Here’s a fun video for all you bird lovers out there.

The Suiter’s Softball & Baseball Clinic is coming back! Amy Suiter is the Coach of Western Washington University’s Softball team and she and her husband own Competitive Edge Northwest in Mt. Vernon. They have been traveling back and forth to the island the last few years to put on softball and baseball clinics for our island youth.

Age groups are as follows: Minors (3-5th grade) Majors (6-12th Grade)

• 11:30am – Minors Softball Pitching & Minors Baseball Hitting
• 12:30pm – Minors Softball Hitting & Minors Baseball Pitching
• 1:45pm – Majors Softball Pitching & Majors Baseball Hitting
• 2:45pm – Majors Softball Hitting & Majors Baseball Pitching

Cost is $35/session. We must guarantee the Suiters 8 kids per time slot for the program to run. Please register by December 28th, 2017. For more information and registration please visit our website at www.islandrec.org or drop by the office 580 Guard Street, Monday – Friday 11:00 am to 5:00 pm.  (360) 378-4953

Note: Information in this announcement has been updated…

Skagit Valley College Life Transitions Program to be offered FREE in Friday Harbor

Skagit Valley College’s (SVC) Life Transitions Program will be offered FREE at SVC’s San Juan Center in Friday Harbor. Classes begin on January 8, 2018 and will run for three weeks.

SVC’s Life Transitions program is designed to help individuals who are exploring options for employment, college, or for moving on with their lives. This class also offers dislocated workers an opportunity to cope with the issues related to sudden job loss. 

The San Juan Center will provide free taxi vouchers from the ferry for those people coming from Lopez, Orcas and Shaw. Contact for Minnie Kynch at 360.378.4662 or the SVC San Juan Center at (360) 378-3220.

This year Christmas Eve falls on a Sunday.  We have a special treat this year.  Christmas Eve morning we will all have breakfast together provided by Jeff Clark and crew at 10:00 a.m. in the Church Fellowship Hall. 

We’ll have a relaxed time of fellowship together with some carol singing and some time with our children.  We will have our usual Christmas Eve Family Service at 4:30 pm and our Christmas Eve 9:00 pm Communion Service. 

All are welcome to attend these wonderful Christmastime events.

Michael, Nancy and Barb counting birds on 12/31/2016 – Tim Dustrude photo

Our count is set for Saturday, December 30th. Teams will be assigned areas within the 15-mile diameter circle to count all the birds in their area. I am still working on getting island leaders sorted out but I will be the coordinator for SJI and the overall coordinator.

If you have questions or would like to participate, please let me know.

Cheers,

Barbara Jensen, President
San Juan Islands Audubon
[email protected]

For those interested in doing the count on Lopez please contact Lopez coordinator Beth St. George [email protected] if you want to participate. She has information on which areas are covered and which need more coverage. If you have feeder counts or yard counts there please contact her also to be sure you are in the circle and there is no overlap. I will be sending any questions about Lopez to Beth so it is best to contact her directly. We have had some confusion in the past when folks do not work with the island coordinator so please work with Beth as she is the best!

The Severe Weather Shelter will open for the first time on Tuesday, December 19 at approximately 7:00 pm. There will be a volunteer orientation and set-up at 5:30. Anyone interested in learning more about the Shelter and its operation is invited to attend. We currently have volunteers to staff two days, and we are hopeful more will step up to keep it open during the approximately five cold days to follow. A fluid, changing forecast makes it difficult (but not impossible!) to anticipate. The location for this first rotation is Islands Community Church, 127 Gilbert Lane just out of town off of San Juan Valley Road.

Please call the United Way of San Juan County phone number, (360) 378-4121, for a current recorded message about Shelter openings.

Volunteers can sign up on our SignUp Genius page. Each shift must have minimum of 2 volunteers. By clicking the link to the Sign Up Genius page at any time at SignUpGenius http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c094caca823a5f94-severe1, anyone can see whether or not we are able to open. According to sign ups at the time of this release, we are hopeful that a few more volunteers will step up to fill several of the overnight slots for the anticipated cold snap this week. One of the overnight slots offers a $100 stipend. Background checks are required of any volunteers.

