Posted July 17, 2020 at 5:11 am by Tim Dustrude
Two new positive COVID-19 cases have been reported on San Juan Island. These cases were identified through testing of close contacts of a previous case.
All three individuals are self-isolating at home. Total number of cases in San Juan County to date is now 24.
This is a good opportunity to emphasize the following critical information: Continue Reading
Posted July 17, 2020 at 5:11 am by Tim Dustrude
Christine Minney
The Orcas Women’s Coalition (OWC) announced their endorsement of Christine Minney for San Juan County Council (District #1, San Juan Island seat). Christine went through the OWC endorsement process and attended two ZOOM teleconference interviews with members.
In an email to OWC members shared with Christine, they reported, “The strong majority of votes submitted were in support of endorsing: Christine Minney, for San Juan County Council (San Juan Island seat).”
Christine Minney said, “I am grateful for the opportunity to have met so many engaged and committed women who are members of OWC. The participating members asked direct and serious questions on many issues facing our island’s communities.” Continue Reading
Posted July 17, 2020 at 5:10 am by Tim Dustrude
San Juan County Public Hospital District No. 1 is giving formal notice of a Special Board Meeting on July 18th, 2020, at 9:00 am, via MS Teams. Members of the public should call 509-824-1884 and enter 588 227 188# in order to attend. An Agenda is attached.
This meeting on July 18th is for strategic planning for the hospital district. There will be a second strategic planning session on July 25th, 2020 at 9:00 am, via MS Teams. Members of the public should call 509-824-1884 and enter 891 546 356# in order to attend.
There will also be a Regular Board Meeting on July 22, 2020, at 5:30 pm, via MS Teams. Members of the public should call 509-824-1884 and enter 523 292 241# to attend.
All of this information is available on our website at www.sjcphd.org. We will release the agendas for the July 22ndand July 25th meetings via email and our website as they are available. Let me know if you have any questions.
Posted July 16, 2020 at 5:52 am by Tim Dustrude
Micro-loans available for local farmers
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the FARM Fund is partnering with the San Juan Island Community Foundation (SJICF) and the Orcas Food Co-op to meet essential food needs of San Juan County residents.
The San Juan Islands Agricultural Guild’s FARM Fund will offer $15,000 in zero percent interest loans to San Juan County farmers who want to scale up production for fall, winter, and spring seasons ($10,000 from SJICF and $5,000 from Orcas Food Co-op).
The FARM Fund is committed to pursuing innovative ways to bring nutritious food to all islanders’ tables while also promoting the economic growth and viability of San Juan County farmers. Repayment of the loan will be in-kind food donated or sold at greatly reduced rates to food banks, senior and youth food programs, and other food access programs in San Juan County over two years (August 2020 to July 2022) at 100% of the value of the loan. Continue Reading
Posted July 16, 2020 at 5:43 am by Peggy Sue McRae
Coping With Cabin Fever – Peggy Sue McRae photo
Island Senior is a regular column on the San Juan Update written by Peggy Sue McRae…
According to Wikipedia, cabin fever refers to “claustrophobic irritability or restlessness experienced when a person, or group, is stuck at an isolated location or in confined quarters for an extended period of time”.
Anybody relate? They go on to say… “Cabin fever is not itself a disease and there is no prognosis. However, related symptoms can lead the sufferer to make irrational decisions that could potentially threaten their life or the life of the group with whom they are confined”. That is the part we want to avoid.
In my recent article, Island Senior: Coping With Coronavirus, How Is Your Mental Health? I concluded with recommendations from the Washington State Dept. of Health to guard against depression and anxiety by building resilience through connection, purpose, psychological flexibility, and hope. I thought it might be worthwhile to give these strategies a closer look: Continue Reading
Posted July 15, 2020 at 9:29 am by Tim Dustrude
Digging Deeper into Contact Tracing
A more detailed look at how public health staff work to limit the spread of COVID in our community. This is by no means our most concise Hot Topic, but does contain useful info for those looking to understand a bit more about the public health response.
As of July 14th, there have been 22 reported positive COVID-19 test results from people residing in and/or who have been tested in San Juan County. For each of these, the San Juan County Health Department has performed extensive investigation and contact tracing.
