Nonprofit to host Blaine school board candidate forum

Update: A recording of the candidate forum is available at fundblaineschoolsnow.com.

With election day just around the corner, Fund Schools Now, a grassroots parent organization, will hold a public forum for Blaine School Board candidates at 6 p.m. Tuesday, October 7 in the Blaine Community/Senior Center, 763 G Street.

The forum will feature all four candidates on the ballot: Bob Feaster, Jim Shaver, Chelsey Belarmino and incumbent Ryan Swinburnson. The forum open to the public and will provide an opportunity for voters to hear directly from candidates running for positions governing Blaine’s K-12 school district.

Fund Schools Now also released a community survey to help steer the conversation with the candidates. The survey asks voters what they believe to be the most pressing issues facing the school district and community, what qualities and perspectives they most want to see in a local school board, and to pose a question for the candidates to answer at the forum.

The survey can be filled out online at bit.ly/479LWvF.

Blaine school district will have three positions up for election this year. District 3, which covers Birch Bay Village and sections of Birch Bay and Semiahmoo, will have the only head-to-head race with Bob Feaster and Jim Shaver.

The District 4 and 5 races are being run unopposed. District 4 director Ryan Swinburnson will run for his first full term after being appointed in March 2024.

The District 5 race will feature Chelsey Belarmino running unopposed. Belarmino will run to replace Steve Galbraith, who was appointed in March 2024.

For more information on the candidate forum, visit fundblaineschoolsnow.com. Election Day is Tuesday, November 4, and ballots will be mailed by Wednesday, October 15, according to the Whatcom County Auditor’s Office.