth.”

Jody was hired in the summer of 2015; her experience creating and producing merchandise for other tulip festivals played a big part in her selection. In her role with the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival, Jody develops and designs all official festival merchandise.

Jody has a company in Bellingham demonstrates her love of mathematics where all the products are created. In and geometry. She seamlessly blends addition to the traditional merchan- these elements with her imaginative dise such as posters, cards, magnets and mugs Jody is also producing color books, fleece blankets, multiple garments, glass coaster sets, Christmas ornaments, journals, key chains, mini matted prints and more.

Bergsma is a well-known Bellingham watercolor painter with a diverse Said festival president Cindy Verge, painting style that has developed over many years and literally thousands of “Jody did a great job last year…she paintings. Jody’s watercolor technique works very hard to provide special is self-taught; her engineering degree designs and fresh, new products.” is reflected in her compositions and

Tulip Art Works & Cards

, k c a Sn op, sh . & sip

healthy foods & family fun on your way to the tulip festival.

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Fine Art by local artists; Artsy Gifts Jewelry, Cards, Art Supplies 10

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downtown mount vernon

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604 Commercial Ave Downtown, Anacortes, WA

skagitfoodcoop.com ◆ (360) 336 ∙ 9777

SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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Washington Bulb Company/ RoozenGaarde Flowers & Bulbs Washington Bulb Company is the largest tulip-bulb grower in the country and the largest tulip supplier to the Tulip Festival. They are also one of the largest employers in the Skagit Valley. RoozenGaarde grows tulips year round inside 15 acres of greenhouses.

A variety of Tulip Festival merchandise is available at the Tulip Festival office or online at tulipfestival.org. inner visions to create her unique style. Learn more about Jody’s paintings at bergsma.com.

2017

SATURDAY, APRIL 1st 9AM - 4PM SUNDAY, APRIL 2 10AM - 3PM

nd

Tulip Suppliers The tulips are spread throughout the Skagit Valley in rotating fields a few miles apart so you will want to take a driving tour to see them all.

Although the 2016 season was early, the unusually cold winter may mean a later start for 2017. Generally, there are tulips blooming through the month of April. The festival’s biggest tulip suppliers, RoozenGaarde/Washington Bulb Co., Inc. and Tulip Town, both offer artistic tulip displays in their show gardens and carry deep roots in tulip growing stemming back to their family ancestries in Holland.

The company ships over 70 million cut flowers across the United States each year along with tens of millions of bulbs throughout the U.S. and Canada. RoozenGaarde gardens are open to tours year round. Tulip Festival hours are 9 a.m. – 7 p.m. daily through April or when the tulips stop blooming. The five-acre display garden is redesigned every year with 90 plus varieties of tulips and over 150 other flower varieties including daffodils, hyacinths, crocus, muscari and other specialty flowers.

This year’s design will feature plenty of unique patterns, brilliant color combinations and the popular flowering rivers of deep blue muscari! A 25-acre tulip field sits alongside the display garden.

Festival admission is $7 per person, $6 with military I.D., free for kids five and under.

Sedro-Woolley High School Gym 1235 Third St. Sedro-Woolley, WA.

Student competition, vendors, demonstrations by carvers & wood turners, featured speakers, silent auctions both days, raffle prizes and MORE!

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SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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1955 from two of the area’s original bulb growers. He had immigrated from Holland in 1947 with years of tulip bulb experience and dreams of growing a flourishing bulb business in America. William’s skills were a family tradition; the Roozens had been tulip farmers for at least six generations dating back to the 1700s.

In 1985, William Roozen handed the business down to his five sons and a daughter, who passed away in 1996.

Don’t forget the gift shop and fresh William Roozen passed away on July Parking is free: the lot is on Beaver 13, 2002, with five sons and 35 grandMarsh Road. RoozenGaarde also op- cut flowers. children to keep the business in the erates official pay parking located by Please visit tulips.com for more family. His five sons are the company the tulip fields. Parking in official pay company information and to place principles. lots is included with a paid Roozenspring bulb orders February to DeGaarde admission (show your ticket cember.

Today the business farms about stub) OR if you park in an Official 2,000 acres of land including other PAY lot, the ticket stub is good for crops such as daffodils, iris and wheat.

RoozenGaarde History one admission to RoozenGaarde.

The company ships over 70 million Washington Bulb Company was (Admission/parking must all occur cut flowers and tens of millions of purchased by William Roozen in on the same day). tulip, daffodil, iris, hyacinth and other specialty flower bulbs every year.

After the fields of flowers have been topped, the bulbs are allowed to mature and multiply and are then harvested. RoozenGaarde farmers select the largest bulbs from each year’s crop so others can grow the same beautiful tulips, daffodils, and iris in their own home gardens.

