Knowledge Bowl pulls the community together for the schools
Published 1:30 am Monday, March 9, 2026
Supporting schools through laughter and learning is why the San Juan Schools Foundation’s annual Knowledge Bowl has been a popular fundraiser for decades. The March 4 event did not disappoint, beginning with the Friday Harbor Jazz Band playing as the Community Theatre filled.
Before the competition began, High school Principal Andrea Hillman gave appreciation to the Public Schools Foundation, and citing examples of their impact, said, “FHHS graduates, after all the marine biology education they received K-12 in partnership with the Friday Harbor Marine Labs, have the equivalent formation as a first-year college-level marine biology student gets in their first year. That partnership is funded by the Public Schools Foundation.”
The Foundation is a nonprofit that provides services outside the school district’s budget. For example, the district is one of the few school districts that offer art at all grade levels, K-12, and the Foundation assists with supplies at all grade levels. The Foundation also funds an everyday math curriculum for the elementary school, anatomy and physiology livestream for the high school, special education equipment, physical education needs, AP materials, the list goes on.
Elementary School Special Education teacher Matt Wight explained to the audience that special education equipment is not cheap, and yet, “in the five years I have been here, the Foundation has never turned me down for my requests.”
The participating service clubs included the Lions; AJ Tokunaga, Jim Carroll, Kim and Bruce Galton, the Kiwanis; Beth Eden, Doug Popham, Nancy Fusare and Ben Hempstead, the Soroptimist; Eileen Frazer, Laura Jo Severson, Kathleen Moss and Lynn Weatherill and Rotary; TJ Heller, Juan Unpingco, Michael Martin and Mark Hampton.
The 11th and 12th grader team, sponsored by Kings Market, was Ella Cohen, Brennan Schuh, Finn Graham and Flora Vaught. The ninth and 10th grade team, sponsored by Brownes/Harbor Rental, was Lucian Axling, Flora Garner, Flora Compson and Jasper Mahn. The eighth-grade team, sponsored by Luxel, was Roy Primus, Victor Rovente, Annabelle Fredy and Jodie Wehner.
Emcees this year were high school students Alison Power and Liam DeYoung. They had big shoes to fill after last year’s emcee Mason Turnage, and they filled them well, cracking jokes and keeping teams’ and audiences’ energy high.
The first round of 20 questions was sponsored by The Rec. The teams that guessed these questions correctly were awarded one point. They were an assortment of history, literature, science and pop culture, like: What purchase doubled the nation’s size in 1803? The Louisiana Purchase. Which artist painted the Persistence of Memory, known for its melting clocks? Salvador Dali. What was the name of Odysseus’ home island? Ithaca.
After the 20-question round, a brief intermission gave attendees one more chance to further support the Foundation by buying baked goods or raffle tickets.
After the break, raffle tickets were drawn. Raffle and Knowledge Bowl winner prizes were provided by Roche Harbor Resort, San Juan Golf and Tennis Club, The Rec, San Juan Island Brewing Co., Pebble, Vic’s Drive in, Golden Triangle, Downriggers, Stephani Buffum (Coldwell Banker Bain) and Spring Street Deli. The San Juan Public Schools Foundation also thanked all of its business partners.
Round two, sponsored by Roche Harbor Resort, included 10 questions of varying difficulty. Which Secretary of the Treasury was killed in a duel with Aaron Burr? Alexander Hamilton. What disease is caused by a Vitamin C deficiency? Scurvy. If you multiply every number on a roulette wheel, what is the result? Zero. That is correct, zero.
Before the final question, the audience chose their favorite costume — Lions were dressed in their Lions gear, Kiwanis dressed as Pig War era islanders, Soroptimist dressed in green, Rotary dressed in blue, 11th and 12th graders dressed as steam punk mechanics, ninth and 10th graders were professors, and the eighth graders dressed in orange, after the middle school mascot, the Tigers. The audience broke out in loud cheers for the eighth graders, making them the winners for several years in a row.
The final question, sponsored by San Juan Prortables, gave the teams an opportunity to “bet” some or all of their winning points if they got it correct.
“The largest ferry system in the nation is the Washington State Ferries. What was the total ridership in 2025?” It was a multiple-choice question, ranging from millions to billions. The answer was 20.1 million. Soroptimist was one of the few that answered the question correctly, and having bet all their points, made them the Knowledge Bowl Champs for 2026.
The Knowledge Bowl event raised approximately $7,000 for the non-profit. Beyond the financial support, middle school Principal Rod Turnbull, after sharing the impacts the Foundation has had, said: “Knowing we have members of the community saying good things about the work we do [is priceless].”
