‘Friendship is the key to life’ – Island Singles Club gains traction

Published 1:30 am Thursday, May 28, 2026

The Island Singles Activities Club has gained momentum with 78 members since it first began in October 2025. The group is organized by Bainbridge Island local Christie Jenkins, who plans around seven to eight events each month.

“I moved back here for the sixth time in October 2025,” said Jenkins. “It was a dark and stormy night, and I decided to go to trivia. I couldn’t get anyone to add me to their team, and I thought, well, this is just not good, so I went home. I just needed to find four or five people to do things with.”

Before being an islander, Jenkins used to live in Santa Barbara, where she worked as an activities planner for The University Club and Newcomers. Her first ever club, however, was located in New York in 1987, and had over 300 members. Date.com even offered to buy Jenkins’ list of people, but the owner kept her membership private, as she still does, and declined the offer. Jenkins also worked as a beta-tester for Match.com, giving her another foot in the door to the world of making connections.

Last year on Bainbridge Island, Jenkins put an advertisement on NextDoor about starting a group, and in just five days, 18 people had joined. Their first event was going to a lunch and a movie on the island.

“People wanted to connect and find a way to connect, and now there are 78 members,” said Jenkins. “It’s always fluctuating. Some people meet someone, some people move away, but there’s always around 70 members.”

Every event with Island Singles is a different set of people, depending on who is interested and attends. With such a wide range of ages and personalities, there are always new people to meet, Jenkins shared. Some of their events include a rowing lesson, pickleball lesson, a walk in the forest, dinner, dance lessons, or attending community events.

“I want to be a good sounding board for what people want to find,” said Jenkins. “If they want to find friends, if they want to date, I try to normalize it for them. A lot of people are scared to go to a singles group or event. It’s just fun activities. My whole goal is that friendship is the key to life.”

Island Singles has memberships for those living both on the island and in surrounding Kitsap County, ages 25-76, with the majority of members falling in the 38-62 age range. The membership fee is $15 to cover admin costs, and any events that members wish to attend are paid for by themselves. Jenkins offers many free events as well. “People like the fact that it’s multi-generational,” said Jenkins. “Our oldest member is everyone’s favorite. She is just awesome; she is a young person on the inside.”

While the group is based on Bainbridge Island, a number of members come from Bremerton and Kingston, reaching a larger audience looking to connect. “I have tried other things before, but helping people connect is rewarding,” said Jenkins. “A lot of people have thanked me and been really appreciative and have met people they are now dating.”

Jenkins shared that there are four people within the group who have met someone they are now in a relationship with. “A lot of guys have become friends, and a lot of women have become friends too,” she said. “Yes, people look to connect to date, but I see so many people just looking for friends to do things with. I understand single people and the very different challenges we have, so my outreach to members is quite personal.”

Experience in helping others connect isn’t the only skill under Jenkins’ belt. With a wide range of expertise, Jenkins actually trained for the Olympics in figure skating. She began skating at age five and became nationally ranked.

In 1980, Jenkins became a figure skating photographer. “I went on to shoot at the Olympics for TIME Magazine and was dubbed in literary circles as creating the women’s market in publishing, with a photo book and calendar.”

Later on in her career, she began photographing celebrities and athletes for both the private and public, all while owning her own gallery in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California. Jenkins still releases calendars to this day. She shared that all of her combined experiences have equipped her with the ability to connect with others and stay organized while hosting a variety of events for those with differing interests.

Jenkin’s singles group on Bainbridge Island even had a team in the recent Irish Road Bowling Tournament, and they took home first place. Out of 20 different teams of 14 members, one of those was the Island Singles. “It was really fun, we got a trophy and everything,” said Jenkins.

People on the island, especially in their 20s and 30s, have a really hard time finding anyone their age,” said Jenkins. “I want to help fill that need.”