Cider Swig quenches thirsts and helps pay for local environmental programs

For Julie Gustanski, giving back to the community isn’t a choice, it’s a duty.

“Being a part of this world means I have a responsibility to be a servant,” said Gustanski, CEO of the Greater Gig Harbor Foundation.

She’s worked in the field of economics, education and philanthropy for many years. After moving from Illinois to Gig Harbor, she found herself leading the foundation.

“I became involved quite by accident,” Gustanski said.

She attended a meeting in Artondale about the need for a park in the neighborhood. From there she met other community members interested in starting a foundation to support Peninsula Metropolitan Parks.

The PenMet Foundation was created in 2006, becoming the Greater Gig Harbor Foundation in 2010. So far, the foundation has brought $6 million in scholarships, programs and grants to Gig Harbor, the Key Peninsula, Fox Island and Raft Island.

One of the foundation’s biggest successes is the Gig Harbor Cider Swig, which is in its fifth year of bringing locally crafted cider to the peninsulas. This year’s event will be Sept. 29 at Sehmel Homestead Park.

Money raised during the event go to the Lu Winsor Memorial Environmental Grant Program, which supports local efforts to create environmental education programs. Groups receiving money include Harbor Wild Watch, Anderson Island Parks and Citizens for a Healthy Bay.

Money also goes to help fourth and fifth grade students from low-income families attend educational trips to Camp Seymour.

In 2017, the event raised $10,000 for the grant program.

Money raised by the event is matched dollar for dollar by the Pierce County stormwater management department and every year Peninsula Light Co. donates $5,000.

“Donations have gone up every year,” Gustanski said. “In the first year of the event, we had zero idea how much effort this would take. The Cider Swig is 100 percent volunteer run.”

The event came to be because the foundation wanted to create an event to help bring in money for the grant program.

Gustanski came up with the idea for the Cider Swig in 2014 during a flight back to Gig Harbor from the East Coast. She picked up an in-flight magazine and read about a cider festival called Pour the Core in Pennsylvania.

“And I thought, ‘That would be a cool idea,’” she said. “And we are in Washington state, where we have apples.”

In its five years, the Cider Swig has become the second largest cider-centered festival in the state. Last year the Cider Garden, where adults 21 and older can drink hard cider, had 1,300 visitors. More than 3,500 people attended the larger event, Gustanski said.

This year the Cider Swig will feature 100 ciders for tasting, live music, a family carnival and food trucks.

It also will have the third annual “Battle of the Pies” contest for amateur bakers competing for cash prizes ranging from $25 to $250. Interested bakers can sign-up online. Their pies will be judged on:

▪ Overall appearance (consistency of crust and filling.)

▪ Visual appeal (how memorable is the pie?)

▪ Taste (texture, filling flavor, crust, aftertaste, doneness, etc.)

▪ Creativity (how original is the pie?)

Families with younger children can bring them to the Appleet Drop-Off Center, which will host games and activities.

Live performances on multiple stages will include music by Budapest West, The Bog Hoppers, Josh Brulotte, Marc and Joey, and Charlie the Noise Guy.

Gustanski said she is proud of how the Cider Swig evolved into a large, volunteer-based success.

“We, as people, make decisions that impact the whole world,” she said. “Ultimately the better the foundation does, the more we can do for the community. ... So come drink cider and help support the foundation.”

Event details

What: The Gig Harbor Cider Swig

When: Noon- 5 p.m. Sept. 29.

Where: Sehmel Homestead Park, 10123 78th Ave. NW.

Why: To support environmental education and programming through the Lu Winsor Memorial Environmental Grant Program.

Admission: Free for all ages. Entering the Cider Garden requires a ticket, which range from $8 to $30 and can be bought at www.gigharborfoundation.org/cider-swig/details.