A Personal Message from the Director |
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I was talking to a friend the other day. We both are football fans. We were lamenting the fact that there is only one more NFL game until September. “At least you love baseball, what do I have?” I have thought about that a lot. I do have baseball. It signals spring to me more than leaves on the trees. As I sit here looking out at a cold, rain-splattered campus I can smile a little knowing pitchers and catchers should report to Spring training this month. Some normalcy will start to return.
One of the things I marvel at in baseball is hitting the ball. I believe hitting a fast-moving round object with another round object is one of the hardest things in sports to do. I also love to think about a home run. A ball comes to the plate at up to 100mph from the pitcher. The batter hits it with an exit velocity of 90mph+ going the other way. At some point, the ball had to stop for a millisecond in between these two opposing forces. I feel like that is where Seabeck is at this moment. We are stopped for a moment before we explode in the other direction.
I wish I had more news to report. We were not included in the latest round of openings announced by the Governor. I expect we will be soon. Work has not resumed on Pines, but it will two weeks from today. The refinancing has been approved by the bank, but the final paperwork has not been completed. People are getting vaccinated, but groups are still reluctant to come. I feel like we are just on the edge of a huge resurgence. Standby for many exciting stories coming up soon.
Thank you to all who responded to our appeal letter from last year. We have raised $228, 304.88 so far! That is incredible! Thank you so much! We have also qualified for a Working Washington Grant, the second round of PPP, and are working on the new employee tax credit that should see us getting money back from the IRS! There will still be slim months ahead, but with your support and all the government programs, we are in a position to get through to the other side. THANK YOU!
We continue to host Friends of Seabeck Weekends. We are definitely hosting people any time or dates through March 10th. We will add additional days after that when we see what scheduled groups are doing and what we can host. Just email us to select a date.
We have been able to keep our full-time staff intact. We have maintained the campus and buildings and done some minor improvements. We will finish Pines this April. We will come out of this crisis uniquely ready to thrive in the new reality. It is difficult to see right now, but the future is very bright.
Thanks for everything,
Chuck
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Come Spend the Weekend at Seabeck |
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This is a great chance to come and spend a weekend at Seabeck and enjoy the quiet that comes with this time of year. We are still dealing with the pandemic restrictions but are able to have singles, couples or families come out, social distance and enjoy Seabeck.
A Weekend at Seabeck
$200 per adult/$50 per youth/child
2 Nights plus 6 Meals (meals are delivered)
Private Bath Accommodations
We will continue to host special Seabeck weekends through the winter and spring when space is available. Weekends will be scattered throughout 2021 from at least January through June. Fall 2021 dates are to be determined if possible.
Seabeck Gift Certificates
There are also gift certificates that you can purchase. It makes a great birthday, anniversary or a just because gift for anyone that loves to spend time at Seabeck.
Certificates cost $200 each and are good for a one person, two night/six meal stay at Seabeck during special weekends scheduled by Seabeck.
This certificate can also be used as credit toward the Annual Friends of Seabeck Weekends that will resume in December 2021. Your purchase of this certificate is not a tax deductible gift, but your recipient can turn the certificate into a donation and claim the tax deduction. This certificate cannot be used for credit during any other stay with any other group or event, or for Seabeck merchandise.
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The office is not open for regular hours at this time so please email us at seabeck@seabeck.org if you are interested in booking a weekend.
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February Random Acts of Kindness
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Did you know that February 17, 2021 is the official Random Acts of Kindness Day?
Here is your February Random Acts of Kindness Calendar. Make someone smile today!
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Have Fun with February National Food Days |
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February 1
Dark Chocolate Day
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Dark Chocolate is a form of chocolate containing cocoa solids and cocoa butter, without the milk or butter found in milk chocolate. Government and industry standards of what products may be labeled "Dark chocolate" vary by country and market.
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Tater tots are grated potatoes formed into small cylinders and deep-fried, often served as a side dish. The name "tater tot" is a registered trademark of the American frozen food company Ore-Ida, but is often used as a generic term. "Tater" is short for potato.
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February 3
Carrot Cake Day
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Carrot cake is cake that contains carrots mixed into the batter. Most modern carrot cake recipes have a white cream cheese frosting. Sometimes nuts such as walnuts or pecans are added into the cake batter, as well as spices such as cinnamon, ginger and ground mixed spice.
