KSQM is pleased to welcome veteran broadcaster Al Brady to the all-volunteer staff of our radio station.  With 45 years of professional radio experience, Brady has agreed to accept the position of Program Director to lead programming for Sequim’s community radio station.

Brady’s extensive experience brings a background in programming, on-air performance, and community engagement. He recently relocated to Sequim after nearly a decade serving as Assistant Manager and Program Director at WVLG in The Villages, Florida.

Brady says joining KSQM is both a thrill and an honor.

He calls local radio a vital link to the community — a way to be there when listeners need it most — while sharing the timeless music people remember and love.

Often described as a walking encyclopedia of the rock ’n’ roll era, Brady has worked alongside legendary artists and broadcasters. In the mid-1980s, he served as a DJ and master of ceremonies at Little Darlin’s Rock ’n’ Roll Palace near Walt Disney World, where he co-hosted a nationally televised show with Hall of Fame broadcaster Wolfman Jack.

George Dooley, President of Sequim Community Broadcasting, says Brady brings passion, knowledge, and a genuine love of radio. Dooley says Brady’s leadership will strengthen the station’s mission and enrich the listening experience across the community.

KSQM first signed on the air December 7th, 2008. Broadcasting at 91-point-5 FM, the station is licensed to Sequim Community Broadcasting, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Operated entirely by volunteers, KSQM provides commercial-free programming throughout the greater Olympic Peninsula and Victoria, B.C., featuring local news, emergency information, timeless music, and community-driven programs and shows.

Brady will stepping in to fill the shoes of Tama Bankston who has been serving as interim Program Director for the past year.

The Sequim Food Bank has named its new executive director. She’s Jen Colmore who has been serving as the food bank's community engagement coordinator. The announcement comes after a nationwide search led by the board of directors and outgoing executive director Andra Smith.

Board president Deon Kapitan says Colmore stood out for her vision, compassion and practical leadership, noting her deep understanding of the organization and her long record of service to the community. In her role as community engagement coordinator she has strengthened donor relationships, expanded partnerships and helped shape organizational strategy.

She first joined the food bank as a volunteer and later led its first annual fundraiser “Everyone at the Table” which brought in more than $70,000.

Beyond her local work Colmore brings decades of non-profit leadership. Since 2005 she has served as Executive Director of Living Compassion. That’s a development initiative in Zambia supporting more than a thousand children and families.

Outgoing Executive Director Andra Smith says the organization is in excellent hands, praising Colmore’s clarity, steadiness and respect for the people the food bank serves.

PHOTO: Sequim Food Bank

The Sequim City Council has elected Rachel Anderson as Mayor and Nicole Hartman as Deputy Mayor at the City Council meeting on January 12.  Both are two-year terms that expire on December 31, 2027. 

Anderson was appointed to the City Council in February 2021, elected in November 2021, and re-elected in 2025. She currently serves on the Clallam Transit System Board, the Peninsula Regional Transportation Planning Organization, the Housing Solutions Committee, the Council Finance Committee, the Clallam County Economic Development Council, Clallam County Solid Waste Advisory Board, and as the liaison to the Sister City Association and the Sequim Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce. 

Anderson earned her Advanced Certificate of Municipal Leadership from the Association of Washington Cities in 2021.

Hartman was appointed to the City Council in April 2024. She was elected to a four-year term in November 2025.  Hartman serves on the Council Finance Committee and as the Sequim Planning Commission liaison.

PHOTO: City of Sequim

The City of Sequim will be hosting the city’s first ever community talent show and competition during the upcoming 2026 Sequim Sunshine Festival.  Whether you sing, dance, juggle, or dazzle in your own way, step into the spotlight at our first-ever community talent show on March 7! Amateur performers of all ages are welcome. Auditions are on Saturday, January 24, at the Guy Cole Center. All auditionees must submit an application by Monday, January 19. 

Shine On, Sequim! will be an amateur talent competition that will be held on Saturday, March 7, from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. during the Sequim Sunshine Festival.  It’s an opportunity to watch your friends and neighbors and vote for your favorite performers.

Selected acts will perform live on the festival stage inside a heated tent.  Audience members will vote for their favorite youth and adult performances, with prizes awarded.

• All auditionees MUST register in advance.
• Walk-ins will NOT be accepted.
• You may NOT just show up to audition.
•  

 Audition applications must be submitted by Sunday, January 12, 2026, to be considered.  Audition times will be assigned to applicants.

Who Can Audition?

• Youth and adults
• Solo or group acts
• Amateur performer only (must not earn income from performing)
• Acts must be appropriate for a family audience
• 
  

Selection Process

• Eligible auditionees will be randomly selected within the youth and adult categories
• Selected acts will perform at the Sequim Sunshine Festival on March 7

The Makah Tribe’s long-awaited return to traditional whaling has been pushed back yet again — this time by more federal delays, according to a report by KNKX radio.

Despite securing a key federal waiver last year affirming their exclusive treaty right to hunt gray whales, the NOAA permit needed to begin a hunt is now unlikely for at least another 18 months.

