Myla Sowder Settles and friend – Contributed photo

The Animal Protection Society of Friday Harbor is pleased to announce Myla Sowder Settles is the Volunteer of the Month for June.

Myla has been volunteering at the animal shelter for several months and is a favorite of all the pets there, as well as staff.

Myla can be counted on to help walk dogs, socialize cats and do some of the more un-pleasant tasks like litter box cleaning and laundry.

Volunteers like Myla help save lives and the animal shelter is very grateful for her service.

Kyle Loring of FANS gives check to Maddie Ovenell of Island Rec – Contributed photo

With a hearty thank you to its many donors, Families and Neighbors Support Island Rec (FANS) recently made one of its semi-annual contributions to Island Rec to supplement its scholarships and programs. In late June, FANS cut a check for $5,000—money raised so far this year through the nonprofit group’s annual membership and business drives.

FANS plans to supply Island Rec with additional funds at the end of the year. Since 2012, these funds have helped sponsor activities like live music at Music on the Lawn, the summertime Movies in the Park series, trail mapping, and scholarships for all ages for a wide variety of Island Rec’s stellar recreational programs.

The FANS Club campaign continues throughout the year; individual and business donations may be made online at www.islandrecfans.org or via check to P.O. Box 875, Friday Harbor, WA  98250.

FANS is a local, non-profit organization whose mission is to support Island Rec through fundraising and other efforts.

Aaron, Cynthia and Adam – Contributed photo

Many islanders know Cynthia Elliott. Cynthia spent her days on San Juan Island volunteering with many local organizations. Building sets for San Juan Community Theatre, mentoring Spring Street School students, and sharing her music with Island Convalescent Center staff and patients are just a few of the ways she gave of her time and talent. As a mother and a daughter she dedicated herself to caring for the needs of both her sons and her mother, as a business owner Cynthia operated a massage therapy practice for many years.

Upon being diagnosed with Parkinson’s, Cynthia was forced to search off island for a place to live that accepted Medicaid payments for housing and care. Residing in an isolated environment with daily stressors and minimal treatment took it’s toll, and Cynthia has returned to her island home to live at Village of the Harbor. Cynthia needs our help!

Please join us at Isle Seat Theatre June 30th, 7PM & July 1st, 2PM for a fundraiser performance honoring her service to this community. This event features a ballet pas de deux by Lydia Downes, Stephen Moore, performance artist Cynthia Church, contemporary dancer Caitlin Ross and more! Tickets are available at the door for $10.00 and children 9 years old or younger are free! All of the proceeds will go to Cynthia Elliott.

Please email [email protected] for more information.

Parking and vehicle access on Spring Street will be restricted during the 2018 Fourth of July Parade from approximately 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. (depending on the exact start of the parade.)

The Parade will start at the corner of Marguerite and Spring Street, travel down Spring Street to First Street, and end at the intersection of First Street and “A” Street.

Road closures and detour information (all times approximate):

• The parade route will be closed to through traffic immediately following the unloading of the 10:10 a.m. ferry arriving from Anacortes.
• No parking will be allowed along the parade route. Town will post signage requesting that vehicles be moved prior to the parade. Unmoved vehicles will be towed at the owner’s expense.
• The Spring Street Parking Lot may be accessed for parking until 9:00 a.m. Vehicles parking in the lot will not be able exit between the time that the street is closed and reopened for the parade.
• Detour signage will remain in place for the duration of the parade.

The SJI Chamber of Commerce is available at (360) 378-5240 to answer any questions regarding the parade and other Fourth of July events.

The San Juan Islands Museum of Art (SJIMA) is sponsoring a unique workshop for artists who want the best possible photos of their art. Artists often need high-quality photographs for references, submissions for exhibitions, to sell or license their art, copyright protections, for documentation, and use in mixed media creations.

SJIMA offers this special class on Sunday, July 29 for artists working in any 2D or 3D media to learn more about camera handling, settings, lighting and lenses.

Celebrated instructor, Ray Pfortner of Vashon Island has extensive experience in photography and the business of art in the Photography Certificate Program at the University of Washington. He also teaches for the Pacific Northwest Art School and Daniel Smith Artist Supply Stores. Continue Reading

The next film in the Summer Film Series is “The Cuckoo”, showing on Tuesday July 3rd.
Drama, War, Comedy Rated PG-13 99 minutes
(Finnish, Russian, German and Saami) subtitled

OK folks, are you ready for something different? This charming little film was recommended by two of our more devoted film buffs.  Filmed in northern Finland and set in late 1944 as World War II is winding down, it recounts the story of two soldiers, one Finnish and one Russian who narrowly escape death and end up in the hut of Anni, a Lapp woman. For Anni, whose husband is off to war, they are not enemies, just men and she helps them recover from their injuries.

