Here’s a thought…
“Neither the evil nor the good in our history determines who we are. It is what we do now. If we do not say something ourselves about this horror, we allow ourselves to be changed.”
TIMOTHY SNYDER
Goldendale Observatory launches weekly virtual program
||| FROM WASHINGTON STATE PARKS ||| Viewers will learn about stars, planets, satellites and more via YouTube Live OLYMPIA – Nov. 5, 2020 – Washington State Parks will offer free weekly virtual programs livestreamed from Goldendale Observatory State Park Heritage Site. Troy Carpenter, State Parks interpretive specialist, will present the one-hour #GoldendaleObservations programs
COVID-19 vaccine distribution plan update from State Health Dept.
||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ||| OLYMPIA – The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) continues to make progress with our COVID-19 vaccine distribution planning efforts. Throughout the month of October our community engagement team connected with communities, workers, and business sectors that are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, and communities
Village Voices | What are your thoughts about the election results?
||| BY MINOR LILE, ORCASONIAN REPORTER ||| With the monthly Village Voices series, we aim to take the pulse of the Orcas Island community. Every month we’ll be out and about, asking people to share their point of view on a particular topic. Sometimes the questions will be serious, sometimes
Letter to Editor | Palmateer extends congratulations to Minney, thanks to supporters
||| FROM RYAN PALMATEER ||| I want to thank all of the voters who supported me in my not quite successful effort to become the San Juan County Council member from District 1. I also want to thank all the folks who helped me with my campaign. We’d never have
Orcasional Musings | Car and title: What about that?
||| ORCASIONAL MUSINGS by STEVE HENIGSON ||| Friends, Orcasians, Washingtonians, lend me your time. I come not to praise the Department of Licensing (DoL), but to condemn its voracious need to bury us in paperwork. The evil that bureaucracy does lives malevolently forever, while the good is often hidden beneath
COVID-19 cases spreading very quickly in Puget Sound region
||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ||| OLYMPIA –The Washington State Department of Health is announcing 1,777 new COVID-19 cases today. Last week, we announced 1,000 new cases in a day for the first time since mid-summer. Last Friday, we shared a report detailing how COVID-19 spread is intensifying across the state. On Wednesday,
Sheriff’s Report | October 28 – November 3, 2020
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE ||| WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 28 20-009209 Attempted Suicide 14:15:09 10/28/20 Deputies on Orcas responded to a suicidal subject near Eastsound. The person was located, help was given and a report was taken. 20-009210 Fraud 14:16:57 10/28/20 An Orcas resident reported that his identity was
Guest Opinion | Have we just crippled Washington?
||| FROM HEDRICK SMITH ||| Washington – Normally, elections clear the air, bring new faces to power, offer the dawn of a new day, a fresh beginning, and an opportunity for political healing. Not this year. Whatever the final vote-counts, the electorate has rendered a split and potentially crippling decision.
Help raise funds for vital island institution: Orcas Center’s Whale of a Telethon
||| FROM BETHANY MARIE FOR ORCAS CENTER ||| Saturday, November 14 at 7 p.m., Orcas Center will host its fall fundraiser: A Whale of a Telethon! online at www.OrcasCenter.org. We count ourselves among the lucky – while many of our counterparts have had to shutter their doors completely, Orcas Center
Recapping recent COVID-19 news and updates
||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ||| Newest numbers. The Department of Health reported a total of 112,550 confirmed cases as of 11:59 pm on November 4. There have been 2,431 COVID-19 deaths in Washington. For the most recent tally of cases by county, demographics, and more, visit the Department of Health's dashboard and the
Cindy Wolf extends sincere thanks to supporters, community
||| FROM CINDY WOLF, SAN JUAN COUNTY COUNCIL MEMBER-ELECT ||| I want to extend my sincere thanks to all of my campaign supporters, volunteers and staff, and especially to the voters, for electing me as San Juan County Council Member from District 2. I am honored that you put your
‘Occam’s Razor’ | Our island, our world through the eyes, pen of S.C. Watson
Welcome to our new weekly feature, Occam's Razor, from local artist S.C. Watson.
Third rescue in two months for WSF Puyallup crews
||| FROM WASHINGTON STATE FERRIES ||| For the third time in two months, our Puyallup crewmembers were a part of a successful water rescue! On Sunday, the crew on board the vessel saved two jet skiers and their dog after one of the two riders fell off their jet ski due to a
No Turkey Shoot this year at Sportsmen Club due to COVID-19
||| FROM PAT MUFFETT FOR ORCAS ISLAND SPORTSMEN CLUB ||| Due to the COVID-19 virus, the Orcas Island Sportsmen club will regretfully NOT be holding their annual turkey shoot this year. They look forward to 2021.
Rick Hughes concedes election
||| BY MINOR LILE, ORCASONIAN REPORTER ||| In a statement posted on Facebook on Nov. 4, incumbent Council member Rick Hughes conceded the race for the County Council District 2 seat to challenger Cindy Wolf. “While all the votes are not counted yet,” Hughes wrote, “it seems clear that the
