Two Weeks, and Mama Orca Still Grieving
-- from The Weather Channel -- More than two weeks after the death of her newborn calf, an endangered orca continues to cling to its corpse. Michael Milstein, a spokesman with NOAA Fisheries, says researchers on Wednesday spotted the 20-year-old whale known as J35 carrying her dead young off the
Sheriff’s Office Provides IED Investigation Update, Urges Caution
-- from Sheriff Ron Krebs -- There is understandable and significant concern throughout the islands following the discovery on Monday of an improvised explosive device (IED) on the San Juan County Land Bank Turtleback Mountain Preserve property on Orcas Island. The ongoing investigation is being led by the U.S. Bureau
AT&T Outage Map Shows It’s Not Just Us
-- by Lin McNulty -- The AT&T website, downdetector.com is currently bristling with reports of outages, with reports originating from Mountain View, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Kill Devil Hills, Manteo, San Francisco, and Stillwater. San Juan County is among those affected. Brendan Cowan, San Juan County Department of Emergency
School District to Welcome New School Buses
-- from Orcas Island School District -- Thanks in part to a successful application for a $70,000 grant from the Department of Ecology’s ‘Clean Diesel’ Program by Keith Whitaker, the Orcas Island School District has been able to order two brand new buses to replace the oldest buses in our
Letter to Editor | Keep Eastsound Airport a Rural Airport
-- from Clark Cundy -- I attended the Port meeting at the Firehouse on July 26 and came away needing to read more about the project. I also attended the meeting at the Odd Fellows Hall on Wednesday August 1. I grew up on Orcas back in the 60s and
Community Church Starts 2 Sunday Services
-- by Brian Moss -- It has been a busy summer on Orcas Island. The same holds true for the Community Church. We just hosted a wonderful Jubilee weekend and are looking forward to a new ministry year this fall. This Sunday, August 12, 2018, Orcas Island Community Church will
Port of Orcas Regular Meeting Thursday
Thursday, Aug. 9 at 6 p.m. at Eastsound Fire Hall The agenda calls for: APPROVAL OF MINUTES of July 26, 2018 Special Meeting APPROVAL OF VOUCHERS: PUBLIC ACCESS TIME 10 minutes EXECUTIVE SESSION The commission will meet in executive session to review the performance of a public employee (Airport Manager
Madrona Point Insurance Approved by State to Hire Interns
-- from Michele Wiley for Madrona Point Insurance -- Madrona Point Insurance filed with WA State/L&I and with Parent/School Authorization and we are now approved to hire minors for our intern program. The team is developing an "on the job" training to offer a career path or develop skills they
Special Day Celebrates National Park System’s 102nd Birthday
-- from Toni Droscher for Washington State Parks -- To celebrate the National Park System’s 102nd birthday, the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission is offering free entrance to state parks on Saturday, Aug. 25. Day-use visitors will not need a Discover Pass to visit state parks by vehicle. “The National
State Grants Boost Ranks of Boatbuilding Students
-- from Rick Manugian, Senate Democratic Communications -- [metaslider id="61682"] There’s no better time to be on the water than in August, during the hottest days of summer. There’s also no better time to be studying boatbuilding and renovating historic vessels in Washington state. Thanks to grants from the state’s Heritage
Letter to Editor | Every Tree Matters
-- from Domenic Verbano -- Why is it that humanity can’t seem to shift our society to deal with the looming reality that we are irreparably destroying this planet by our culture and lifestyle? The Lifeforce of this world, itself, cannot take much more abuse. It is time to save
First Election Results
-- by Margie Doyle -- Initial results of the August 7, 2018 Primary were reported at 8:04 p.m. on August 7 by the San Juan County Department of Elections. Of 13,074 registered voters, 4,555 ballots have been counted. There are an estimated 2,000 ballots left to count For County Prosecutor,
County Councilman Hughes to Meet with Public
Saturday Aug. 11 at 2 p.m. at Enzo's -- by Margie Doyle -- San Juan County Councilman Rick Hughes, who lives on Orcas Island, will be at Enzo's again on Saturday, Aug. 11 at 2 p.m. to talk with anyone who'd like to speak directly with him. When Rick Hughes
Research and Oral Histories are Basis for Spooky Tales
-- from Carol Kulminski -- Antoinette Botsford While both the Pioneer and Crow Valley School museums are filling with off-island visitors, it is our hope that locals will find their way into one of the museums before this intriguing program ends in August. Nancy Reas, a resident of
Nominate a Good Steward for a Finnie Award
-- Amy M. Nesler for San Juan Islands Visitors Bureau -- Don’t forget -- it’s award season here in the San Juans. The Oscars have nothing on the Finnies. Know someone who deserves to walk the stewardship red carpet? Nominate them for a Good Steward Award! Since 2008, the Good
Found Explosive Device Neutralized on Turtleback
-- from Sheriff Ron Krebs -- On Monday, August 6, at approximately 10:30 a.m. an Orcas Island resident reported a suspicious item on a Turtleback Mountain trail. Photographs and a description of the item were sent to the Washington State Patrol Bomb Squad who then responded to Orcas Island to
