TOMORROW!JeffCo
REPAIR EVENT

Port Townsend
Repair Event

Saturday, March 2

10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Quimper Grange, Port Townsend

Join us for this free community gathering in which people with repair skills share their time and talents to fix their neighbors’ belongings. Bring your toaster that no longer toasts, sweater with a hole in the elbow, and excitement to get these belongings repaired while also learning how they did it and ways you could do it yourself next time!

At this Port Townsend Repair Event, we will have volunteers helping with:

• • • • small appliances/electronics
      • sewing/knitting
      • tool sharpening
      • bicycle repair
      • simple jewelry
      • plastic repair with PT Potential
      • and other household items.
        
        

Limits apply - please click below to learn more:

UPCOMING IN-PERSON REPAIR EVENTS:

Port Hadlock Repair Event

Saturday, May 25

10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Jefferson County Public Library, Port Hadlock

Quilcene Repair Event

Saturday, April 27

10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Quilcene Community Center, Quilcene

What are
repair events?

Repair Events are free community gatherings where individuals can bring their broken belongings to be repaired by local volunteers with a variety of skills and knowledge. Our crew of volunteers can do repairs ranging from rewiring a floor lamp or figuring out why the suction on your vacuum has suddenly stopped to mending a torn fabric item.

These events spark connections within the community through the exchange of valuable mending and repair knowledge – all while diverting personal possessions from the landfill! 

2024 SUMMER CAMPS

Camp registration NOW OPEN!

Join us for a wet, sandy, adventurous, fun-filled week! Campers will spend their days exploring beaches, uncovering treasures hidden in our exhibits, playing games, making crafts, and hiking through beautiful Fort Worden State Park, all while learning to be stewards of the marine environment. Older campers take their marine biology skills to the next level through hands-on activities and scientific investigation. Camps are offered for ages 6 - 14.

Find all the summer camp dates and details on our website at ptmsc.org/summer-camps. Emails camps@ptmsc.org with any questions.

We look forward to seeing your camper this summer!

Birdwatching Cruises
NOW OPEN

Birdwatching cruises with Puget Sound Express are on the website!

There are more dates than ever for Migration and Puffin Cruises.

Visit ptmsc.org/birdwatching-cruises for all the cruise information.

 

The cruises go around either Protection Island, part of the Protection Island Aquatic Reserve, or Smith Island, part of the Smith and Minor Islands Aquatic Reserve. It is at the captain's discretion.

 

Nearly 70 percent of the nesting seabird population of Puget Sound and the Straits nest at these two islands, just outside of Port Townsend, including one of the largest nesting colonies of rhinoceros auklets in the world, as well as the largest nesting colony of glaucous-winged gulls in Washington. Protection Island contains one of the last 2 nesting colonies of tufted puffins in the Puget Sound area. About 1,000 harbor seals rely upon the island for a pupping and rest area.

 

These cruises are hosted by seasoned PTMSC naturalists and interpreters, who provide excellent commentary on the natural history of the island and the birds and wildlife sighted. Sign up for a cruise today!

 

CRUISES INFO/SIGN-UP

 

photo credit Robin Corcoran / USFWS

EXTENDED! FOSSIL LAB

An interpreted workshop experience highlighting PTMSC’s fossil collections

This exhibit will be at the Gallery through March 2024

Gallery in Flagship Landing

1001 Water Street

Friday – Sunday, 12 – 3 p.m.

There is no admission fee, though donations are always appreciated.

Fossil specimens, interpretive panels, and hands-on activities, focusing on the PTMSC’s modest but fascinating fossil collection. The exhibit specimens and text panels are augmented by a work area in the center of the room where volunteers from PTMSC and Quimper Geological Society will share some of the techniques of collections care and what can be learned from looking at fossils.

PTMSC is known in part for its aquarium and natural history museum at Fort Worden State Park, but did you also know we have fossils too? Over the decades and through generous donations and loans, we have built and stewarded a modest collection of specimens, replicas, and objects that help us better understand – and be inspired by – the deep history of the Salish Sea region.

Enjoy these remarkable glimpses far back in time, and join us in this gallery experiment, where we work on and imagine PTMSC’s future together.

The Mysterious World of Plankton: 

Cascading Migrations in a Fertile Fjord

Presented by

Dr. Stephen Bollens
and
Dr. Gretchen Rollwagen-Bollens
WSU School of the Environment

Sunday, April 14 @ 3 p.m.

Fort Worden Chapel

We are excited for this event!
Check out next month's Octopress for more details.

To keep this lecture series accessible to all, regardless of the ability to pay, there is no set charge for these lecture events; however, donations are always welcomed and appreciated.

Thanks to the Darrow Family for their ongoing support

NAM SIU LECTURE
ON YOUTUBE

Watch the video here. 

NATURE NOW PODCAST

Check out Nature Now on KPTZ or subscribe in your podcast app!

Access more than 100 past and current episodes including PTMSC's Future of Oceans series lecturers!

VOLUNTEERS POWER PTMSC

Outstanding!

For a relatively small organization, the Port Townsend Marine Science Center is able to maximize its impact to inspire conservation of the Salish Sea thanks in no small part to the efforts of our dedicated cadre of volunteers.

In 2023, over 125 volunteers recorded 9,180 hours of time, expertise and talent to the organization. According to the Independent Sector, a nonprofit advocacy group, the time given to an organization by a volunteer is worth $31.80 per hour. If one does the math, that pencils out to $291,924 worth of impact to our organization.

Learn more about how our volunteers made our mission great in 2023!

LEGACY GIVING

photo by David Conklin

Legacy giving is for everybody.

It is a way to express one’s values and care for the Salish Sea for the long term.

Leaving a gift in your will has many benefits:

• • • tax advantages

    • does not affect daily cash flow

    • allows for a larger gift

    • makes a lasting impact

    • leaves a legacy for the next generation

    • anyone can do it!

Read past issues of The Legacy Bulletin for stories of impact through legacy giving as well as legacy planning tips.

December 2023
September 2023

PTMSC GIFT CARDS

PTMSC gift cards are now available!
Purchase gift cards for your family and friends, in any amount you choose, ($5 minimum.) Gift cards are available in the Museum gift shop and the downtown Store. Once redeemed, they can be refilled, or turned in at either location to be used as an algae scraper in the Aquarium! 

Donate Your Vehicle 

through C.A.R.S. and help out PTMSC!

Ready to get rid of an old car while supporting a cleaner planet?
We here at the Port Townsend Marine Science Center make charitable car donation so easy! 
It also feels better when you support the cause you love

Donate today at our C.A.R.S. page 
or call (855) 500-RIDE or (855) 500-7433 

EXHIBIT HOURS

Support our mission to inspire conservation of the Salish Sea.