12th annual Swim with Fish charity event raises over $27K for local food bank

The Swim with Fish charity events just keeps getting bigger and better.

The swim, which began as a wager between friends, has been a charity event for more than six years now.

The timed event, which is private, one-mile swim and was started by Steve Rees and Peter Bortel, had 21 swimmers this year, launching out of the shores of Vashon Island and swimming across the cold waters of the Colvos Passage, ending at Point Richmond Beach.

Rees and Bortel started the event 12 years ago, to see if they could swim across the passage. After a few years of doing it, they decided to make it a charitable event, benefiting the Gig Harbor Peninsula FISH Food Bank.

Last year, the participants raised $20,584 for the food bank.

This year? A whopping $27,302.

“We boosted it quite a bit this year,” said the 64-year-old Rees. “Each year, we wonder how we’re going to top it the next year. (Bortel) was a big influence this year on the financial side, pushing people and getting sponsors to help out.”

All told, the event has raised just shy of $100,000 for the food bank, which appreciates the influx of cash in the slim summer months.

“They’re thrilled every year,” Rees said. “The shelves are low this time of the year. They told us this will help over 1,000 people over a three-month period. It was a big boost for them.”

The event also includes a kid’s swim, and a potluck party at the end of the swim.

On average, the swim takes between 28 minutes and two hours, depending on the skill and seriousness of the swimmer. Some swimmers use fins, while others do not.

The water was calm this year, compared to years past, according to Rees.

“The water was really flat,” he said. “The only motion we had was from some boat wakes. It was a fast swim overall.”

This year’s big winner was Joanne Kirby, who clocked in at 28 minutes, 32 seconds. Rees said the event has been fun every year.

“The enthusiasm of the people doing it is great,” Rees said. “We always have new people, mixed in with the people who have done it before. The enthusiasm seems to be infectious. The weather was great, the water was nice. … We’re just kind of fine-tuning. Every year, it seems to get a little better than the year before.”

Rees came in fourth place — without fins or a snorkel, he proudly added — but mostly, was please of the effort by everyone to help those in the community who are less fortunate.

“I’m quite proud of it,” he said. “It makes me very happy to be able to help out in the community, help people that are not so lucky, having a difficult time finding food and clothes, other things. I’m very pleased to be able to help with that.”