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Owned and operated by longtime Skagit Valley tulip growers Tom and Jeannette DeGoede, Tulip Town is the second largest tulip supplier for the Tulip Festival. The 2017 show gardens will open to the public Saturday, April 1, through the end of April (depending on how long the blooms last) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily; later when weather permits. Admission includes a self-guided indoor tulip show featuring huge tulip flower arrangements in over 70 pedestals with a backdrop of oil murals depicting the Skagit Valley and Holland.

SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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Admission is $7 per person; cash only (ATM on-site). Children six and under are free.

Trolley rides are great fun for kids and the whole family, weather permitting. Roll through the tulip fields with 70 tulip varieties, past the barns and underneath professional kite flying (you can also bring your own kite or buy in the art gallery). The trolley was revamped last autumn with new safety rails and small heights in the steps for better accessibility. Rides cost $2 per adult and $1 for kids.

Tulip Town has beautiful, unique tulip pots (small $5, large $8) for Easter Sunday and all of April. Don’t forget the art gallery, gift shop and face painting. There is also a children’s coloring table Monday-Friday, 10:30 a.m.-3 p.m.

Parking is free with special spots for those with disabilities: the lot is on Bradshaw Road, adjoining the Tulip Town fields and indoor flower show.

Skagit Valley tulips to the public shortly afterward with a borrowed strawberry stand. Over the years, more and more people took notice of their flowers and began driving from Seattle and beyond to walk the fields and buy the colorful blooms.

As traffic grew, law enforcement

gave the business a push to build a parking lot. A 500-car parking lot full of beautiful agriculture was built on the farm in 2001; espalier apple, pear and cherry trees serve as car dividers. The DeGoede’s have four grown children, five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren; many of whom participate in Tulip Town.

READY, SET, SHOP & PLAY

As always, there are fun new things going on at Tulip Town to make the 2017 experience fresh and exciting.

This year’s tulips were planted with beautiful angles to make an interesting display.

Please visit tuliptown.com for more information and to order bulbs online.

Tulip Town History Tom DeGoede immigrated from Holland to Canada in 1956. He moved to Mount Vernon in 1957 where he joined his brothers Henry and John; Tom married his wife Jeannette in 1960. DeGoede managed the Neal Noorlag Bulb Farm until 1983 when he and Jeannette purchased the business; now known as ‘Lil Tulip Town.

Tulip Town sold the first official goskagit.com

Shoppes at a Burlington

WWW.THEOUTLETSHOPPESATBURLINGTON.COM SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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Welcome

to the 33rd Annual Downtown Mount Vernon Tulip Festival Street Fair!

We love the opportunity this event provides to showcase our traditional American Main Street. Whether you are visiting for the first time, or returning as part of a yearly tradition, you are in for a treat! This year the event is better than ever, with new artisans joining us and longtime favorites returning, as well.

Our downtown businesses, new and old, invite you to step inside and see all that they have to offer. The Mount Vernon Downtown Association is proud to produce this event, which has become known as the first annual outdoor arts show of the year in Washington, and is one of the largest, as well.

This year, the Street Fair includes over 140 artisan vendors, 15 different food vendors, and 3 days of live entertainment in multiple locations throughout the street. Our artists hail from 6 different states and British Columbia, and nearly 20% of them are new. We are thrilled to point out that we have several vendors, such as King’s Kettle Korn, Softoys, Soapworks Studio and Ace Leather, who have been coming to the Tulip Festival Street Fair since the early years. Throughout the Street Fair, there is lots to enjoy for the younger visitors as well.

The Downtown Mount Vernon Tulip Festival Street Fair serves to do more than attract thousands of visitors to our Main Street district to welcome spring. The Street Fair is the primary fundraiser for the Mount Vernon Downtown Association. The mission of the MVDA is goskagit.com

to promote a vibrant and prosperous downtown through celebrating our historic character.

Now entering our 10th year as a nationally accredited and Washington State certified Main Street community, we are delighted with the progress we have made, recently realizing that we have achieved a 65% reduction in street level vacancies and a number of beautiful restorations to historic buildings. In 2016, 18 new businesses opened downtown, and there are several more to come in the next few months.

In addition to the Tulip Festival Street Fair, the MVDA produces a number of events throughout the year designed to bring locals and visitors alike downtown in support of our businesses.

Among these events are the Annual Christmas Parade, Ladies’ Night Out, Downtown Safe Hallow-

een Trick-or-Treat, the July Sidewalk Sale, and a series of art walks on the first Thursday of the month from April through September. Join us again on August 26 for our music and beer festival “Retro on the River” - summer’s last hurrah on the Riverwalk Plaza!