The tribe applied for that permit in March, expecting quick approval after more than 20 years of review. But this summer’s hunting window came and went with no decision from NOAA.

Makah Chairman Timothy Greene says the tribe is determined to get back on the water, calling the hunt vital for future generations to see their culture in practice.

NOAA officials say only that the Marine Mammal Protection Act requires both a waiver and a detailed permit before any whale hunt can begin. The Makah application outlines proposed seasons in 2025 and 2027 and complies with strict federal criteria on methods, safety, and whale-management limits.

The waiver allows the tribe to take up to 25 gray whales over 10 years.
Some observers, including UW professor Joshua Reid, argue the continued delays amount to the federal government bogging down treaty rights through bureaucracy.

Archaeological evidence indicates that the Makah people have hunted whales going back at least 2,000 years.

Continuing the traditional whaling practices is at the heart of Makah citizens' identity, spiritual beliefs, subsistence practices, and ceremonies. Makah ceremonies, songs, dances, art, basketry and traditions are all connected to their whale relatives. Makah citizens are deeply spiritually and ecologically connected to the whales and the ocean — not just hunters, but stewards of the whales in a reciprocal relationship that is honored through ceremony before the whale is hunted and before it is harvested.

PHOTO: Makah Tribe website

The Port Angeles Winter Ice Village is set to return for its eighth season later this month.

The popular downtown skating rink opens Friday, November 21st, and will run daily through Sunday, January 5th.

Located at 121 West First Street, the temporary rink offers skating from noon to 9 p.m. each day, with short breaks for ice resurfacing at 3 and 6.

Admission includes skate rental—$20 for adults, $15 for teens, and $10 for kids ages 3 to 12, seniors, and active military. There’s also a $3 discount for anyone bringing their own skates. Season passes are available for $200, but children under 3 aren’t allowed on the ice.

All skaters must complete a one-time online waiver before lacing up. The link is available through the website of the Port Angeles Chamber of Commerce.

Organizers say the Winter Ice Village relies on volunteers to help with skates, safety, ice maintenance, and concessions. Volunteers receive free skate time and other perks—and the Chamber says there are still plenty of shifts to fill.

IMAGE: AI Generated

Clallam PUD has received a 60-thousand dollar grant from the American Public Power Administration to purchase up to 50 portable batteries that can stay charged by solar power. PUD Communications Director Nicole Hartman says they will first be available to customers living in the west end of the county who are dependent on life saving medical devices that can be life-threatening without them in the event of an extended power outage.

“The west end customers are the ones who really experience prolonged outages in the case of BPA lines going down because there’s no redundant line out there.  So we applied for a grant from the American Public Power Association to purchase 50 of these battery units. They come with solar panels so that they can be recharged.  In that way people who low income dependent on a medical device – life saving medical device – can apply through our low-income assistance program to qualify and receive one of these batteries and solar panel units. And the nice thing is because they are electric, you plug them in and you charge them up to 100 percent and then you can use the solar panels to keep them charged.”

If there any units left over after the application process, she says they may try to see if the can get permission to have the remainder go to anybody else in the county who may need one.

“We did have to purchase five that were a bit larger capacity for people who maybe had a larger device that was going to draw more power than the little one could handle. So, we tried to size them to the person’s medical equipment. And this could be anything from an oxygen concentrator to if somebody needed a mini refrigerator to store medication that needed to be refrigerated.”

Interested applicants can check on line for more information and determine if they qualify at www.clallapud.net/medical-equipment-backup-program/

IMAGE:  AI generated

The popular Twilight film saga that turned Forks, Port Angeles and the North Olympic Peninsula into a popular tourist destination 17 years ago returned to the big screen this week.  The 2008 film is playing for a limited run in theaters across the nation through November 6, according to the film’s distributor Fathom Events.

The movie — starring Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson — follows a teenager who moves to Forks and falls in love with a mysterious classmate who turns out to be a vampire.

The story helped turn Forks and Port Angeles and the surrounding forest areas that inspired the film’s moody, rain-soaked atmosphere into major tourist destinations for fans of the series.

Fathom Events says the re-release is part of its special-event lineup, bringing popular and classic films back to theaters for limited runs.

It’ll be interesting to see if the film’s re-release could spur any kind of growth as a tourist destination once again for Forks and the Olympic Peninsula.\

IMAGE:AI generated

A Boil Water Advisory for a portion of the Evergreen Water System for residents on the southwest side of Bell Hill has been lifted.  Clallam PUD Communications Director Nichole Hartman says the advisory was cancelled Thursday morning October 30 after the Clallam County Water Lab reported tests came back satisfactorily.  

The PUD notified customers Wednesday of the advisory through automated phone calls.  She says the advisory was issued out of an abundance of caution after an extensive water-main break Tuesday night, causing the system in some areas to de-pressurize.  Because of that a cautionary boil water advisory was issued for customers in the affected after until lab test results could confirm the water was safe to drink again.