BRIER — Every year before school gets out, the Brier parks board breaks out Barnacle Billy.
A board member dons Billy, the homemade sea-creature costume, when the group visits Brier Elementary School to promote the annual SeaScare parade.
The parade, held this year on Aug. 14, is just one of many community events in Brier that the parks board organizes.
“The parks board is a fantastic board,” Mayor Bob Colinas said last week.
The board is made up of seven valued volunteers, said city clerk and treasurer Paula Swisher.
They are Craig Harris, Joe Jonart, Ron Magnuson, Shelly Magnuson, Ken Overstreet, Brian Rodriguez and Karla Wood.
The volunteers also organize the annual tree lighting ceremony, the egg hunt and “Dog-O-Ween.” That’s on top of their role in making recommendations and suggestions for the city’s parks.
“These are the people who are putting on functions that are fun for the community,” Swisher said. “They are a hard-working group. They put their all out there. They really do.”
The parks board volunteers just jump in wherever they’re needed, said chair Ken Overstreet, 60, of Brier. They see their small town as a hidden gem, he said.
“It’s not only fun working together on a project, but when we’re done and we look at all those people coming down the parade route, all those kids at Easter, all those people who line up to sit on Santa’s lap at Christmas time, that’s all that counts,” he said. “These are the people, these are the kids of Brier.”
Colinas appoints the city’s volunteers. He reviews all volunteering inquiries and matches people to positions based on their skills and experience.
“Without the volunteers in Brier, a lot of the activities we do wouldn’t happen,” the mayor said. “It takes volunteers in every community to make the celebrations a success.”
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.
Learn more
For more information about volunteering for the city of Brier, call 425-775-5440 or email pswisher@ci.brier.wa.us.
Talk to us
- You can tell us about news and ask us about our journalism by emailing newstips@heraldnet.com or by calling 425-339-3428.
- If you have an opinion you wish to share for publication, send a letter to the editor to letters@heraldnet.com or by regular mail to The Daily Herald, Letters, P.O. Box 930, Everett, WA 98206.
- More contact information is here.
