Celine Kuru – Petra Ditsche photo

On May 20, 2016, Stillpoint School student Celine Kuru received a certificate at the State Capitol in recognition of her selection as an Honorable Mention letter writer in the Letters About Literature contest!

Celine had previously been chosen as a State Semifinalist for the letter she wrote to author Kate Klimo. In the final round of judging in Washington state, Celine’s letter was selected by the L.A.L. judges as one of eight Honorable Mention letter writers.

As a 4th grader, Celine’s letter was judged against 1,575 letters submitted by 4th, 5th, and 6th grade students throughout Washington State.

The awards ceremony was held in the Columbia Room in the State Capitol. Congratulations, Celine!

Contributed Photo

Spring Street International School shares a sneak peek to their play “Tumbleweed People in No Mans Land…”

Come and hear us wish Woody Guthrie a happy 101 years

Says Lucy Ramirez, played by Stormy Hildreth:
“I was raised up by my grandpa and he knew how to laugh his way through anything at all. He had music coming straight out his soul. His fingers could coax any tune in the world out of a guitar and his voice was god-given. The birds came to him when he sang. He was a good man and this here is the second thing he loved, right after me.”

More photos below – Continue Reading

The Primary Intervention Program (PIP), also known as the Special Pal Program at Friday Harbor Elementary School, is looking for Volunteers for the 2016-2017 school year.  The PIP program works with students K-3rd grade.  Volunteers work with one or two students through the school year in the “Special Pal” room for 40 minutes once a week. This room is set up so that the child and his or her Special Pal can be involved in various activities including drawing, painting, play, sand table, games, puppetry, etc. This program helps support social and emotional growth of our students which helps them be more ready to learn in their classrooms.

Volunteers are carefully interviewed and selected on the basis of personal maturity, experience, and his or her ability to relate to children.  They are trained and placed under the supervision of the PIP Coordinator and receive continual training throughout the year on non-directive play therapy, sand play therapy, and art therapy.

Commitment: 

• Sept – June
• Minimum of 1-2 hrs per week (which included time with a child, cleaning room, taking notes and a separate meeting/training time).
• Background check and finger printing required.

If you have an interest, please email teresatilton [@] sjisd.wednet.edu or call 370-7344 for more information and an application.

May 22 volunteer crew – Robin Donnelly photo

No Sharp-tailed snakes were spotted at the last Oak Team work party, but we did see some new faces, and a great and informative day was had by all thanks to volunteer leader Thom Pence. Sunshine is predicted for Sunday – imagine the photo opportunities!

• When? Sunday, June 5 10:00am to 2:00pm
  RSVP required (e-mail tanjaw [@] sjclandbank.org ).
• Where?Base of Cady Mountain Preserve – turn on to Cady Mountain Road off of West Valley Road. We’ll meet at the triangle junction about 100 yards from West Valley.
• What? Invasives removal – Cleaning out oak seedling cages.
  Tree Girdling
• Bring/Wear? Favorite weeding tool and/or hand pruners or hand saw.
  Lunch and water
  Weather appropriate clothing

Invertebrates, or animals without a spine, are the masters of regeneration. Many animals are able to regrow missing or damaged body parts and some can even regrow an entirely new animal from just a small segment of tissue.

If you cut sponges, planarian worms, and hydra into pieces, they will regrow complete and normal animals from most, if not all, of the pieces.

Chop certain kinds of sea stars or hemichordates in two and both halves will grow into complete animals. Nearly all annelid worms can regenerate tail segments and some can even regenerate their head.

Read more at FHL Tide Bites…

The Sunset Suite at Roche Harbor’s Hotel de Haro, circa 1900 – SJ Museum photo

Here’s this month’s history column from the San Juan Historical Society…

This month’s peek into the past shows us a relatively rare interior photograph from about 1900. This scene shows two people relaxing in what is now the Sunset Suite of the Hotel de Haro at Roche Harbor, which is celebrating its 130th birthday this year. We wish we had a photo taken inside the hotel that first year of 1886, but we don’t think there is one.

Roche Harbor has more recently expanded its dedication to the preservation of island history to include generous financial support and donation of lime works artifacts to the San Juan Historical Society’s new “museum within a museum,” the Museum of History and Industry (MHI).

