Schools

Finishing touches on the entrance to the kindergarten….

That's the artwork designed by Jeanine Earnhart (right, on bench) outside of the kindergarten entrance. Jane & Sam Buck (on bench) helped mount it, as did Brad Fincher, Jeanette Longan, Bob Benz & Jeanette's daughter Madison, along with Zach & Luke.

There’s a lot to this story – here’s more from Debbi Fincher:

When we first talked in September of creating a safer place for our kindergartners during “pick-up” times, Ms. Minke, our son’s K teacher, asked if there might be away to honor the memory of those parents who have passed away while their children have attended FHES, as one of her students had recently experienced such a loss. She thought of another family that she went through this with, too, the Benz family. Of course, it was a lovely idea and no one knew what was to come.

As time went on, we moved forward with asking for donations for benches to be built and found all 6 benches quickly sponsored. Each bench fully sponsored would get a plaque dedicated to whom ever they wanted. I then received a call from Bob Benz wanting to dedicate a bench in loving memory of his late wife, Patti.

The conversation with Ms. Minke came flooding back to me and I felt terrible that we already had all 6 benches sponsored, but said to Bob we would find a way to honor Patti.

I told him we were working on artwork for the area and perhaps this might be something he’d like to be involved in. Jane Buck was already collaborating on an art project with Jeanine Earnhart, so when she emailed me the super-imposed image on the school wall, I was excited to call Bob! (more…)

Lacrosse fundrasier…

In action...

Sandi Guard wanted you to know:

The Friday Harbor Dragons Lacrosse Team is holding our yearly spaghetti dinner fundraiser Thursday March 11, 2010 from 5-7:30 pm at The San Juan County Grange Hall.

We promise good food for a great cause. We will be having our famous Dessert Auction at 6:30. Adults are $12 & Kids $8. Tickets are available through any high school Lacrosse player, at the door or call Sandi Guard at 378-5228. It’s a great way to have dinner with the family before sports awards at the high school. Please come and support our hard working Lacrosse team and coach and have a GREAT time! Thanks…

Keeping the beat….

Kenya & Maketa brought some 300 drums, and got the crowd going....

It was awesome.

Jane decorates the place...wow!

Last night at the elementary school, two great things happened: the Friday Harbor High cooking class put on a dinner that couldn’t be beat, followed by a community drumming session that could be heard on the other side of the Fairgrounds & was a cool way to bring people together. The photos for this story were taken by & sent in by Debbi Fincher, who also mentioned that special kudos should go to Jane Buck, who was able to arrange the use of  African fabric tablecloths from a family on Lopez, and then did her magic with native flowers and vines in bottles she collected at the thrift store!

Rather than just taking pictures for you the way I usually do, I made a little two-minute vid that captures the evening better, since you can hear it. This will give you a taste:

Unloading the drums before the show...Kenya & Maketa brought 300 drums for the evening.

Luke helping put the drums around....

Liz takes a photo of her chefs before the crowd arrives.

A crowd came...and the food was awesome!

A project called The Greeting Place is underway…

Kindergartner Luke (he's in Ms. Minke's class) looks over the work done last week when it was sunny....

It was sixteen years ago that my son began kindergarten at Friday Harbor Elementary School…one of the great deals about picking him up outside the kindergarten door was getting to hang out with the other parents (many of whom are still friends, as we made our way through sports & classes & activities & dating & drivers’ ed & finally FHHS graduation together).

Well, there’s new project to make that area even nicer to hang out – here’s more from Debbie Fincher:

The Greeting Place is where our Kindergartners can safely meet & greet their “rides” at the end of their school day, while enjoying the beauty that will be added with interesting mosaics and other artwork made by local artists.  James Hubbell’s recent visit to the island gave way to this project – we thank IMA for hosting James Hubble’’s inspirational lecture!

