We are living in a time of unprecedented trial. In an effort to bring you a much-needed reconnection to the natural world, Friends of the San Juans would like to invite you to attend an upcoming Zoom presentation with Peter Cavanagh. Are you experiencing travel withdrawal after months of lockdown and cancelled travel plans? Peter  Continue Reading

In the mailbag this morning we have this letter from Janet Thomas… Dear Islanders, The Southern Resident orcas are facing imminent extinction. Unlike other orca species they do not eat other marine mammals. Their primary diet is Chinook salmon–specifically the salmon that comes from the Fraser River in B.C. and migrates along the west side  Continue Reading

And another letter, this one from Laura Saccio… To My Fellow Islanders, More than 20 years ago, my grandfather, a New Mexican farmer, rescued me from a life of impersonal work in the financial industry. I had been hired to work at an investment firm in Portland, and would see my family, including our two  Continue Reading

Fact Check of Whalen Petition Dear Editor and Community, We recently received in the mail Mr. Ron Whalen’s request to have us sign a petition to eliminate the Land Bank by December 2020. The request was loaded with falsehoods and outrageously attempted to dupe our community into thinking that a yes or no answer meant  Continue Reading

John Miller saw this on Roche Harbor road the other day. He said: “It reminds me of the old Burma Shave signs of years past, projecting an important message.” Thanks for sharing John!

This edition of Tide Bites was written by Victoria Foe… I came to FHL in 2000 to study cell division, to take advantage of the sea urchins, sea stars and sand dollars whose huge, glassy-clear, permeable and easy-to-manipulate eggs make them ideal subjects for that work. Local species have eggs that ripen at different times,  Continue Reading

Local Artists to Feature Original Works at Outdoor Show, Saturday, June 13 Friday Harbor, Washington… A group of San Juan Island artists, members of the Friday Harbor Atelier, will host a Studio Sidewalk Art Show on Saturday, June 13 in front of the Atelier at the corner of Spring Street and Argyle Avenue from 10:00  Continue Reading

Today in the SJ Update mailbag, we have this letter from Lydia Miller… I want to commend Dr Frank James, the Board of Health and County Council, for making the prudent responsible decision to finally allow lodging to reopen. Given that Americans are cautiously emerging from social distancing measures, the fear of crowds descending on  Continue Reading

Scott Sluis, Vice President and Senior Loan Officer at Islanders Bank and Board President of the San Juan Island Chamber of Commerce brings you this latest edition of Chamber Chat: “It’s Time to be Friendly and Nice” Hello Chamber Members and fellow islanders, it’s been a while since we’ve been able to connect in person  Continue Reading

Merri Ann Simonson is back with another San Juan Island information source video. This one provides you with a quick real estate market update.

Response to the discussion about the Land Bank and Affordable Housing REETs. Tuesday, June 2, 2020 Editor, I am writing as Board President of the San Juan Community Home Trust, a non-profit organization on San Juan Island. Our mission is to build and sell permanently affordable housing for ownership, to low and moderate income-qualified islanders.  Continue Reading

Response by Ron Whalen/Sponsor of San Juan County Initiative 2020-10 I request the following be posted to San Juan Update as a response to the letter posted by Alice Hurd on June 1st. Not true…..Neither the initiative or the petition says anything about ending or eliminating the Land Bank (LB) and affordable housing. THE PROPOSED  Continue Reading

In the SJ Update Mailbag today we have this letter from Alice Hurd, Former Trustee of the San Juan Preservation Trust… I am writing to share my concern about an initiative petition being circulated in San Juan County for the purpose of putting a measure on the November ballot to close down the San Juan  Continue Reading

June 1 marks a milestone for Eventide Health. It’s the beginning of our 6 month mark, but it’s also the actual start of our organization. It’s taken us far longer than anticipated to get all of the extensive governmental and insurance processes done to be a fully separate entity from San Juan Healthcare (which now  Continue Reading

Over the last few days we have all witnessed the unfolding events in Minnesota, and around the country, spurred by a tragic death that occurred in Minneapolis involving the police and a black male who was in custody. The actions that resulted in the death of George Floyd are disturbing and saddening. When these events  Continue Reading

May 2020 Dear Wonderful Community Members, The 2019-2020 school year is winding to a close, and what a year it has been! We started last summer with our Aerospace Design team under the guidance of teacher Dan Garner, becoming international champions and we end this school year with our First/Second grade Science Team under the  Continue Reading