Come visit the MHI, a work in progress (and much progress has been made!), on the grounds of the San Juan Historical Museum.

Click to enlarge

Rob Simpson of Retro Rocket shares this invitation with you…

Upcoming Event: Christianity & Climate Change – Pope Francis and the Call for Climate Action

Islands Climate Resilience is pleased to host Jessie Dye of Earth Ministry and Washington Interfaith Power & Light to speak on the topic of creation care and climate change, Tuesday, June 7, 7 p.m., San Juan Island Grange, Friday Harbor. Her talk will include reflections on the Pope’s recent encyclical on the environment, Laudato Si, as well as the “Green Rule” of many faith traditions.

Islands Climate Resilience focuses on the health and resiliency of island communities and ecosystems facing the threats of climate change. Earth Ministry is the leading faith organization defending the “Thin Green Line” of environmental defense that is protecting Washington’s deep water ports against fossil fuel export projects. Religious communities play an important part in the life of San Juan Islands, and around the state faith leaders are becoming key advocates for climate justice.

Join in for an evening of discussion to put your thoughts into the mix of ideas on ways religious traditions can enrich the work of climate resiliency in the Islands! Please invite others in your church or neighborhood who may want to participate in this free community event.

Town seeks proposals for allocation of Lodging Tax grant funds to promote 2017 tourism

The Town of Friday Harbor’s Lodging Tax Advisory Committee (LTAC) is accepting applications for grants to fund tourism promotion. The promotions must be for events and activities specifically intended to promote tourism within the Town in 2017.   Preference will be given to those operations and activities that encourage tourists to visit during the spring and fall shoulder seasons. Summer activities are acceptable; however applicants are advised to give careful and strategic thought to the scheduling of their events to avoid what are recognized as high traffic weekends.

The grants are awarded annually and are funded with the State’s Hotel Motel Tax collected on all lodging stays of less than 30 days in length within the Town. Funds must be used to promote tourism within the Town of Friday Harbor. Grant proposals are reviewed by the LTAC which is made up of council members, lodging owners, and community members appointed by the Mayor. The LTAC then provides recommendations to the Town Council on how to allocate the grant funds.

Interested parties should review the Request for Proposal (RFP) and complete the LTAC Grant Application available at Town Hall, 60 Second Street, Friday Harbor, WA, and at the Town web site: www.fridayharbor.org. Applications must be submitted to Town Hall by 4:30 pm Monday, August 29, 2016.

Wolf Hollow photo

Wolf Hollow shares this update on that bald eagle…

A Bald Eagle that was found at False Bay with a leg-hold trap attached to its foot is recovering at Wolf Hollow.

The eagle, which was spotted by several people who live in the False Bay area, was having trouble taking off because a heavy metal trap was clamped on one foot, and it was dragging a length of chain behind it. The first attempt to capture the eagle was unsuccessful because it was still able to fly, but the following day, Wolf Hollow staff were able to catch her.

Wolf Hollow photo

The eagle must have been struggling with the trap for several days because she was thin and weak and her tail feathers were dirty and broken. The trap was immediately removed, but the jaws of the trap had smashed the bone in the middle toe of her left foot and the surrounding tissue was dead.

After a couple of days of treatment at Wolf Hollow, the eagle was strong enough for surgery, and veterinarian Dr Susan Besel operated to remove the damaged section of toe. The rest of her foot looked healthy, but it was difficult to assess how much damage had been done to muscles and tendons by dragging the heavy trap around. Continue Reading

Here’s the latest news from the Whale Museum…

Location of the new mural – Contributed photo

The Whale Museum is open daily 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. even though there is a lot of construction & painting going on outside! Thanks to Stegman Painting and Select Structural LLC, work has begun on our historic building. First used as an Odd Fellows Hall, the building was constructed in 1892. It is an original wood-framed structure, one of the few remaining in our area! It was last painted in 1992, so it is definitely due for a new coat.

Tuesday is the big day! Artist Lindsay Carron arrives on-island to begin the mural painting which will depict three orcas chasing salmon following forage fish through a bull kelp forest. All who see it will know that we not only care for our building, but are stewards of our marine environment.

