Posted June 26, 2018 at 5:34 am by Tim Dustrude
SJC Superior Court extends this invitation to you…
Please join us in recognizing the Court Appointed Special Advocate volunteers who serve in dependency proceedings in San Juan County Superior Court, and in recognizing the importance of family reunification.
Thursday, June 28, 2018 at 1:30 p.m. in the San Juan County Superior Court Jury Room, at the San Juan County Courthouse.
Light refreshments will be served.
The community is welcome.
Posted June 25, 2018 at 5:45 am by Tim Dustrude
Larry Soll invites you to the next film in the series…
Fellow Film Buffs,
I trust that everyone who saw “Lucky” truly enjoyed it. To those who missed it, don’t let that happen again! Also please encourage your friends and neighbors to come along; the bigger the audience, the more fun we will all have. Don’t forget to tell them that the movies this year are “pay what you can”.
Our next film, on on Tuesday June 26th, is “Jane”
Documentary, Biography Rated PG 90 minutes
Award-winning director Brett Morgen tells the story of Jane Goodall, drawing from over 100 hours of never-before-seen footage (much of which was taken by her cinematographer husband Hugo van Lawick). Jane is a woman whose chimpanzee research challenged the male-dominated scientific consensus of her time and revolutionized our understanding of the natural world.
Set to a rich orchestral score from legendary composer Philip Glass, the film offers an unprecedented, intimate portrait of a trailblazer who defied the odds to become one of the world’s most admired conservationists.
Posted June 25, 2018 at 5:44 am by Tim Dustrude
Buns is this week’s Pet of the Week – Contributed photo
Hello Friday Harbor. Allow me to introduce myself. I am “Buns”. I’ve just arrived in the world but I’ve already made up my bucket list. Here it is:
Animal Protection Society of Friday Harbor
111 Shelter Road
(360) 378-2158
Posted June 25, 2018 at 5:42 am by Tim Dustrude
The Town is pleased to announce the appointment of Peter Lane to the Friday Harbor Arts Commission (FHAC). Lane owns an art consultation and logistics company and brings 20 years of experience in the visual arts. He is a board member and volunteer at San Juan Island Museum of Art and participated in an artist selection panel for the FHAC.
Prior to moving to the island in 2014, Lane managed private art collections and collections for municipalities, institutions, and corporations including Microsoft. He oversaw the removal of public art from the Kingdome and installation of art at Safeco Field, oversaw a large portion of the Seattle Art Museum’s Olympic Sculpture Park installation, and worked on projects for the City of Bellevue, King County Library, and Seattle Public Library.
Lane began his art career in Chicago after graduating from Western Washington University with a sculpture degree. He worked with the Field Museum of Natural History, Contemporary Museum of Art, Art Institute of Chicago, and Adler Planetarium.
The newly appointed member of the eight-person commission will serve through December 2019. Members of the FHAC represent the interests of the Town, community, and local artists and advise the Town Council on the cultivation, selection, acquisition, and placement of public art.
Posted June 23, 2018 at 10:18 pm by Tim Dustrude
The next SJIMA art pARTy will be June 25. The painting is a fun, whimsical one, titled, “Rooster Jubilee.”
Time: 5:45pm – 8:00pm. Cost: $35.
All levels are welcome. Following step-by-step instruction, participants will go home with their own work of art.
For more information and to register, go to http://www.sjima.org. Class size is limited.
Come join us!
Posted June 22, 2018 at 10:10 am by Tim Dustrude
WSDOT is about done with Sharpes Corner construction but get ready for the next project west of there…
Sharpes Corner second lane opening Saturday!
You read that correctly. By the time you head out for Saturday errands, baseball games or weekend adventures – you’ll encounter the finished two lane roundabout.
Crews are finishing some concrete and electrical work today and tomorrow and putting down temporary striping the next couple of nights then will move the barrels = no more single lane out of Anacortes.
Still ahead:
Next week crews will do some work on what we call ‘punch list items’ – fixing or adding a few things that didn’t turn out just right. By the end of next week – the orange barrels at Sharpes Corner will be outta there until crews come back in September to plant landscaping and put down permanent striping.
Not so fast, Anacortes…
While we are opening up the roundabout, there are more lane reductions and paving coming your way next month. When Lakeside Industries continues the paving project (12th Street/Oakes Avenue is complete) and starts work to grind and pave the four-lane section of SR 20 Spur between the new Sharpes and Commercial avenue roundabouts, they will reduce that section of highway to two lanes for two straight weeks (nights and weekends included). Plan ahead for similar peak commute delays that you’ve been experiencing during the Sharpes Construction.