Please note that sometimes there have been people with a listed address in San Juan County who test positive but who have not recently been in the islands and have no risk of local transmission. These cases may be included in the official WA State Department of Health (DOH) numbers as a San Juan County case, but not in the numbers reported by San Juan County. This discrepancy can be confusing, and whenever possible, local public health staff work to ensure the location of each case is reported accurately. In most cases DOH adjusts these cases so they are assigned to the proper County, though this may take some time to occur. Continue Reading
Posted July 15, 2020 at 8:49 am by Tim Dustrude
Local photographer John Miller shares this photo he shot the other morning. And here’s what he has to say about it:
“I was sailing back from Stuart Island and came upon this unusual sight – looked like three houses barging away from San Juan Island, and all seem to be practicing social distancing?”
Thanks for sharing John!
Posted July 15, 2020 at 8:44 am by Tim Dustrude
As the islands enter the 6th month of the COVID crisis, the likelihood of local families, individuals, and businesses being connected to someone with a confirmed positive test result continues to increase.
We created this FAQ to highlight answers to likely questions in the event of a positive test result in either an employee, or a close contact of an employee.
How will I know if an employee has tested positive?
If the San Juan County Health & Community Services surveillance team determines that there has been close contact between an individual who has tested positive and the staff or patrons of a business, the business owner or manager will be contacted by public health staff.
In some cases, an employee may notify an employer directly. If at that time there has been no communication between the employer and the public health team, the employer should call the County COVID Hotline at 360-370-7500. If an employee tests positive they will be required to self-isolate at home and will not be available to work.
What exactly is a “close contact”? Continue Reading
Posted July 15, 2020 at 8:42 am by Tim Dustrude
In the mailbag this morning we have this letter from Katie Fleming…
Dear Editor,
I support Ryan Palmateer for the County Council District 1 position. I have worked with Ryan for 3 years on energy conservation, renewable energy promotion, and climate action programs in the San Juan Islands.
Ryan is very committed to the resiliency and health of both our human and natural communities – and knowledgeable about the steps it will take for us to address these issues in the islands from a local government’s perspective. I also trust that he will champion other important initiatives such as affordable housing and a just economic recovery in the face of the pandemic.
If you care about environmental, social, and economic sustainability in San Juan County – vote for Ryan. Learn more about him here: www.ryanpalmateer2020.com
Sincerely,
Katie Fleming
San Juan Island
Posted July 15, 2020 at 8:39 am by Tim Dustrude
San Juan Island Library District Assistant Director / Adult Services Manager
The San Juan Island Library District (www.sjlib.org) is seeking a highly capable, enthusiastic, creative, and customer service-orientated individual to develop, manage and implement library services for adults. The successful candidate will also assist the director with library administration.
Complete job description available at https://www.sjlib.org/employment/.
Requirements include an ALA-accredited MLS degree, two (2) years professional library experience, and two (2) years supervisory experience. Knowledge of and experience with website development and maintenance, public relations/marketing, staff management and training, reference services, and adult collections are also required.
This is a full-time position with starting salary of $62,700.00 and excellent benefits.
Submit cover letter, resumé and three professional references with contact information by email to [email protected], or mail (San Juan Island Library, Attn: Director, 1010 Guard St., Friday Harbor, WA 98250), or in person at the Library.
Applications must be received by 3:00 pm, Saturday, August 1st , 2020 for first consideration.
Applications received after this date may not necessarily be considered. Job is open until position is filled. Interviews may be scheduled as applications are received.
Posted July 14, 2020 at 5:47 am by Tim Dustrude
As I’m sure you all know we have a few new cases on the island. We had an exceptionally busy day Monday with testing. Our focus this week will be with the following priority:
Opening businesses via testing has obviously dropped in priority in light of these new cases.
If you don’t fit any of these categories please see our previous post on Facebook about Pixel home testing through LabCorp. We will hopefully announce a brand new testing option later this week.
As always, be kind to each other. These are tense times. Smile more. Enjoy the sun. Be aggressively gracious and practice gratitude. We have far more to be grateful for than we have to be fearful of.
William F. House, MD
Eventide Health
San Juan Island
Friday Harbor, Washington
Posted July 13, 2020 at 4:44 pm by Tim Dustrude
July 13, 2020: Over the weekend of July 11th-12th, three new positive COVID cases were reported on San Juan Island.
Two of these cases were close contacts of each other. In total, over 20 close contacts of those two positive individuals have been identified and contacted by the San Juan County Health Department surveillance team. All close contacts plus the two patients are quarantined for 14 days.