Thank you for coming Ellen Gamson Executive Director Mount Vernon Downtown Association

Your Power Equipment Authority

WashingtonTractor.com 4220 Old Hwy. 99 So. Mount Vernon • 360-424-7995

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Mount Vernon Downtown Association 2017 Tulip Festival Street Fair Arts & Crafts Vendors

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Skagit Valley

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ARTISAN VENDORS 3-D Maps 152, 154 Abadab 83 Absolutely Nuts! P2 Ace Leather 107, 108 Adams Baby Creations 139 Aletheia Creation 74 Alexa’s Angels 131 Amiyah’s Treasures 151 Anderson Glass 35 Art by Namaste 75 Art Of Letters Photography 120 Artstone Garden Design 155, 156 B. Fuller’s Mortar & Pestle 7 Baroness Ashley Hats 103 Bayside Treasures 125, 126, 128 Beach Combers Artwork 78 Bear Art Studios 114 Blackwaters Metal 17 Bling! Bling! 63 Capuli Club 4 Cascadia Stoneware 111 Chelle Beautiful 61 Chris Stiles Art 150 Classy Sassy Jewelry 51 Copper Creations NW 86 Country Strong 148 Creative Development 13 Creature Comfort 36 Critter Creations 62 Cuddly Critter Puppets 94, 96 Decker Jewelry 129 Designs By Lisa 85 Diggit Garden Tools 121 Dog & Pup Glass 45 Doug’s Puzzles 52 Earth Worth Jewels 113 Eclectic Edge 135 elSage Designs 10 Embroidery By Wanda 101 Fat Dragonfly Collection 34 Fisher Woodworking 28 For The Love Of Pasta 14 Forest Life Creations 9 Fotografia Artistica 50 Fox Island Trading Company 122 French Cat Studio 3 Friday Harbor House of Jerky 57 Frill 18 Garlic Gormay 142 Gazebo 134 Glittergore 145 Gone Fishin’ 119 Gram’s Gourds 15 Gustoblende 26 Hair Claws 5 Hinshaw’s Art Quest 123 Hot Belly Animals 87, 88 Ia’s Garden 138 It’s So Easel 1, 2 Jack & Sons Unique Birdhouses 84 Jake Hose Company 99 Jan’s Robust Salami 69 Jewelry By Nicole 95 Jo Bird Jewelry 42 Kara’s Creations 56 Karmela Botanica 53

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Ristretto Coffee Lounge

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Per Dona Salon

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Easton’s boo ths P2 P Books 11 7-14 Forte 3 0 Chocolates Lincoln Theatre Skagit Running Company

Bank of America

booths 141-158 Red Apple

F G Kasydy Jane Dolls 66 Langeliers Studio 137 Lee Mann Photography 43, 44 Leslie Handpainted Glass 102 Lilie De Vallee 76 Lisa Marfa Pottery 39 MA Graphics 32

KEY

memorial Odd # booths on West (river) side of entertainment street, Even # booths on East side stage

of street.

Food

Vendors

Restrooms

FOOD VENDORS A Irishman Enterprises #1 B Samijon’s Hawaiian Shaved Ice Sugar & Spice Mini-Donuts C Taste Of India Lind’s Concessions You Found Us! Concessions Linda’s Concessions Ziegler’sBratwurst Haus/ Bumpus Burgers D Shiskaberry E King’s Kettle Korn F Ohana BBQ Cousins Gourmet G Irishman Enterprises #2 Hapa Foods Hawaiian Donuts P1

Mad Mozaics 158 Madrugada Pottery 6 Majic Bubble Wands! 141, 143 McCrain Photography 25, 27 McCunes Creative Side 46 Metal Artist 116 Michael’s Designs 81

miniTurns 54 Monika’s Designs 33 Morning Dew Candles 77, 79 Natural Accents 24 Nectar Of The Vine 59 Normiehead 73 Old Man’s Pants 29

SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

One Heron Pond 133 Oregon Jewelry 104 Original Baby Bundle 91, 92 Other Worlds 147 Over The Line Art 127 Pamela K Designs 30 Pearls By Nature 106 Peggy Cook Whimsical Art 80 Personalized Signs PDQ 71 Petstuff! 38 Phocas Farms 105 Photo Cards By Susan Greenwood 21, 22 Racks, Plaques And More 140 Rainbow Orca 112 Recycled Spoon 70 Rethreadz Clothing 12 Riley’s Spice Of Life 58 Rocky Barrick 90 Rusty Birds 47, 48 Rusty Stuff 64 Sage Designs 65 San Juan Island Nature Nuts 19 Scentual Nature 16 Seattle Hats 132 She-Ra Creations 55 Shoestring Wood Products 8 Sibbett Studio 109, 110 Simplistic Designs 144 Soapworks Studio 20 Softoys 67 Solid Rock Memorials & Gifts 41 Steampunkjunq 100 Studio Ravens Nest 118 Sustudio Jewelry 124 Sweater Heads 11 Sweet Ties Shoppe 153 T.W. Coffee Artist 149 Taste Of Eden 97, 98 The Place To Bee... 89 Tim Wistrom Fine Art Paintings 40 Totally Blown Glassworks 49 Trilby’s Bbq Sauce & Spices 72 Uncle Stinky’s Magic 117 Upcycled Antiques 136 Vicki Wickell Watercolors 115 Waisted Belt Company 23 Washington Rocks 130 West Coast Pops P3 Whidbey Island Fudge Company 93 Xtra Special Cakes 68 SPONSORS Alaska USA Federal Credit Union 37 Angel of the Winds Casino Resort 146 City of Mount Vernon Comcast 157 Creekside Continuing Care Community Shuttle Skagit Publishing 1st & Kincaid Swinomish Casino & Lodge 82 The Skagit Casino Resort 60

