Here’s a thought…
“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.”
ANNIE DILLARD
Advance care planning with Hospice of NW on tap at Sr. Center
Advance Care Planning with Hospice of the Northwest @ Orcas Senior Center - Wednesday, September 27 at 1pm ||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS ISLAND SENIOR CENTER ||| Advance Care Planning ensures your goals, values, and preferences are known not only at the end of life, but if you become
Fall has arrived!
||| FROM HILARY CANTY for ORCAS ISLAND COMMUNITY FOUNDATION ||| It appears we are experiencing yet another round of Covid infections on Orcas. The County is working on plans to provide the new booster. We hope clinic dates will be announced soon. In the meanwhile, the Federal Health Department is
Letter to Editor | Human nature
||| FROM JENNIFER SMITH ||| As a writer and observer of people, I notice patterns, both here in the Pacific Northwest and back on the Plains where we grew up. I suspect it is throughout human culture, for it is also displayed in books, movies & shows, politics, etc. I
WSF Weekly Report | Prospective students tour, Walla Walla out for 4 weeks, SJI task force, and a Troll
||| FROM PATTY RUBSTELLO for WASHINGTON STATE FERRIES ||| Staff and students from Seattle Jobs Initiative tour Tacoma, Eagle Harbor A group from Seattle Jobs Initiative toured a vessel on our Seattle/Bainbridge route Tuesday as part of our workforce development program. They also visited our Eagle Harbor Maintenance Facility. SJI works with individuals
Chief vanSchaick interview: ‘You can’t outwork bad leadership’
Setting the tone and driving organizational change from the chief’s seat ||| FROM EMS1.COM ||| The spark: What put you on the path to becoming a Chief? Holly vanSchaick, fire chief of Orcas Island Fire & Rescue in Eastsound, Washington. (Photo/Courtesy of Holly vanSchaick) I came to the
Yep, there’s wildfire smoke drifting into/across San Juan County
||| FROM BRENDAN COWAN for DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ||| A layer of moderate wildfire fire smoke has settled over San Juan County overnight. Local fire departments are investigating numerous calls to 911 reporting the smell of smoke. While islanders should always err on the side of caution when it
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.
Let’s do the bird walk at SJI Sculpture Park
||| FROM KRISTEN ARNIM for SJI SCULPTURE PARK ||| The San Juan Islands Sculpture Park will host its last bird walk of the year on Wednesday, October 4 from 8-10am. Join Tyler Davis, our birding expert for the event. Tyler tells us "with migration all but behind us, we'll use
Farmers Market Harvest Festival will be on September 30
||| FROM ERICA LYONS for OI FARMERS MARKET ||| The Orcas Island Farmers Market is proud to announce the conclusion of our Summer Market Season with our Harvest Festival on September 30th from 10am to 2pm! 4 hours of fabulous live music brought to you by local favorites Wild Child and Clint
Guest Opinion | Quality of life vs. quality of economy
||| FROM MICHAEL JOHNSON ||| Anecdotal evidence tells us that there is, once again, a rising number of Covid cases spreading throughout our island communities at this very moment in time. But, as we no longer track the numbers we're unable to determine to what extent this may pose a
Island Obstetrics & Gynecology – 24th St. Clinic welcomes new provider
||| FROM LAURA MORONEY for ISLAND HEALTH ||| Island Obstetrics & Gynecology – 24th Street Clinic welcomed Dr. Julie Watters to its clinic on September 18. Watters most recently served as Interim Department Head and staff Obstetrician/Gynecologist at the Naval Hospital on Camp Pendleton in California before finishing her Naval
Larsen: The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is working for Northwest Washington and the nation
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF REP. RICK LARSEN ||| WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. Rick Larsen (WA-02), the lead Democrat on the Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, delivered the below statement during a hearing with U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Secretary Pete Buttigieg on oversight of DOT’s policies and programs, including ongoing implementation of
School Board will meet on Tuesday
||| FROM ORCAS ISLAND SCHOOL DISTRICT ||| ORCAS ISLAND SCHOOL DISTRICT #137 EASTSOUND, WASHINGTON Notice of a REGULAR SCHOOL BOARD MEETING AGENDA 5:00pm, Tuesday, September 26, 2023 OISD Library and via Zoom https://us02web.zoom.us/j/5838618023
Upcoming special Fire Commission meeting to discuss lid lift ballot measure
||| FROM KAT BARNARD for BOARD OF FIRE COMMISSIONERS ||| The San Juan County Fire Protection District #2 Board of Fire Commissioners will hold a Special Meeting on Tuesday, September 26, 2023, at 6:00 p.m. The Special Agenda has one item: “Town Hall meeting to discuss lid lift ballot measure.”
There’s some new happenings at Airhawks
||| FROM BOB WAUNCH for AIRHAWKS FLYING CLUB ||| This summer has been busy for the Airhawks Flying Club. An additional aircraft was added, several student pilots competed their first solo flights, and another (the 24 th ) Youth Scholarship Student, Nicholas Rivera, was awarded his Private Pilot License. Nicholas
New family medicine doctor joins Island Primary Care – M Avenue
||| FROM LAURA MORONEY for ISLAND HEALTH ||| On September 18, Dr. Sarah Van Gaasbeek joined Island Primary Care – M Avenue Clinic. Van Gaasbeek specializes in family medicine with obstetrics. She earned her Doctor of Medicine from University of Louisville School of Medicine in Louisville, Kentucky and is board
