Tacoma Community
Michael Duggan
10 Ways to Give Local Love - 2024

This year we’re back with a list of 10 ways to give love in December. You’ll find our guide for local gift giving with holiday markets and some of our favorite small shops included, and 5 suggestions for giving to unknown neighbors outside your circle of friends. All 10 ways of giving put love into the Tacoma community! Read on for the magic of a musical play given by kids, a list of local cafes for coffee lovers, a gift card drive to support clients at the YWCA, a nostalgic holiday movie marathon, a way to support health and care for folks who can’t afford insurance, a chance to transform $1 into 2 meals, and the best local spots to shop for little ones.

10 Ways to Give Local Love - 2024
Tacoma Community
Michael Duggan
What's New, Tacoma? 17 New Businesses + 3 ...

There’s change in the air across Tacoma, the return of things once lost, the reopening of places once closed, the transformation of one restaurant into another, the creation of brand new places to gather, shop, eat, and drink. We’ve been experiencing this change across the city and wanted to pull some of it together in one place. What follows is a list of 17 new, renewed, and returned businesses along with 3 coming soon. See if you can enjoy and support something new this month; if you do, we’d love to hear about it!

What's New, Tacoma? 17 New Businesses + 3 Coming Soon
Tacoma Community
Michael Duggan
Tacoma Community: 15 Things to Do in October

We’ve rounded-up and narrowed-down 15 ways to get out into community this October. Don your most intellectual scarf and hat combination for a literary night, dance and eat with the Greeks, step into a candlelit tour our 1855, get psyched up about cycling (and bicycle fashion), try forest bathing, don your most eccentric scarf and hat combination for the film festival, write letters for fun, tour art studios, hear from Latinas who experience being The Firsts in so many ways, take a local art walk, and celebrate Día de los Muertos. We’ve got some ways to volunteer in here too—lend a hand with Habitat for Humanity, pick up litter, or pull weeds and plant seeds at a favorite park to keep Tacoma green.

Tacoma Community: 15 Things to Do in October
Puget Sound Day Trips
Michael Duggan
Get Out of Town: Puget Sound Day Trips

Once in a while, we all need to get out of town. This month we’re sharing about Port Townsend and Vashon Island, two places we go again and again when a change of scene is calling. They’re places where the beach is always near, where parking is easy, where woods and trails beckon us away from the sidewalks. Places where small, local bakeries, coffee roasters, independent bookstores, and one of a kind shops outnumber chains by far. We’ll share some of the ways we pass the time and how we fill our stomachs (never a problem). Don’t worry too much about planning; these destinations are so close to Tacoma, you can show up again and try what you missed. Wake up one morning and just decide to go!

Get Out of Town: Puget Sound Day Trips
Tacoma Community
Michael Duggan
Tacoma High 5 - July 2024

Tacoma High 5 is our way to nudge you (and us!) toward what we love about Tacoma. It’s a short list with a commitment to the local—it embraces the season, invites delight, encourages a spirit of exploration and some generosity as well. This month’s list includes Tacoma Pride, an all ages neighborhood music festival, a game that gets you supporting small businesses (and winning prizes), Swedish-style baked goods, and the chance to help out Habitat for Humanity or spend Friday afternoons watering trees to keep Tacoma (and its future) healthy and shaded.

  1. Community Event

  2. Sweet Treat

  3. Exploration & Adventure

  4. Local Love

  5. Volunteering & Sharing

Tacoma High 5 - July 2024

Free Tacoma Events

Tacoma Community: 15 Things to Do in October

Tacoma Community: 15 Things to Do in October

We’ve rounded-up and narrowed-down 15 ways to get out into community this October. Don your most intellectual scarf and hat combination for a literary night, dance and eat with the Greeks, step into a candlelit tour our 1855, get psyched up about cycling (and bicycle fashion), try forest bathing, don your most eccentric scarf and hat combination for the film festival, write letters for fun, tour art studios, hear from Latinas who experience being The Firsts in so many ways, take a local art walk, and celebrate Día de los Muertos. We’ve got some ways to volunteer in here too—lend a hand with Habitat for Humanity, pick up litter, or pull weeds and plant seeds at a favorite park to keep Tacoma green.

Tacoma High 5 - July 2024

Tacoma High 5 - July 2024

Tacoma High 5 is our way to nudge you (and us!) toward what we love about Tacoma. It’s a short list with a commitment to the local—it embraces the season, invites delight, encourages a spirit of exploration and some generosity as well. This month’s list includes Tacoma Pride, an all ages neighborhood music festival, a game that gets you supporting small businesses (and winning prizes), Swedish-style baked goods, and the chance to help out Habitat for Humanity or spend Friday afternoons watering trees to keep Tacoma (and its future) healthy and shaded.