There are three different shifts per opening:

• EVENING SHIFT – SETUP/SOUP DINNER: Approx. 7 pm-11 pm (possibly earlier)
• OVERNIGHT SHIFT: 10:30 pm – 6:30am (Paid OR Volunteer Slots Available)
• MORNING SHIFT – BREAKFAST/CLEAN-UP: Next Day / 6am – CLOSED/PACKED UP (approx 8 am close and latest 9 or 10 cleaned/packed/ready for next activation)

If you would like to volunteer but have not yet seen the training video, that’s fine! Sign up for a training slot. We will get the materials to you.

Before and After – Contributed images

The trail blazers are taking advantage of the sun’s return THIS THURSDAY – winter solstice! It may be the shortest day of the year, but there’s plenty of daylight to continue shaping the Westside trail extension. Start time is the same as last week, 10:00 am, and any time you can lend to the project is greatly appreciated!

We’ll have a few hand tools available, but if you’ve got your own (ie: McLeod, grub hoes, adze hoes, Pulaski) please bring them. We’ll have more 2nd generation Land Bank hats to keep the sun out of your eyes too!

RSVP to Tanja ([email protected]) or Doug ([email protected]) or call (360) 378-4402 for more information.

Here’s a note of thanks from St. David’s Church…

St. David’s Church wishes to express its gratitude to all those in our island community who made last Saturday’s benefit concert, “A Village Christmas,” such a resounding success. 

Thanks are extended, first, to the singers and instrumentalists who so graciously volunteered their time during a month of rehearsals leading up to this special event!  Thanks, too, to all those who contributed time and effort to make the after-concert reception possible.

Heartfelt thanks also go out to all of you who attended, and so generously responded with cash donations in support of the United Way Severe Weather Shelter program, or with donations of food items for the Friday Harbor Food Bank.  You warmed our hearts with your obvious appreciation of the music, and with your generosity toward these two important community programs. 

The peace and blessings of the season to you!

Richard Lind, Concert Director
Fr. Doug Simonsen, Rector, St. David’s Church

Everyone is welcome to attend an open house at Town Hall on Thursday, December 21, 2017 from 1:00 to 3:30 p.m.

We are honoring Mayor Carrie Lacher for her wonderful years of public service to the Town.

Matthew Wickey is December’s EMT of the Month – Contributed photo

Congratulations to Matthew Wickey the December EMT of the month! Matthew is the newest member of San Juan EMS having just passed his National EMT testing.

Along with his interest in medicine, Matt has worked as an outdoor educator and conservation biologist for the past 20 years in a multitude of programs and projects centered around conservation biology, adventure & environmental education, advocacy of traditional indigenous knowledge systems and community building.

Matt has an academic background in Outdoor Education (BS) and is currently wrapping up an MS in Conservation Biology/Sustainability Education.

Matt is dedicated to community building and bringing youth, families, and individuals to a greater awareness of the natural world and the connections that exist and that need to be healed to sustain our future as a global community. Matt finds his passions and is accomplished in ocean sports, sailing, snowboarding, mountaineering, backcountry medicine, and has interests and background in organic farming, natural/ herbal medicine, Tai Chi/Qi Gong, and primitive living skills.

Feast of the Seven Fishes
On Christmas Eve, the restaurant at Friday Harbor House is hosting a very special dining event. The Feast of the Seven Fishes will begin at 5pm and feature a unique and utterly delectable 7-course tasting menu created especially for the occasion by Chef Jason Aldous. The cost is $99 per person, including tax and service charge. Wine pairings can be added for an additional $35 per person. Space is limited, and reservations required. Call 360.378.8455 to make your reservation today.

New Year’s Eve Surprise and Delight Dinner
Join us at Friday Harbor House for dinner and a toast this New Year’s Eve. First, Chef Jason Aldous will surprise and delight us with the amazing 5-course menu he’s created as a delicious end to 2017, then we’ll raise our glasses of bubbly to 2018. The cost is $99 per person, including tax and gratuity, plus an additional $35 for wine pairing. Seating is limited, and reservations are required. Call 360.378.8455 to make your reservation today.

Charlie Girl is this week’s Pet of the Week – Contributed photo

Look. I told you, I’m not going to the office Christmas party this year. I think everyone remembers what happened last year. Sure, it was all fun and games until someone spiked the water bowl and the last thing I remember was waking up with eggnog on my breath and tinsel in my fur.

No siree. This year I’ll be at the animal shelter, working on my list for Santa. I’ve been mostly good, so I’m hoping he’ll take me off the “naughty” list this year….

