Here’s a thought…
“The future is already here. It’s just not evenly distributed yet.”
WILLIAM GIBSON
Welcome to Medicare? SHIBA has all the answers you need
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY SHIBA ||| Is 2023 the year you join Medicare? Depending on your circumstances you may be enrolled automatically by Social Security or you may need to submit an application. To make an informed decision about your coverage choices, you will need to understand a lot
2022 state ferry ridership up slightly from 2021
After two years of pandemic effects, passengers again outnumber vehicles ||| FROM WASHINGTON STATE FERRIES ||| SEATTLE – Washington State Ferries carried 17.4 million riders in 2022. That’s a total ridership increase of roughly 100,000 – or 0.5% – over 2021. The rise in annual ridership was fueled by a strong increase
It’s time for annual Point in Time homeless count
||| FROM HEATHER STANSBURY for COALITION TO END HOMELESSNESS ON ORCAS ||| The annual Point In Time (PIT) Count of the homeless across the country will occur on January 26, 2023. This count aims to record sheltered and unsheltered people experiencing homelessness on a single night in January every year.
Washington Water Supply Outlook Report for January now available
||| FROM SCOTT PATTEE for WA SNOW SURVEY OFFICE ||| SPOKANE VALLEY, Wash. - Following a very dry summer, water-year 2023 started off with extremely dry conditions. The last waning days of October brought much needed rain to the region. November continued the trend but remained warm preventing much snow accumulation
Actors Theater of Orcas Island announces auditions for the play ‘The Tin Woman’
||| FROM DOUG BECHTEL for ACTORS THEATER OF ORCAS ISLAND ||| The Tin Woman is the story of a woman who receives a heart transplant and her eventual meeting with the family of the donor. Instead of relishing life after her heart transplant, Joy becomes depressed, unsure whether she truly
Join us for the first Art Show of 2023 at Orcas Center
||| FROM BETHANY MARIE for ORCAS CENTER ||| Orcas Center’s Visual Arts Committee (VAC) is pleased to present New Perspectives: Classical and Digital Photography on Friday, January 20 from 5:30 - 7 p.m. in the Madrona Room. Capturing a perfect moment to preserve forever requires not only an artistic eye,
The bipartisan Tax Structure Work Group recommends improvements to Washington state’s taxes
||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE ||| OLYMPIA, Wash. The Tax Structure Work Group (TSWG) announced its recommendations for improving Washington state’s taxes after four years of studies and community engagement. This bipartisan group of legislators and policymakers provided a recommendation to the Legislature to replace the state’s business and
Guest Opinion | Do Southern Resident Killer Whales have inherent rights?
||| FROM SHARON GRACE ||| Do Southern Resident Killer Whales have inherent rights? Port Townsend, Gig Harbor, and Langley think so. They have adopted a proclamation that describes their support for action by local, state, federal and tribal governments to secure the inherent rights of the Southern Resident Orcas. The
New York playwrights to present new works at Orcas Center
||| FROM BETHANY MARIE for ORCAS CENTER ||| The Orcas Center is hosting three young playwrights from EST’s YoungBlood Program in New York as they finish drafts of three new plays. On January 20th and 21st there will be public staged readings of the plays followed by talk backs with
Barron Heating AC Electrical & Plumbing adds staff to SJ islands
||| FROM BARRON HEATING AC ELECTRICAL & PLUMBING ||| Fulfilling a pledge to provide timelier and broader service to the San Juan Islands, Barron Heating AC Electrical & Plumbing recently added an HVAC service technician and a full-service plumber in residence on Orcas Island. Brad Barron, company CEO, shared that
San Juan County launches new oral health program for school-age children
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATIONS ||| San Juan County Health and Community Services will be providing “Smile Checks” as part of an oral health prevention program. Healthy teeth are part of overall health and wellness. In partnership with the North Sound Accountable Communities of Health Local Impact
State survey: Most people say housing is #1 issue
Housing costs/rents, homelessness and overall cost of living top list of most important problems facing Washington state in new survey by Department of Commerce and Puget Sound Regional Council ||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE ||| OLYMPIA, WA --- Housing and homelessness topped a list of 12 issues in a
Larsen: United States must engage with China to better compete with China and the world
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF REP. RICK LARSEN ||| WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. Rick Larsen (WA-02) supported a bipartisan effort to enhance U.S. global leadership and foster better economic and strategic engagement with China. The House of Representatives passed legislation establishing the Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the
Join Island Primary Care – Orcas and San Juan County ECEAP for a meet and greet with our new pediatrician
||| FROM RACHEL LAMBERT for ISLAND HEALTH ||| Join Island Primary Care – Orcas and San Juan County ECEAP for a meet and greet with our new pediatrician. Evan Buxbaum, MD, MPH, is a board certified pediatrician serving the children and adolescents of Orcas Island and San Juan County. He and
School Board meets this Thursday
||| FROM ORCAS ISLAND SCHOOL DISTRICT ||| Orcas Island School District has scheduled a Board Meeting, which will be on Thursday, January 12. It will be held both in-person and via zoom. http://us02web.zoom.us/j/5474235505
WSF Survey Results: Fuel surcharge, anyone?
||| BY MATTHEW GILBERT, theORCASONIAN OP-ED REPORTER ||| As a prelude to this week’s virtual community meetings at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday (1/11) and 6 p.m. Thursday (1/12) hosted by Washington State Ferries (WSF), it may help to review some of the results of its recently released Summer 2022 survey. (Advanced
