Here’s a thought…
“I am so convinced of the advantages of looking at mankind instead of reading about them, and of the bitter effects of staying at home with all the narrow prejudices of an islander, that I think there should be a law amongst us to set our young men abroad for a term among the few allies our wars have left us.”
LORD BYRON
Weekly update indicates seven new COVID cases on Orcas
||| FROM BRENDAN COWAN for DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ||| Note: Current positive case numbers are available online at the County Case Data Dashboard. As indicated on that page, these numbers are only updated after case confirmation is complete, usually daily. It is possible that other information sources in community
‘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.
In tribute | We can’t know everything
“A single person is missing for you, and the whole world is empty.” ― Joan Didion, The Year of Magical Thinking ||| FROM JOAN SULLIVAN ||| I have tried unsuccessfully to get the tears out of my eyes so I could act sensibly, write coherently. In the back of my mind are
In Memoriam | Martha Fuller 1962 – 2021
||| FROM TIM FULLER ||| On May 5, Martha Fuller, of Orcas Island, passed away peacefully in La Paz, Mexico where she and her husband, Tim, were spending the winter months. Though diagnosed with severe liver disease in late 2020, she continued to be kind, generous, witty, courageous and funny
Nonprofit Community Relief grant open for eligible Washington state veteran service organizations
Applications due May 24, 2021 ||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE ||| OLYMPIA, Wash. – The Washington State Department of Commerce is partnering with the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) to administer $1.25 million in Nonprofit Community Recovery (NCR) grant funding to nonprofit veteran service organizations (VSOs). The grant focuses on
Lopez Swim Center gets a quarter-million dollar boost from state capital budget
||| FROM CLAIRE ANDERSON for FRIENDS OF LOPEZ ISLAND POOL ||| The Washington Senate and House of Representatives recently included $245,000 for the Lopez Island Swim Center in the 2021-2023 state capital budget. On May 18, Governor Inslee signed the budget. The Friends of Lopez Island Pool (FLIP) Board and
Orcas Senior Center seeks Orcas district committee candidates
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Along with senior centers on Lopez and San Juan Islands, the Orcas Senior Center is operated as a geographic “district” of an umbrella non-profit called the Senior Services Council of San Juan County (SSCSJC). The operational arm for the Orcas Senior
Concerned about jet noise over San Juans? Join this upcoming ZOOM gathering
Wednesday, May 26, 6:30 p.m. ||| FROM SUSAN SHANNON for SOUND DEFENSE ALLIANCE ||| Join a ZOOM gathering with fellow islanders to discuss the noise generated by Growler jets on Wednesday, May 26, at 6:30 p.m. The Sound Defense Alliance and Quiet Skies over San Juan County are joining to
COVID-19 vaccine distribution update from Washington State Department of Health
||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ||| OLYMPIA – The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) continues to make progress with our COVID-19 vaccine distribution and administration efforts. As of May 17, more than 6,424,110 doses of vaccine have been given across the state, which is nearly 84% of the 7,664,240 doses that
Port of Orcas has set the agenda for next meeting
||| FROM JEANNIE SHARPE for PORT OF ORCAS ||| REGULAR MEETING AGENDA MAY 24, 2021 5 p.m. Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89850589119?pwd=RktqRS9wb21Td3Ntb3JVL1R3cGprdz09 Meeting ID: 898 5058 9119 Passcode: 829516 One tap mobile +12532158782,,89850589119#,,,,*829516# US (Tacoma) CALL TO ORDER – 5:00 P.M. AGENDA AMENDMENTS PUBLIC ACCESS MONTHLY BUSINESS Approval of Previous Minutes
Are you a collector? Senior Center stamp club invites you to next meeting
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Please join us for our second virtual meeting of the Orcas Senior Center Stamp Club at 2 p.m. on Friday, May 28. Don’t collect? Join us anyway and find out what that stash of old stamps inherited from your late, great
Inslee signs historic climate change legislative package
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF GOVERNOR JAY INSLEE ||| Gov. Jay Inslee signed a historic climate change legislative package [Monday] during a three-stop tour through King County. The governor signed the Climate Commitment Act, environmental justice legislation, a clean fuels standard and bills related to reducing Washington’s single-use plastic waste
Another COVID update from state health department
||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ||| Newest numbers. The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) reported a total of 391,188 confirmed cases as of 11:59 p.m. on May 17. There have been 5,653 COVID-19 deaths in Washington. For the most recent tally of cases by county, demographics, and more, visit the Department
County Council considers options for vacation rental caps
||| BY MATTHEW GILBERT, theORCASONIAN OP-ED REPORTER ||| On May 18, Director of Community Development Erika Shook gave council members four options for establishing countywide and/or island-specific caps on vacation rental permits (excluding Friday Harbor). Driving those options, she explained, were “logical possibilities related to actual numbers.” She also emphasized
State leaders urge drivers to plan ahead when it comes to fueling up as surge in road travel expected
||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE ||| Smartphone apps can help drivers locate open gas stations as ongoing shortage of fuel truck drivers may cause lag in deliveries OLYMPIA, Wash. --- Memorial Day is approaching, bringing with it the unofficial launch of the spring and summer travel season. While air
Guest Opinion | Greenwashing San Juan County
||| FROM ELISABETH ROBSON ||| Today I received in my inbox an email from OPALCO extolling an affordable energy future powered by renewables and carried by electric vehicles. We get pictures of solar panels and an electric vehicle happy deal. They claim in this email that their vision of the
