Here’s a thought…
“We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children.”
NATIVE AMERICAN PROVERB
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
New winter sailing schedule for San Juans
||| FROM WASHINGTON STATE FERRIES ||| Vehicle reservations for the winter 2025 schedule (Dec. 29 through Mar. 22) will be available one week from today at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 29. To ensure a smooth and fair experience during this high-demand period, we will continue using a virtual waiting room. Anacortes/San Juan
Island Ways | Crew shortages cause several slow boat cancellations on Nantucket
Orcas and Nantucket Islands are each roughly the same size and the same distance off their respective coasts. We share the same concerns about the high cost of living, lack of affordable housing, tourist management, ferry problems and environmental degradation. We are living on opposite ends of the country but
Letter to Editor | Right person at the right time
||| FROM LEITH TEMPLIN ||| When I vote in an election, I look at the candidates, the position and who is best qualified. I generally know the people running so this is not about personalities or friendships; it's about who is the best person for the job right now. Rick
Letters to Editor | Why I support Rick Hughes’ candidacy
||| FROM JAN EHRLICHMAN ||| I’ve lived through many campaigns, and I know the commitment and hard work that is required when someone runs for office. I have a lot of respect for Rick Hughes and Justin Paulsen who have spent the last many months campaigning so that they can
Pea Patch community campus update
REPORT BACK TO COMMUNITY ON SITE DESIGN – OCT 29, 2024 SOLAR MICROGRID FEASIBILITY STUDY SEEKS COMMUNITY FEEDBACK ||| FROM SUZANNE OLSON, PEA PATCH PROJECT LEAD ||| More than ten months after purchasing eleven acres on Pea Patch Lane for a community services campus, the collaboration of OPAL Community Land
