News Blog

The Fort Vancouver National Trust is excited to announce that the 2013 Dancing with the Local Stars will kick-off on April 30! Due to its popularity, this year the Trust has extended the number of dancers from eight to ten community members. The dancers include City councilman, Bart Hansen; social media strategist, Jane Cook; owner of Main Distinction, consultant and co-host of the Vancouver Side, Jim Mains; owner of Smokey’s Pizza, Dellan Redjou; president of the SW Washington Labor Council, Shannon A. Walker; administrator of the Congregation Kol Ami synagogue, Amy Horn; executive director of Gifts for Our Community/Divine Consign, Linda Glover; audiologist, Amit Gosalia; personal trainer at NW Personal Training, Rob Cloke; and investment advisor for Columbia Credit Union, Robert Stewart. Each dancer has been paired with a dance instructor and will receive complimentary dance lessons from Arthur Murray Dance Studios. The star who raises the most money is declared the winner, thus the community is encouraged to “vote” with their dollars for their favorite dancer. Last year’s champion was Ed Barnes, chair of IBEW 48, who raised over $25,000. Donations are accepted online, by mailing a check to the Trust, or by donating at the event.

Not only has the event made changes in the number of dancers this year, but it also debuts at its new venue: the Vancouver Hilton, made possible through the Hilton’s Community Event program. Come support your favorite dancer on September 7! As the largest fundraising event for the Fort Vancouver National Trust, Dancing with the Local Stars raises approximately $115,000 annually to fund vital educational and celebrate freedom programs at the Fort Vancouver National Site.

The Hilton is located at 301 West 6^th Street, Vancouver, Washington. The event is from 6 to 11 p.m. Doors open at 5 p.m.

The Trust’s $16 million campaign to acquire and renovate the Academy building, and develop its seven acres of grounds, has created tremendous interest and excitement. In addition to support from our community, contributions have been made by donors from Alaska to California with an understanding of the significance of this property as key to Vancouver’s economic development; to preserve the region’s most historic and iconic structure; in recognition of the magnitude of Mother Joseph’s contributions to Washington State and the entire Northwest; because of a personal or spiritual connection to the site; or all of the above.

Among the groups that have embraced this campaign, we have been pleased to connect with Academy alumni, who are reaching out to their former classmates. Additionally, Providence Health and Systems, founded through the work of Mother Joseph and her fellow Sisters of Providence, have launched a campaign among their nearly 70,000 staff members.

Although we have been heartened by such response, there is real urgency in meeting our goal due to our unusually short timeframe. In order to guarantee the property so that the Trust could proceed with our effort, the Hidden brothers, who have been great stewards of the Academy for over 43-years, have generously agreed to keep the property off the market. We have through March 2013 to execute the purchase of $10.6 million. This is in addition to the Hiddens’ willingness to reduce their asking price for the Academy and its prime downtown location by $2.3 million because they are pleased that the Trust will continue to preserve and honor the legacy of this site. The balance of our campaign goal is to fund major building upgrades.

We are very lucky and grateful for the wonderful staff we have at the Trust and we are pleased to announce a new addition.

Jennifer Hawks, a Vancouver native, joins the Trust as Annual Giving Manager. Ms. Hawks most recently worked at Legacy Health, where she served as a research and prospect management analyst. Prior to her tenure at Legacy, Ms. Hawks served as both research and prospect management analyst and development coordinator for principal gifts for the Oregon Health and Science University Foundation and adjunct lecturer of international humanitarian law at Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Washington.

Before embarking on a career in development, Ms. Hawks focused her work on diplomacy and international law. She spent three years working for the Australian Embassy in The Hague, The Netherlands, as a member of the diplomatic corps, where she served as executive assistant, events coordinator, and public relations officer for the ambassador. Ms. Hawks holds a bachelor of arts degree in anthropology from Portland State University and a master of arts degree in international relations, as well as a doctorandus (European master’s degree) in international law, from Webster University in Leiden, The Netherlands. She is a graduate of Fort Vancouver High School. Ms. Hawks has lived in Norway, Sweden, and The Netherlands and speaks fluent Dutch.

It’s difficult to imagine the Vancouver skyline without the Academy cupola, and what it represents. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Academy is an iconic symbol of Vancouver’s heritage. The building once known as Providence Academy is still regarded as a cornerstone of the Providence Healthcare System’s mission.

The Academy was built in 1873 by Mother Joseph, a Sister of Providence in the Catholic Church. Mother Joseph was a woman of extraordinary compassion, creativity, skill, vision and deep faith who traveled to the West with the aim of filling the unmet needs of people on the frontier. She arrived in Vancouver, Washington from Montreal, Canada in 1856, along with four other sisters to establish an order in the Northwest. Under Mother Joseph’s leadership, more than 30 hospitals, schools and homes were opened for orphans, the elderly and the sick in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and southern British Columbia.

The Academy, Mother Joseph, and the Sisters of Providence are inexorably tied to the Fort Vancouver National Site and the city of Vancouver. Accordingly, the preservation of the Academy is of paramount importance as part of the Fort Vancouver story and its place in Northwest history.

There are times when an exceptional opportunity arises for an organization that not only contributes significantly to its mission, but also provides tremendous community benefit. The Trust's agreement with the Hidden brothers to acquire the Academy is clearly such a circumstance.

There is no more important historic structure in the region, if not the Northwest, and the connection between the Fort Vancouver National Site, Mother Joseph and the Academy is deeply intertwined. Accordingly, while our campaign to raise $16 million in a year for the acquisition and restoration of the Academy is ambitious, the importance of the undertaking is undeniable.

With the Trust's extensive experience in managing, restoring and preserving the historic buildings on Officers Row and in the West Barracks, we are uniquely suited to incorporate the Academy in our operations. Based on the Trust's record of sustainable property management and development, we know that the Academy's future will be well secured.