This website is a simple place to ensure that our members and community have access to everything they need.
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Make sure to vote for your favorite holiday decorations! We’ll announce the winner again this year at our summer membership meeting. This is the only award that is voted on by the community, so get your vote submitted by December 31. You will need to know the address of the house you are nominating.
Our annual dues notices will be coming to your mailboxes very soon. This letter also includes important updates from the officers and board members. Dues information as well as our mailing address and Venmo account for digital payments are on our Resources page. Don’t forget, we give an award at our summer meeting for the earliest dues payment!
Our winter board meeting is scheduled for January 7th, 2026 at 7:00 pm at 7966 Cabrini Dr SE. Members are welcome to submit agenda items to the board via our contact page or email. Board meetings are usually held 1-2 times per year and are noted on our community calendar.
2. Becoming the first recognized Firewise community in all of Kitsap County! This year, we had 10% of homes participating. Trace from Kitsap County Fire and the Firewise committee chair, Pam Darland, are hoping to double this number of homes in 2026. Great news: one of the perks of being a Firewise community, if you are a USAA member, is you can get a discount on your insurance!
We are also asking for another volunteer to help co-chair this program with Pam in the coming year. It helps our community to have input from more than one person, and you can also help talk to neighbors together. If you are interested, please let us know.
We receive a sign for the neighborhood from Firewise. When the sign arrives, we will announce an opportunity to join a photo by the Strawberry Hill entrance. There may even be an article in the Kitsap Sun in concert with Station 12, showing our community as a Firewise example. Amazing!
3. Having homeowners notice a need and fill it. Thank you, Wayne Hancock, for noticing the last storm damaged the park fence bordering Bielmeier Road – and then offering to fix it for us. We appreciate you!
Our annual Thanksgiving Day activities are open for all neighbors to participate.
🏃♂️ 9:30 AM • Walkers, joggers, strollers, wagons, dogs, and bikes welcome as we circle the Cabrini loop together. Sometimes there are cookies and cocoa provided for walkers by friendly neighbors so don’t miss this opportunity to stretch your legs and socialize.
🏈 10:00 AM • All ages and abilities welcome to join a friendly game of touch football! Hang out as long as you like. Spectators are encouraged to mill about and shout supportive remarks from the swings or dog park.
Join in the fun!
Two updates for our neighbors from the committee chair and KCFR liaison.
Fantastic news!
Thanks to the neighbors who have taken part in the exterior home safety evaluations, all who contributed by collecting data on yard waste material removal, and all who have been contributing by doing simple yard clean-up, roof and gutter cleaning and many other tasks, we are ready to file our application to the nationwide FireWise Program.
Trace Richard completed an enormous amount of time and paperwork setting us up to become the first neighborhood in Kitsap County to achieve this honor. Now, it is up to us.
Monday, October 13 at 1:00 pm, Trace will be at my home to finalize some of the data collected and to present what comes next in his plans for the second phase. This includes an easier way for us to communicate!
If you are available and interested in the future of this program, please contact me at darlandgk@gmail.com or (253) 720-8419.
Monday’s meeting is at 7535 Cabrini Dr SE.
I wanted to let the HOA know that the community members who are participating in the Firewise Community process have worked hard and overwhelmingly met all the requirements and I will be submitting the application in a couple weeks.
Most of year one and some of year two goals have been met. My plan is to have a wildfire cleanup day sometime in May to gather community members, educate them on evacuation planning and do a few hours of fuel removal around home. I know there are a couple elderly in the community who will need this help.
It will take about 4-5 weeks to get a response from the NPFA on recognition as a Firewise Community. When I receive the sign(s) I would like to do a picture of all participants and invite the Kitsap Sun to do an article on the first Firewise community in Kitsap County with the HOA permission. The HOA can place the sign where they want it. Most communities place them at the front of the community.
The goal of this project is to create an environment where our homes could survive a fire in our neighborhood despite the beautiful forest environment and to work together to create that safe environment. Trace Richard, Community Risk Reduction Specialist with South Kitsap Fire & Rescue, is available to lead our community to reach this goal.
To date, the HOA has worked with Trace to deliver:
Trace has also proactively noted percentage of homes with combustible vegetation within 5 feet of homes and with ladder fuels under trees, reviewed the open spaces like our park and other HOA property, and created a 3- year plan for Strawberry Hill to be recognized as a Firewise USA community.
To continue with this voluntary program, we’re counting on 10 homes to request Trace to
do a closer assessment of the “Home Zone,” which includes the exterior structure of your home and attachments to it (decks, patios, fences etc.) and area the five foot surrounding of that Home Zone. This assessment takes less than 30 minutes. The advice Trace gives you is not a requirement and is offered as what you might do to increase your safety.