Thanks again to Jane & Sam Buck, John & Sam McMain, Brad, Luke & Zach Fincher, Jeanette Longan, & Juan Toban. Together, we installed stepping stones (donated by Site Elements) that will mark the path around the new benches.  As you may know, four benches were donated by Lynn Danaher, John & Sharon Boyd, Marty Robinson and Alphabet Soup Childcare & Preschool.  Bob Carroll, FHES Building Engineer, offered to build and install the benches, keeping the costs down.

Thanks for your support! Watch for ways you can still help as this project continues to grow. We welcome your ideas and help!

(Thanks for donations already: Site Elements, Brownes, Consignment Treasures, San Juan Interiors, Home Port Flooring & Design, Thrift Store & Mullis Senior Center.)

“Integrating art, nature and beauty into the life
of individuals and communities.

“Physical patterns and direction that bring humanity’s inner and outer world in harmony with the changing rhythm of our lives.” James Hubbell

Making it happen: Brad Fincher (left), Sam McMain, Sam Buck (behind), John McMain and Jane Buck as new benches are being installed and stepping stones are being set.

The FHHS postseason continues….

FHHS head coach Eric Jangard keeps the girls fired up against Meridian last Saturday. The girls won 60-41 to set up tomorrow's playoff game at Coupeville.

This week, the Wolverines begin postseason play with both basketball & wrestling…here’s the scoop:

• Today, the boys basketball team heads to Lynden Christian to begin their journey in the playoffs, playing at 5:30pm. The guys ended up second in league this year with a steady performance over Mount Vernon Christian Friday night, and got there by taking care of business. “We don’t have to do anything spectacular,” noted head coach Rod Turnbull, when we touched base on Saturday. “We just need to play solid, and then see what happens. We’re looking forward to Tuesday’s game.”

With a win, the boys play again at Kings on Thursday; a loss ends their season.

Maggie Anderson (32) crashes the boards Friday night against Mount Vernon Christian....

• Meanwhile, the high-flying Lady Wolverines never looked back in beating Mount Vernon Christian Friday, and survived a little scare with Meridian on Saturday (with FHHS ahead by 20, the Trojans hit four threes to pull within ten, but junior Maggie Anderson hit two baskets with two & a half left to ice it.)

The league champs take their playoff show on the road at Coupeville tomorrow. They got where they are with four quarters of hustle, strong play inside (Kayla & Kelsey & Maggie are hard to score on, and rebound hard), and have developed a reliable press-breaker that not only gets the ball upcourt but makes ya pay at the other end.

This is a fun team to watch, and one of the stronger Friday Harbor girls’ squads we’ve seen in a couple of decades.

• Highs & lows in wrestling, as the Wolverines head to the Tacoma Dome this weekend: When I visited with Coach Neil Saturday night after he & the guys got back from regionals at Bellevue Christian, he reviewed the high points of the day, set off by deep disappointment.

It was cool to hear that four Wolverines earned a trip to Tacoma’s final – Shawn Cutting will attend as an alternate (which means he’ll wrestle if someone doesn’t make weight or is hurt or something), while Michael Davis & Calen Mehrer & Willie Dunn took second in their divisions to earn the chance to compete this weekend. Heavyweight Dunn’s victories are especially gratifying, as the soph shed over 40 pounds throughout the season to weigh in at 279 on Saturday.

One of my favorite people on the planet is Justin James, captain of the team, who ran into a major, season-ending setback last weekend. Coach Neil told me he won his first match easily, but in his second was thrown to the mat & blacked out for a moment when he hit his head. The state association has pretty strict rules about head protection, and ended the match, and said he couldn’t wrestle for another 24 hours, effectively ending his bid for going to state. The kid who took the division was a wrestler who JJ had beaten earlier in the year whenever they met. A frustrating end to a great four years for the FHHS team captain.

Orca Bowl Champs…again!

Stewart Bell, Hannah Snow, Nick Roberts, and Audrey Olshefsky are all smiles as they claim the state title. Matthew Skeels is also part of the winning squad...photo courtesy of Audrey (thanks!)