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2017 TULIP FESTIVAL STREET FAIR ENTERTAINMENT FRIDAY, 4/21

SATURDAY, 4/22

Marcia Kester

10am-Noon

Brittany Collins and the Bad Vibes 10am-Noon

SUNDAY, 4/23 Julian “The White Glove” Trevino 10-11am

The Ryders Band 11am-1pm

The Alkis

Ranger and the “Re-Arrangers”

Noon-2pm

Noon-2pm

Prozac Mountain Boys

CC Adams

1-3pm

2-4pm

Chris Eger Band

2-4pm

Naughty Blokes 4-6pm

Stacy Jones Band

4-6pm

Jimmy Wright Band 3-5pm

2017 Tulip Festival Street Fair Sponsors

CASINO•RESORT

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Tips on Touring the Festival WHEN TO COME? In April! Least crowded times: Weekdays! Weekends are very busy; arrive before 9am to beat the crowds. The festival is a driving tour, with events MILES apart. The field map provided in this book is not to scale.

TULIPS – There will be tulips for you to see ALL of April.

PLEASE NOTE: Drones are not allowed in the gardens or the fields.

SHOW GARDENS – Visiting both Roozengaarde and Tulip Town is a must!

Over one million spring bulbs are planted in the gardens. While there you can order bulbs, buy cut flowers and mementos, and take photos. Both charge admission; Roozengaarde tickets cannot be used at Tulip Town and vice versa.

Pets are not allowed in the gardens.

WHEN DO TULIPS BLOOM? – Skagit Valley tulips have been farmed here since the early 1900s. Today the “field tulips” are the crops of the Washington Bulb Co., Inc./Roozengaarde. The field tulips bloom in April, but weather determines exactly when. Check bloom status at www.tulips.com/bloommap, call us at (360) 428-5959, go to www.tulipfestival.org, visit www.Facebook.com/SkagitValley/ TulipFestival. Tulip crops rotate, so you WILL need a new map each year.

PARKING – PARKING – Park FREE at the two gardens, Roozengaarde and Tulip Town. Tulip Town parking is on Bradshaw Road. Both have OVERFLOW lots for parking on busy days; watch for flaggers to direct you. Roozengaarde also operates Official PAY parking by designated tulips fields (some fields do not have adjacent parking). Parking in designated lots is included with paid Roozengaarde admission (show your ticket stub) OR your Official PAY lot ticket stub is good for ONE admission to Roozengaarde. Admission/parking must all occur on the same day. NOTE: Too much rain may close lots by the fields.

Private Parking – Landowners sometimes charge for parking. They are not part of the festival; the money you pay cannot be used for admission or other parking.

Shoulder Parking – Very limited! Sheriff’s Officers will issue tickets!

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SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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There is always plenty to see and do in the Skagit Valley

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Economic Boost to County The local tourism industry looks forward to the month of April with local and international crowds of 250,000 to 400,000 coming to see the tulip blooms each year. Online traffic to the Tulip Festival’s website and Facebook page are another indication of participation in the festival.

As of February 2017, the Tulip Festival had 45,970 likes on its Facebook page. Data shows 84 percent of people following the Facebook page are women; 56 percent are women between the ages of 25-44.

Website activity continues to increase with 544,320 unique visitors generating more than 2,638,352 page views between June 1, 2015, and May

31, 2016. Nine out of 10 unique visitors were from the U.S. with Canada, India, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Australia, Mexico and Japan rounding out the top 10. The busiest traffic time is during the festival as visitors post pictures of the tulip fields, ask questions and provide feedback to organizers.

Skagit County business owners sometimes refer to the accompanying economic boost as “Christmas in April”; cross-promotion is common as local businesses and organizations use the festival’s draw to attract people to their events.

Said Tulip Festival president Cindy Verge, “The festival brings people

and dollars to Skagit County…it is part of making our agriculture industry thrive…it helps a variety agriculture businesses from farms to nurseries and tulip growers. The Tulip Festival helps local tourism business as well including tour guides, hotels, gift stores and restaurants.”