Close contacts will be tested shortly, and further investigations may be required based on test results. As in all cases, those in quarantine are contacted daily by Health Department staff to monitor for symptoms and ensure compliance.
The third positive case is still under active investigation. Continue Reading
Posted July 13, 2020 at 6:02 am by Tim Dustrude
Friday Harbor Film Festival’s Summer 2020 Virtual Cinema will present a FREE virtual on-demand screening of The Story of Plastic anytime on July 16, 17, 18, and 19, followed by a hosted Q&A on July 19 at 6 pm PDT. To view the film and participate in the virtual Q&A, RSVP at www.fhff.org.
Once you RSVP, you will receive a link on July 15 to stream the film on a computer or mobile device beginning Thursday, July 16 at 8 am until Sunday, July 19 at 6 pm, when the Q&A begins. You will receive a separate link to join the Q&A on Zoom.
The Story of Plastic takes a sweeping look at the man-made crisis of plastic pollution worldwide and its effect on the health of our planet and the people who inhabit it. The film features interviews with experts and activists on the front lines of the fight, revealing the disastrous consequences of the flood of plastic smothering ecosystems and poisoning communities around the world. Through engaging original animation, archival industry footage beginning in the 1930s, and first-person accounts of the unfolding emergency, the movie explains the complex problem and focuses on the global movement to address it.
The Q&A, which will last about an hour, will feature Karin Roemers-Kleven, a marine naturalist on San Juan Island who was instrumental in developing The Plastic-Free Salish Sea, a subcommittee of the San Juan County Marine Resources Committee. This committee strives to inspire people and organizations around the Salish Sea to preserve these beautiful waters for our children’s health and future. In addition, the Q&A will focus on the Lopez Island ReMake Lab Project and the proposed Kalama, WA Methanol Plant Update. Participants’ questions on these topics will follow.
Don’t miss your opportunity to see this informative and important film by visiting www.fhff.org to register! There is no charge to watch the movie and participate in the Q&A.
Posted July 13, 2020 at 5:50 am by Tim Dustrude
On Monday July 6 ,2020, the U.S. Small Business Association (SBA) announced the release of detailed loan-level data regarding the loans made under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). This program was launched as a way to retain workers by providing funding to businesses impacted by the Covid-19 downturn. Our local banks, the EDC and other entities worked hard to ensure that our businesses had access to these funds, and funding is still available to interested businesses.
The data disclosure from the SBA covers 4.9 million PPP loans made to businesses and nonprofits. This release of data was made in 2 parts; loans over $150,000 included the name of the business but only a loan range rather than a specific dollar amount. Loans under $150,000 did not include the business name but show an exact loan amount. This data does not reflect any conversion of PPP loans to grants as the SBA has yet to begin accepting forgiveness applications.
The San Juan County Economic Development Council (EDC) has done its own analysis of the data and found that San Juan County businesses received between $27,397,357 and $41,347,357 in PPP loan funds, which contributed to the retention of 1,949 jobs county-wide, as follows: Continue Reading
Posted July 10, 2020 at 8:41 am by Tim Dustrude
2020 Summer Marine Naturalist Training Program will be Virtual
The Whale Museum’s Summer Marine Naturalist Program is going virtual. This dynamic and high-quality program will still be 6-sessions and run on the following dates: July 16, 17, 18, 20, 21, and 22 with a one daybreak on July 19.
The object of this program is to provide a learning experience that assists adult graduates in becoming qualified regionally as a professional or volunteer naturalists. Because this session will be virtual, we have been able to expand the class size to 50 participants, so spots are still available!
The main focus of the training is the ecology, current status, and conservation of Southern Resident Killer Whales and other local marine species as well as discussions about the environments they live in. Continue Reading
Posted July 10, 2020 at 8:40 am by Tim Dustrude
43 years running! Be part of this Island tradition – virtually for 2020 (you still have to go all 8.8k, your computer can’t do that part for you!). This race can be completed any time between August 9-15, 2020. Any Course (even your treadmill) consisting of 8.8k! Participants will send completed race times, and distances by e-mail. Results will be posted Monday August 17th.
The 8.8k is a fun run or walking distance for all ages. Ribbons will be awarded for the first three Women and Men with the fastest times! Race proceeds benefit the Children’s Scholarship Funds at Island Rec. T-shirts can be ordered this year for an additional $10 and will be available for pick up on a scheduled date after the event. Continue Reading