Friday Harbor, WA – The San Juan Island Chamber of Commerce is proud to announce the Grand Marshal and Honored Citizens for the 2017 Independence Day Parade in Friday Harbor. In keeping with the theme “America…All That We Share”, the Grand Marshal will be Carolyn Haugen, a writer, educator, art enthusiast, community activist and volunteer. The 2017 Citizens of Honor will be Dr. John Geyman and Emily Reed Geyman.

Grand Marshal Carolyn Haugen holds an Ed.D. from the University of Southern California and after moving to San Juan Island was the Superintendent / Principal of the Shaw Island School District and the Principal at Friday Harbor Elementary. Ms. Haugen’s history of volunteerism is legendary in the San Juans having served as the President and as Board Member for the San Juan Community Theatre; as a member of CATS, the Theatre’s fundraising organization; as President and as Board Member for the Animal Protection Society of Friday Harbor, as Board Secretary and Treasurer for PADs for Parkinson’s; as Board member and Vice President of the San Juan Preservation Trust, as a member of the Mt. Grant Steering Committee; and in her spare time she served as a Trustee for the San Juan Island Yacht Club, the Friday Harbor Power Squadron and the San Juan Nature Institute. This list merely scratches the surface of Ms. Haugen’s community contributions. Carolyn has “Shared” so much of her time and talent with San Juan County and was the perfect choice to be the Parade’s 2017 Grand Marshal! Continue Reading

A fundraising effort by the Town of Friday Harbor and its customers resulted in a $2550 donation to Hospice of San Juan. Town utility customers were encouraged to support this local charity through the Town’s Harbor Life Ring program which collects charitable donations included with customer’s utility payments. Hospice of San Juan received all donations made on the April bills, plus an additional $1000 in matching funds from the Town.

“The Town is proud of the generosity of our citizens and their willingness to join us in supporting this critically important local charity,” said Town Administrator Duncan Wilson, adding, “Hospice of San Juan allows those in need of hospice care and their families to stay on-island to be surrounded by their island neighbors.”

Hospice of San Juan is one of the only all-volunteer, non-profit hospice organizations in the country. For over 30 years it has provided the island with compassionate and professional respite, support, therapy, transportation, and use of medical equipment—all at no cost to the patient or family. They collaborate with mainland-based Hospice of the NW, but are able to provide more immediate and continuous local assistance.

Harbor Life Ring is an on-going program that invites Town utility customers to assist those in need of urgent assistance with their utility expenses by contributing extra funds with their monthly bill payment. Donations to Harbor Life Ring and Hospice of San Juan are tax deductible.

SJ County Auditor Milene Henley writes to let you know about this new federal change for boats…

Hello members of the press!
Attached is some important information for the boaters in your audiences.  The Federal Government is requiring the Hull Identification Numbers (HIN’s) – similar to VIN’s for vehicles – be changed, for some vessels.
Please help me to get this information out to the public by publishing the attached press release.
As always, let me know if you have any questions.
Milene

New Hull Identification Number (HIN) Requirements

With the weather finally warming up, boaters are polishing their rails, shaking out their sheets, checking their zincs, and generally getting ready to hit the water. A part of that spring ritual is renewing vehicle registrations. All vehicle registrations in Washington expire on June 30, and no one wants to be caught without a current decal on the 4th of July.

There’s a new wrinkle in that annual ritual, though. The Coast Guard is beginning to enforce new federal standards for hull identification numbers (HINs). About 19,000 Washington boaters have been sent letters advising them that their HIN will change. The U.S. Coast Guard is making these changes to: Continue Reading

Yellow Island in bloom – Tim Dustrude photo

According to a Warren Miller ski film we watched several years ago, it is quite possible when in the Tahoe area to find many businesses closed with signs hanging on their doors saying “Powder Rule” when mother nature dumps beautiful, fluffy powder snow at the local ski resort.