Thanks to the following who have supported the project with cash and in-kind contributions: The Norcliffe Foundation, Friday Harbor Grand B & B, Town of Friday Harbor, Friday Harbor House, Harbor Rental, Ace Hardware, and many individuals.

We are about half-way to our fund raising goal of $36,000 which is for the entire project. If you would like to make a donation and add your name to the list of contributors, please click here.

Click to enlarge

Here’s a note from Helen at Island Stage Left regarding their upcoming production of Romeo and Juliet…

Star-crossed lovers and civil brawls will grace the Island Stage Left stages on this, its eighteenth year of “Shakespeare Under the Stars”.

The classic tale of Romeo and Juliet is a timeless tale of young love, hot blood and destiny.

As we continue the professional quality for which Island Stage Left is known, we will celebrate some of Shakespeare’s most breathtaking and unforgettable characters.

Grand Prize winner Marilyn Corrie with Taffy and Shelter Manager, Jan Murphy – Contributed Photo

While Saturday’s weather wasn’t ideal for walking dogs, several supporters of the animal shelter showed up to participate in the Third Annual Dodie Gann Dog Walk at the site of the future animal shelter on Cattle Point Road.
Three grand prizes were awarded to those who raised the most money in sponsorships.

Marilyn Corrie was the grand prize winner; bringing in $1455 in pledges. Marilyn very generously donated her prize, a Cannondale Trail 24 Children’s Bicycle back to the animal shelter to be used in future fundraising efforts.

Second place prize, a Go-Pro Hero camera was awarded to John Byron who gathered over $300 in sponsorships.

Third place prize went to Isla Oldwyn, pictured here with her prize, a Nutri Bullet Pro blender. Isla raised over $200 for The Animal Protection Society.

The Animal Protection Society would like to thank everyone who participated and volunteered to make to make the event a success.

John Byron & Hoover on the left; Isla Oldwyn on the right – Contributed Photos

Kramer Baisch as Lucky Lupone, and Wesley Rich as Tom Edgar Hobbs – Contributed Photos

Spring Street International School shares this story about their upcoming play Tumbleweed People in No Mans Land…

Tom Edgar Hobbs:
“My father sold bibles door to door. They were so beautiful, with their gold edges and whisper-thin paper like angel wings. But I could see poor folks buying them because they thought we must’ve done something to deserve the big dust. And I couldn’t help but say, ‘God is just not that kind of mean.’ I couldn’t help but say, ‘God loves us, as is.’

So go ahead, Senator. Lock me up for riding without a ticket. Chain me to another kid with a pickaxe. I’ll be out before the year’s over, and I’ll be standing in a boxcar door at the end of a train crossing the Ohio River. Know what I’ll see? Hundreds of kids just like me, clinging to the tops of the cars. And we’ll grow up, Sir, and we’ll be good people. We already know how to work. You cannot make me hate my life and this world.”

Other photos from the event… Continue Reading

Note: Start time has been corrected to 7:30 on this series –

Larry Soll shares this with us…

Well fellow islanders,

The curtain is going up for the Tuesday Night Film Series at San Juan Community Theatre. Beginning June 21st and for ten Tuesdays, we will screen a special movie beginning at 7:30 pm in the Whittier.  The films have been selected to be both enjoyable and thought provoking.  There is no particular theme.  All are from independent filmmakers and none have been shown on the island.  Many have received awards from international festivals and at least one was awarded an Oscar.

Here is the schedule: Continue Reading

Patches is this week’s Pet of the Week – Contributed Photo

My name is Patches, and I’m here to speak on behalf of fluffy cats everywhere.

There is a common misconception that fluffy cats, like myself, are fat. Or Tubby, obese, husky, rotund, beefy, stout, roly-poly, portly, plump, corpulent, yes – and even jelly-bellied. I’ve heard them all. What people fail to recognize is that fluffy cats like me are merely endowed with more gorgeous, silky fur than those less-fortunate, sub-standard cats who are born with short, or even medium fur.

Now that I have explained that to you, I’m hoping you’ll find time to come meet me at the animal shelter. I’m a gorgeous Maine Coon, weighing in at over 17 pounds. Naturally, most of that is fur.

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