Noel Gasca
General Assignment Reporter
About
Noel is a general assignment reporter for KUOW, covering everything from city hall to pickleball. Prior to joining the newsroom, Noel worked as a producer for KUOW’s midday show Soundside. Noel has also worked as an online editor and producer with KUOW’s web team, and she’s also a proud graduate of KUOW’s RadioActive program.
Noel is an alumna of Emerson College and has interned at NPR member stations WBUR in Boston and WAMU in Washington D.C. Originally from Lake Stevens, Washington, Noel is elated to be back in the Pacific Northwest and covering the people and places that make up the state she calls home.
When she’s not working, Noel enjoys perusing Seattle’s used bookstores, practicing her kata, and discussing the lasting legacy of Selena Quintanilla’s music with anyone who will listen.
Location: Seattle
Languages: English
Pronouns: she/her
Professional Affiliations: National Association of Hispanic Journalists, AIR
Stories
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Visiting the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial
On Bainbridge Island, just across Eagle Harbor from the ferry terminal in Winslow, there sits an idyllic 8-acre site, with water lapping at a small dock and light filtering down through towering trees. But the beauty of the space belies its dark history.
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Marking the 80th anniversary of Executive Order 9066
80 years ago this month, the U.S. government forced 227 Japanese immigrants and Japanese Americans out of their homes and businesses on Bainbridge Island.
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Postcard: I am not OK
We hear from Drew in Seattle's Central District, who takes us to a place in the city that will forever remind him of living through this pandemic.
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How the Olympic marmot became Washington's fuzziest state symbol
Washington state is known for its variety of flora and fauna. But there's one animal that doesn't get the same kind of love — the Olympic marmot.
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'Nobody believed that this would happen.' The war in Ukraine from Seattle
After weeks of signaling and buildup of troops and equipment, Russia has launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In other words, Vladimir Putin has ordered likely the largest conventional military action in Europe since World War II. KUOW's Soundside heard from several Seattleites about their view of what's happening in Ukraine.
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Major projects at a standstill as concrete workers strike across King County
Since November 2021, over 300 concrete mixer truck drivers have been on strike. They work for six of the largest cement suppliers in the region and if the cement doesn't flow - the rest of the work on the job site can't happen. Now, contractors and local leaders are starting to sound the alarm about project delays.
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Looking for diverse happily ever after stories? Turn to 'Radical Romance'
Romance fiction has not always done a great job of handing out those happy endings to everyone, especially to characters who don’t watch the image of the harlequin heroine you might have seen on romance fiction covers on your grandma’s bookshelf: blonde, willowy, white, straight and cis-gender. That inspired one local bookseller to launch the “Radical Romance” book group, which aims to highlight and celebrate romance fiction featuring characters of all races, orientations, beliefs, sizes, and abilities.
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Wave of book bans strikes U.S. How local librarians and book lovers are responding
Sara Strite says she would rather not stand in front of Kent School District headquarters in the rain at seven a.m. But she'll do it if it means keeping books in school libraries.
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In Olympia, magic mushrooms are a no-go, and 'missing middle' housing pushes forward
Lawmakers in Olympia are officially halfway through this year's legislative session. What's made it forward?
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Re-airing: Crying in H-Mart
Our connections to books can be deeply personal. We cling to the characters that feel like friends, or reflect pieces of ourselves. But how do you translate your reading experience and the connections you feel with a book into music?