Here’s a thought…
“Old age is no joke, but it can feel like one.”
TAD TOMPKINS
Time to report: How did your Garden Club daffodil bulbs bloom?
||| FROM NANCY REAS for ORCAS GARDEN CLUB ||| Hello to all of you who received daffodil bulbs from the Garden Club last October as part of Project Blossom. Hopefully, they have all bloomed and are bringing you joy. We have already heard from many of you, almost half of
Bring your plant questions to Master Gardeners on Wednesday
||| FROM KATE YTURRI for SJC MASTER GARDENERS ||| As we welcome spring with days spent in our gardens, we have high hopes of success. However, sometimes the weather, insects, disease, or our garden practices betray our dedication. The Master Gardeners of San Juan County are here to help with
Winter is over! What did you think? | Take the Winter Schedule Survey
||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY FERRY ADVISORY COMMITTEE ||| After a lengthy process of writing a new ferry schedule for the San Juans' routes, the SJC Ferry Advisory Committee would love to know what you thought of the revised winter schedule. We have created a five-question survey to gather your
Summer vehicle reservations open on Tuesday
||| FROM WASHINGTON STATE FERRIES ||| Vehicle reservations for the summer 2025 schedule (June 15 through Sept. 20) will be available at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, April 15. For the Anacortes/San Juan Islands route reservations, the two-week and two-day reservation releases will remain at 7 a.m. To ensure a smooth
Emmanuel Holy Week schedule
||| FROM FR. BERTO GANDARA for EMMANUEL EPISCOPAL CHURCH |||
We the People March in Eastsound on April 19
||| FROM DAVID TURNOY ||| April 19 is another national day of action to protest the madness being propagated by our national government. The Friday Harbor Indivisible group is holding a march that day, and we on Orcas will march to express solidarity with the rest of the country and
This Washington border county is desperate for Canadians
||| FROM NBC NEWS ||| People have roamed across the 49th parallel on the west flank of North America for hundreds of years. Lately, many are thinking twice. Canadians frequently stop by Blaine, Washington, for gas, dairy and other staples that tend to be cheaper across the border. But the
Join us for Sunday brunch & auction in support of Orcas Senior Center
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Come enjoy a delicious brunch with Bloody Marys, mimosas, Irish cream coffee, and a charcuterie board Let’s Brunch! at the Orcas Senior Center on Sunday, June 29, 2025, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. This fun event will also feature an
Floating Ukulele Jam is back
||| FROM ANITA ORNE for FLOATING UKULELE JAM ||| Happy Spring! The Floating Ukulele Jam is back! Grab your uke, your voice, a song or two to share, and your friends and relations and join us on the interisland ferry on the traditional Third Thursday – April 17. Boat is
Two Lights for Tomorrow 2025
||| FROM JENNIFER KREMBS for TOWN OF FRIDAY HARBOR ||| The Town of Friday Harbor is proud to participate in the “Two Lights for Tomorrow” lighting ceremony in anticipation of next year’s celebration of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The Town invites the community
Exploring Grief Through Poetry | A special gathering with Nancy Reas
||| FROM LENA KASSA for ORCAS SENIOR CENTER ||| Mark your calendars for Wednesday, April 16 at 1 p.m. at Orcas Senior Center for a heartfelt gathering exploring the journey through grief. Nancy and Fred Reas moved to Orcas Island in 2011, having spent 25 years visiting Nancy’s father, Bill
Rep. Larsen, Senator Murray, Senator Cantwell and Rep. Randall reintroduce legislation to permanently reauthorize Northwest Straits Commission
||| FROM THE OFFICE OF US REP. RICK LARSEN ||| Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (D, WA-02), along with Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee and Maria Cantwell (D-WA), ranking member of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee and senior member
Requiem & Renewal | Poetry and music to express, grieve, usher us through our pain for the world
||| FROM JEFFRY STEELE ||| Saturday, 4/26 at 4 PM Emmanuel Parish Hall, 218 Main St, Eastsound Presented by Peace in the Neighborhood (Jeffry, Monica, Sharon, Michael, Luann & Antoinette) with featured speaker Althea W. of the Lummi Tribe. Part of the Orcas Island Earth Day Celebration. Poems by Jess
Seasonal water releases for young salmon start at Bonneville Dam amid national political turbulence
The $139 million in yearly water releases partly mimic how the river ran prior to dams, helping young salmon making it to the ocean ||| BY HENRY BRANNAN, COLUMBIAN MURROW NEWS FELLOW ||| At 12 this morning [April 10], the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers opened Bonneville Dam’s spillway gates,
School district seeks candidate for full-time secondary STEM/CTE teaching position
||| FROM ORCAS ISLAND SCHOOL DISTRICT ||| The Orcas Island School District is now accepting applications for a full-time Secondary STEM/CTE Teacher for the 2025–26 school year. This 1.0 FTE certificated position presents an exciting opportunity to join a dynamic, student-focused educational team dedicated to innovation and academic excellence. Position
As the Paradigm Shifts | Becoming nobody special
||| AS THE PARADIGM SHIFTS by ROSIE KUHN ||| “I’m learning to be ordinary, Rosie.” Sarah declares this—not with sadness or anger, nor with despair or bitterness—but with a clarity rooted in truth. In the two years we’ve been working together, I’ve never heard her speak with such grounded knowing.
