Community celebrates school before the walls come down

Published 1:30 am Friday, June 5, 2026

In the shadow of its future, community members said goodbye to Crescent Harbor Elementary’s past.

Wednesday evening, current and former students and teachers, as well as parents and district officials, gathered for a closing ceremony at the school’s current building, constructed in 1961 and set to be demolished beginning in July. Right outside, construction of its replacement — one of two schools funded by more than $130 million in state and federal grants — nears completion.

A grand opening for the new Crescent Harbor Elementary is scheduled for October, according to Superintendent Michelle Kuss-Cybula.

Addressing the crowd, Principal Bill Weinsheimer recounted the school’s long history, which he said can be traced as far back as the 1890s to another school building constructed just north of Crescent Harbor Elementary’s present location. An earnest appreciation for the current building characterized his and Kuss-Cybula’s remarks.

“We have had an amazing time at this school,” Weinsheimer said. “It has served decades of students so well. It has been the home for many teachers to be teaching in and helping kids to grow.”

Crescent Harbor Elementary and HomeConnection/Hand-in-Hand Early Learning Center can only be replaced with such substantial state and federal funding because they are located on property owned by Naval Air Station Whidbey Island.

Constructing new schools without bonds is hard to conceive of, and according to Kuss-Cybula, this is the first time it has been done in Washington State.

“That’s incredible,” Kuss-Cybula said.

Other schools in the district have received funding for similar reasons, namely their exposure to noise created by EA-18G Growler training. About $38 million in federal grants is funding the implementation of noise mitigation features at North Whidbey Middle School, Oak Harbor Elementary, Hillcrest Elementary and possibly Olympic View Elementary.

Capt. Nathan Gammache, the NAS Whidbey’s commanding officer, attended the ceremony with his wife, Julie. Speaking to the News-Times, he acclaimed the base’s partnership with the school district.

“We have a great relationship,” he said. “They do a great job taking care of our kids as a part member of the community. We do our best to take care of them, and that works really really excited for both projects to come up here and other ways we can work together.”

He affirmed the Navy’s investment in ensuring the effectiveness of things like noise mitigation features at the new Crescent Harbor and other schools.

“We’re aware of what the planes are doing here, and so we want to make it the best learning environment we can for our kids and for everyone who lives here,” Gammache added. “So, we appreciate the community’s support in that.”

The last day of school district-wide is June 17, but Wednesday represented the community’s official last chance to explore the old Crescent Harbor Elementary. Weinsheimer encouraged alumni look around, to see if the building still felt familiar or conjured up any old memories.

Judy Diekman did just that. She spent the entirety of her 35-year teaching career — from 1965 to 2000 — at Crescent Harbor, and remembers working at the school in the building’s early days. She attended the ceremony in the hopes of running into old colleagues.

Diekman’s fondness of Crescent Harbor Elementary testifies to its lasting importance in the community, which won’t be quickly forgotten when the new building opens.

“I loved Crescent Harbor,” Diekman said. “A lot of my friends transferred out — I just stayed.”