PORT TOWNSEND — The Port Townsend STEM Club is seeking submissions for a digital time capsule of music and spoken poetry made by Jefferson County residents 21 and younger.
The audio recording of an artist’s original song, cover song or spoken poetry can be submitted at https://ptstemclub.org. Submissions are due by June 6.
They must be in an audio file format such as an .mp3 file, be family-friendly and less than six minutes long.
All submissions will be compiled and given to the Jefferson County Historical Society for preservation.
Club members hope to showcase some of the work that student musicians, singers and poets have completed during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to have something to look back on in a positive way once the pandemic is over, said Nathaniel Ashford, club president.
“I think the hope is for the community to look at this pandemic experience and see some good came out of it,” Ashford said. “I know it’s easy to see the pandemic as an all-bad thing, but the pandemic has also given us time to think and grow.”
“I think that’s a pretty positive experience,” he said.
As of Wednesday afternoon, the club had received six submissions, with several club members and other artists saying they will be submitting work as well, Ashford said.
Club members hope to have enough submissions for a program of 45 minutes to an hour on KPTZ 91.9 FM radio at 6 p.m. June 22.
The KPTZ event will act as a radio talent show, with the radio station and the club co-sponsoring the event, Ashford said.
The club was still finalizing details with the Jefferson County Historical Society, such as whether the compilation will be available to listen to any time or be brought out only for certain events or exhibitions, said Ella Ashford, STEM ambassador for the club.
While the club’s name is the Port Townsend STEM Club — with STEM meaning science, technology, engineering and mathematics — the club has been expanding into more of a STEAM focus, which also includes the arts.
Disappointed in last year’s cancellation of the “Stars of Tomorrow” student showcase due to the pandemic, students wanted to find a way to bring some positivity to the community and showcase skills and work from the pandemic, Ashford said.
The PT STEM club is comprised of both home-school students and students from different schools in and around Jefferson County. Some of the club members, such as Ella and Logan Flanagan, have already graduated high school, but they are still able to compete on the club’s underwater robotics team through college and university, and they serve as coaches and advisors for other activities, Ella said.
More information about the club and the radio talent show and digital time capsule can be found at https://ptstemclub.org.
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Jefferson County reporter Zach Jablonski can be reached at 360-385-2335, ext. 5, or at zjablonski@peninsuladailynews.com.
