Here’s a thought…
“There are two ways to slide easily through life: to believe everything or to doubt everything; both ways save us from thinking.”
ALFRED KORZYBSKI
Inslee extends 26 proclamations relating to COVID-19
||| FROM GOVERNOR JAY INSLEE'S OFFICE ||| Gov. Jay Inslee announced the extension of 26 proclamations today in response to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. A December 7 letter from the Legislature extended the following proclamations. Extended through December 21, 2020. 20-21.10: Unemployment Benefit – 1 Week Waiver (20-21.9) 20-58.6: Shared Work (20-58.5) 20-63.5: Department
Meet Brent Lyles, new Executive Director at Friends of the San Juans
||| KATIE FLEMING for FRIENDS OF THE SAN JUANS ||| You are invited to a virtual town hall on Wednesday, December 16 at 5:30 p.m. The town hall meeting will be led by Brent Lyles, Friends of the San Juans’ new Executive Director. Brent will introduce himself, share some highlights
Recap of recent COVID-19 news, updates
||| FROM STATE HEALTH DEPARTMENT ||| Newest numbers. The Department of Health reported a total of 187,327 confirmed cases as of 11:59 pm on December 7. There have been 2,967 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
County holding board, commission vacancies for you to fill
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS ||| The County Council is searching for San Juan County citizens to fill current and upcoming vacancies on various boards and commissions. Additional information about each committee is available on the County's website at: http://sanjuanco.com/641/Board-Committee-Vacancies. Persons interested in serving on a board or advisory committee
Working Washington adds $50 million to small business grants. Apply by Dec. 11
||| FROM ORCAS ISLAND CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ||| Don't delay in reviewing the details from Washington State's Department of Commerce. $100 million allocated for grants. Click here to visit the Commerce website; the link to apply is found on the website. Be sure to review the checklist of items you will need to apply.
Inslee: State’s COVID restrictions remain in place until Jan. 4
||| FROM GOVERNOR JAY INSLEE'S OFFICE ||| Gov. Jay Inslee today announced additional economic supports for workers and businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Inslee also announced a three-week extension of the state’s current restrictions which will now be in place until January 4, 2021. The three-week extension of statewide
Orcas East Precinct ballot recount to proceed at request of SJC Republican Party
||| BY LIN MCNULTY, EDITOR ||| As first reported in the Dec. 4 Orcasonian, a manual recount of ballots cast for Governor in the Orcas East Precinct has been requested by San Juan County Republicans. San Juan County has therefore been directed by the Secretary of State to recount the
Letter to Editor | Montessori School wreaths sold out in record time
||| FROM MEGAN JONES for ORCAS MONTESSORI SCHOOL ||| Orcas Montessori School has SOLD OUT of wreaths this year in record time!! While we have been so sorry to disappoint some of our supporters with the news of being out-of-stock, we have been blessed with so many of you that
UW study: Navy jet noise endangers humans, wildlife on Olympic Peninsula
||| FROM KOMO NEWS ||| SEATTLE — Increased noise pollution from more powerful Navy military jets is threatening the health of both humans and wildlife in what once was the quietest place in the continental U.S. – the Olympic Peninsula, according to a newly released study by the University of Washington.
Letter to Editor | Lum Farm Christmas tree whirlwind has sold out, but …
||| FROM MANDY TROXEL for LUM FARM ||| The Lum Farm Christmas Tree Whirlwind of 2020 has officially concluded. Little did we know we would be out of trees by the second week of December!!! Lum Farm was able to supply over 350 trees to island homes during a season
Letter to Editor | OHS Key Club extends gratitude for food drive support
||| FROM IZIE JANECEK for OHS KEY CLUB ||| The Orcas Island High School Key Club would like to thank the community members who donated at our drive-up food drive this past Sunday. Because of your generosity, we collected 360 pounds of food drive items for the Food Bank in
Today’s COVID-19 case reporting reflects backlog, duplicates
||| FROM STATE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ||| OLYMPIA – The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is announcing 6,972 new cases of COVID-19 today, a number that reflects both a backlog of COVID-19 positive lab test results received over the weekend and approximately 1,800 duplicates that have not yet been resolved. DOH
These island businesses are greening up the grid
||| FROM LESLIE BRAZEAU for EASTSOUND SUITES ||| Eastsound Suites on Main Street is the latest Orcas business to begin generating their own electricity. Orcas-based installer, Rainshadow Solar, completed installation earlier this month of 34 PV panels on the building’s cross gable roof. The 13.4 kW system is expected to
EDC will host a listening session on Thursday with State Rep. Alex Ramel
||| FROM ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL ||| Alex Ramel The San Juan County EDC will host a listening session with State Representative Alex Ramel (WA-4o) on Thursday December 10, 2020, from 5p-6p PST. The event will be held via Zoom and pre-registration is required. Representative Ramel hopes to hear
Another ‘stab-in-the-back’ myth?
||| FROM ORCAS CURRENTS BY JENS KRUSE ||| IN MARCH OF 2017, I gave a presentation at Orcas Center, in which I described a series of events that transformed the German Weimar Republic of 1919–1933 into Hitler’s Third Reich, asking the implicit question, “Could something like that be occurring here
Deer Harbor Plan Review Committee will meet on Wednesday
|||FROM SHEILA GAQUIN for DEER HARBOR PLAN REVIEW COMMITTEE ||| The Deer Harbor Plan Review Committee will hold their monthly meeting on Wednesday, December 9, 2020 at 4-5:30 p.m. Via ZOOM (Meeting ID 841 6762 1409, Passcode 096536) Agenda topics are the development and landscaping of outlying parking areas including
