Tidepools contest winners announced
Published 1:30 am Wednesday, April 15, 2026
PORT ANGELES — The 2026 Tidepools Magazine contest winners in the categories of art, photography, writing and music have been announced.
Winners will be contacted via the email address provided on their submission forms with details on how to claim their awards.
Submissions from many individuals across the North Olympic Peninsula were reviewed by a panel of volunteer judges.
The winning entries will be featured in the 62nd issue of Tidepools, which is expected to be released in June.
Contributors and community members are invited to the Tidepools Launch Party on June 5.
Tidepools Magazine will be available for purchase in local shops throughout the Peninsula in June.
This year’s winners, categorized by age group and medium, are as follows:
• Youth Categories
Art and Digital Art, ages 0-9
First — “Snowman” by Calder Barton, Port Angeles.
Second — “Monster Fam” by Nash White, Port Angeles.
Third — “Trumpeter Swan” by Henry Gayne, Port Townsend.
Art and Digital Art, ages 10-13
First — “View” by Hoko Saari, Port Angeles.
Second — “Spring” by Ailo Saari, Port Angeles.
Third — “Breaking Away” by Elliot Gayne, Port Townsend.
Art and Digital Art, ages 11-17
First — “Vampiric Stone Cathedral” by Michelangelo Monet, Port Angeles.
Second — “Seize the Awkward” by Brian Froslie, Sequim.
Third — “Honey Bee on Borage Plant” by Emma Anderson, Sequim.
Writing, ages 0-9
First — “Where I’m From” by Wolf Schutz-Wade, Port Angeles.
Second — “Gold” by Elle Kazerouninia, Sequim.
Third — “Alligator Acrostic” by Oscar Stratton, Sequim.
Writing, ages 10-13
First — “Gold” by Hoko Saari, Port Angeles.
Second — “What Makes Me Special” by Adelaide Counts, Port Angeles.
Third — “My Favorite” by Ailo Saari, Port Angeles.
Writing, ages 14-17
First — “It’s Nice to Have a Friend” by Riley Cole, Port Townsend.
Second — “Water” by Emma Rhodes, Sequim.
• Peninsula College student categories
Art and Digital Arts
First — “Medicine Pouches” by Karen Sixkiller, Port Angeles.
Second — “Big Dog Upstairs” by Caitlyn Faircloth, Quilcene.
Third — “Who Controls The Board” by Karen Sixkiller, Port Angeles.
Photography
First — “Connection Through Reflection” by Gavin Truckenmiller, Port Angeles.
Second — “Christmas Fire” by Thomas Buscher, Sequim.
Third — “Dandelion Dreams” by Jasmine Bailey, Sequim.
Writing
First — “Plucking” by Ayla Pollick, Sequim.
Second — “Tanka #5” by Peter Duppenthaler, Port Angeles.
Third — “Mother Hunger” by Ayla Pollick, Sequim.
• Community Adult Categories
Art and Digital Art
First — “Sandhill Cranes” by George Seifert, Port Townsend.
Second — “Secrets Worlds In Trees” by Loreen Matsushima, Port Angeles.
Third — “Buddhabrot I” by Lauren Blair Churchill, Sequim.
Photography
First — “Jamestown Tribal Canoe Landing” by Steven Jones, Sequim.
Second — “Kerry Girls” by Marissa LeeAnn Rose, Port Angeles.
Third — “Trail of Light” by Cyrrah Gunia, Port Angeles.
Poetry
First — “Monica” by Rowan Heil, Port Angeles.
Second — “Sitting on a Cannon” by John Delaney, Port Townsend.
Third — “Of Gods and Planets” by Viola Ware, Port Angeles.
Prose
First — “New Fridge Instructions” by Brennan Lawton, Port Angeles.
Second — “Port Angeles, NYE 2099” by Jon Rea, Port Angeles.
Third — “A Wish Upon the Harvest Moon” by Heidi Hansen, Sequim.
Music
First — “Guitar Noir” by George Seifert, Port Townsend.
Second — “The Fragility of Life” by Lucas Saint James, Port Townsend.
Third — “The Weissenborn Conspiracy” by George Seifert, Port Townsend.
Tidepools Magazine has been published annually at Peninsula College since 1964 and features original art, photography, poetry, prose and music created by residents of the North Olympic Peninsula in Clallam and Jefferson counties.
Tidepools is created in collaboration by Peninsula College students who edit, design, lay out and publish the magazine while learning about publishing, marketing, community relations and gaining an appreciation of literature and the arts.
Tidepools is made possible with support from the Associated Student Council, Peninsula Daily News and The Buccaneer. For more information, email tidepools.magazine@pencol.edu or visit https://tidepools.pencol.edu.