Yours Truly,
Charlie Girl

Animal Protection Society of Friday Harbor
111 Shelter Road
(360) 378-2158

OPALCO Bills Go Up in January – average of $7

When OPALCO members open their bills in January, they will be about $7 higher. Most of the increase is driven by the 2017 installation of “George” (our new $15M submarine cable named after George Goff), inflation and BPA rate increases.

This change represents a 5% increase in rates and will be applied equally between the facility charge and the energy usage portion of member bills, for a total of around $7 more per month (based on the average residential monthly household usage).

“The board continues to study the OPALCO rate structure to deliver its services at a reasonable cost to its members,” says board president Vince Daciunias. “And, we went through a rate review process in 2017, with Co-op member participation, to make sure we are as lean on expenses as we can be without compromising reliability and safety.” Continue Reading

Volunteer Dani McKay Puts Final Touches on Meals on Wheels – Photo Peggy Sue McRae

Island Senior is a regular column written for the Update by Peggy Sue McRae…

One of the most popular programs for Island Seniors, Meals on Wheels and More, brings an average of 70 seniors to the Mullis Center for a tasty hot lunch and enjoyable social time. Lunches are served on Mondays and Thursdays at 11:45. It’s an inexpensive nutritious meal, $5 suggested donation for seniors, $7 for everyone else (all are welcome). It comes with a choice of beverages, salad, and desert. Lunch menus are posted on the Mullis Community Senior Center Facebook Page.

From the Salad Bar – Photo Peggy Sue McRae

The Center’s manager, Debbie Haagensen tells us about Nancy who has been enjoying lunch at the Mullis Center for over 15 years and appreciates that someone else does the chopping so she doesn’t have to. Says Nancy, “The salad bar encourages me to eat more vegetables than I would prepare on my own.” I have to agree with her on that point!

The meals program includes Meals on Wheels, each lunch day delivering 10 to 15 meals to homebound Islanders in need of a prepared meal. Donations are requested to help cover the costs but no one is turned down for lack of funds.

Federal funding covers less than 30% of the cost of senior meals. Lunch goers provide another 43% in donations. After San Juan County, the United Way of San Juan County, and the Center’s March for Meals fundraising event, the program is still running a projected deficit of $5,000 on San Juan Island this year. If you are thinking about making an end of the year contribution to a good cause, please consider donating to this vital service. Any funds over $5,000 raised will help fund next year’s meals program.

Donations can be made via cash, check, or credit card at the Mullis Center, 589 Nash Street, or you can mail a check to P.O. Box 951, Friday Harbor, WA 98250. Please make your check out to “Mullis Senior Center” and note on the memo line that the donation is for “Senior Meals” or “Meals on Wheels”. Thank you for supporting this important program!

Our December Art for Fun pARTy is coming up December 21st from 5:45 to 8:00 pm at the San Juan Islands Museum of Art!

To celebrate the season, our painting is “Noel”, a rendition of the scene along the waterfront in Friday Harbor.

A fun night for family, friends and guests!

To register, visit www.sjima.org. Contact email is [email protected]. Cost is $35.

Cynthia from SJI Prevention Coalition sends this request…

Please take a moment (7 – 10 minutes) to complete the 2017 CPWI Community Survey. The December 30 deadline is approaching!  If you have completed the survey, Thank you! If you have circulated the survey, please do so again with a thank you and the ask…

To date, 176 surveys have been completed, and our goal is 325, which is what we achieved in our benchmark year in 2014! 

71% of the respondents have been female, and our hope is to have a sample that reflects our island’s demographics.  Male participation is highly encouraged!

Please circulate with a personal note of invitation and explanation to those adults within your circle of influence.  Our goal is at least 325 surveys that represent the demographics of our adult population.  Please encourage males to respond, also, as this is the demographic we do not match (usually 70+% female, and less than 30% males).  Encourage both parents to respond!

Below are the English and Spanish links.  If you need another language, please let me know, and I will see if DBHR has it in that format.  If you have people that need to complete the survey via paper and pencil please let Cindy Gutierrez, Corresponding Secretary know and she will email you the file that you can print and copy, and then you need to get the surveys back to her.

ONLINE SURVEY ENGLISH
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SASAON2017

ONLINE SURVEY SPANISH
https://es.surveymonkey.com/r/SASASP2017

Continue Reading