Here’s a thought…
“It is the set of the sails, not the direction of the wind that determines which way we will go.”
JIM ROHN
Drawing for Beginners
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Join us for an engaging Drawing for Beginners class every Wednesday at 9:30 am, starting November 6. Led by the talented Robbie Walker, an experienced instructor in drawing and watercolors, this class will introduce you to essential techniques and help you
County opens 2024 vacation rental compliance certification process
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| San Juan County's Department of Community Development has opened the 2024 vacation rental certification of compliance process. This compliance process will be open until December 31, 2024. Vacation rental permit holders must submit their certificate of compliance application through the online portal, through the mail,
A holiday tradition continues, with a twist
||| FROM ANITA ORNE for OLGA SYMPHONY ||| The Olga Symphony is pleased to announce they will once again present their Thanksgiving weekend concert, this year on November 29th and 30th. Having been a band since 1983, and having done this show since the early 1990s, as is so often
Letter to Editor | Vote YES on Proposition 1
||| FROM TOM and TAMMY COWAN ||| Unfortunately, we just don’t get out to walk and visit the amazing Land Bank preserves as often as we used to. Still, we get great satisfaction in knowing that our Land Bank preserves and conservation easements contribute to our personal health and to
Letter to Editor | Fact-checking McVeigh statements
||| FROM MINNIE KNYCH ||| There were several statements made by some of the candidates at the forum on Saturday that deserve fact checking. One statement by Kari McVeigh needs a fact check. When asked why she solicited and got an endorsement from the Democrat Party for a position on
LWVSJ Observer Corps | County Council October 21, 2024
||| FROM NECIA QUAST for LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS ||| The Sheriff gave the Council copies of lifesaving awards to two sheriff’s deputies for saving a car accident victim last August by pulling them to safety as the fuel tank exploded. Several EMS personnel received meritorious service awards. The Council heard an update
Leaping Fool Winter Writers’ Series submissions open
||| FROM NIK SCHULZ ||| “THE LEAPING FOOL” winter writers’ series enters its last season with three events taking place at the Orcas Island Winery during the 2024–2025 season. Submissions for all three events are now open. THE LEAPING FOOL is a community-based collaboration in which local writers, poets, and
Free Tooth Extraction Clinic
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF DR. TRIPLETT ||| Dr. Triplett’s dental office at 445 Madrona Street in Eastsound has reserved Wednesday November 13 for free tooth extractions for our Orcas, Shaw, and Waldron residents in financial need. Services are limited to both routine and surgical extractions (including wisdom teeth). To
Letter to Editor | Paulsen is the worthy choice for SJC
||| FROM NICHOLAS JOHNS ||| Justin Paulsen is my choice for County Council District 2. Justin is a highly competent and intelligent man. He’s endorsed by both outgoing county councilwomen. He has the right policy ideas for our county. Justin has proven his worth in many ways, such as through
Larsen and Kuster introduce bill to enhance federal response to close substance use care gap and save lives
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF REP. RICK LARSEN ||| WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Reps. Rick Larsen (WA-02) and Annie Kuster (NH-02) introduced the Closing the Substance Use Care Gap Act to expand access to lifesaving, community-based harm reduction initiatives and services and enhance the federal response to the opioid and fentanyl epidemic. “The opioid crisis is devastating
Guest Opinion | Should we be subsidizing the profligate power consumption of mansion owners?
||| FROM CHOM & CHRIS GREACEN ||| Our customer-owned electric utility, OPALCO, has voiced with increasing alarm: “blackouts are coming.”1 Why? Coal and natural gas-fired power plants are being retired faster than we can add new wind and solar energy, and electric load is growing with the addition of new
Setting Public Works Priorities: Council approves 6-Year transportation plan
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| San Juan County Council adopted the Public Works Department’s 2025-2030 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) and the Annual Construction Program (ACP) for 2025. The TIP guides the Public Works Department as it manages new and ongoing projects over a six-year period while the ACP outlines projects
Letter to Editor | Eager to see Rick Hughes return
||| FROM BECCA GRAY ||| In recent years, the islands’ residents and industries have experienced compounding challenges; from the lack of consistent ferry service, prompt permitting from our land use department, to the general lack of follow through from our County Council. We need to have someone with proven positive
Letter to Editor | Choose Hughes
||| FROM GARY FRANKLIN ||| A vote next month for Rick Hughes to be on our County Council is a vote for an experienced advocate for San Juan County, its residents and our neighborhoods. Working with him both on the Board of the Economic Development Council and in the Rotary
Letter to Editor | Paulsen is an advocate for affordable housing
||| FROM ORCAS TENANTS UNITED ||| Our community is in a period of massive transition, and it is vital that we elect county council candidates who are committed to enriching the lives of people who live and work in the islands. The members of Orcas Tenants United believe that the
Letter to Editor | Who’s buying our County Council?
||| FROM DAVID DEHLENDORF ||| My wife and I are enthusiastic supporters of candidate Kari McVeigh for San Juan County Council for District 1 (San Juan, Stuart, and other adjacent islands) and we will be voting for her on our November 5 ballots. Our support for her is based upon