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February 4
Homemade Soup Day
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Soup is the perfect winter meal. People have been enjoying this simple yet extremely delicious dish since 20,000 B.C. Different flavors and types of soups are eaten around the world. They are also combined with other ingredients such as meats or vegetables to add more taste to them.
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February 5
Chocolate Fondue Day
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You had us at “chocolate.” But chocolate fondue is even better. Just in case you needed an excuse to indulge in some melted chocolate, you’ve got it with this holiday. National Chocolate Fondue Day is a day to get creative with your favorite sweets, and decide whether you want to share it with someone else, or keep it all to yourself.
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February 6
Frozen Yogurt Day
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You scream, I scream, we all scream for…Frozen Yogurt? Yes! Frozen yogurt is the delicious, creamy treat we all love. Yogurt was first invented over 4,000 years ago in the Middle East and India and then slowly made its way across the world over the centuries.
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February 7
Fettuccini Alfredo Day
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Fettuccine Alfredo or fettuccine al burro 'fettuccine with butter' is an Italian pasta dish of fresh fettuccine tossed with butter and Parmesan cheese. As the cheese melts, it emulsifies the liquids to form a smooth and rich sauce coating the pasta.
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February 8
Potato Lover's Day
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The potato is a root vegetable native to the Americas, a starchy tuber of the plant Solanum tuberosum, and the plant itself is a perennial in the nightshade family, Solanaceae. Wild potato species, originating in modern-day Peru, can be found throughout the Americas, from Canada to southern Chile.
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Pizza is a savory dish of Italian origin consisting of a usually round, flattened base of leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomatoes, cheese, and often various other ingredients, which is then baked at a high temperature, traditionally in a wood-fired oven. A small pizza is sometimes called a pizzetta.
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February 10
Cream Cheese Brownie Day
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No need to say any perfect excuse to treat your taste buds with the Cream Cheese Brownie. You will never resist a swirl and its delicious taste. Brownie lovers all over the nation have an official special celebration day. The heavenly combination of cream and cheese brownie will make anyone crave for more of the cream cheese brownie.
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February 11
Peppermint Patty Day
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York Peppermint Pattie is an American dark chocolate enrobed peppermint confection introduced in 1940 and currently produced by the Hershey Company. The confectionery features strongly contrasting flavors, with a particularly bitter dark chocolate surrounding a sugary center with a strong peppermint flavor.
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February 12
Plum Pudding Day
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Did you know plum pudding contains no plums? That’s because raisins were often called “plums” in 17th century Great Britain. So what does this a traditional plum or Christmas pudding actually contain? This steamed or boiled concoction features nutmeg, raisins, nuts, apples, cinnamon, and dates.
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February 13
Tortellini Day
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Tortellini is the pasta of legends. As the story goes, the Goddess Venus had come to stay at a tavern in the Italian city of Bologna. The owner, trying to spy on her through the keyhole, was only able to see her navel. He was so inspired by the sight that he rushed to his kitchen and created the navel-shaped pasta we now call tortellini.
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February 14
Cream-filled Chocolates Day
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Cream-filled chocolates are not too difficult to make. Cream-filled chocolates can be made two ways. The first way is to make ganache and fondant, roll it into a ball and then dip the fondant into chocolate. Another way is to use a mold and put melted chocolate in the mold.
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Gumdrops are a type of candy. They are brightly colored pectin-based pieces, shaped like a narrow dome, often coated in granulated sugar and having fruit and spice flavors; the latter are also known as spice drops.
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The almond is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries but widely cultivated elsewhere. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree.
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Café au lait literally means, “coffee with milk” in French. A café au lait is created using brewed coffee and steamed milk. The drink is made up of one part coffee, and one part steamed milk. Café au lait typically doesn't have foam on top, although some coffee houses do flirt with tradition by adding some.
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Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grape juice. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol, carbon dioxide, and heat. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts produce different styles of wine.
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February 19
Chocolate Mint Day
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Mint chocolate is a popular variety of flavored chocolate, made by adding a mint flavoring, such as peppermint, spearmint, or crème de menthe, to chocolate. Mint chocolate can be found in a wide variety of edible products, such as candy, mints, cookies, mint chocolate chip ice cream, hot chocolate, and others.