The beauty of this movie is that you, as the reader of the subtitles, are the only one who knows what is going on. The woman and the two men all speak different languages. It is a comedy of errors up until the end.

Please remember that no admission will be charged this year but we do ask that you consider making a donation to the Theatre in appreciation for sponsoring these films.  Also note that $2 bottomless popcorn will be available this year.

An early Vic’s sign with founders Vic and Margaret Reynolds in front of their drive-in – SJ Historical Society & Museum photo

Brian and Theresa share this invitation with you…

Join us June 28, 2018 as we commemorate 60 years of Vic’s with games, door prizes, special pricing, and more.

1958 Pricing on in-house orders between 2-4pm sponsored by Sysco and Walton Beverages. (Order in/Dine in only. Limit two per customer.)

Door prizes donated by Walton Beverages include a fireHD8 with Alexa, a Polar Beverages oversized stuffed Bear and more! Drawing at 4pm.

Cake by Felicitations of Friday Harbor and a historical display featuring Vic’s memorabilia will be available for viewing all day.

A special display of what we plan for Vic’s down the road will be unveiled that afternoon to the general public for the first time.

We hope you’ll stop in and say hello, have some cake, and enjoy some time with friends and community.

In collaboration with Griffin Bay Bookstore and the San Juan Island Trails Committee, Tami Oldham Ashcraft will talk about her book (written with Susea McGearhart) – and the movie made from it – ADRIFT: A True Story of Love, Loss, and Survival at Sea.  

Refreshments are courtesy of the Friends of the Library and the San Juan Island Trails Committee.
Monday, July 2 at 7 pm
San Juan Island Library, free. 

Steve Brandli shares this announcement of his candidacy with you…

Steve Brandli – Contributed photo

Steve Brandli is running in the November 6th election for San Juan County’s next District Court judge. Judge Stewart Andrew, the current District Court judge, announced that he will retire at the end of his current term. District Court hears misdemeanors, small claims, protection orders, infractions, and other civil matters.

Since graduating in the top 5% of his class at the University of Washington Law School, Steve has been practicing law in San Juan County for 11 years. He served as a Deputy Prosecutor in San Juan County, handling District Court matters, before opening his current private practice.

Steve has built a reputation of integrity and of skill with complex legal analysis on a wide variety of legal issues both civil and criminal. He has appeared in San Juan County courts on a weekly basis for more than a decade representing clients across the county. Last year, he spent time on the bench as a San Juan County Superior Court Commissioner. Steve’s broad and diverse experience has provided him the knowledge and insight to understand the types of legal matters that come before a District Court judge.

Steve and his wife, BJ, have raised their children and fostered other children in San Juan County. Steve is a dedicated volunteer. He has served on local boards and has been involved with several charitable organizations including Angel Flight West, Island Rec, and as a Court-appointed Special Advocate for children. Steve is currently the elected president of the San Juan Island Lions Club. In years past, he gave talks on constitutional law in AP Government classes and mentored students in mock trials at Friday Harbor High School.

Steve’s website address is www.ElectSteveBrandli.com. Steve invites anyone to call him at (360) 378-5544 and welcomes input from members of the community on how their legal system can work better for them.

Come celebrate the publication of “The Way We Stay: A Memoir of Recovery” by Cere Demuth

Cere Demuth’s just-published book, The Way We Stay: A Memoir of Recovery, couldn’t be more timely. As untold numbers of Americans struggle with drug and alcohol addiction, there is great need for help in the form of recovery stories.

Islanders who wish to learn more about addiction and recovery, will have the chance to chat with Cere as she presents her memoir to the public at Griffin Bay Bookstore on Saturday, June 30, 2:00—4:00 pm.

Cere’s only son’s opiate addiction leaves her coping with pain, fear, and humiliation for twelve long years. A small town psychotherapist, living in the islands, she struggles to balance the needs of her family beneath the shadow of addiction. She revisits her tumultuous childhood beginning in the Bay Area with her birth during the Summer of Love to leftists radical hippies.