Posted June 22, 2018 at 5:52 am by Tim Dustrude
Curt VanHyning shares this update with you on the ‘RoundTowner…
The ‘RoundTowner Celebrates Ten Thousand Rides
The ‘RoundTowner, the only affordable transportation on San Juan Island, is excited to announce the ten-thousandth customers – Mollie Heath and Simeon LaRiviere of Harbor Ridge, Friday Harbor, WA.
Little did Mollie and Simeon know that their reservation to go shopping at the Marketplace was the 10,000 ‘RoundTowner customer since the inception of the ‘RoundTowner in 2013. Their take on the ‘RoundTowner: “The ‘RoundTowner makes so much sense on our island. Who can pay almost double to go to the doctor, drugstore, post office, grocery and other important errands that must be taken care of? The ‘RoundTowner is an absolute necessity for many people in Friday Harbor. I don’t know what my husband and I would do without this very important service”
Small communities have the same need for affordable, customized public transport as larger urban areas, but with fewer resources, they must use the least expensive provider model. That is what our small, single focus non-profit has been able to accomplish with its donated SUV and unpaid volunteer staff. Family members tell us their elderly and disabled parents chose to stay home and wither away without health or community social access before the ‘RoundTowner. We are now firmly established as the preferred transport option for seniors, disabled and their most common destinations such as the Mullis Center, Peace Island Medical Center, Village at the Harbour, F.H. Drug Store, MarketPlace and San Juan Healthcare. Continue Reading
Posted June 22, 2018 at 5:48 am by Tim Dustrude
Six cases of Varicella, or “chicken pox,” have now been confirmed in the Orcas Island community. San Juan County Health & Community Services is working closely with medical providers to identify additional cases in the community. We are also continuing work with the Orcas School District, preschools and families to investigate the varicella cases. None of the cases have been hospitalized.
Varicella is a highly contagious infection, and symptoms include fever, fatigue and a rash that typically progresses from the head to other parts of the body. Those most vulnerable to complications of varicella are: persons older than 15 years of age who have not been vaccinated or had the infection, newborns and infants younger than one year, pregnant women, and people with compromised immune systems. Complications may include severe symptoms, prolonged illness, hospitalization and death. During pregnancy, varicella pneumonia can be particularly severe and maternal infection can lead to congenital abnormalities. Continue Reading
Posted June 21, 2018 at 10:37 am by Tim Dustrude
Pete Kuentzel at the gallery – Ruth Offen photo
Ruth at Waterworks Gallery shares this invitation with you…
Please join me in welcoming Pete Kuentzel to the gallery on Saturday, June 23rd from 11 to 1pm.
Pete will chat informally about what inspires his work and how he creates his ceramic sculptures. Pete is a retired professor of ceramics, and has a studio on Lopez Island. Waterworks Gallery, located at 315 Argyle Ave, Friday Harbor has represented Pete’s works for 3 years.
Pete’s approach to his ships and tankers again use the simplified form of a rectangle, a triangle or a circle to create the form of a ship. A rectangle for the ships stack and a circle for a porthole and perhaps a rectangle for the cargo hold. Pete’s color vocabulary is filled with sun drenched yellows, reds and blues.
The gallery is open, Monday, Wednesday – Sunday, other times by request.
Posted June 21, 2018 at 10:36 am by Tim Dustrude
This summer Island Rec will be offering two youth soccer camps: Western Washington University Summer Soccer Camp and Summer Soccer Technical Training with Coach Van.
Click to see dates, times and details about each camp… Continue Reading
Posted June 21, 2018 at 10:35 am by Tim Dustrude
Hear that beat? That should be the quickening heart rate of all you Island Writers preparing your entries to the drum beat of the 2018 “Rockin’ the Salish Sea” San Juan County Fair!
But, you say, the Fair is months away—August 15-18. True, but the deadline for the Written Word entries is July 20th —only weeks away!
So, polish up those writings—Prose, Poetry, Writing for Children—from the last two years, and postmark them to Island Writers, SJC Fair, POB 1094, Friday Harbor, WA 98250 or email them to [email protected] by July 20th. Check out the premium book: Island Writers (Z—as in ZZ Top?) is on pages 36-37. Questions? 378-4130.
“Rockin’ the Salish Sea”—so rock it!