Visitors will find businesses welcoming and appreciative of their business. Tulip Festival tourist spending was estimated at $14 million dollars in 2000 and the festival has grown every year since. People may be drawn by the tulip fields but they often end up staying and doing other activities in the area. Visitors will find comfortable lodging, restaurants for

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Imagine Spring in La Conner ESCAPE TO LA CONNER

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Experience the timeless beauty of art, history, earth and water. Small town hospitality awaits you.

www.lovelaconner.com 413 Morris St. • 360.466.4778

Bring in this ad to the Visitor Center & Receive a COMPLIMENTARY COUPON BOOK While supplies last.

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Anacortes 26% Burlington 24% La Conner 28% Mount Vernon 13% Rural Skagit County 13% Sedro-Woolley 20%

every taste and shopping opportunities around the county.

Data reports on both sales tax and lodging tax collections for monies generated in March and April 2015 point to a successful 2015 Tulip Festival. The following data was obtained from the Washington State Department of Revenue. Note: April monies paid were based on March revenue; May monies paid were based on April revenue.

Skagit County sales tax revenues showed a 19 percent overall increase from April to May, with the April amount being $1,844,863.36 and the May amount being $2,196,585.15.

Sales tax increases recorded for individual cities were:

Lodging tax revenues collected show even larger gains. Overall, Skagit County had a 56 percent gain from April to May; collecting an additional $36,277.90 in lodging tax.

Lodging tax increases recorded for individual cities were:

Anacortes 88% Burlington 27% La Conner 89% Mount Vernon 65% Rural Skagit County 35% Sedro-Woolley No Report

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Finely Crafted Furniture & Gifts

A Country Getaway

100% American Made

709 South First Street • La Conner, WA 98257 360-466-4741 • woodmerchant.com • facebook.com/woodmerchant

Award-Winning Wines Wine Tasting Indoor/Outdoor Seating Dog Friendly/Family Friendly

www.PleasantRidgeBB.com

106 1st Street (Gilkey Square), La Conner

14022 Dodge Valley Road Mount Vernon, WA 98273

April hours: Th.-Sun., noon to 6pm May-Dec. hours: Weekends, noon to 6pm

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360.708.2801 | Skagitcellars.com

SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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Make a Reservation (360) 466-2444

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New Special Events The 2017 Tulip Festival is proud to announce two new featured events for this year’s festival. Be sure to see the full list of events at tulipfestival.org under Events & Attractions. There is something for everyone!

Rexville Grange Art Show March 31 through April 9 Enjoy a wonderful gallery of art and fine crafts at the Rexville Grange. Browse collections of paintings, pottery, jewelry, hand turned wood and glass, scarves and bags and photography garden art.

Location: 19299 Rexville Grange Road, Mount Vernon Phone preshow: 425-327-0661, during show 360-466-0477

www.rexvillegrangeartsshow.com www.LoveLaConner.com • www.LaConnerChamber.com • www.LoveLaConner.com • www.LaConnerChamber.com

Skagit County HiStoriCal MuSeuM

Come and Explore Skagit History!

AVery Good Place to Shop for Bargains A nonprofit unusual thrift & consignment department store run by Soroptimists of La Conner.

Bargain prices & a very pleasant atmosphere create a satisfying shopping experience.

301 Morris St. La Conner Tue. - Sun. 11-5 (360) 466-4017 www.Facebook.com/VintageLaConner 22

www.skagitcounty.net/museum $5 Adults, $4 Seniors & Children 6-12 (under 6 Free!), $10 Families, Members Free!

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Vintage La Conner

Skagit County Historical Museum 501 S. 4th Street, La Conner Open Tuesday-Sunday 11-5 360.466.3365

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O Canada! Heritage Weekend April 21 - 23 Celebrate Canada’s 150th anniversary with the Skagit Valley Genealogical Society. The society is presenting a genealogy weekend with internationally renowned genealogy experts, Dave Obee of Canada and Mary Kathryn Kozy of Washington State.

Skagit Valley Genealogical Society reception/celebration: Celebrating Canada’s 150th Anniversary April 21, 7 p.m. - 9 p.m.

Burlington Community Center 1011 Greenleaf Ave., Burlington.

O Canada! Genealogy Seminar April 22, 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

First United Methodist Church, 1607 E. Division, Mount Vernon.

Historic Walking Tour of Burlington April 23, 10 a.m. - Noon Burlington Chamber of Commerce 520 E. Fairhaven Ave., Burlington.

Phone: 360-424-4608

www.skagitvalleygenealogy.org

www.LoveLaConner.com • www.LaConnerChamber.com • www.LoveLaConner.com • www.LaConnerChamber.com

Imagine Spring in La Conner Known both as an artists’ enclave and a boater’s paradise, with a decidedly coastal-community feel, La Conner has an almost magical quality that brings visitors back again and again. goskagit.com

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Anacortes is putting itself on the map as an arts destination during the busy Tulip Festival season. We invite visitors to come and see what a vibrant arts community looks like.