  1. Community Event

  2. Sweet Treat

  3. Exploration & Adventure

  4. Local Love

  5. Volunteering & Sharing

Tacoma High 5 - August 2023

Tacoma High 5 - August 2023

Tacoma High 5 is our way to nudge you toward what we love about Tacoma. It’s a short list with a commitment to the local—it embraces the season, invites a bit of variety into life, encourages a spirit of exploration and some generosity as well. This month’s list includes a benefit concert with karaoke, a music festival staged on porches across Central Tacoma, block parties and outdoor markets, free berries, a favorite local publication, a neighborhood clean-up, and the chance to support the YWCA while eating hot dogs and nacho cheese. Maybe we’ll see you out there!

  1. Community Event

  2. Sweet Treat

  3. Exploration & Adventure

  4. Local Love

  5. Volunteering & Sharing

Tacoma High 5 - May

Tacoma High 5 - May

Tacoma High 5 is our way to nudge you toward what we love about Tacoma. It’s a short list with a commitment to the local—it embraces the season, invites delight, encourages a spirit of exploration and some generosity as well. This month’s list includes a ballet about a local activist, a new coffee shop to visit, a new open mic, farmers market updates, a community scavenger hunt/race for affordable housing, bike month events, and a chance to lend your hand at cleaning up the city!

  1. Community Event

  2. Treat Yourself

  3. Exploration & Adventure

  4. Local Love

  5. Volunteering & Sharing

What's Happening? 15 Local April Events

What's Happening? 15 Local April Events

Things are happening. Happening in Tacoma, happening nearby in Puyallup and Gig Harbor. Things like live music, like night markets, Black & BIPOC markets, community late nights for teens, a queer storytelling event, a Daffodil Festival as old as your grandma (if you’re lucky), film screenings, poetry readings, a 5k from a brewery and back, printmaking and paper arts, a chance to shred paper (not the arts kind), a chance to pick-up litter with a bunch of nice people. You can even celebrate the birthday of a certain old building if you want. 15 things to get you started, and we know there’s so much more.

Tacoma Community: A Dozen Ways to Connect in October

Tacoma Community: A Dozen Ways to Connect in October

October is a big month in Tacoma. It’s Tacoma Arts Month, Hispanic Heritage Month continues, and it’s time for the Tacoma Film Festival. That’s just the beginning. Find ways to support a healthy environment through volunteering, eat bratwurst and sing to the Beatles, write in the company of others, head to the museum for a trip through Mexico, and celebrate Halloween by (or on!) the water.

What's New, Tacoma?

What's New, Tacoma?

There’s change in the air across Tacoma, the return of things once lost, the reopening of places once closed, the transformation of one restaurant into another, the creation of brand new gatherings. We’ve been hearing about and experiencing this change across the city and wanted to gather some of it up in one place. What follows is a list of 10 new, renewed, returned, resurfaced, reconstructed, reopened spots and experiences. Challenge yourself to experience something new this month; if you do, we’d love to hear about it!

Tacoma High 5 - October

Tacoma High 5 - October

Tacoma High 5 is our way to keep nudging you toward what we love about Tacoma. It’s a short list with a commitment to the local—it embraces the season, invites delight, encourages a spirit of exploration and some generosity as well. This month’s list includes arts and outdoor markets, a new business you ought to meet, a delicious accompaniment to your pot of tea, and a simple way to help our neighbors!

  1. Community Event

  2. Sweet Treat

  3. Exploration & Adventure

  4. Local Love

  5. Volunteering & Sharing

Tacoma High 5 - September

Tacoma High 5 - September

Tacoma High 5 is our way to nudge you toward what we love about Tacoma. It’s a short list with a commitment to the local—it embraces the season, invites delight, encourages a spirit of exploration and some generosity as well. This month’s list includes arts and trails, a new bakery, ways to support refugees, and a 10 Stop Pizza Tour of Tacoma!

  1. Community Event

  2. Sweet Treat

  3. Exploration & Adventure

  4. Local Love

  5. Volunteering & Sharing

Tacoma High 5 - August

Tacoma High 5 - August

Tacoma High 5 is our way to nudge you toward what we love about Tacoma. It’s a short list with a commitment to the local—it embraces the season, invites delight, encourages a spirit of exploration and some generosity as well. Maybe we’ll see you out there!