Well, it wasn’t beautiful fluffy powder here in the San Juans today (Thursday), but rather beautiful sun and not much wind, so Shannon and I looked at each other and said “powder rule!” and took the day off to paddle to Yellow Island to see if the wild flowers were in bloom. It’s easy to find – just head out of Friday Harbor and take a left in San Juan Channel – it took us just under 2 hours to get there.

And it seems we were in luck – the caretaker there said blooms are at their peak this week. So here are some photos for you to browse in case you can’t get there to see them for yourself. Continue Reading

Photo by Jan Bollwinkel-Smith

All that jazz …and more! San Juan Community Theatre’s Spring Musical, CHICAGO, opens THIS Friday, May 5 at 7:30 p.m. in the Whittier Theatre.

The Tony Award-winning musical takes us back to the “musical vaudeville” days of 1927 Chicago. Think prohibition, speakeasies, lawlessness, flappers and jazz! Based on the book and play by a crime reporter for the Chicago Tribune, the musical explores the themes of celebrity, scandal and corruption, centering on two alleged murderesses up for trial: Velma (a vaudevillian, played by Lisa Moretti) and Roxie Hart (a housewife, played by Amanda Smith).

Director Margaret Hall, along with musical director Jim Collado and choreographer Lisa Duke, has been leading a cast, crew and orchestra of almost 100 islanders to bring this to Friday Harbor for the first time!

The play continues Saturday at 7:30 pm and Sunday at 2:00 pm, followed by performances on May 11-14 and May 18-20.

For more details, tickets and to see a list of your Island friends in the cast, visit www.sjctheatre.org.

Book Launch of Boyd C. Pratt’s Lime: Quarrying and Limemaking in the San Juan Islands
Friday, May 12th at 7pm at the San Juan Island Grange Hall

Have you ever wondered how lime is made from limestone? Or gazed in wonder at the lime kilns scattered across our islands? Why, for that matter, is our State Park called Lime Kiln? Local architectural historian Boyd C. Pratt’s new book Lime: Quarrying and Limemaking in the San Juan Islands tells all. Boyd will review the history and technology of limemaking in the San Juan Islands. Refreshments! Free! (Except, of course, for the book, which is $9.95, cash or check only, please.)

Here are the blurbs:
How the carcasses of sea creatures became the building blocks of modern civilization.

Formed through eons of geologic time and sculpted by glaciers, the limestone deposits along the islands’ shore provided the essential ingredient for the block and mortar that built and rebuilt the West Coast’s major cities. Read all about the islands’ economic booms and busts, dramatic changes to the landscape, bloody murder, contentious lawsuits, and deadly shipwrecks.

For weavers, dog-lovers and anyone interested in the Coast Salish peoples…

88-15529, Blanket, Salish, catalog #E1891A, N. W. Coast, Salish Indian Culture, North American Ethnology Collection, woven dyed wool geometric motif, plain view

Join ecologist and historian Russel Barsh and botanist and spinner Madrona Murphy for a slideshow presentation and weaving demonstration celebrating the Coast Salish “wooly dog” and the first peoples of the islands.

Sunday, May 7th, 5:30pm at Brickworks

Sponsored by Kwiaht. For more information contact Sandy Strehlou, (360) 622-2037 or [email protected].

“Dogs were named, highly valued and often buried wrapped in a blanket. Dog remains and dog burials are not uncommon in Coast Salish archaeology. A dog buried with a young woman was unearthed on Lopez Island by a University of Washington field school in 1968. DNA extracted from archaeological dog remains provides physical evidence for Coast Salish villages maintaining locally distinct dog breeds.”
~ Coast Salish Woolly Dogs [Russel Barsh, HistoryLink.org Essay 11243]

Contributed photos

Biochar, a charcoal made from woody biomass that stores carbon and improves soil, is an emerging option for forest owners to generate income and remove excess wood from densely stocked forests. Biochar can increase agricultural productivity, improve soil fertility, and help mitigate climate change. This workshop will take you through the steps to turn low-value branches, twigs, and other woody biomass into valuable biochar. We’ll also cover potential business strategies that are working for San Juan county biochar producers as well as findings in the latest biochar research. This workshop is being offered by Northwest Natural Resource Group and San Juan Islands Conservation District.