Start the month off with music & quilts. On April 1, Mount Eerie + Mamiffer will perform at the Depot Art Center. Popular young cult singer, Phil Elvrum, routinely draws large crowds and his new music is receiving rave reviews.

Tickets are available at thebusinessanacortes.com. On a more crafty note, April is the month of the 20th annual Quilt Walk in 20 retail locations throughout town.

For a map and more information visit fidalgoislandquilters.com.

The Popular First Friday Gallery Walk on Friday, April 7, from 6 – 9pm, is a fun evening of wandering from gallery to gallery, and seeing new shows featuring a wide variety of artists and artistic disciplines. Refreshments are included.

The Spring Wine Festival happens on Saturday, April 8 from 1 – 5pm at the Port Event Center on the waterfront. This adult event includes tastings from 30 wineries, paired foods, chocolate & cheese - plus entertainment and related shopping. Tickets are $55, or $25 for a designated driver – available online at Anacortes.org.

The popular Farmer’s Market at the Depot Art Center happens the second Saturday during the off-season. On April 8, from 9 – 2pm, come find organically produced products and hand-crafted arts by local artists.

The Anacortes Arts Festival presents 10 days of art events at the Depot. This centers around a new Spring Fest on the plaza on goskagit.com

April 22 & 23. This mini version of their successful August festival includes booth artists, food trucks, a beer garden, activities for kids and demonstrating artists. Shoppers can expect to find jewelry, wearables, ceramics, glass, and 2D work – listen to lively music and enjoy tasty bites and beverages.

More info at AnacortesArtsFestival.com The Festival Spring Fest Fine Art Exhibition fills the inside of the Depot with juried work from 33 regional artists. This show includes a gallery of fine art consisting of painting, photography, sculpture and mixed media work from Seattle as well as Skagit, Island and Whatcom Counties. The show opens on Friday, April 14 at 6pm, and runs daily through April 23 from 11am – 4pm (except Easter Sunday).

For an active way to start out

Spring Fest weekend, join the 4th annual Do the Bloom Color Run on Saturday, April 22, starting at 10am at the Depot. This 5k run is appropriate for families, kids (even friendly dogs). Runners become the canvas, as they are doused with colorful powder at various stations throughout the run. Enjoy Spring Fest at the end of the run. Register at Active. com.

Rounding out Arts Festival Depot events is the annual Arty Party on April 15 at 6pm. Billed as NOT an auction event, it includes dueling pianos, lively painting demonstrations, food trucks, clothesline art sale of works by Anacortes artists – as well as wine, beer & craft cocktails. Tickets are $100 available at AnacortesArtsFestival.com.

Proceeds from this event fund the Cultural Arts Program in the

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April 1 April 8 Phil Elvrum in Concert, 7pm, Depot Art Anacortes Farmer’s Market, 9 – 2pm, Center.

Depot Art Center. (free) April 1 – 30 Annual Quilt Walk – downtown business displays. (free)

April 22 Do the Bloom Color Run – 10am, Depot Art Center. ($30/$10 youth)

April 22 – 23 Spring Fest, Anacortes Arts Festival.

10 – 4pm, Depot Art Center. (free) April 7 First Friday Gallery Walk – 6 – 9pm, various downtown locations. (free) April 8 Spring Wine Festival 1 – 5pm, Port Event Center. (Tickets $55.)

April 15 – 23 Spring Fest Fine Art Show, 11 – 4 (closed Easter), Depot Art Center. (free) April 15 Mar 30 – April 22 Arty Party, Anacortes Arts Festival.

6pm, Depot Art Center. (Tickets $100) Anacortes Community Theatre, “The 25th Annual Putnum County Spelling Bee”. (Tickets $20) April 28 Spring Vintage Market, 9 – 4 Port Event Center. (Tickets $7)

ANACORTES

SPRING WINE

FESTIVAL

Anacortes School District.

For theatre lovers, the Anacortes Community Theatre presents “The 25th Annual Putnum County Spelling Bee” on Thursday through Sunday nights, March 24 – April 22, at the ACT Theatre. This musical production, originally Directed on Broadway, includes a lineup of local talent.

Tickets are available through acttheatre.com.

Finally, closing out the month, are two separate events on Saturday, April 28. The Spring Vintage Market at the Port Event Center 26

from 9 – 4 features dealers of vintage treasures, home & garden décor, and upcycled products.

Tickets are $7 at the door.

Also on Saturday, April 28, classical musicians take the stage at the Anacortes Arts Foundation Spring Concert, “Mozart and the Bachs”. The evening will include music for baroque flute, strings and harpsichord by professional musicians. This concert is at the Croatian Cultural Center at 801 5th Street. Tickets are $25. For more information visit anacortesartsfoundation.org

April 28 Mozart & the Bachs, Chamber Music presented by the Anacortes Arts Foundation. 7pm, Croatian Cultural Center. (Tickets $25)

SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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Festival Art Events fund Art Education

Spring Fest April events at the Depot Fine Art Exhibition April 15 – 23, Opening Friday, April 14 at 6pm (free) Arty Party Fun-raising Event April 15, 6pm Do the Bloom Color Run April 22, 10am Register at Active.com New Spring Fest – April 22 & 23 www.AnacortesArtsFestival.com Community and kids are at the heart of the Anacortes Arts Festival. While most of us identify the Festival as a huge art event the first weekend of August we may not be aware that the Festival has a big vision of supporting community arts and arts education for children year-round.

