Boys were sent off to war after parties at the Arlington Heights Community Club.
Men returned from war, to open arms at the clubhouse. It’s located about five miles northeast of downtown Arlington.
The building is that sort of place where visitors may remember good or melancholy times
attending 50th anniversary parties, memorial services, Halloween dress-ups, Boy and Girl Scout meetings, playing bingo or eating spaghetti.
These buildings, these walls, can be the heart of a community.
In the early 1900s, Arlington Heights was reachable by wagon on dirt roads, club President Laura Hofmann said. When logging died down, farmers moved in to clear stumps and settle homesteads.
In 1928, the neighbors came together to form a club. It was a big hit. In 1928 and 1929, the Heights float won first place in the Arlington Fourth of July parade. Fundraisers stuffed coffers so a clubhouse could be built on an acre of donated land.
Myrtle’s Merry Mixers played at the grand opening on Feb. 15, 1930.
Member Terry Willis said that Arlington Heights is rural, mostly forested, with many 5-acre lots.
“Commuters go to Everett and Seattle,” Willis said. “They should join the club and meet their neighbors, see what’s going on.”
Members won’t be bombarded with requests to host or participate in fundraisers. They only have one each year. The annual barbecue is planned for 3 to 6 p.m. July 31 at the clubhouse, 12221 228th St. NE in Arlington.
Where else, on July 31, can you play chicken-poop bingo?
That’s the game, and there will be raffles, too.
They aim to slow cook beef over a wood-pit barbecue and serve it with baked beans, coleslaw and famous apple cake. Apparently, diners demand copies of the cake recipe.
Dinner costs $8 for adults and $4 for children.
For more information about the barbecue or membership, call Laura Hofmann at 360-403-0160 or Carol Lundberg at 360-435-6488.
One of the dinner cooks is Dennis Ingram, who has been a member for about 30 years. He said they raise money for good causes and to keep the building in repair.
It’s a busy place. The hall can be rented for birthday parties and weddings. It’s used for Zumba classes. Every year there is a Christmas and Halloween party and an Easter egg hunt.
On the wall is a photograph of the Arlington Aces with Sandy Koufax Baseball. The photograph is mounted on a plaque reading, “Thank you for our field of dreams. The most revered field in Washington State.”
The field is behind the club and is well used for Little League play. The only oil painting on the wall is of the former dam at Jim Creek.
Cable television service almost did in the Arlington Heights Community Club.
It must have been in the 1970s, members said, when it became intriguing to sit home and watch groovy channels on the tube.
Thanks to a couple of stalwarts, membership came back around. Not way around. The club only has about 16 members these days. The door is always open for growth and the dues are $20 per year for a family.
Gloria and Les Abbenhouse moved to Arlington Heights from Bellevue and joined the club in the late 1970s.
“We built our home,” Gloria Abbenhouse said. “A neighbor came by to say he could help and he took us under his wing. His wife had us over to dinner.”
Their reason for settling in Arlington is cute. When they looked for retirement property, Les Abbenhouse carried a shovel in the trunk of his car.
“We picked Arlington because there were no rocks in the garden,” she said.
Gloria Abbenhouse said the club was highly recommended to them.
“It’s a way to stay in communication and celebrate events,” she said. “We like the Halloween parties and dances.”
At potlucks, she brings yellow beets or onion casseroles.
Her husband has a fond memory of the clubhouse.
“We used to vote here,” Les Abbenhouse said. “It gave us a sense of community.”
Rental manager Carol Lundberg, an Arlington native, said money gleaned from renting the building helps fund scholarships, baskets for the needy and food bank donations.
“We are a Red Cross distribution place,” she said. “This is a slice of Americana you don’t find in big communities.”
Back in the day, they had a hospital bed to loan.
“The club is reminiscent of a bygone age,” Terry Willis said, “one of the last vestiges of how things used to be.”
Kristi O’Harran: 425-339-3451; oharran@heraldnet.com.
Barbeque
The annual Arlington Heights Community Club barbecue is planned for 3 to 6 p.m. July 31 at 12221 228th St. NE in Arlington. On the menu is slow cooked beef over a wood pit barbecue, baked beans, coleslaw and apple cake. Play chicken poop bingo and raffles. Dinner is $8 for adults and $4 for children.
For more information, call Laura Hofmann at 360-403-0160 or Carol Lundberg at 360-435-6488.
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