2024 has been a busy year at BAAY! Since January, we’ve produced 15 different shows, offered more than 40 skills-based classes, and served over 1,500 students at our downtown theatre, in outdoor arts summer camps, and through BAAY’s EduArts after-school enrichment programs in local schools. In addition to all this public-facing activity, we’ve been working behind the scenes to strengthen our organization internally. This year, we developed BAAY’s first strategic plan, negotiated a new lease, welcomed new staff members, nurtured critical partnerships with local businesses and community groups, and hosted fabulous fun(d)raising events. Many thanks to our wonderful community for all you do to help keep BAAY alive and thriving! Keep reading for more details on each of these growth moments for BAAY and to learn how you can help us set the stage for success in 2025.
Strategic Plan
In February, BAAY staff and board members participated in a facilitated strategic planning process to chart a course for the organization’s future. Led by our friend Ginny Lang of Lang Consulting, the process culminated in a high-level vision summary that identified priorities for decision-making over the next three years. The next step is for staff to flesh out an Operations & Program Plan based on the summary document. Click here to view BAAY’s Strategic Plan!
Building Update
As many of you know, BAAY’s aging-but-beloved building was sold in the summer of 2023, a surprise development that sparked a flurry of conversation, speculation, and concern as we faced the possibility that we might be forced to relocate on short notice. The dust has settled and we are pleased to report that, in July, we signed a new 4-year lease at 1059 N State St. BAAY’s tenancy is secure through at least July 2028. However, the curiosity about whether a different space might better serve BAAY’s growing needs has remained. If you have a vacant warehouse to spare, we’d love to know about it 😉 Meanwhile, stay tuned for more info about this important topic as we explore our options.
Email our Executive Director at director@baay.org if you’d like to join the conversation regarding BAAY’s facility future.
New Staff Members
Mikyn Sygitowicz
Anna Evans
2024 saw continued evolution of BAAY’s staff. In the spring, we bid a fond farewell to Mikyn Sygitowicz, BAAY’s first-ever Development Director. Mikyn’s sunny disposition and dogged determination to land every grant out there were essential to BAAY’s survival amidst the COVID closures. In June, long-time BAAY volunteer and supporter Anna Evans stepped into the Development Director position. Anna has a deep understanding of BAAY, where we’ve been and where we can go, so we’re thrilled to have her on the team during this exciting time for the organization.
Sarah Schermer
In July, we welcomed Sarah Schermer as our new Office Manager. A dancer, musician, and fiber artist who is also blessed with strong management and leadership skills, Sarah has made herself indispensable in the BAAY office, helping our ED Juliette Machado with registration, record-keeping, and all manner of day-to-day logistics. Her warm, steady presence is like a beacon of calm in a whirlwind of activity. We’re all breathing a little easier since Sarah joined the team!
Dana Crediford
Neporina Basaraba
Our beloved Costume Director Dana Crediford celebrated her retirement in September. During her decade-long tenure at BAAY, Dana turned the barely-controlled chaos of the costume shop into a nurturing refuge for craft and connection. She was fiercely dedicated to BAAY and especially to the students who found their way to the second floor and joined the rarefied ranks of her costuming crew. Who better to replace her than a student she personally mentored?
Neporina Basaraba first came to BAAY as a teenager in 2014. She proved herself so capable with the art of costuming that she worked as Dana’s assistant while she was still in high school. Since then she’s gained a wide range of skills as a Wilderness First Responder and outdoor educator, a preschool teacher and administrator, and a mentor for at-risk teens. At the same time, she’s continued to develop her costuming chops as a member of the Wardrobe Union in Seattle. We’re delighted that Neporina has come back to the place where she started, and we’re excited to see how she’ll put her own unique stamp on BAAY’s Costume Program. Pop upstairs and say hello!
Click here to learn more about BAAY’s staff!
Business and Community Support
Each year, revenue from tuition and ticket sales covers about 70% of BAAY’s overall operating expenses, including requests for financial assistance. BAAY depends on grants and donations to make up the difference. This year, we are deeply grateful to have received major support from a variety of businesses and community groups, especially the following:
WECU — We’re honored to have been selected as a recipient of WECU’s 2024-2025 Education First Grant, which will provide unrestricted funding for operating expenses over the course of two years. Thank you, WECU, for your incredible support of our work and our entire community! For more information about our fellow Education First recipients and WECU’s commitment to local nonprofits, visit wecu.com/educationfirst.