In its 4th year of Spring events, the Festival is expanding its activities to 10 days in April and including a new Spring Fest, Fine Art Show, Color Run & Arty Party evening event. Between April and August, this organization is giving over $65,000 back to the community in 2017 – much of it benefitting children and youth.

The Arty Party event at 6pm on April 15, is the Festival’s annual fundraising event to support the Cultural Arts Program for the Anacortes School District. Local artists were asked to join a new project called Artists for Education by donating painted mini canvases that will be sold at the event for $50 (5x7) and $25 (3x4).

It’s a win-win that benefits arts education and allows participants an opportunity to go home with original artwork. Arty Party will also featuring lively dueling pianos, food truck small plates, beer, wine & cocktails. Ticket information is available at AnacortesArtsFestival.com The ASD Cultural Arts Program, that benefits from Festival April events, brings music and theatrical performance to the schools and provides travel for children to experience outside

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performances. In 2016, all district 2nd graders were bussed to the Mount Baker Theater in Bellingham to see a performance of Roald Dahl’s Big Friendly Giant.

Last May, the Anacortes School District honored the Festival with the Walter A. Brodniak Award, recognizing their support of youth arts education.

Festival grants also fund the Artists in Schools Program and purchases musical instruments and art equipment for classrooms.

They fund the Boys & Girls Club art program, the Anacortes Family Center Music Therapy Program and the Museum of Northwest Art MoNA Link youth education program. It doesn’t stop there. Festival funding has supported many of the major public art projects in town including the “Aerie” nest on the highway 20 roundabout.

The takeaway from all of this is that by enjoying and supporting Festival Spring Fest events, you are helping support arts education. While the Anacortes Arts Festival is all about providing community events to celebrate art, as a non-profit it is the largest supporter of the arts in Skagit Valley, and takes seriously the increasing needs for art funding in arts education and beyond.

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Tulip Festival Official Products

We are proud of the small businesses and agricultural heritage in Skagit Valley and have developed an Official Product program to promote local products. These businesses highlight some of the best Skagit Valley has to offer.

OFFICIAL WINE

OFFICIAL JEWELRY

Pasek Cellars

Warren Jewelers

OFFICIAL MICROBEER

OFFICIAL CHOCOLATE

Anacortes Brewery

Forté Artisan Chocolate

OFFICIAL COFFEE

OFFICIAL HARD CIDER

18279 Fir Island Rd. Mount Vernon, WA (360) 445-4048 www.PasekCellars.com

320 Commercial Ave. Anacortes, WA (360) 588-1720 www.AnacortesRockfish.com

Fidalgo Bay Coffee Roasters 856 North Hill Blvd.

Burlington, WA (360) 757-8818 www.FidalgoBayCoffee.com

1126 S Burlington Blvd.

Burlington, WA (360) 707-5444 www.WarrenJewelers.net

700 S First Street Mount Vernon, WA (360) 588-4859 www.ForteChocolates.com

Tulip Valley Winery 16163 SR 536 Mount Vernon, WA (360) 428-6894 www.TulipValley.net

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SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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Thank you! from Executive Director, Cindy Verge Those two words convey everything I want to say to everyone who lives and works in Skagit Valley.

I greatly appreciate all your patience and effort. The Tulip Festival could not exist without the tremendous support that we enjoy throughout our community as we prepare to welcome visitors from throughout our state, our country and the world.

Secretary Lisa Knowles, Trident Seafood Treasurer Darene Follett, Shell Puget Sound Refinery Federal Credit Union Past President Tina Pullar, Skagit Publishing

Board Members (all serve 3 year

terms): Jenn O’Brien, Cascade Mall Everett Chu, Azusa Farm and Leo Roozen, Washington Bulb Co., Gardens Our support ranges from the RoozenGaarde Alice Collingwood, Collingwood thousands of hours of volunteer Steve Schultz, Skagit Regional Communications support in our office and at all the Health Jennifer Covey, Peoples Bank festival events and activities to our Jeannette DeGoede, Tulip Town government officials who give their Advisors to the Board: Kristen Keltz, Hotel Services expertise, help with grant funding, Jody Bergsma, Bergsma Gallery Group and promote tourism in Skagit Megan Masonholder, Legal Dawn Latimer, Mister Ts Trophies County. Where else but the Skagit Counsel Rebecca Murray, Skagit Media Valley would you find Kiwanians who Marinus Rouw, Volunteer Marketing open a restaurant (serving salmon) for 23 days a year and give away all the proceeds? The same could be PAID ADVERTISEMENT said for art shows funding college scholarships or children who get bike helmets to keep them safe!

