Meeting people in Bothell, Kenmore and Woodinville

Most of our friendships arrived through work, through raising children, or from a neighborhood where you kept running into the same people. When those things end, the easy way of meeting people ends with them. These are the places in Bothell, Kenmore and Woodinville where people get together on purpose.

The senior center

Northshore Senior Center runs centers in Bothell and Kenmore (and a third in Mill Creek), with fitness classes, social groups, lunches and volunteering.

• Bothell Senior Center — 10201 E. Riverside Drive, Bothell · 425-487-2441
• Kenmore Senior Center — 6910 NE 170th Street, Kenmore · 425-489-0707

A few things worth knowing:

• Community Dining — a hot lunch in Bothell, Monday to Friday at noon, open to non-members too.
• Conversation Café — a weekly coffee social group.
• Clubs that meet regularly — Bridge, the Guitar Connection and the Crafting Club, among others.
• Fitness classes — line dancing, Enhance Fitness, Pilates, Zumba, strength and balance, and more.
• Volunteering — the center says it works with more than 500 volunteers a year. How to get involved.

Membership is $48 a year for one person or $85 for a couple, and it lowers program fees. Scholarships are available. Membership details · all programs.

Library book groups

The King County Library System runs free monthly book groups at all three libraries. Each one welcomes new members; some ask you to register first. All KCLS book groups · KCLS programs for older adults.

Bothell Library — 18215 98th Avenue NE · 425-486-7811

• What Are You Reading? Book Group — monthly, Tuesday evenings. No set book: people bring what they are reading.
• Russian Language Book Group — monthly, Friday afternoons.
• Chinese Book Group (in Mandarin) — monthly, Sunday afternoons.

Kenmore Library — 6531 NE 181st Street · 425-486-8747

• Kenmore Afternoon Book Group — monthly, Friday afternoons.
• Cook’s Book Group — monthly, Wednesday evenings. Everyone cooks from the same cookbook and shares photos.

Woodinville Library — 17105 Avondale Road NE · 425-788-0733

• Woodinville Library Book Group — monthly, Tuesday evenings, contemporary fiction.
• Woodinville Men’s Book Group — the last Tuesday of the month, evenings.

Fitness and the pool

Northshore YMCA — 11811 NE 195th Street, Bothell · 425-485-9797. Runs Active Older Adult classes and pickleball.

Walking

The Sammamish River Trail runs about ten flat miles from Blyth Park in Bothell through Woodinville to Marymoor Park in Redmond, and meets the Burke-Gilman Trail at its Bothell end. About the trail.

The senior center also lists walking groups among its fitness programs.

Groups that meet regularly

• N King County Women’s Social Group (Meetup, Bothell) — for women in their 30s and older: walks, brunches, wine tastings and casual get-togethers.
• Meetup lists more groups near Bothell — search for “over 50” or for something you enjoy.

Associations

• Sno-King School Retirees — for retired staff of the Edmonds, Northshore and Shoreline school districts: luncheons, general meetings with a speaker, field trips, trips and service projects.

When you want the same few people every week

Most of what is listed here is built to bring people together. Far less is built to turn them into friends.

On Longtable, a circle is a small group of neighbors who meet regularly, in person, around one thing they enjoy — a few neighbors near you who share something you love, meeting for long enough that they become people who know you. You can see the circles near you, or start one: say what and when, and let neighbors find it. How it works.