To date, we have 3 homes complete with 2 more scheduled – so we are halfway there!
Please contact Trace directly to set up an assessment time at:
(360) 801-3982 (cell)
(360) 895-6512 (office)
For any other questions, you can contact me directly. My role is to collect and report data on our progress, provide information to the homeowners, advocate for the program’s benefits, and liaise with Trace. Thank you.
Pam Darland
(253) 720-8419 (home)
At our July board meeting, the board approved investing just under half of our reserve fund into a CD through Kitsap Bank so we could earn maximum interest on our savings. Today Mary, treasurer, and Becky, president, had an appointment with our banking advisor to open the account for a ten month CD at 4%.
In the history of the HOA, we have never had a last minute purchase that would require such a large sum of money. But emergencies can happen so we’ve done our diligence in asking questions! If we need to withdraw the funds early, we can access any amount at any time, and the penalty is only three months’ interest on the amount withdrawn.
We are excited to continue to stock our reserve fund with more financial savvy than a basic savings account.
The current board will revisit this approach before the CD expires in May 2026 to determine if we will roll into a new CD, add funds, reduce the amount, or end the investment.
PS – Check out the cute photo bomber, representing the kids who waited patiently in the lobby during the hour long appointment today!
We had average attendance at our 2025 membership meeting, with 18 families represented. We only had one plate of leftover tacos, and the side dishes were enjoyed by all. Many homeowners stayed for the Firewise presentation, and the weather was perfect for gathering outside. What a great evening!
The minutes from this meeting are available on our Resources page in the Meeting Minutes tab. Board members, officers, and committee members have been updated at the bottom of the Resources page as well and are effective immediately.
Help needed!
If you’d like to help clean up the tree clippings in Providence Court, your help is much appreciated! Meet in Providence Court on Saturday, July 26 at 10:00 AM. Thank you to neighbor Jordan Clinton for getting these branches trimmed for us! Helpers on Saturday will be moving them to the southwest corner of the park.
Reminder: Our annual membership meeting is scheduled for Monday, July 21, at 6:00 PM in the park. Come at 5:30 with a side dish and chair for tacos and mingling with your neighbors!
Meeting agenda:
Following the official close of the membership meeting, we will welcome Trace from Kitsap County Fire and Rescue, who will be presenting information about the Firewise community program. Homeowners are welcome to attend to ask questions and learn more about Firewise.
🚒 Update 1: Firewise Presentation
Trace Richards from Kitsap County Fire and Rescue hosted a Zoom meeting earlier this month for neighbors to learn more about fire safety and the Firewise program. Attendance was low at the live meeting, so we requested a recording of the content for anyone interested to view.
Trace will also be hosting a live Q&A session after the annual membership meeting for anyone interested in joining the neighborhood program. We need 8 homes to participate. Pam Darland has been working hard to organize this program and recruit participants.
🤝 Update 2: Summer Board Meeting
Our summer board meeting is scheduled for Monday, July 7 at 7 PM. Please submit any agenda items for discussion to the board by Sunday, July 6 for consideration. You can do this through the contact section on our website, or by emailing officers@strawberryhillhoa.org.
Current agenda items include:
🏠 Update 3: Annual Membership Meeting
Our annual membership meeting is on Monday, July 21 starting at 6:00 PM. Come early for dinner, and bring a side dish to share and a chair. Tacos, bottled water, and paper products sponsored by the HOA. Dinner will begin at 5:30 PM.
The agenda for the annual meeting will be available by Monday, July 14.
💵 Update 4: Annual Garage Sale Reminder
Our annual garage sale weekend is scheduled for July 26-27. Consider joining the neighborhood at this time if you are looking to sell items to increase visibility and visitors for everyone. During the annual meeting, we will ask for volunteers to post signs and notices on social media.
Thanks so much to Pam Darland for organizing the Firewise Community Night for our neighborhood. Our informational meeting has been set for Thursday, June 5th at 7:30 pm via Zoom, hosted by Trace Richard, Community Risk Reduction Specialist for Kitsap County Fire and Rescue. This event is specific to Strawberry Hill HOA.
You received a flyer about this event next to your mailboxes today, courtesy of KCFR. This event will help us determine if our neighborhood would like to become a Firewise community, which requires 8 or more homeowners to commit to the program annually.
If asked for a passcode, use 016254.
The Firewise USA® program, administered by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), provides guidance to help communities reduce their risk of wildfire destruction.
Learn more about best practices and the science behind wildland fire prevention and what you can do as a homeowner to proactively protect your home and property.
Register for either of these sessions by emailing Trace directly: trichard@skfr.org.
Strawberry Hill HOA