It was cool to hear that FHHS took the state Orca Bowl again (last time was 2006 or so), which means the kids will be heading for the national title competition later this spring. The team comes to its talent honestly, with an ocean sciences pedigree – Stewart’s dad is the Marine Labs director, Hannah has done summer research there, and Nick’s mom works there, too, with the K-12 program. Another thread…all five are soccer players, so if they have an Orca Soccer Bowl, we’re looking good.

Way to go, you guys! Wahoo!

The Father & Daughter Dance was great!

Gabe & Sydney had a good time....

Last Friday’s Father Daughter Dance marked the fifth year that Island Rec offered the event, and it went great – there were carnations & pictures for all the girls & their dates (who ranged from very small to adult-sized – there is no age limit). Doug Rhine kept everybody dancing the whole time, and a great time was had by all.

Here is a portfolio of photos of folks who were there – there are about 80 photos, so see whom you know!

(And here are the pix from the previous four years….see how they grow!)

Kiana & Fred hit the floor dancing...

Basketball tonight!

Yep, it’s the last games of the season…the girls’ JV has their last game – they were winners of Tuesday’s game against Concrete in which foul trouble found the Wolverines with only three players on the floor but came away with a victory anyway.

The boys’ JV wraps it up, too, while the varsities warm up for the playoffs. League champ FHHS plays tonight, then Saturday at home against district foe Meridian’s girls for playoff seeding.

The boys are second in league, and they travel to see where they play next week on Saturday.

Go Wolverines!

Around the island, around town, and around the sound….

Last night's Knowledge Bowl was great - that's the 11th/12th Grade team of Chadwick, Guard, Snow & King. It's neat to be a place that takes the time to celebrate learning & knowledge...and to have a Schools Foundation that helps raise what's needed to give our kids an extra hand. I know you're wondering who won - the kids did, silly. A whole school district of 'em. (And the Lions edged the 11th/12th Graders at the end.)

Lots of comings & goings…let’s see what’s up….

• I hear Kristina Anderson (FHHS ‘01) is expecting a son in the summer – congrats, Kristina!

• Seems to me I’ve been hearing of islanders going all over the place, to wit: Juan & Heidi Lopez (Spain, this week), Mike & Sandy Buckley (Hawaii, couple of days ago, probably to shoot pictures of THEIR whales), Laura Tretter (Australia), Cindy from the Whale Museum (Baja, to work as a gray whale naturalist), Sondra Nash (home to Honduras), Ken from Xtreme Fitness (coming back from Singapore next week),  and more, as the Spring Street International School kids head for Asia (last week) and Peru (next week.)

• Remember Lauren Holt? She’s living in Bend these days…getting married next summer.

• I hear that Peggy & Oren have resigned from San Juan Brewing after 18 years…they tell me they’re excited about the chance to do new things, and are happy for the happy fellowship the pub provided all those years.

• Yep, it was Caitlin Keys‘ 18th birthday yesterday, so they celebrated at Pazzo Vivo where she works last night during open mike.

Takin' the pain away - I had a cracked tooth that was killin' me this week, and Michael Horn at Friday Harbor Dentistry fixed it - thanks! That's Dr. Horn with his girl Lila at last fall's open house at his place.

• Pam Herber says the Writer’s Cafe is tonight (Friday) at the Naked Bean at 5pm…come read your original fiction, poetry, nonfiction, or come listen. Usually runs till about 6:30 or so.

• Debbie at Roche Harbor Market says the 7th Annual Roche Harbor Salmon Classic got underway yesterday – wahoo!

• Nice quote – I like what Meg Wheatley says about making things new: “The things we fear most in organizations – fluctuations, disturbances, imbalances – are the primary sources of creativity.”

• Play in the pool! Here’s more from Sally at Island Rec:

Come play with your baby or young tot in the warm water of San Juan Island Fitness small pool.  Register now for Island Rec’s Parent and Tot Open Swim held on Monday mornings beginning February 22.  Registrations must be received by February 12!  Cost for the six week program is $30.  Scholarships are available for income- eligible families.

