Here’s a thought…
“We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children.”
NATIVE AMERICAN PROVERB
Be sure to vote ‘yes’ to support school music
||| FROM PAUL ANDERSSON for MUSIC ADVOCACY GROUP ||| The Music Advocacy Group (MAG) encourages all voters on Orcas island to vote "yes" in support of the EP&O school levy renewal this February. Voting "yes" does not increase your taxes - the levy amount maintains current costs and even presents
Upcoming 1st grade orientations
||| FROM SUZANNA SMITH for ORCAS SCHOOL DISTRICT ||| The Orcas Island School District has three school options for all 1st grade children. Please join us as we share these options with you at our 1st Grade Parent Orientations. VIRTUALLY, Tuesday, February 6, from 5:30-6:30 - Link In Person, Wednesday,
LWVSJ Observer Corps: County Council January 22-23, 2024
||| FROM LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS, SAN JUAN COUNTY ||| At the January 22 workshop and 23rd regular meeting the Council conducted a retreat to plan and prepare for 2024. They approved appointments to the SJI Library Board, Lopez Village Planning Committee Human Services Advisory Board, and the Lopez Solid Waste Committee. They
New ‘Stewards of Children’ training ‘Keeping Our Children Safe’ is available in San Juan County
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| San Juan County Superior Court Services is now offering “Stewards of Children” training to organizations within our community. This training was created by the non-profit Darkness to Light with the mission of empowering people to prevent childhood sexual abuse and is now available
Land, legacy and food security on a small island
||| FROM LOPEZ COMMUNITY LAND TRUST ||| In 2023, Sage Dilts and Nathan Hodges of Barn Owl Bakery approached LCLT to see if we could work together to make their farm and bakery more stable by thinking creatively about land ownership models and community partnerships. LCLT’s founding purposes, of supporting
LWVSJ Observer Corps: County Council January 9, 2024
||| FROM LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS, SAN JUAN COUNTY ||| During public comment 27 county residents supported the Council issuing a call for a ceasefire in Gaza. To start the new year, the Council elected Jane Fuller as the chair and Christine Minney as the vice chair of the Council. The Council set
Fire Commission requests your input in upcoming townhall meeting
||| FROM KAT BARNARD for BOARD OF FIRE COMMISSIONERS ||| The Board of Fire Commissioners requests your input on renewing the levy lid lift for Orcas Island Fire and Rescue (OIFR). The Commissioners request public input on the type of levy lid lift (single or multiple years), its duration (temporary
Nourishing body, mind, and spirit: Yoga with Sam at Orcas Senior Center
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Join Samantha Fisher in a holistic movement practice suitable for all experience levels, prioritizing an attuned connection to your body's inner wisdom. Drawing from her training in Hatha Yoga and Integrated Movement Therapy, Samantha integrates insights from diverse healing modalities and
Library’s February art exhibit features works of Barbara Welch
||| FROM ANDREA COHEN for ORCAS ISLAND LIBRARY ||| The Orcas Island Library’s February art exhibit will feature a show of paintings by Barbara Welch, entitled Stories of Life. Barbara came from Poland 20 years ago, and has been painting since childhood. Her mother’s recollections of surviving WWII in a German
The Pea Patch Project steering team is hiring
||| FROM MEGAN EHRMANTRAUT for THE PEA PATCH PROJECT ||| The Pea Patch Project is a new collaboration between three of Orcas Island’s community-based organizations: OPAL Community Land Trust, Orcas Community Resource Center and the Orcas Island Food Bank. Having recently acquired property on the north side of Enchanted Forest
Grammy™ nominated Texas guitar quartet coming to Orcas Center
||| FROM BETHANY MARIE for ORCAS CENTER ||| Orcas Center is pleased to present Texas Guitar Quartet on Saturday, February 3 at 7pm with a special Thank You to Rosario Resort for sponsoring artist housing. Formed in 2009, GRAMMY™-nominated Texas Guitar Quartet has been hailed as “Impeccable in every respect”
Conservation advocates serve notice of intent to sue over Columbia River hatchery programs harming wild salmon recovery
||| FROM EMMA HELVERSON for WILD FISH CONSERVANCY ||| Wild Fish Conservancy and The Conservation Angler issued a 60-day Notice of Intent to sue federal, state, and local agencies for chronic and ongoing violations of the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The notice contends that these agencies are operating hatchery programs in
Alex Ramel | Decarbonizing holistically
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF REP. ALEX RAMEL ||| We are now three weeks into this year’s 60-day legislative session, and I am excited to share some updates on projects I’m working on and resources that impact our community. Video Update While I touch on these topics in greater depth
Writer-in-Residence returns to the interisland ferry
||| FROM IRIS GRAVILLE ||| The Writer-in-Residence is back! Following a hiatus due to COVID-19, the role of Writer-in-Residence (WIR) on the Interisland Ferry resumed again in January 2024. Debra Lee Babcock Orcas Island writer and artist, Debra Lee Babcock, will fill the post for nine months, writing
Island Ways | Nantucket reservation system breaks down again
||| FROM THE NANTUCKET INQUIRER & MIRROR ||| 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
B.C. trawlers dump thousands of salmon, depleting orcas’ food source, wildlife group says
||| FROM THE GLOBE AND MAIL ||| A British Columbia wildlife protection group says chinook salmon that form the key diet for endangered orcas are being caught in their thousands by trawlers, only to be dumped or turned into compost. Pacific Wild said it had obtained a yet-to-be-published Fisheries and
