Here’s a thought…
“That confidence — that the law cannot reach you because you are the one wielding it — is the oldest and most dangerous delusion in Washington.”
MILES TAYLOR
After one-year hiatus, Library Fair is a definite success
||| FROM DAVE KOSIUR for FRIENDS OF THE ORCAS ISLAND LIBRARY ||| Thank you, Orcas Island! Thanks to the community of Orcas Island, the annual Summer Library Fair (after one year’s hiatus) was a resounding success! Book sales on last Saturday’s Library Fair netted the Friends of the Orcas Island
Navy wraps up fourth sound monitoring period; results to become public later
||| FROM MIKE WELDING for NAS WHIDBEY ISLAND ||| NAVAL AIR STATION WHIDBEY ISLAND, Wash. - The Navy completed its fourth week of real-time sound monitoring at Naval Air Station (NAS) Whidbey Island as directed by the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2020 (FY20). Flight activity was
Letter to Editor | An open letter to editors of theOrcasonian and the Sounder
||| FROM LILI HEIN ||| If you have available staff, please send a reporter to attend the next Orcas Island School District Board at 5 p.m. on Thursday, August 26. The main topic for the last OISD board meeting was the budget, including looming budget and staff cuts, despite voters
Inslee to provide clemency relief to individuals still serving community supervision solely on invalid drug possession convictions
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF GOVERNOR JAY INSLEE ||| Washington state has instituted a new process to allow individuals on active community supervision for certain drug possession convictions to directly petition Gov. Jay Inslee to commute their sentences. Inslee is prepared to issue unconditional commutations for eligible petitioners to eliminate any
On Orcas, back-to-school time coming up: Monday, 9/1
||| FROM ERIC WEBB, ORCAS SCHOOLS SUPERINTENDENT ||| It is hard to believe that Orcas Island School District will begin welcoming students back to campus for the 2021-2022 academic year in a matter of weeks! With the new school year approaching, I wanted to reach out and let you know
Join Susan Slapin for poetry reading on Library’s south lawn
Saturday, August 21, 2 p.m., Library's south lawn ||| FROM CAROL DAPOGNY for ORCAS ISLAND LIBRARY ||| Join Orcas Island resident Susan Slapin, artist, painter, and poet, for a poetry reading from her new book. Susan's work has been exhibited from Orcas to Ojai and she has been recognized by The Oregonian
Guest Opinion | VR proposed caps are data-based? Maybe not
||| FROM JANET ALDERTON ||| As a scientist, when I hear the word “data,” my mind lights up. Scientists love data! So when I had the opportunity to see our San Juan County Department of Community Development’s most current data spreadsheet for short-term vacation rentals two days ago, I dove
Letter to Editor | A good first step
||| FROM FROM BILL APPEL ||| Some of us demand that our government tighten and enforce environmental laws. When not on Zoom, we drive to environmental organization meetings and fundraisers in our fossil-fueled cars to support …. Wait! What? Exactly. We have reasons why we don’t drive electric vehicles. One, of course,
Inslee updates wildfire state of emergency proclamation
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF GOVERNOR JAY INSLEE ||| Gov. Jay Inslee today updated the wildfire state of emergency proclamation. The changes were made to clarify language around the Washington State Department of Corrections (DOC) hosting small wildfires on DOC property for religious purposes (like sweat lodges) and authorizes organic orchardists to
Kruse Reviews | Until Proven Safe: The History and Future of Quarantine
||| BOOK REVIEW BY JENS KRUSE Geoff Manaugh and Nicola Twilley, writers for many national magazines, open their book Until Proven Safe: The History and Future of Quarantine with the following scene: On March 6, 2020, a King County, Washington, health department van pulled up in front of an Econo
Some tickets remain for last week of Chamber Music Festival
||| FROM BETHANY MARIE for ORCAS CENTER ||| Orcas Island Chamber Music Festival August 6 - August 21 Tickets available at www.oicmf.org/tickets and www.OrcasCenter.org There are still some tickets left for the remaining performances: August 17 and 18: Montrose Trio August 20 and 21: A Montrose Foray A few important details for these
How do you say “food bank” in Spanish?
||| FROM RICK RHOADS for ORCAS ISLAND FOOD BANK ||| Roxana Pardo Garcia says the first step in attracting food-insecure Latinx/Hispanic people to take advantage of the services of a food bank is to establish trust. The second step is to provide the food, mainly fresh, that Latinx/Hispanic peoples have
Childhood immunization data are concerning for some ages
Vaccination rates among preteens fell in 2020 ||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ||| OLYMPIA – The Washington State Department of Health has updated the state’s childhood immunization rate data, which shows that many school-aged children missed recommended vaccines in 2020. The decreases in pre-teen vaccine rates are especially concerning. These
PNW author to speak about her award-winning book on Alzheimer’s
Rosalys Peel on August 19 at 6 p.m. at the library and by Zoom ||| FROM CAROL DAPOGNY for ORCAS ISLAND LIBRARY ||| Join Rosalys Peel, author and narrator of Mike & Me, in a discussion about "living with, rather than dying from, Alzheimer's." Mike & Me, the Indie Award-Winning guide for Alzheimer’s
Library Board will meet on Tuesday
||| FROM PIERRETTE GUIMOND for ORCAS ISLAND LIBRARY DISTRICT ||| Board Meeting Agenda August 17, 2021 – 10:00 A.M. Zoom Meeting ID 944 9553 2066; Passcode 098621 Join Zoom Meeting: https://zoom.us/j/94495532066?pwd=aTJ5eENodUplVFZlR01DK2tSNy9BZz09 Welcome & Introductions Additions or Modifications to the Agenda Routine Matters Approval of Minutes from July 20 Regular Meeting
Healing Arts Center welcomes new massage therapist/body worker
||| FROM HEALING ARTS CENTER ||| The Healing Arts Center is excited to announce the arrival of our newest member and massage therapist, Patrick Stockstill. Patrick and his family are recent arrivals on Orcas Island, though he brings with him almost 15 years of experience as a massage therapist and