Cere retraces her parents’ intense, but brief involvement in the leftist militant group, the Weather Underground. Eventually, her family moves to Whidbey Island where her parents raise her and her brother in a small, rural, alternative community. Continue Reading

Pod Nod overnight marine adventures return this summer to The Whale Museum! These popular “pajama party” sleepovers are geared for children ages 6 to 11 and will be held on the following Fridays:

• July 13
• August 10
• August 24

Pod Nods are led by Museum Educators with assistance from other adult professionals. Youth participants will learn to value whales and their environment through art projects, science labs, games, the traditional flashlight tour of the Exhibit Hall, and a bedtime movie. We promise a high adult/child ratio and a whale of a good time. Continue Reading

The winning bookmarks in order from Kindergarten (Left) thru Fifth Grade (Right)

San Juan Island Library Announces 2018 Bookmark Contest Winners

The San Juan Island Library is delighted to announce the winners of the 2018 bookmark contest. The bookmark contest is held annually to help kick off the library’s summer reading program, which officially started on Thursday, June 14. The summer reading program is free and open to all ages—children, teens, and adults.

This year, students in grades K-5^th were challenged with creating a bookmark using the theme, Libraries Rock! The winners received gift certificates for Griffin Bay Bookstore. The winning entries are on display at the library and have been made into bookmarks for the public to take home.

• Kindergarten Winner = Capri Bartlett, Friday Harbor Elementary School
• 1^st Grade Winner = Sean Fitts, Paideia Classical School
• 2^nd Grade Winner = Isabella Allen, Paideia Classical School
• 3^rd Grade Winner = Sam Herda, Friday Harbor Elementary School
• 4^th Grade Winner = James Sears, Stillpoint School
• 5^th Grade Winner = Luca Pignatiello

The 2018 bookmark contest and summer reading program are funded by the Friends of the San Juan Island Library. All the bookmark entries will be on display at the San Juan Island Library until August. For more information about the San Juan Island Library’s summer programs, please stop by the library today or visit www.sjlib.org.  

One performer. Six guitar styles. Saturday, June 30th at 7:30 pm, Virtuoso guitar player Chase Padgett performs six different guitar-playing characters, each sharing their own style of music. Each genre (blues, jazz, rock, classical folk and country) is showcased with breathtaking musicianship… and there are plenty of laughs too!

Ranging from a 19-year-old rock prodigy to an 87-year-old blues man, each character shares a journey with music from discovery to mastery, through songs and stories that leave every audience laughing, crying, and falling in love with music all over again.

6 Guitars premiered in the 2010 Orlando International Fringe Festival where it was greeted with sold-out houses and standing ovations. Since then, it has toured internationally becoming one of the most successful shows from the Canadian Fringe Festival Circuit.

The Business Partner for the evening is Friday Harbor Grand B&B. Tickets are $26 for adults, $12 for student reserved and $5 for student RUSH (at door only).

Friday Harbor has turned into “quilt central” as the quilt walk engendered by the Conversations With Gee’s Bend exhibition at the San Juan Islands Museum of Art (SJIMA) gets underway.

Fourteen businesses and establishments feature 21 quilts made by San Juan Island quilters, primarily from the Rainshadow Quilting Arts Guild (RQAG). The quilt designs include traditional styles to innovative ones of abstract designs to vintage quilts and more.

Shortly, a card with the list of quilters, titles and locations along with a map will be available at the SJI Chamber of Commerce, Town Hall and SJIMA as well as at each of the sponsor sites. All the sponsors welcome visitors to view the quilts during their regular working hours.

SJIMA is a location on the list and map as the whole museum collection should be seen and enjoyed. Quilts by Linda Cooper’s and Mary Zeretzke’s creations are on display there. Continue Reading

Ruth Fothergill, MD, has joined PeaceHealth Medical Group Family Medicine at PeaceHealth Peace Island Medical Center. She provides clinical care to patients of all ages, as well as care to patients who are hospitalized.

Dr. Fothergill comes to Friday Harbor from Minneapolis, Minnesota, where she concurrently provided care for residents in five long-term care facilities and served as an urgent care provider. She also volunteered at a free community clinic.

Dr. Fothergill has special interests in caring for people living with chronic disease or disability, as well providing care to patients within the context of their families and communities. “I want to help people live life to its fullest, no matter what challenges their bodies present,” she said. “My care begins with affirming that we are physical, emotional and spiritual beings.” Continue Reading