Paper Whale

06/25/2026

Paper Whale is proud to sponsor and support on Sunday, June 28th at Zuanich Point Park. If you attended Rising Tide in May, you heard about this festival during the evenings 'Small Wins' segment, which highlights grassroots projects making impactful change in our community. ⁠
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Holi has been celebrated for generations across India and around the world as a way to welcome spring and bring people together. Because we live in the Pacific Northwest, Bellingham's Holi Festival takes place in June so everyone can joyfully celebrate outdoors with sunshine and warmth. ⁠
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This festival is organized by Bellingham's Indian community, but is open to all! Come experience a different culture and enjoy this community celebration which includes:⁠
• Color throws⁠
• DJ set with live Dhol drumming⁠
• Bhangra dancers⁠
• Food trucks⁠
• Mehndi/Henna⁠
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More info at https://www.bellinghamholifestival.com. See you there this weekend!

06/22/2026

We're feeling amped that summer has arrived and is two months away! Mark your calendars for August 14-16 and give the festival a follow here:
https://www.facebook.com/noisywatersmuralfest ⁠
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We'll be posting artist info, event details, and music lineup over on that account.⁠
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Art: ⁠
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📸

06/11/2026

Join us this Saturday at for Bingo Night. Cool off from the expected heat wave with an ice cold beverage for a cause. 100% of the bingo card buy-in proceeds, plus $1 from every pint sold, will go to Paper Whale. Come play a few rounds, drink a few beers, and help raise some funds so we can continue our work of growing the creative culture in Bellingham! Prizes just might include some of our new Paper Whale merch.⁠
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$3 for one card or 4 cards for $10.⁠
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See you Saturday 6-8pm at ROAM!⁠
https://wanderbrewing.com/roam-coffee-beer/
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06/03/2026

We just received our largest single-donor contribution of $10,000 this month, and the timing couldn't be better. In honor of our 4th anniversary, we would love to see our community raise an additional $5,000 by the end of this month.⁠
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Help us connect, inspire, and activate our community by making a contribution today. We can also accept stock donations—just reach out!⁠ With your help we can continue crafting events that bring people together in unexpected and unforgettable ways.⁠

https://www.paper-whale.com/donate
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Paper Whale is a 501c3 non-profit organization on a mission to create unforgettable places led by local change makers, ignited by creative energy, and charged with cultural character.

06/02/2026

A new look for a bigger impact. You may have noticed the steady roll out of our new branding. Today, we're officially introducing the new Paper Whale—new logo, new look, new website. Same grit. Bolder energy.⁠
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This rebrand wasn't just a visual refresh. It was a reckoning:⁠
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• An honest approach of who we are and what we do⁠
• A sharpened mission and vision that feels real and undeniable⁠
• A belief in community and our commitment to making it possible⁠
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A massive thank you to our Design Director and Bellingham's own Micah Ellis at Further Up Co. for leading this process. The new whale mark evolves from the original. It’s bolder, more alive, and yet it still carries what it always has: community, collaboration, forward momentum, and the creative energy simmering beneath the surface of every place.⁠
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You know our events. Now we want you to know us.⁠
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Paper Whale is a placemaking agency. We use raw creative energy to turn ordinary places into unforgettable experiences. And now we need you more than ever as a donor, sponsor, volunteer, artist, or attendee.⁠
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Explore the new site at https://www.paper-whale.com and let us know what you think.⁠
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06/01/2026

It’s our 4th anniversary today, so a reintroduction is in order. We are Paper Whale, a non-profit placemaking agency, and we believe that the best way to love your city is to make something beautiful. We create unforgettable places. We bring people together. We rethink the status quo, and we hold a bold vision to redefine a city once content with "subdued excitement."

Who we are: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnTe8y_6JCI

🎥: Soulcraft Allstars
Thank you to Aaron Straight and the team at Soulcraft Allstars team for making a video that speaks so clearly to who we are and what we do.

Paper Whale is a placemaking agency that uses raw creative energy t...

05/19/2026

The lineup is here!

05/18/2026

That's a wrap for our Rising Tide Spring season. We'll be back in the Fall with more of this powerhouse speaker series. There's nothing like it. Thank you to everyone who showed up to support one another, celebrate local wins, learn from changemakers, and be on the cutting edge of modern civic engagement.

Kudos to our lineup last Friday:






+ our co-host with the most

A heartfelt thanks to and for making this series possible.

05/06/2026

What happens when good ideas are born from play, not goals or outcomes?

More than likely, the process starts messy, is ever evolving and a little unsure of itself.

This Friday, Paper Whale wraps up the spring season of Rising Tide with Prototypes for Play—a conversation with Christian and Benny Zenga about experimenting your way forward, and why trying things that “don’t work yet” is often where the real progress happens.

From tall bike journeys across Africa to rolling car sculptures to public skate parks and immersive installations, the Zenga Bros are known for building work that lives in public spaces and invites participation. Their practice is rooted in one simple idea: you learn more by doing than by perfecting.

This Rising Tide is all about ideas in motion and why getting them into the world before they're "finished" is where the real learning begins.

Prototypes for Play is the last speaker series of the season, and tickets are SOLD OUT. We're stoked to send off Rising Tide with a packed house!⁠
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If you didn't snag tickets to Rising Tide, you can still join the fun. The after party with and starts at 9pm @ 707 Astor St. and is open to the public with a $10 suggested donation!

05/01/2026

Next Friday 5/8, we're sending off the spring Rising Tide speaker series with a yodel and a honky-tonk twang. Even though tickets to Rising Tide are SOLD OUT, the after-party starts at 9 PM and is open to everyone—whether you were at the speaker series or not.⁠

After Prototypes for Play with the Zenga Bros., the H***y Tonk Social Club and Buddy Mac Band take over with our signature after-party vibes.

Ease into the music with a quick intro to 2-step and swing dancing with Heather from H***y Tonk Social Club (zero experience required), then settle into the rhythm with early country rockabilly from Buddy Mac Band.

$10 suggested donation at the door. No advance tickets to the after party. No fuss. Just come through when doors open at 9pm. 707 Astor St.

See you next Friday!