Photo Credit: Rochelle Cox
The club celebrated the Holidays with its third Annual Meeting & Holiday Party on December 12, 2025 at Heritage Hall in Kirkland. Due to the availability of the hall, the party was held on a Friday evening, kicking off weekend Holiday festivities early (and a welcome way to end the workweek)!
We had about 40 attendees for the night, with pasta catering provided by Due Cucina (so fitting for a runner crowd!). Attendees were encouraged to bring an appetizer, side, drinks, or dessert to share (and there was no shortage of dessert!). Ambient Holiday music and a slideshow of highlights from the past year quietly played in the background. We had available club apparel for sale, and each attendee also received a small party favor from the club. New this year was the club raffle, with various prizes from cozy socks and beanies, to nutrition/snack packs, to water bottles and running accessories. The grand prize of the night - a $100 REI gift card - was almost left unclaimed, as the winning ticket was hidden in a special party favor bag that somehow became lost during the evening.
For the meeting portion of the night, we kicked off with thanking the membership for their continued support of the club and the 2025 Board for their time and leadership. Three members of the current 2025 Board are departing at the end of this year:
- Jordan Andersen (Secretary) - stepping down after many years in various board positions with the club
- Steven Dion (At-Large Member) - term limit end, did not re-run for another position
- Steven Hammond (At-Large Member) - term limit end, did not re-run for another position
The results of the 2026 Board Election were then announced. For the first time in club history, there were more candidates (four) running than was available for the At-Large Member positions (three). The results of the 2026 Board Election are as follows:
We recapped the major events of 2025, then gave a preview of what was in store for 2026. There were plenty of things to look forward to throughout the Holiday season and new year, both old and new: various Holiday lights runs, January's Chilly Yeti Challenge, the Bridle Trails Winter Running Festival (now during the daytime!), and a new Wednesday 6 AM club run (to officially kick off January 7). We also announced a new educational event to be hosted in late January by club member and physical therapist Matthew Wines, DPT, with more details to be provided in late December/early January.
As much as we all enjoy running, I really look forward to our club's more social events - for the opportunity to show up in non-workout attire, to talk with people while not putting in physical exertion, and to mingle with those on different life schedules. We hope everyone who attended had a fun and wonderful evening! Happy Holidays!
Photo Credit (all images above): Jordan Andersen