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Can you think of something more universally loved than muffins? The beloved muffin deserves a day of its own, and for that, we have February 20. It’s National Muffin Day! English muffins have been whipped up in kitchens as far back as a thousand years ago in Wales, and American style muffins have been around since the 18th century.
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February 21
Sticky Bun Day
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Sticky buns are a type of dessert or breakfast sweet roll that generally consist of rolled pieces of leavened dough — sometimes containing brown sugar or cinnamon — compressed together to form a kind of flat loaf corresponding to the size of the pan in which they are to be baked.
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February 22
Margarita Day
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A margarita is a cocktail consisting of tequila, orange liqueur, and lime juice often served with salt on the rim of the glass. The drink is served shaken with ice, blended with ice, or without ice.
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February 23
Banana Bread Day
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Banana bread is a type of bread made from mashed bananas. It is often a moist, sweet, cake-like quick bread; however there are some banana bread recipes that are traditional-style raised breads.
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February 24
Tortilla Chip Day
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A tortilla chip is a snack food made from corn tortillas, which are cut into triangles and then fried—or baked. Corn tortillas are made of corn, vegetable oil, salt and water.
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February 25
Clam Chowder Day
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Clam chowder is any of several chowder soups in American cuisine containing clams and broth or milk. In addition to clams, common ingredients include diced potatoes, salt pork, onions, and celery. Other vegetables are not typically used.
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February 26
Pistachio Day
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Pistachios come in many colors. Many different countries dye pistachios to make them more eye-catching. In the U.S. pistachios were dyed red to disguise imperfections in the shells and to make them stand out in vending machines. They are normally green.
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February 27
Strawberry Day
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The garden strawberry is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus Fragaria, collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely appreciated for its characteristic aroma, bright red color, juicy texture, and sweetness.
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A soufflé is a baked egg-based dish originating in France in the early eighteenth century. Combined with various other ingredients it can be served as a savory main dish or sweetened as a dessert.
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Ways to Donate to Seabeck |
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We have a desire to continue to offer our services for many years to come. Seabeck Conference Center is happy to serve people like you, and we invite you to be a part of our legacy. Your donation will help us build a new Pines (ready by Fall 2020) that will be a place for future generations to gather.
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WAYS YOU CAN SUPPORT
SEABECK CONFERENCE CENTER
Want to help us lay the foundation for the next decade of Seabeck Conference Center?
There are many ways, not all of them involving huge disbursements of cash.
Here are some creative ideas you might not have thought about:
Cash Donation Today
Tax deductible gifts via check or credit card, in person or online. Please consider
upping your regular gift by another 10 percent.
Automatic Monthly Payments
Gifts can be deducted periodically from your bank account, making larger donations
easier by spreading them over time.
Low-Cost Appreciated Stock
Avoid paying the capital gains by giving full-market value to Seabeck Conference Center.
In-Kind Donation
We are always in need of furniture, lighting, rugs, and much more - the
market value which is tax deductible.
Multi-Year Pledges
A great way to ensure support will be there when we need it year after year.
Designated Gifts
Donate to a targeted project or capital campaign.
Commemorative Gifts
Donate a bench or rocking chair in honor of someone or something important to you.
A Bequest in Your Will
Your gift can be a specific sum or a percentage of an estate after other bequests.
Just add an addendum to your existing will.
Life Insurance and Savings Accounts
Same as retirement plans, except that payments made to Seabeck Conference Center
are exempt only from estate taxes.
IRA's and Retirement Plans
Your estate receives a charitable deduction for the full gift amount on estate and income
taxes, while we receive full donation value. Non-charitable heirs receive only a part of
the value (since inherited assets are subject to estate and income taxes).
Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD)
A QCD is a direct transfer of funds from your IRA custodian, payable to a qualified charity. QCDs can be counted toward satisfying your required minimum distributions (RMDs) for the year, as long as certain rules are met. You must be 70 1/2 or older to be eligible to make a QCD.
All gifts are welcome. Seabeck Conference Center is a 501c3 nonprofit organization and your contribution may be tax deductible. If you have any questions, please contact our Executive Director, Chuck Kraining at (360) 830-5010 or email him at chuck@seabeck.org.
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Seabeck Conference Center
13395 Lagoon Dr NW
Seabeck, Washington 98380
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