This workshop is the second in a three-part series on woody biomass in the San Juans. You may also be interested in our June 24th workshop, Energy Opportunities for San Juans Woody Biomass.

Topics include:

• How can biochar be manufactured?
• What is biochar’s value and function?
• What are good ways to market and sell biochar?
• What is the biochar market like?
• What is the latest news on biochar?

Speakers:

• Carson Sprenger | Rainshadow Consulting
• Kai Hoffman-Krull | Forage Media
• Steve Bensel | Nootka Rose Farm
• Kirk Hanson | Northwest Natural Resource Group

All woodland owners are encouraged to attend! For more information, go to: www.nnrg.org/sanjuans

Funding and support for this workshop is provided by:
Western Extension Risk Management Education Center, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, United States Department of Agriculture

San Juan Islands Conservation District

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is seeking public nominations for four open positions on the San Juan Islands National Monument Advisory Committee (MAC). The nomination period is open until May 26, 2017.

The BLM’s Resource Advisory Councils (RACs), of which the MAC is one, help the Bureau carry out its multiple-use mission and stewardship of 245 million acres of public lands. The Bureau, which manages more land than any other Federal agency, has 36 RACs across the West, where most BLM-managed land is located. Each RAC consists of 10 to 15 members with an interest or expertise in energy and mineral development, ranching, outdoor recreation, conservation, state and local government, tribal and cultural resources, and academia. The diverse membership of each RAC helps ensure BLM land managers receive the varying perspectives they need to achieve their mission of managing the public lands for multiple uses.

“The BLM Advisory Councils are an important forum for the community conversation that is a key component of public land management,” said Jamie Connell, BLM Oregon-Washington State Director. “By ensuring that MAC representation reflects a variety of perspectives, MAC members provide a valuable service to the Bureau by delving into issues and proposing solutions on a wide variety of land and resource uses issues.”
Continue Reading

Business License Renewal
Avoid a Citation!

The Town of Friday Harbor wants to thank all businesses that were prompt in renewing their business licenses for year 2017/2018.

We are now a month into the new business license year and the Town is auditing its records to determine who is no longer doing business in Town or may be operating without a license.

Town is currently inactivating all accounts that were not renewed for the 2017/2018 license year. This week, the Town Code Enforcement Officer will be issuing citations to those businesses who are known to be conducting business without a license. This is a Class IV civil infraction.

Unlicensed businesses are urged to avoid this unpleasant action by renewing their license or contacting the Town to make arrangements.

If you have questions or concerns regarding your business license, please contact the Town Clerk at 378-2810. For more information regarding the business licensing program, see Friday Harbor Municipal Code Chapter 5.04.

Western Bluebird – Contributed photo

Next Wednesday, May 10th at 7 pm at the Library, noted bird expert Barbara Jensen of San Juan Islands Audubon will give an introduction to basic birdwatching: how, what, when, and where to look at birds on San Juan Island!

And also, just added  – Barbara invites you to an event this weekend. Here she is with more..

The weather is finally looking okay and I am in the mood to do a field trip. So, join us at The Whale Museum in Friday Harbor this Saturday at 8:30 to carpool. You should be able to walk about ½ mile. If you are coming from another island let me know so we can try to have enough vehicles to carpool. If you live on San Juan I hope you will offer to drive so we can accommodate our neighbors.

Bring a lunch. We should be done by early afternoon so off-islanders can catch the boat. Let’s use this time to schedule some other trips including those mid-week and on other islands.

Let me know if you have other questions.

Barbara Jensen, President
[email protected]

Kelli Ashcraft’s graveside service will be this coming Sunday at Valley Cemetery at 11:00 am with a celebration of her life following at Brickworks at 12:30 pm.

