Around the island….

Let’s see what folks are up to around here:

• “The Clean Room” finishes up its run at the 4-H Building at the Fairgrounds this weekend…don’t miss it!

• Health updates:

Debbie Sandwith reports that baby Sonia (the one we had that fundraiser for last month) had a successful heart transplant yesterday. Sounds like all the tests & bloodwork today point to a good result – wahoo!

Meanwhile, Brenna at Islanders Banks says a medical fund account has been opened for Donna Wayner at Islanders Bank. For more information on Donna, please contact Diana Olshefsky at 378-5957.  Any donations can be made at any Islanders Bank.

Heard that naturopathic doctor Leyardia Black suffered a stroke earlier this week…hope to find out soon how she’s doing….

Meanwhile, Jess Oldwyn is “home” at her friend Laura’s house in Seattle & resting, and says she’s sure glad to be alive after her operation to remove that tumor from her head. Way to go, Jess!

• The fungus amung us: Had you heard about this? Seems like it’s spreading in our area, and has epidemiologists interested…here’s more.

• Wow – ace photographer Mark Gardner‘s been busy. First of all, he has a Mother’s & Father’s Day special – here’s the deal.

Besides that, he’s launched a self-service stock image site for the San Juan Islands called www.imagesofthesanjuans.com.  Files for both web and print applications can be instantly downloaded from the site, saving anyone needing images of the islands lots of time and effort.  There are currently over 400 images on the site, with lots more to be added, and new images will be added monthly.  Check it out.

And that’s not all – at the recent Professional Photographers of Washington conference he was awarded an Associate Fellow of Photography, which one attains by service to the organization, advancing one’s professional skills through training and having prints selected for the annual print salon. At this year’s conference, all four of his entries were chosen to hang.  These included portraits of locals: Dylan Korth and his red truck, Darcy Ayers, and Juan and Carrie Unpingco, and a portrait of Katie Parsons whose parents have a summer home here.

Way cool!

• Pam Herber says the writers of the island are collecting tonight at the Bean, with singer/songwriter Britt907 playing right after:

Hey, Ian! Here’s your Writers Cafe reminder: The next Writers Cafe open mic event is scheduled for this Friday.

Where: The Bean
When: May 7th, 5:00 – 6:30pm
Sign-up starts at 5pm for writers who wish to read their fiction, poetry or nonfiction.
Everyone is welcome.

I hope you will join us!

Pam Herber
472-1442

• Sports updates: The Friday Harbor High boys soccer team ended their season last night at Nooksack with a 5-0 loss in their first playoff game.

Meanwhile, Sandi Guard says the lacrosse team plays this weekend: “Lacrosse will be played at 7:30 in the evening Saturday on the football field. We are having a barbecue with donations accepted for playoff costs.We would love to see lots of people out there!

And lastly, on Monday there’s the track meet – here’s the scoop from Kenny & Susan: “Just want to let you know about the middle school’s last track meet. It is a home meet with Lopez and the 6, 7, 8th grades will be competing. This is the largest number of kids to come out for MS track in years.

“The 8th grade boys team set a new school record for the 4×100 relay. Coach Darrin Scheffer inspires the kids to try new events each meet so they can really get a full understanding of what track and field is all about. The kids have a blast cheering each other on and working on their personal best in their individual events. This is the only school sport for middle school so lets get out and cheer on our future Wolverine athletes. Hope to see many folks there on Monday!” Susan Williamson and Kenny Christison

• The Whale Museum has a great dinner ahead – here’s more from director Jenny Atkinson:

4th Annual Celebration of the Orca Greeting Ceremony

The Whale Museum’s upcoming 4th Annual “Celebration of the Orca Greeting Ceremony” fundraising dinner and auction will be held on the evening of Saturday, May 22nd at the Mullis Center in Friday Harbor. Just as the Orca whales come together in what are called “greeting ceremonies,” so, too, The Whale Museum wants supporters of these awesome whales to come together for this fun evening.

The evening will begin with happy hour & silent auction at 6:00 p.m.; the no-host bar is tended by Clark Gilbert.   An audio-visual program will be shared by Val Veirs of an actual Orca Greeting Ceremony. Val will play acoustic recordings while showing photos and video of this amazing event.  Watch orcas “line up” to greet one another while listening to an underwater recording of their “conversations.”

Market Chef is preparing dinner. Bakery San Juan is baking the bread. San Juan Roasters is brewing the coffee.  Wine is provided by Northwest Totem Cellars. After dinner, the live portion of the evening will get started with the live auction followed by a dessert auction. That’s right, dessert after dinner is available in this unique auction. Bid on “Awesome Pecan Pie,” “Black & White” cake, a 3-layer “Maple ‘Pan’ Cake,” and other delectable treats.  The wild twist is back for this year’s auction – 65 tickets will be sold for $25 a piece for the big raffle. The winner of the raffle “wins” the right to select any item up for auction (silent, live or dessert). Closing out the evening will be the live auction with more exciting items to bid on.  Special thanks to three businesses for sponsoring the event: Islanders Insurance, Islanders Bank, and Petro San Juan.

Tickets (includes dinner; wine sold separately) are a great deal at $25.00 per person for members of The Whale Museum or $35.00 per person for non-members and can be purchased at The Whale Museum (*basic annual membership investment is $25).  To reserve your tickets, stop by the Museum or call (360) 378-4710 ext. 30.  (If a group would like to attend, tables in increments of six or seven ticket holders can be reserved.)  There are a limited number of tickets available which are selling quickly.  Proceeds raised through this event will directly support the education and research programs of The Whale Museum (www.whalemuseum.org).

• Have you seen the new website for St. Francis Catholic Church? Check it out!

• Last weekend was the Vancouver Marathon! Here’s the runners from the island that I heard about (thanks, Clark!):

Half Marathon Runners:

Deb Vermeire, 1:56:54
Nick Power, 1:59:22
Laura Tretter, 2:06:40
Kristi Richardson, 2:28

Marathon:

Susan Stehn,  4:35:40
Clark Gilbert, 4:35:40

• And – here’s the Prom Court from last weekend’s prom for Friday Harbor High (congrats!):

Junior Class Prince and Princess:
Shawn Cutting and Kia Johns

Senior Class Prince and Princess:
Parker Lawson and Hannah Waite

Senior Class King and Queen:
Kyle Skoog and Ali Wade

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Categories: Around Here