Posted June 21, 2018 at 10:31 am by Tim Dustrude
San Juan County adopted a new Shoreline Master Program (SMP) in November 2017. Friends of the San Juans appealed the SMP to the Growth Management Hearings Board (Board) alleging seven issues Friends claimed did not meet the requirements of state law. Friends asked the Board to invalidate the SMP.
The Board held a hearing in Friday Harbor on May 4, 2018. San Juan County was represented by Deputy Prosecutor Amy Vira, Department of Ecology was represented by Assistant Attorney General Emily Nelson and Friends of the San Juans was represented by its former staff attorney Kyle Loring.
The Board issued its decision on June 13, 2018 declining to declare the SMP invalid and finding in favor of the County on four of the seven issues. Continue Reading
Posted June 20, 2018 at 5:48 am by Tim Dustrude
San Juan Community Theatre’s Beauty and the Beast Breaks Records and Launches New Fund
Anita Welch, Farhad Ghatan and Kathy Schwartz – Contributed photo
San Juan Community Theatre is excited to announce that their 2018 Spring Musical, Beauty and the Beast, was a record-breaker for the Theatre, with a total of 2,580 tickets sold, making the production SJCT’s all-time best-selling show.
During the run of the production, CATS held a raffle that featured baskets of Beauty and the Beast themed prizes. The raffle winners were David Aas (“Be Our Guest”), Peggy Skillin (“Belle’s Party”), Nancy Honeywell (“Cogsworth”), Cynthia Tripp (“Lumiere”), Judy Wright (Mrs. Potts”), and Samantha Bryner (“Babette”). The Friday Harbor Grand B&B (owned by Producers Club member and Friday Harbor Mayor Farhad Ghatan) was the setting for the drawings of the winning tickets. The effort generated almost $2000 as a fundraiser. Continue Reading
Posted June 20, 2018 at 5:46 am by Tim Dustrude
News outlets nationwide have described the problems arising from the epidemic in the use of opioids. Whether it is the overuse of powerful addictive prescribed painkillers or the illegal use of a cheaper cousin, such as heroin, there is large human and governmental cost.
“Families are ripped apart. There is a real cost to county sheriffs, prosecutors, courts, and county health departments all of who are on the front line,” said Prosecuting Attorney/Coroner Randall Gaylord. “After families, county departments bear the brunt of the response to highly addictive drug overdoses and deaths.” Gaylord has declared two opioid deaths so far this year.
According to the CDC San Juan County had 57.9 opioid prescriptions written for every 100 persons in the County. “This indicates the problem is here. We may be a tight knit, beautiful island community but we have not escaped the problem of opioids,” said Mr. Gaylord. Continue Reading
Posted June 20, 2018 at 5:44 am by Tim Dustrude
Here’s a note from Loren DeShon sharing some new developments at Westwind Aviation…
Westwind Aviation will have scheduled flights from Friday Harbor to Boeing Field on Thursday and Friday afternoons departing at 4 pm (through the summer) beginning Thursday June 21. Introductory fare $109. Call (360) 378-6991 to make a reservation.
New Pilot – Westwind is proud to announce that Clyde Salyards has joined our staff. Clyde, a new island resident, moved up with his wife from Southern California in early June and is in the process of getting settled. Clyde will be flying charter trips and doing flight instruction at Westwind.
Posted June 19, 2018 at 5:49 am by Tim Dustrude
Evelyn enjoys the trail around Zylstra Lake – Contributed photo
Islanders, thank you for “Getting Outdoors” and joining the Land Bank at our Zylstra Lake Preserve Open House last weekend. The response was incredible, with almost 200 visitors over the six-hour event, and on a busy June Saturday to boot! It was wonderful to see everyone enjoying the property and to hear the community’s positive remarks and ideas for the preserve’s future.
The Land Bank commissioners and staff appreciate your patience while we focus on learning about the preserve and exploring partnerships. While the preserve is not open to the public at this time, providing public access is a high priority for the future.
Until then, the Land Bank will continue to host special events such as open houses or guided walks, in order to give Islanders the opportunity to visit this phenomenal property. A management plan addressing public access will be developed starting late in 2019. While we will specifically seek public input at that time, your ideas, suggestions, and questions are welcome at any time.
To stay apprised of Zylstra Lake Preserve events, or other Land Bank happenings, contact Tanja Williamson at [email protected] or call 360-378-4402 to be added to the Land Bank’s email list.
Here are a few additional photos from SJ Update staff:
