Here’s a thought…
“Old age is no joke, but it can feel like one.”
TAD TOMPKINS
Almost time to get your Uke on
||| FROM ANITA ORNE for FLOATING UKULELE JAM ||| It’s Floating Ukulele Jam time again! Grab your uke, your voice, a song or two to share, and your friends and relations and join us on the interisland ferry on the traditional Third Thursday of the month – June 20. We’ll
Letter to Editor | Senior Center meets diverse needs of our community
||| FROM JENNIFER HAIRSTON ||| Visiting Orcas Island is magical but staying here long-term means taking calculated risks with transportation, medical services, housing, and something we don’t talk about a lot - isolation. Making new friends as an older adult can seem daunting. But making and keeping connections help combat
Orcas Center Gala will be event of the year
||| FROM BETHANY MARIE for ORCAS CENTER ||| Get ready to raise your paddle and experience another incredible Gala from the creative board and staff at Orcas Center – The 2024 Fantasy Island Masquerade on Saturday, July 20. You will “Ooooh” and “Aaaaah” at the variety of entertainment including Up
San Juan County proceeds with Courthouse preservation efforts
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| San Juan County is taking steps to protect the historic courthouse in Friday Harbor. After a 2022 study deemed the building “structurally deficient” the County is seeking grant funding to secure this valuable piece of local history. Built in 1906 and placed on the National
San Juan County remembers William Anders, Astronaut and Islander
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| San Juan County mourns the loss of retired Major General William Anders after his plane crashed off the coast of Jones Island on Friday, June 7. Anders made history as the Apollo 8 astronaut known for snapping the iconic “Earthrise” photo. Later in
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.
Good news from the Supreme Court today
||| FROM CONGRESSMAN RICK LARSEN ||| The Supreme Court has unanimously ruled to preserve access to mifepristone, a medication used in nearly two-thirds of all abortions in the United States. This is the first case related to abortion since the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade two years ago. That
County offices to close for Juneteenth observance
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| San Juan County offices will be closed to the public on Wednesday, June 19 in observance of Juneteenth – the celebration commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. San Juan County Council issued a proclamation at the June 13, 2023 Council
You can help stop Medicare fraud
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Medicare fraud costs an estimated $60 billion each year and ultimately raises the cost of healthcare for everyone. June 3-9 is National Medicare Fraud Prevention Week to call attention to the issue. As a Medicare beneficiary, you can protect yourself by
Letter to Editor | I support Senior Center efforts to purchase building
||| FROM MAGGIE KAPLAN ||| As a longtime volunteer and advocate for the welfare of seniors, I have seen first-hand the impact that Orcas Senior Center (OSC) programs have on the lives of those they serve and their families. I fully support OSC’s efforts to purchase its building. OSC provides
After nearly 25 years, federal officials approve a limited Makah whale hunt
||| FROM KNKX NPR ||| The long wait is over. A federal official has given the green light for members of the Makah tribe to resume exercising their treaty right to whaling, based on a request first made in 2005. Their last hunt took place in 1999. With a waiver under the Marine Mammal Protection
LWVSJ Observer Corps: County Council June 11, 2024
||| FROM NECIA QUAST for LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS ||| During public comment a Lopez resident thanked the council for meeting on Lopez and said regarding the new skate park, that rather than spending money on visual elements like colored concrete and an embedded map, he would prefer additional skate features. Transitions
Orcas Senior Center buys building: You can help
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Orcas Senor Center’s (OSC’s) capital campaign is well on its way to raising the $1.5 million needed to achieve full ownership of the building. As the thermometer at Brown Bear reflects, we have raised about $613,000 thus far. We need your
Orcas APS gala
||| FROM KRISTINA SNYDER for ORCAS ANIMAL PROTECTION SOCIETY ||| We invite you to the Love Tails Gala, where compassion meets celebration! Join us on Saturday, July 6 at Orcas Center at 4:30 pm for a paws-itively unforgettable evening dedicated to supporting Orcas Animal Protection Society and the incredible community
Encomium | In Memory of Bill Anders
||| FROM RUSTY SCHWEICKART, APOLLO 9 LUNAR MODULE PILOT ||| Here's a wonderful tribute to Bill Anders from his long-standing Apollo Astronaut buddy, Rusty Schweickart, the Lunar Module Pilot on the Apollo 9 mission. Rusty was visiting Bill here on Orcas Island in 2016 when Bill called to suggest he
Input on Odd Fellows hall kitchen requested
||| FROM CHE BLAINE for ORCAS ODD FELLOWS ||| Our Eastsound Hall has been in use since 1891 and is a vital community space that hosts a myriad of uses including classes, dances, gatherings, food service, and weddings. This year, the Odd Fellows are working to make needed improvements and
