Civic Center entryway celebrated with ceremony

  
By Chris Fitzgerald, KP News

 
The Key Peninsula Civic Center Association held a special dedication ceremony in January to celebrate the completion of its front entrance, and those whose contributions made it possible. President Ben Thompson welcomed Key Peninsula residents and supporting patrons, saying, “This is an exciting day for the community. We are happy to have this new front edifice.”

Celebrating the dedication of the front entrance in January are (l-r): front row, Don and Shirley Olson with great-granddaughter Kaitlyn, Ed Taylor, David Freeman of Snodgrass Freeman Associates, grant writer Kathleen Degginger, Loyd Miller; second row, Mark Roberts, Brad Cheney of the Ben B. Cheney Foundation, KPCC President Ben Thompson, Phil Bauer; back row, Jud Morris, Marty Marcus, construction contractor Tim Parish, Dale Loy and Dave Stratford. Taylor, Freeman, Marcus, Loy, Stratford and Bauer are past presidents of the Civic Center. Photo by Mindi LaRose

Past President Phil Bauer provided the impetus that prompted the project. “It was time to quit talking and get something done,” Thompson said, quoting Bauer at previous meetings, to the amusement of the crowd.

Dave Freeman, a Gig Harbor-based architect, designed the entryway and gifted the majority of his expertise to the organization. Civic Center president twice himself over the last 15 years, Freeman said, “You just can’t escape this place (the KP) — and you don’t want to. I just love it here; it’s a very special place. I am glad to have had the opportunity (to participate).” Freeman has designed structures for Camp Seymour, Fire District 16 fire stations, and the civic center master plan presented in December 2007. Freeman said there is a real need for the proposed additional 4,500-square-foot building, and indicated fund-raising would begin in spring.

General contractor Tim Parish, lifelong Gig Harbor resident and owner of Parish Construction, built the structure and contributed resources to its completion, “patiently working through several redesigns,” according to Thompson.

“I appreciate being able to build it; when you get the bid — then the work begins,” Parish said. “(I am) proud to be here.” Parish said he was involved in the civic center roof replacement that occurred several years ago, and would bid future projects.

The Ben B. Cheney Foundation, which funded the project in large part, was represented at the ceremony by president and Executive Director Brad Cheney (the son of Ben Cheney). A community token of thanks, an engraved plaque displayed at the new entryway, dedicates the project.

“We’re pleased to be here,” Cheney said. “It was a very worthwhile project — and begins with people who have the vision to create it. Congratulations to this whole community; we think highly of the area.”

In an interview with the KP News, Cheney said the foundation looks at individual projects in terms of their total budgets, and also as a partnership. “If we do our part, can the recipient do their part?” he said is one of the questions considered. Their prior experience in working with KP volunteers and civic center board on the roof replacement impressed the foundation leaders. “Volunteers make the projects happen. Without them and good leadership, (nothing gets done)… We are proud to be able to be part of this; the building resonates with us,” he said.

The foundation prefers to see two or three years between grant requests for ongoing projects such as the civic center, and spends about 50 percent of its grant budget in the Tacoma/Pierce County area. It is particularly interested in participating in grants benefiting seniors. “These are more compelling,” Cheney said, noting that they are also among the least-received requests for funding.

Kathleen Degginger, a Civic Center board member for three years and weekend resident of the KP, authored the project’s grant proposal, with assistance from Sylvia Haase. This was Degginger’s first grant-writing experience. “It was fun doing this; a real learning process for me,” she said, adding that they applied only to the Cheney foundation. With one success under her belt, Degginger has other grant applications in the works for gutters and repainting.

Citizens present at the dedication included Don and Shirley Olson, who were among the original contributors 51 years ago when local residents purchased the building and grounds from the school district. “I walked down those steps when I graduated from high school,” said Shirley, gesturing to the new entryway. Since then, through the largely volunteer efforts of many dedicated citizens and supporters, the civic center continues to be, as Cheney says, “unique, providing service for the entire community.”

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