Kelli died from accidental carbon monoxide poisoning. In her memory, Kelli’s family is running a campaign to make the island a safer place for all residents –  They are raising money with a GoFundMe account to provide CO detectors for people on the island who can’t afford to buy one themselves. 

Check out this site and donate what you can…

Kim Erickson, Children’s Festival Committee member, helping kids explore – Contributed photo

Island Rec is pleased to announce that the 27th Annual Children’s Festival is this Saturday May 6, 2017!

Dozens of community organizations will be providing all kinds of hands-on activities:

• Create your own passport with Rotary
• Paper airplanes with Island Air Ambulance
• African necklaces with St. David’s
• and many more.

Island Rec is providing a bouncy house and slide this year. Come join us for some free family fun at the Fair Building – Around the World! Saturday, May 6th, 10am-2pm.

For more information, please call 378-4953 or visit www.islandrec.org

Roche Harbor Maypole, circa 1910 – SJ Historical Society photo

SJI Historical Museum shares their History Column for May…

This month’s photograph from the San Juan Historical Museum archives features little girls in fancy white frocks, dancing around a circa 1910 maypole at Roche Harbor. You may have seen this scene before. It’s in the Images of America: San Juan Island book by Mike and Julia Vouri. You can purchase signed copies of this book and its companion book on Friday Harbor when the Vouris present “A Photographic History of San Juan Island” on May 17, 7:00 p.m., at the San Juan Island Library. The event is free and the book signing is a fundraiser for the San Juan Historical Society & Museum.

Another free event at the Library is on May 19 at 7:00 p.m. when Robin Jacobson presents “From Odd Fellows to Orcas” and shares an illustrated timeline of Friday Harbor community news intertwined with the history of the Odd Fellows Hall, now home to The Whale Museum. Come hear some of the more interesting stories, historical and supernatural, originating from this iconic building towering high on the bluff.

On May 27 it’s another Know Your Island Walk, this time with a visit to the St. Francis and Valley Cemeteries, led by Boyd Pratt and Robin Jacobson. Join the walkers, starting from Skagit Valley College at 1:00 p.m. or meet at the cemeteries at 1:30 p.m. for the biographical tour of the cemeteries, featuring some of the more well-known island pioneers.

For these History Lives Here events and others in May, see the special section of the San Juan Islands Visitors Bureau website at www.visitsanjuans.com/history.

Nicholas Corrin teaches Tai Chi – Contributed photo

Did you know that Tai Chi is not just a slow exercise, it is a powerful full-body workout? Wonderful for all ages, Tai Chi will challenge anyone of any age to develop balance, speed, reflexes, vision and strength. Taught the authentic way, no frills, no fannying around. This Tai Chi class is the real deal for strong warriors who choose to wear gentle clothing. Come join us on Tuesday mornings at the Brickworks. It is a community class, donation only!

Tai Chi
Tuesdays 8:00 – 9:00am
Location: Brickworks, 150 Nichols Street, FH

Tai Chi is an ancient healing/martial art that works by harnessing a person’s life force, spiritual focus and mental stamina. It combines graceful movements with internal energy (Chi/Qi) cultivation, conscious breathwork, and dynamic, spiraliform stretching techniques. The foundation of Tai Chi training is integration of mind, Chi/Qi, and body, gradually increasing flow of internal secretions and inner vitality. When practiced regularly, Tai Chi promotes rejuvenation even at the cellular level. It slows down the aging process and counteracts decline of the physical body and the brain. Continue Reading

Spring on board with a one day course and get your Boater Education Card!

Course information: “Adventures in Boating”

• 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM, 13 May (Saturday)
• Mullis Fire Station
  (1011 Mullis Street, Friday Harbor, WA)
• NO COST for course!!

Instructors from San Juan County Sheriff’s Office and USCG Auxiliary.

Bring a sack lunch and your interest in boating!

Reserve NOW by contacting David Tribolet at 376-3994 or [email protected].