For more information about this swim program or other learn to swim classes contact Island Rec at 378-4953 or visit www.islandrec.org

• Carrie at the Medical Center wanted to tell you about a program to help folks with cancer:

There is a very exciting program offered on San Juan Island for women suffering from cancer. The program is called “Look Good…Feel Better.” A trained local volunteer cosmetologist teaches women how to cope with skin changes and hair loss using cosmetics and skin care products donated by the cosmetic industry. Women also learn ways to disguise hair loss with wigs, scarves, and other accessories. These parties are held at the San Juan Island Library.

Our community contact is Geri, an islander of 20 years. She can be contacted at 378-5872 for any questions or concerns you may have. She can also register you for the class, or you can call 1-800-277-2345 and register yourself.

If you know of any women this would help, please forward this information on to them. This program has changed the way so many women feel about themselves while battling cancer. To learn even more, you can go to www.lookgoodfeelbetter.org.

Thought for the day, from Softwear's window on Spring Street....

• The Playwrights Festival continues this week – here’s the scoop for Week 2, from Jan at the Community Theatre:

Centennial Stories, the 2010 Islands Playwrights Festival, continues this Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2:00 p.m. inside San Juan Community Theatre’s Gubelman Theatre.

This week’s offerings include the staged reading written by Wendy E. Shepard: Walking to War.  Co-directed by Wendy and Ernest Pugh, the reading is a dramatic dialogue on how the human family can transform itself into one that settles conflicts without violence.  The cast features islanders Chinmayo, Dorian Oliver, Maureen See, Jacki Altier, Tom Phillips, Shannon Kelly, Lynda Guernsey and Brittany Kane

After the reading, San Juan County storyteller and playwright Antoinette Botsford will provide insight into the fine connection between storytelling and playwrighting.  Antoinette has spent her life as a story worker–sometimes working with plays, sometimes telling stories, often bridging the terrain between partially improvised and partially texted performances inspired by historical characters.

Jim Sesby traveled to Olympia to offer his sense of things....

• Jim Sesby from Heritage Farm here was one of the folks testifying in support of State Senator Kevin Ranker’s bill to get more folks involved in farming – here’s more from the senator’s office:

Dylan Johnson said he has learned more about farming during his short time as an intern at Synergy Farm in Friday Harbor than he could during a lifetime in the classroom.

Sen. Kevin Ranker, D-San Juan Island, is sponsoring Senate Bill 6349, legislation that would provide aspiring farmers with firsthand experience in their future line of work.

“The average age of a farmer in Washington is 57-years-old,” Ranker said. “If we’re serious about promoting agriculture in Washington we’re going to have to encourage younger people to get into the farms and get their hands dirty.”

Farmers from throughout the 40th District arrived in Olympia on Thursday to testify on behalf of Ranker’s farm internship bill. The measure would allow farms with gross sales of less than $250,000 annually to establish internship programs for future farmers who are not enrolled in classes to work on farms throughout the state.

“Those that weren’t going to a university, they wanted to learn a trade. They deserve an opportunity as well,” Ranker said. “We must encourage young folks to get onto the farm. We must develop a way for these internship programs to take place.”

Farmers interested in employing interns would be required submit a written application for certification to be reviewed by the Department of Labor and Industries. The farm would be required to specify the nature of the work interns would do and how the experience would provide them with vocational knowledge and skills.

FHHS girls & boys win in basketball this weekend…prep for Tuesday at Orcas

Tight defense all night - senior Kayla Short was hard to shoot around...

Picking up a couple…the two varsity teams won both Friday & Saturday, including a tough game for the girls against tough Darrington, which ended with the Wolverines controlling the middle & winning by 22.

Mandy Turnbull dives on the ball, with help from Kayla in the fourth quarter against Darrington Friday night.

Friday Harbor heads over to Orcas on Tuesday as the league-leading girls hope to stay on top, while the boys continue to tune up for the playoffs in a couple of weeks. Both teams are rising – keep an eye on them!

In other basketball action…

Sydney pushes the ball up the floor...

Up & coming…it was fun to see the younger girls play on Sunday in Island Rec’s winter league. These pictures are by FHHS junior Maggie Anderson, who hardly missed a shot Friday night (she scored 26) & got some good ones here, too.

