At Kirkland Performance Center, we love our volunteers! They are amazing community members who help to make your time at KPC easy and memorable. The majority of our volunteers work as ticket takers and ushers at performances.

This summer, we would like to highlight an outstanding volunteer. Janis started volunteering at KPC eight years ago after retiring from a career in eye care administration and processing. She had visited KPC in the past as a patron, including one memorable performance of the Cowboy Junkies, “I had been following since their first CD.”

At one performance it hit her, “I could do that; I could take tickets, that would be fun! So I called and started volunteering.” Since then, Janis can usually be seen in KPC’s sidebar behind the register or helping fulfill orders. On average for a sold out show, sidebar will process 100+ orders, 40-50% taking place during intermission. With the clock ticking, working behind the counter can definitely get any one’s blood pumping. “It can be fast and furious, and I like that,” she explained.

But beyond the adrenaline rush, Janis volunteers because she enjoys giving back to the community. A few years ago she took a part time position at Northwest Cellars but that has not deterred her from being a regular volunteer at Storybook Theater and community rental events, in her words, “it feels really good to give back to the performance center.”

In addition to her work at the winery and KPC, Janis enjoys a good happy hour and a good book in her spare time. In the downtown Kirkland area, she suggests Catcus or Milagro for happy hour. A recent favorite book suggestion would be “Strangers in Their Own Land.”

Would you like to become a KPC volunteer? If so, contact our Patron Services Manager, Beth who also runs our volunteer program. Email her at beth@kpcenter.org.