The 2009 sell-out Knowledge Bowl was proof once more that this community is enthusiastic and involved around supporting students and education on San Juan Island!

There are a number of people to acknowledge and thank for the success of this evening.

The San Juan Public Schools Foundation would like to thank Marc Vermeire for his expertise as master of ceremonies, by keeping a fun and engaged pace throughout the Knowledge Bowl.

Thank you also to the service organizations: The Soroptimist Eagles, Rotary Nerds, Kiwanis Blues Brothers, and the winners of this year’s Knowledge Bowl, the Lions Club Wolverines. They each donated $500 toward this event.

This year’s student teams — Eighth-Grade, Ninth- and 10th-Grade, and 11th- and 12th-Grade — were on course as well as creative with their answers. The 11th- and 12th-Grade team won the costume contest this year with prizes generously donated by Café Demeter, Friday Harbor Espresso, Griffin Bay Bookstore, Palace Theater, and Rocky Bay Café.

All teams were welcomed onto the stage by the high school cheerleaders, who got the spirit going. Whidbey Island Bank and Islanders Bank once more showed their generous support by being Knowledge Bowl sponsors — thank you!

It was a pleasure to hear the amazing music of the high school Jazz Band, who did a great job of keeping us entertained throughout the evening.

Thank you to Deb Nolan, who along with Liz Covert is keeping us informed and pro-active as to the legislative action of funding basic education.

Also, thank you to Deb Taylor, who spoke to where your donations, through the San Juan Public Schools Foundation, are focused so as to provide a curriculum to promote excellence in our schools.

At Home Magazine, The Journal, San Juan Update and San Juan Islander got the word out about the Knowledge Bowl with excellent articles, which we greatly appreciated. Once more, Printonyx was generous in donating the program design and printing of the brochures.

A special thanks to the San Juan Community Theatre and volunteers for generously making their facilities available for this event year after year!

Thank you all for supporting our students and education on San Juan Island!

Pamela Williams
San Juan Public Schools Foundation