Strategy in the second half...

Spelling Bee…today!

Mike Close has the details for this afternoon’s event:

The 2010 Friday Harbor Community Spelling Bee will be held at the San Juan Community Theatre on Tuesday, February 2, at 3:30 p.m.

The annual contest is sponsored by the Rotary Club of the San Juan Islands, and features 4th through 8th grade classroom champions from local schools, including Friday Harbor Elementary School, Friday Harbor Middle School, Paideia Classical School, Griffin Bay School, and Spring Street International School.

This year, the 1st place winner will receive a personal award of $75, an award to their classroom literacy program of $150, and an award to their school literacy program of $300.  The second place winner will receive a personal award of $50, $100 to their classroom, and $200 to their school.  Doors at the theatre will open at 3:00, admission is free, and parents, family members, and the public are all welcome to attend.

For more information, please call Mike Close at 378-6202.

Concert & dinner…

I heard from Grisha at Spring Street International School that this is gonna be fun, this weekend on Saturday the 30th:

Spring Street International School Presents South American Dinner and Concert at the Mullis Center!
All proceeds go towards travel scholarships and to an orphanage in Cusco, Peru. Food prepared with the guidance of Chef Paul of Coho Restaurant and Pablito’s Taqueria. Concert features jazz and rock by Enso, Grisha Krivchenia, and Robin Lohrey. Tickets available at the door of the Mullis Center and at the school: 378-6393.

Dinner begins at five, concert at seven.

Nana named Violet Richardson Award winner….

Nana Eisenhauer

We have great kids around here, and here’s one of ‘em – the Soroptimists’ Marie DiCristina has more about Nana:

Diana (”Nana”) Eisenhauer received the 2010 Violet Richardson Award for her ongoing community service as an after school tutor.   Nana, a Friday Harbor High School junior, was honored at the Soroptimist club meeting on January 13.

Nana began tutoring as a middle school student, assisting children in the Friday Harbor Elementary School After School Study Club.  As a high school student, she continued her tutoring service in the Friday Harbor Middle School Study Club.   “Lots of kids need those extra minutes of explanation or just one-on-one attention.”    Nana received help from a tutor in elementary school, and knows personally what a difference her assistance makes in children’s lives.   “. . . I am glad that I can give back.”

Soroptimists established the Violet Richardson Award to recognize young women between the ages of fourteen and seventeen who provide volunteer services to their community.

For further information, go to www.sifri.org.

Girls climb to top of league, beat LaConner…

Wolverine Maggie Anderson (white) battles for the defensive rebound in the fourth quarter....

Both LaConner & Friday Harbor brought their one-loss records to the gym Friday night, and the Wolverines delivered the goods to beat the Braves 48-34 & take sole possession of the league’s top spot. FHHS played the game at full-throttle for three quarters, then cranked it up in the fourth to control the end of the game by breaking the Braves’ press, outrebounding them at the defensive end, and hustling from buzzer to buzzer.

It was a total team effort from a squad that seems to be peaking at the right time, as they face two-loss second-place teams Orcas & Darrington in the next two weeks.

The boys jumped out to an impressive 7-2 lead by shutting down the Braves for the first four minutes, but then LaConner roared back to lead at the half 20-19 before settling things at the end, winning 49-41.

Both teams travel to Nooksack Valley today (Saturday) to play at noon.

Food for Thought….and the music & Art Walk

Sheila shot pictures of the pictures in the library, and on walls in the halls...

Last night it was cool to hear how good the band is sounding these days, how beautiful & compelling our artists are, and how good school food can be. The Community Dinner & Art Walk (with music by the band) made for a good evening, and provided the backdrop for the community service presentations by juniors & seniors around the school, telling what they’d been up to.

Way to go, Wolverines!

Director Janet Olsen & the band were awesome....photo by Jake Taylor.

The dining hall was full for the two hours I was there....photo by Jake Taylor.