  1. Community Event

  2. Sweet Treat

  3. Exploration & Adventure

  4. Local Love

  5. Volunteering & Sharing

Tacoma High 5 - July

Tacoma High 5 - July

Tacoma High 5 is our way to nudge you toward what we love about Tacoma, toward 5 things that bring balance to our life in the city. You’ll find something to connect you to the saltwater, a big community event, a delicious treat from a small, local business, a little outdoor bustle and freshness, and a way you can give—big or small—to support and nurture neighbors. Maybe we’ll see you out there!

Connect to Tacoma: So Many May Events!

Connect to Tacoma: So Many May Events!

May in Tacoma is full. It’s full of beauty and it’s full of things to do to get outside your house/skull/rut/routine, so we’ve created another list of 12+ events to get you started. You’ll find community bike rides, scavenger hunts, a vintage market, pet parade, Tacoma Mystery Mini Series, yarn crawl, writers workshop, tool lending, home tiling skills, a drive-in concert, opportunities to share food and toiletries, and more. We hope you find something that calls your name—Hey, You! Come do this thing! We hope you spark a connection you didn’t feel before to this place called Tacoma that we call home.

Connect to Community: April in Tacoma

Connect to Community: April in Tacoma

Looking for one or two reasons to step outside your door, or a meaningful opportunity to connect online? We hope you’ll find that here! Our list of 10 ways to connect to Tacoma this month includes a kid-created online market and in-person scavenger hunt, free weekday dinners in Hilltop, a golf tournament to support the Rainbow Center, a new history museum exhibit exploring Japanese incarceration in WWII, neighborhood clean-ups, locally made Easter candy, a conversation about gender in the workplace, a local veggie and flower CSA program, and more. Take a look!

Connect to Community: March in Tacoma

Connect to Community: March in Tacoma

Find 10 ways to connect to Tacoma community this month in our list below. It’s a mix - Tacoma is always a mix! - with chances to share food, listen to local voices about growing up bi-racial, talk with an author about publication, get or give help with laundry, shop vintage in Lincoln, pick up a craft kit in Old Town, take a virtual bus trip to learn about transportation and gentrification in Hilltop, and get in on the 90-Second Newberry Film Festival too. Join, give, receive, explore, support.

Connect to Community: This Week in Tacoma

Connect to Community: This Week in Tacoma

5 more ways to connect to the Tacoma community! This week, you’ll find ways to share warmth, lend a hand, get outside, spread the love, learn history, and stun competitors with your trivia brilliance. Take a look at the list.

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Connect to Community: 5 Tacoma Opportunities

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Connect to Community: 5 Tacoma Opportunities

Bringing you 5 options for reaching out a hand to Tacoma this weekend and beyond. Get in on some local history, pick up a craft pack in Old Town, and show up for some markets (virtual and pop-up variety!). Pre-pandemic, Tacoma was really getting going with street markets, weekend markets, farmers’ markets, night markets, and we miss those! But the makers are still out there making and they could use our support. Explore the list and see what you can find.

Connect to Community: 4 Ways this Week

Connect to Community: 4 Ways this Week

Another weekend and week of Tacoma community opportunities is coming your way. If you’re starting to feel like you need a REASON TO GO OUT (safely, of course) go ahead and take a look. You’ll find treasure hunts of the vintage and monkeyshines variety, an encouragement to eat pizza (as if that’s necessary), and a Gal/Pal/Valentine charcuterie order form. We’ll be back with more next week!

Connect to Community: 5 Upcoming Opportunities

Connect to Community: 5 Upcoming Opportunities

We’re keeping it coming with weekly lists of 3 to 5 events, gatherings, and opportunities that invite all of us into the Tacoma community even while we continue to stay home. Take a look, find a connection!

Tacoma Community: 12 Ways to Connect in December

Tacoma Community: 12 Ways to Connect in December

Our monthly lists, you may have noticed, have shifted focus from events to connection (that’s been the idea all along!). This December list is no different. Find 12 ways to connect to Tacoma community from safe holiday markets to engaging youth with poetry, from a video and podcast inviting you into relationship with Native/Indigenous communities to cooking classes, a Nutcracker Ballet watch party, a local gift guide and Hilltop neighborhood crawl to support small businesses, suggestions for solstice, a featured non-profit, and our prescription: go outside!

Tacoma Community: 12 Ways to Connect in November

Tacoma Community: 12 Ways to Connect in November

In this list you’ll find opportunities to give bikes or books away for other people to use, volunteer days in our parks, a film festival, storytelling about homelessness, an online concert, a Then & Now tour of Tacoma, a chance to make sandwiches for neighbors in need, a fundraiser for Feed253, Zoolights and more!

Hi, I'm Michael Duggan, a licensed broker with Windermere Abode. I would love to help you through the home buying or selling process. Please contact me to set up a meeting and get things started.