The Skagit Valley business community plays a huge part for the festival as well – through small and large sponsorships, free giveaways during our gala raffle and 30 Days of April, and by hosting festival events and activities. In addition, we have an active and vital Board of Directors, all volunteers, who give their time and acumen to help make the festival a success. Our board comes from throughout the area and brings in people from a variety of backgrounds. The 2017 Board includes:

Officers: President Rachael Sylte, Judd & Black Appliance Vice President Greg Reed, Greg Reed Consulting goskagit.com

We are worth more than the sum of our parts!

We Respect Human Life and Work Together to Protect It, at All Stages and in All Conditions.

Join us as advocates for the sanctity of human life from conception to natural death.

Your local HUMAN LIFE affiliates:

www.facebook.com/humanlifemv Anacortes 1-425-417-8409 Sedro-Woolley 360-856-6561 Mount Vernon 360-424-6658 SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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2017 Key Bank Tulip Ambassadors

Ethan Petrick and Savannah Garcia are this year’s Tulip Ambassadors.

The Tulip Festival youth competition began as a “Little Miss Tulip” contest. Today the event

is open to all children currently attending fourth or fifth grade in Skagit County and has become a

search for “Tulip Ambassadors.”

Now open at 804 Commercial Ave, Anacortes

Your destination for island apparel.

1541025

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Two official Tulip Ambassadors are chosen each February by a five-panel judging team from the Skagit Valley Herald. The Tulip Festival organization works to make the try-outs a special occasion for the kids. “We see it as way for us to give back to our community… we are excitedly awaiting the announcement of this year’s Tulip Ambassadors,” said Tulip Festival Executive Director, Cindy Verge before the ambassadors were named.

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To generate interest in the audition, Cindy Verge and her Tulip Festival team make presentations to 800 plus children at local elementary schools from midJanuary through the end of January.

This year’s try-outs attracted about 60 local school-aged applicants; the event was held at the Cascade Mall the evening of Thursday, February 9.

Each student was asked two questions: the standard question is why he or she would like to be a Tulip Ambassador and a surprise question such as what they would like to be when they grow up or what is their favorite movie.

Once named, Tulip Ambassadors are given a variety of tasks including greeting visitors at the annual PACCAR Technical Center open house (April 8 from 11 a.m.

– 3 p.m.), appearing at local radio stations, riding in the start of the La Conner US Bank Parade (April 8 at 2 p.m.), meeting the governor and attending the Tulip Festival Gala (March 30 from 5:30 p.m. – 9 p.m.).

Overall, this is a great opportunity for students to get involved in their community and share their pride with visitors. The ambassadors will represent the Skagit Valley and the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival for an entire year.

2017 Tulip Ambassadors This year, both ambassadors hail from the Mount Vernon School District. Ethan Petrick, who attends fourth-grade at Lincoln Elementary School and Savanah Garcia, a fifth-grader who attends Jefferson Elementary School, will represent

Skagit County as this year’s Tulip Ambassadors.

Savanah came back after trying out once before; she felt that she was better prepared this year but said that she was still “…totally shocked and super happy [about being chosen].” “I want to be with everybody, and be in the parade, and make everybody’s day better,” she added.

Ethan, who is Lincoln Elementary School’s student president, saw trying out for the Tulip Ambassadorship as a step toward his future political ambitions. He added, “I just wanted to have fun…

It’s an awesome opportunity, and I thought, ‘Why not? Live your life to the fullest.’”

TULIP PHOTO ONLINE CONTEST Submit your tulip photos on goskagit.com/tulips Then get your friends & family to vote for their favorites.

Fun, fast & easy...

Selected images with the most votes will be published in the Skagit Valley Herald.

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Shoppes at Burlington

SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

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SUBMIT: MARCH 19TH-APRIL 30TH VOTE: MAY 1-15

2016 Photo Contest Winner: Michael Rauwolf

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10

$

New Club Members Receive:

FREE-PLAY

! y a d o T p U n g i S

• Delicious Dessert Selections • Complimentary Beverages • Unique Daily Menu Themes • Extensive Soup & Salad Bar

The Fun h ere!

Starts Play the best slots, and be one of our 300-plus weekly jackpot winners!

Enjoy a show in

The Pacific Showroom.

Relax in either of our two, well-appointed hotels.

C AS I N O • R ES O R T Owned by Upper Skagit Indian Tribe

theskagit.com • On I-5 at Exit 236 • 877-275-2448 Must be 21 or older with valid ID. Details at Rewards Club. Management reserves all rights.

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SKAGIT VALLEY Tulip Festival GUIDE 2017

goskagit.com