Kitchen boss Liz & her chefs (Gage, Cole, Rowan & Diante) smile for a sec before cooking more chow for the mob that came last night.

Ryan & Brandon give a thumbs up for the dinner, made with locally grown food.

When we were young & calling the class of 2027!

The Class of 2006, before their time....

This is gonna be fun.

Let’s start with the picture above…click here to see a full screen version (much cooler). That’s the kids who became the Class of 2006 when they were babies (That picture was taken by Kathy Ballard, by the way.) See how many of you know – they didn’t change THAT much.

Later, in 2006....

Fast forward to Graduation 2006 – here are about 50 photos I took in June ‘06 of everyone graduating – click here to see the babies all grown up.

Now, here’s the next stage, in a note I got from Alisa Schoultz:

Calling Class of 2027 High School Graduates!

If you have a child that is born between September 1, 2008 and August 31, 2009 please bring your baby for a group photo on SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2010 at 10 AM to the PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. Kathleen Ballard Photography is donating her time to capture the bunch; a similar photo was taken of the babies in the Friday Harbor High School Class of 2006 (see photo, courtesy of Kathleen Ballard Photography). (more…)

Student exhibitions & community dinner….

Eating out on Wednesday - see you there!

Look, DON’T cook Wednesday – go eat at FHHS & check out what the school’s been doing! Here’s more from Janet at Friday Harbor High:

Please join us for the High School Exhibition on January 20, 5:30-7:30 with a performance by the Jazz Band, Art Walk-A-Bout and Community Project Class Presentations.

Also our Food for Thought Program will be offering a Community Dinner on the same date from 5:00-7:00 in the Commons.

Our Chef 1.0 students will be exhibiting their skills by presenting our first Community Dinner of the year! Choose from a trio of warming winter soups featuring LOCAL meats and vegetables! Chili with local island grown beef with cornbread, local Squash soup with wheat rolls, and a NW Style Seafood Chowder with white rolls.

Also, a salad bar with fresh vegetables and your choice of dressing will make a satisfying and delicious meal! Everything will be made from scratch. Suggested donation is $10 with proceeds going back into the Chef 1.0 and 2.0 pre-apprenticeship program.

Thank you for your support!

Dinner this weekend…

Here’s the scoop from Jill Hopkins with Spring Street International School – it’s their dinner/fundraiser & includes great Thai food (thanks to Gretchen Allison), plus short videos about the community projects the students are doing overseas. The deal:

Fundraiser for Spring Street International School travelers and their overseas service projects.
Thai Dinner for SSIS with Chef Gretchen Allison
Mullis Center, Jan 16th,  5-8PM
Tickets $20 & $10 (students)
Tickets at Spring Street School or at the door.

Peter Pan was a blast!

Wendy (Emily Schultz) and Peter Pan (Tristan Wood) share a starlit moment in the second half of "Peter Pan"....photo courtesy of James Krall.

When FHHS drama teacher & play director Fred Yockers said his end-of-show remarks this weekend, “I hope you wake up in the morning & see a twelve-year-old in the mirror…” he had a whole show that told that story – stay young & stay alive, like Peter & the folks from Neverland.

Yep, there was fairy dust & people who fly & Nana the Dog & pirates & the croc with the clock & specially composed music & knockout dancing & mermaids sliding around & swordfights…this play rocked.

The nearly-three hour show was sold out with waiting lists for all four of its shows, and the production deserved it. The set was first-rate, the costumes perfect for setting the tone, and the energy & enthusiasm of the cast was infectious. Great fun….man, do we have more talent on this island than anywhere, or what???

Wendy (Emily) came close to walking the plank - luckily, Peter saves her....photo by James Krall.

Smooth & edgy, Tiger Lily (Lindsey Banry) and her tribe offered an amazing dance routine...photo by James Krall.

Captain Hook (Parks Barnard) schemes with Schmee (Sam ASher) about how to get Peter Pan...photo by James Krall.

They really can fly! John (Robin Lohrey), Michael (Max Heinel), Wendy & Peter take to the night air...photo by James Krall.