From Port Washington Bay to CK, Cougars celebrate school's centennial in Silverdale

SILVERDALE — Standing alone at a table located inside the Central Kitsap High School library, Linda Morton held laminated pages of the school's student newspaper in her hands. The pages were from 1960, the same year Morton graduated from the school.

Pretty soon, Morton's eyes found a small black-and-white photo — her senior portrait — used in the newspaper, then known as the "Megaphone." Among the accomplishments listed in student-typed was Morton being crowned as queen at the 1960 Pan American assembly.

"There I am. That's me," Morton said. "Look at that."

There was plenty of history for curious eyes to discover Monday evening as Central Kitsap hosted its 100th year celebration at the high school. Roughly 200 current and former students, young and old, gathered inside the commons, some taking tours of the building, which opened in 2019.

Others joined Morton in the library, where Cougar memorabilia awaited: lunch tickets that cost 25 or 35 cents; old newspaper clippings and commencement notes; faded yearbooks dating back all the way to 1925, one year after the first high school opened as Port Washington Bay Union High School, which remained the name until becoming Central Kitsap in 1950.

"When my parents went here, it was Port Washington," said Morton, whose father, Jim, graduated from the school in 1934 and whose mother, Harriet, graduated in 1936. When Central Kitsap held a celebration in 2019 to say goodbye to the former high school building, Harriet Morton was in attendance.

"She passed away the next month, four months shy of her 100th birthday," Morton said. "As sharp as a tack."

Monday's gathering continued with a 45-minute program inside the school's spacious performing arts center, where current ASB president Ferrah Capas and Class of 2025 president Ambar Gaxiola welcomed guests. Capas and Gaxiola introduced performances by members of Central Kitsap's string quartet and saxophone ensemble, while remarks were provided by Central Kitsap High School Principal Craig Johnson, Central Kitsap School District Superintendent Erin Prince, and Central Kitsap High School Alumni Association member Judy Eagleson.

Prince reflected on Central Kitsap's humble beginnings, noting that original construction on the first school began in the 1920s after 96 families pledged $10 apiece to pay for the land purchase.

"I've actually seen the pledge signatures on a piece of paper myself," Prince said. "It's so meaningful to look back on the history of where Central Kitsap High School started."

Prince pointed out how Central Kitsap students over the years grew up through numerous life-changing events: the Great Depression, World War II, the Civil Rights Movement, the moon landing, the 9/11 attacks.

"It's all part of this school's history and story," Prince said.

Johnson described Monday's centennial a "fantastic milestone," but said it wasn't just a celebration of existing for 100 years, "but rather a celebration of longevity for supporting a successful community that we can all be proud of. It's a true community accomplishment to have developed no less than thousands of graduates over the years who have fulfilled our shared purpose."

Eagleson, who graduated from Central Kitsap in 1978, was living in the Washington D.C. area when she decided to move back to the Silverdale area so her children could attend the school. The idea for the alumni association was born soon after her son became a Cougar and the group helped fund $60,000 in technology upgrades in classrooms. Other funds generated by the association have paid for numerous other school items, including the electronic reader board on Bucklin Hill and video equipment in the current commons.

"While you might have a new school, we still are all Cougars and we're all orange and black," Eagleson told the audience, "and that connects us all together."

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Central Kitsap High School alumni mark school's 100th anniversary