Here’s a thought…
“Trump is a poor person’s idea of a rich man, a weak person’s idea of a strong man, and a stupid person’s idea of a smart man.”
Attributed to MICHAEL MOORE
Russel Barsh Kwiaht Talk at Odd Fellows Hall
||| FROM DIDIER GINCIG for ORCAS ODD FELLOWS HALL ||| Russel Barsh Russel Barsh, director of Kwiáht, a nonprofit conservation biology laboratory in and for the San Juan Islands of Washington State, will be offering a talk at the Odd Fellows Hall on Sunday, March 23 from 3:00-4:30. He will speak
Drop-in peer grief support group at Orcas Senior Center
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Join us for a supportive, non-judgmental space to process grief and mourning with the Drop-In Peer Grief Support Group Wednesdays at 10:00 a.m. at Orcas Senior Center. This group is designed to help normalize your feelings, facilitate healing, and provide understanding.
County announces trail funding to be used on Land Bank’s Beaverton Marsh Preserve
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| During today’s meeting, Council reviewed the most recent iteration of the ‘Trail Project’ for which the County received $5.2 million in federal funding in 2023. After a brief recap of all explored routes and options, Council supported the most recent plan to use
Ferry Alert: Ana/SJs – Temporary vehicle reductions on Wednesday, March 19
||| FROM WASHINGTON STATE FERRIES ||| Starting with the 3:05 p.m. sailing out of Anacortes, the 124-vehicle Issaquah will replace the 144-vehicle Samish for the rest of the service day on Wednesday, March 19. The Samish will go out of service for the day as we complete necessary maintenance. This
The demise of the Northwest Forest Plan
||| FROM THE WILDLIFE NEWS ||| When is the Northwest Forest Plan no longer the Northwest Forest Plan (NWFP)? After the Forest Service has removed the skeleton, meat, and blood, leaving only the dermis. Any resemblance the proposed NWFP bears to the original NWFP is only skin deep. The Northwest
LWVSJ Observer Corps Notes | County Council March 17, 2025
||| FROM NECIA QUAST for LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS ||| In public comment an Orcas resident said after the recent earthquake many on Orcas came together to discuss earthquake preparedness in the county. He came to hear the emergency management overview. Brendan Cowan and one 10-hour-per week employee make up
Monthly Land Bank Commission meeting this Friday
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY LAND BANK COMMISSION ||| The San Juan County Conservation Land Bank Commission will hold a regular monthly meeting on March 21, 2025 from 8:45am – 11:10am via Zoom. The meeting will also be available for in person public attendance at the San Juan Island Grange, located at 152 First
Thursday afternoon sailing added
||| FROM WASHINGTON STATE FERRIES ||| To accommodate heavy westbound traffic, we will operate additional afternoon service this Thursday afternoon on the Anacortes-San Juan Islands route. The route will run a Friday schedule on Thursday, March 20, 2025. This schedule change will add the following sailings on the #2 vessel:
Art & Feldenkrais topics being presented at Senior Center
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Discover Gentle Flexibility: A Balance Class Inspired by the Feldenkrais Method Join Andrea Preiss, a seasoned Feldenkrais practitioner and therapeutic eurythmist, for a relaxing movement class at Orcas Senior Center, Tuesdays at 11 a.m. Emphasizing a seated position, these subtle exercises
Council begins review of Comp Plan elements during Spring workshop meetings
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| At today’s Council workshop meeting, Department of Community Development (DCD) staff kicked off a series of Comprehensive Plan Element review sessions. During the meeting, Council had the opportunity to review a few draft elements and provide DCD with feedback. These workshop reviews
Earth Day parade, workshops and event calendar news
||| FROM EARTH DAY ORCAS ||| Come celebrate Earth Day Orcas – all month long in April. Organizations from across the islands are joining to offer a month of inspiring and educational, fun and creative community activities. Parade is on Sat. Apr 26th and parade costume and prop workshops are
Art Opening | Peter Olesen – An Echo of Light
||| FROM BETHANY MARIE for ORCAS CENTER ||| Orcas Center’s Visual Arts Committee (VAC) is pleased to present the next Art Opening, Friday, March 21 from 5:30pm – 7pm with featured artist Peter Olesen in the lobby, and a community show of “Art and the Elements” in the Madrona Room.
Microplastics are messing with photosynthesis in plants
Microplastics can cut a plant’s ability to photosynthesize by up to 12 percent, new research shows ||| FROM SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN ||| Microplastics are now a ubiquitous part of our daily physical reality. These minuscule fragments of degrading plastic now suffuse our air, our soil, the food we eat and the
OCS Teacher Spotlight | Debbie Liblik
||| FROM ORCAS CHRISTIAN SCHOOL ||| “Chocolate mousse,” she says with a smile and a twinkle in her eye. If you know Debbie Liblik, you know she loves three things: chocolate, her family, and teaching her students at Orcas Christian School (OCS). Whether it’s teaching students to pipe their cupcakes
“Nye” from National Theatre Live at Orcas Center
||| FROM BETHANY MARIE for ORCAS CENTER ||| Nye, a production from National Theatre Live, written by Tim Price and directed by Rufus Norris, comes to the Orcas Center screen on Friday, March 21 at 6pm. Michael Sheen (The Queen, Frost/Nixon) plays Aneurin “Nye” Bevan in a surreal and spectacular
Big announcement, new hirings, exciting times for Orcas Island Fire & Rescue
||| FROM BEN LUNA for ORCAS ISLAND FIRE & RESCUE ||| OIFR is pleased to announce the hiring of Chief Chad Kimple as the new Fire Chief. Chief Kimple has served in multiple capacities for OIFR for over 20 years. Most recently he has been the interim OIFR chief as