FHLB of Des Moines — Sometimes, it’s not what you know, it’s who you know. In this case, WECU’s association with the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines, Iowa, has made magic for us here in Bellingham, Washington. Through FHLB’s Member Impact Fund, WECU was able to obtain matching funds that will amplify their 2024 Education First dispersal by a factor of three. We are beyond grateful for the opportunity presented by a grant of this magnitude, and we’re working with BAAY’s Board of Directors to ensure that we steward these funds in a way that maximizes their positive impact. Thank you, FHLB, Des Moines! Click here to learn more.
Peoples Bank — The people have spoken! In September, Peoples Bank asked the public to choose from among ten nominees to receive the 2024 Peoples Choice Grant, and you chose BAAY! This project-based grant will help fund a much-needed upgrade to BAAY’s well-used stage. Thank you Peoples Bank for your generous support, and thank you to everyone who voted for BAAY! Click here to read more about the Peoples Choice Grant.
100 Girls of Whatcom — We’re so impressed by these young leaders who are determined to make a positive difference in their world. It’s great to know the future is in such capable, generous hands. And we’re grateful that they chose to support BAAY with their fall 2024 donation. Thank you 100 Girls of Whatcom! For more info about this terrific group of students and the women who serve as their model, click here to read an article from Cascadia Daily News. If you’d like to join 100 GOW or know someone who might be interested, the registration form can be found at this link.
Thanks also to the Whatcom Community Foundation Nonprofit Wellness Fund, the ArtsWA Arts in Education Project, and the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation Community Accelerator Program. We are so grateful for the support that helps make our work possible!
Fun(d)raising Events
Summer Bash – On June 30, we kicked off the summer season with a fun-filled party down the street from BAAY in the courtyard at Time & Materials. It was a great time to hang out with friends, play games, watch performances, and celebrate the joyous, goofy, creative spirit of the greater BAAY community. We’ll never forget the hilarious skit about “The BAAY Office,” where students did spot-on impressions of staff members – complete with a croc-clad chorus of mini-Lisas! Kudos to our amazing Special Events Committee volunteers, who worked hard to make the day a success. And thanks to all who attended, donated, and bought drinks, merch, and raffle tickets. BAAY raised over $9000 that day for student scholarships thanks to you!
Shout out to our generous hosts from Time & Materials, and to Bellinghome School of Music for organizing wonderful student performances!
Nightmare on Maple – Bellingham’s spookiest extravaganza was raised from the dead for its 9th year this October. Complete with the iconic “Haunted Fear Garden” at Boundary Bay Brewery and a troupe of decidedly un-dead Zombie Dancers performing at BAAY. The event ran for three nights and grossed over $16,000! Many thanks to our fearless Fear Garden build crew whose technical wizardry reached new heights, and to our awesome volunteers who braved the cold and excitable crowds to make sure everything ran smoothly. Thanks also to the Bellingham Bay Rotary Club, whose members showed up to help with strike.
And of course thanks to our friends at Boundary Bay, for providing the space and the great community spirit that have helped make this event a Bellingham tradition. As you may have heard, Boundary Bay’s owners have decided to close the business when they retire next September. We’re in conversation about what that might mean for BAAY’s Halloween going forward. Stay tuned! Meanwhile, we wish Ed and Janet and the whole crew at Boundary all the best as they look to a new chapter.
Help us set the stage for 2025 ♥︎
As demand for BAAY programs continues to grow, we’re working to expand our capacity by:
- adding new programs
- growing our staff
- maximizing the use of our space
- partnering with other organizations
BAAY is committed to including any child who wants to participate. Last year, we awarded over $68,000 in tuition waivers and discounts, and we expect the need for financial aid to be similar in 2025. We are honored to engage in this work, enriching the lives of children in our community in countless ways. But we can’t do it without your support. This holiday season, please consider a donation to support BAAY’s work – help us set the stage for success in 2025!
Make a gift today