Here’s a thought…
“No one, I mean no one, has the right to sit in judgment of who’s American enough.”
MICHELLE OBAMA
WSF Weekly Report | Good Morning America visit; media visits; online community meetings
||| FROM STEVE NEVEY for WASHINGTON STATE FERRIES ||| A message from Steve I spent Monday with my deputy, John Vezina, and Electrification Program Administrator David Sowers at Eastern Shipbuilding Group. We visited the Florida site where our new 160-car ferries will be built. It was an opportunity to learn more
Are you entering something in the Fair?
Check out these important dates for 2026 fair exhibitors ||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| The San Juan County Parks & Fair Department is excited to continue offering convenient online pre-registration and multi-island pick-up and drop-off for non‑perishable Fair entries. Online registration opens Wednesday, July 1, and our staff
Occam’s Razor | Our island, our world through the eyes, pen of S.C. Watson
Welcome to our weekly feature, Occam's Razor, from local artist S.C. Watson.
Letter to Editor | A compelling reason to learn CPR
||| FROM GERI BAKER for ORCAS ONLINE ||| On April 20, 2026 my husband Stu collapsed in his chair (Widow-Maker heart attack. 70% mortality rate) at our office in Eastsound and was without pulse for 25+ minutes. 6 paddles (clear!), 3 EPI jabs & so many compressions, plus 3 stents
GoFundMe campaigns set up for traffic accident victims
||| FROM JEFF PLATT for GOFUND ME ||| The friends and families of the young couple from Orcas Island who died in the crash on US-97 near Beebe Bridge in Lake Chelan have started GoFundMe pages asking for help to honor their loved ones. The links to both fundraisers are
Coming Soon | Master Gardeners spring plant sales on San Juan, Orcas
Healthy herbs, tomato and pepper starts, and locally grown perennial landscaping plants need new homes! ||| FROM CAITIE BLETHEN for SJC MASTER GARDENERS ||| One of the most anticipated signs of spring, the San Juan County Master Gardener Foundation Spring Plant Sales will take place on San Juan and Orcas
Salmonberry Community School is turning 25
...and we're having a party! ||| FROM LAURA BLACK for SALMONBERRY SCHOOL ||| Anyone who has ever been in relationship with the little school with a big heart is invited to attend our birthday party on Wednesday, June 10, 2026 from 1:00 - 4:00 in the school yard. We will
Larsen defends reproductive health care
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF U.S. REP. RICK LARSEN ||| WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) joined more than 250 House and Senate Democrats in filing an amicus brief urging the Supreme Court to overturn a Fifth Circuit decision that would restrict access to mifepristone by reinstating a requirement that the drug be
Have a garden question? Ask an Orcas Master Gardener
Saturday May 9th at the Market Garden Nursery ||| FROM ORCAS MASTER GARDENERS ||| Do you have a question about your soil, have a problem with your fruit tree, or are thinking about starting a garden? Is something bugging your plants, or you are curious about identifying a plant or
SJC’s Agricultural Resources Committee to host farmer listening session on meat processing
The meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, May 13, from 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. and will be held virtually on Zoom ||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| San Juan County’s Agricultural Resources Committee (ARC) is hosting a listening session and information sharing opportunity for farmers to discuss access to
Join Garden Club for permaculture presentation
||| FROM ORCAS ISLAND GARDEN CLUB ||| LEARN FROM PERMACULTURIST, STEWARD, AND PASSIONATE GARDENER, TAJA WICKS Wednesday, May 20th, 10 am (at the Orcas Center or by Zoom) JOIN US AT 9:30 AM (just before the program) for social time, and feel free to bring something for the Sharing
News Brief | The world is about to get a preview of life in 2035
||| FROM NEW YORK TIMES ||| A climate monster is growing right now in the Pacific Ocean, perhaps the most fearsome El Niño since before scientists even began modeling them. The El Niño building right now, and expected to crest around the end of next year, arrives on top of
Leadership San Juan Islands schedules annual meeting
||| FROM GRETCHEN KRAMPF for LEADERSHIP SAN JUAN ISLANDS |||
No jurors needed for May 11-15
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| JURY DUTY: MAY 11-15, 2026 All jurors summonsed for the Jury Period beginning Monday May 11th through Friday May 15th, 2026 are excused. Thank you.
Re-elect Natasha Warmenhoven as San Juan County Auditor
||| FROM NATASHA WARMENHOVEN, CANDIDATE FOR SAN JUAN COUNTY AUDITOR ||| Natasha Warmenhoven is proud and excited to announce her candidacy for re-election as San Juan County Auditor. Over the last four years, Natasha has served the residents of San Juan County with a commitment to transparency, fiscal responsibility, and
I spent eight years as Orcas Island’s hospice nurse; here is what I saw
...and what I am building before I go ||| FROM DEBRA O'CONNER, R.N. ||| I have been enormously fortunate in my nursing career — from midwife at birth to midwife for the dying. It is one of the oldest professions there is, and I am proud to have walked both
