Around Blaine and Whatcom County

News in Blaine and Whatcom County … 

Blaine Community Theater

Opening night for Blaine Community Theater’s rendition of “Lords and Ladies” by Terry Pratchett is set for 7 p.m. Friday, March 22 at Blaine High School’s orange-and-black box theater. 

The play will run for two consecutive weekends at the high school. The Friday and Saturday night performances will start 7 p.m. March 22-23 and March 29-30, while the Sunday matinee will be 2 p.m. March 24 and March 31. 

Pratchett, a British author, wrote “Lords and Ladies” as a fantasy novel with inspiration taken from Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

Tickets are $17 for adults, $14 for seniors and students and $12 for children. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit blainecommunitytheater.com.  

Vaccine clinic at Blaine Food Bank

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is hosting a vaccine clinic at Blaine Food Bank from 9 a.m. to noon Friday, March 29. 

The vaccine clinic will offer the 2023-24 Pfizer and Moderna Covid-19 vaccine for adults and children, the 2023-24 flu vaccine for adults and children, childhood vaccines and vaccines for mpox (formerly known as monkeypox). The clinic will also have blood glucose and blood pressure screenings for adults as well as naloxone kits, widely known by its commercial name Narcan.  

The clinic is free for children and young adults age six months through 18 years old. Adults 19 years and older and have health insurance may be billed for the flu and Covid-19 vaccines. The DOH asks that proof of insurance and vaccine cards be brought to the clinic. Vaccine records can be accessed at waverify.doh.wa.gov.

While walk-ins are welcome, the clinic strongly encourages pre-registration. Pre-registration is available at bit.ly/43nGmmM. 

The clinic is part of the department of health’s “Care-a-Van,” a mobile health clinic serving communities highly impacted by healthcare inequities. 

The food bank is located at 500 C Street in Blaine. 

Women’s History Month film screening 

The end of Women’s History Month will be celebrated with a film screening of “Where Visions Meet,” a historical documentary on Ellen Swallow Richards and Dr. Maria Montessori at Blaine Public Library at 10 a.m. Saturday, March 30. The director, Gail Longo, will attend the screening. 

The short documentary provides an account of Richards and Montessori, two trailblazing activists and scientists who advocated public health education during industrial expansion, overcrowding and spreading disease, according to the event description. 

Richards founded Home Economics, now known as Family and Consumer Sciences, while Montessori was the first female physician to graduate from the University of Rome and founded the Montessori philosophy of teaching. 

The Blaine library is located at 610 3rd Street. 

Free Narcan at Whatcom County libraries 

Whatcom County libraries, including Blaine Public Library, have started providing free naloxone kits thanks to a partnership between the DOH and Whatcom County Library System (WCLS). 

The nasal spray of naloxone is available at all WCLS’s locations, though supplies are limited. WCLS said in a press release it would refill the naloxone periodically as long as it has doses. 

Naloxone, also known as Narcan, is used to reverse an overdose from opioids, including fentanyl, heroin and prescription opioids.  

WCLS executive director Christine Perkins wrote that the library system had already distributed over 200 naloxone kits.

“We are thrilled to have our county library system as another access point for free naloxone distribution,” wrote Erika Lautenbach, director of Whatcom County Health and Community Services, in a statement. “This increases access to overdose-reversing drugs in our more rural areas, which have typically been underserved by traditional healthcare clinics”

In 2023, there were 136 overdose deaths in Whatcom County, a 49 percent increase from 2022, according to preliminary data from the Whatcom County Medical Examiner’s Office. 

Naloxone kits should be stored in an indoor area with a consistent room temperature. Leaving the kits in car glove compartments could reduce the medication’s effectiveness due to exposure to extreme temperatures. 

Alaska Airlines flight from BLI

Alaska Airlines recently added its third daily flight between Bellingham International Airport and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. 

The flight, which began March 14, departs Seattle at 5:30 p.m. and arrives at BLI at 6:19 p.m. The flight then departs BLI at 6:59 p.m. and arrives in Seattle at 7:51 p.m. 

The flight was added because of increased demand to fly between the cities, according to a Port of Bellingham news release. The port owns and operates the Bellingham airport, which also has flights for Southwest Airlines and Allegiant Airlines.