Get your boater education card. It’s required to operate any boat with an engine of 15 hp or more.

Mark your calendar now for the FREE boating course coming up beginning in September. The Friday Harbor Power Squadron will be offering instruction for this class for Free – the only cost is for  the course materials.

What will you need?
Comprehensive Boating Information Manual & 2 companion CD’s with Coastal Navigator Electronic Charting

What’s the cost?
$45.00. Couples can share. 50% Student Discount
Instruction is FREE by the Friday Harbor Power Squadron

When is it?
Tuesday evenings starting on Sept. 22nd from 7:00 – 9:00 PM at Skagit Valley College San Juan Campus:

• Sept. 22
• Sept 29
• Oct. 6
• Oct. 13
• Oct. 20
• Oct. 27

This course is suitable for all types of boating, inland and coastal. It’s fun for the whole family and you will:

• Gain confidence
• Make friends
• Build skills
• Save money

This may entitle you to marine insurance discounts.

To register, call 378-3288 or email:
ein [@] rockisland [.] com

www.fridayharborpowersquadron.com

We rode the ferry Samish to the mainland on Saturday during the windstorm and had quite a ride. Here’s a quick bit of video I shot in Rosario Strait…

(also – see the comments below for an Update reader’s video from the car deck on another ferry heading the other direction).

Boats moored at the Port of Friday Harbor Marina – Update file photo

Celina Wright of the Friday Harbor Sailing Club shares this invitation with you…

Join the Friday Harbor Sailing Club in 2015!

Would you like to join a fun and friendly boating social and activities club here in Friday Harbor? The Friday Harbor Sailing Club is a mixed group of both sail and powerboat enthusiasts that organizes, promotes and encourages amateur sailing, sailboat racing and powerboat activities. All boating enthusiasts are welcome.

Consider coming to the next meeting and get a feel for the club and its members. The monthly potluck dinner meetings are held on every second Tuesday of the month and begin at 5:45 pm at the Grange Hall – 152 1st St N, Friday Harbor. Please call Don at (360) 378-4590 if you would like to attend as a guest and to get details.

At this month’s meeting on September 8th, the speaker is Billie Swalla, Director of the University of Washington Friday Harbor Laboratories.

If you like boating and having fun, you will be glad you looked up Friday Harbor Sailing Club www.FridayHarborSailing.com

Salish Sea Ballet invites dancers of all ages, and their families, to attend our Back To Ballet Event at 689 Airport Center Road, Suite F in Friday Harbor. The event takes place on Saturday, August 29th from 10:00am-2:30pm. Stop by to register for fall classes and enjoy refreshments or take a free trial class while you’re there! Meet the studio owner and ballet teacher Jeanne Marie Peihl, and find out what makes our classes so popular among island dancers.

• Free trial classes (no experience necessary!) will be offered at the following times:
• Pre-Ballet/Ballet Basics (Ages 3-5): 10:30am-11:00am
• Ballet 1 (Ages 6-10): 11:30am-12:00pm
• Ballet 2 & 3 (Ages 7-12): 12:30pm-1:00pm
• Adult Beginning/Intermediate Ballet (Ages 12+): 1:30pm-2:00pm

The Salish Sea Ballet Boutique is stocked with logo T-shirts, leotards, tights, shoes, tutus, and more. Enjoy a 20% discount on your Boutique purchase when you register & pay for September classes at our Back To Ballet Event. Enter your name in the drawing to win free classes or Salish Sea Ballet gear!

About Salish Sea Ballet
Salish Sea Ballet is the pre-professional ballet school of the San Juan Islands. Our studio is located at 689 Airport Center Road, Suite F in Friday Harbor. Our mission is to engage and inspire dancers of all ages while providing high quality technical and artistic instruction in classical and contemporary ballet for ages 3-adult.

Studio Owner and Artistic Director Jeanne Marie Peihl is dedicated to fostering a love of music and movement in dancers of all ages. She has been dancing her entire life and has focused exclusively on classical ballet training for the last 11 years. Jeanne’s true passion is teaching ballet, with a particular specialty in ballet beginners of all ages. She underwent extensive teacher training at a top pre-professional ballet school in southern California, where she learned how to ensure that dancers are using correct technique and incorporating artistry into their movement.

Jeanne moved to San Juan Island in 2013 and is thrilled to bring her years of experience to the ballet students on the island. She is looking forward to building a comprehensive pre-professional ballet program serving the San Juan Islands.

Contact:
Jeanne Marie Peihl, Studio Owner & Artistic Director
dance [@] salishseaballet [.] com
360.298.1720
www.salishseaballet.com

Washington State forest fire – Contributed photo

This note just came in from the San Juan Islands Conservation District…

Dear San Juan Islands Community,

We received a request from the Okanogan Conservation District today for support for firefighters and residents in Eastern Washington that are affected by the wildfires.

As you have probably heard, this is the state’s worst fire season on record. An estimated 732,608 acres have burned, with 13 uncontained fires still burning. The Okanogan Complex fire is the largest wildfire the state has ever seen, nearing 300,000 acres.

If you would like to help firefighters, please drop off any of the following supplies at the San Juan Islands Conservation District, 530 Guard Street, Friday Harbor, by Tuesday morning of next week:

• Leather gloves
• Socks
• Boot laces
• Hygiene supplies

To assist residents that have been impacted by the fire, you can contribute funds to the following organizations:

• Okanogan County Community Action Council has a Paypal link on their website, www.occac.com or you can mail a check to OCCAC, PO Box 1067, Okanogan, WA 98840
• Community Foundation of North Central Washington has a donation button on their website, www.cfncw.org or you can mail a check to CFNCW, 9 S. Wenatchee Ave, Wenatchee, WA 98801

Thank you.

Terry Ogle – Contributed photo

Event organizers are very happy to say, Terry Ogle’s Benefit event is sold out!!

This shows how a community comes together to help out one of their own. There are no more tickets left for Terry’s benefit on Saturday.

However – Your kind gift$ can be given at Islanders Bank or Wells Fargo bank, or online at the benefit website at www.benefit4terryogle.com.

Thank you Friday Harbor!!!

Here’s a message from the new SJISD Superintendent…

Dr. Danna Diaz – Contributed photo

As the new superintendent of the San Juan Island School District, I am excited about Thursday, September 3. It is the first day of school!

There is nothing like a fresh beginning – and the start of each school year gives us the opportunity to recommit to those things which brought us into this profession in the first place. Whether we are in the classroom or leading a bunch of classrooms, driving the bus, providing maintenance to our buildings, serving as a crossing guard, food service professional, budget manager, office personnel, or a paraprofessional in the classroom… and especially as a parent…we are teachers. Teachers who make a difference in the lives of students.

We are teachers who recommit to the joy of our profession. Kids are funny – they make us laugh (even when we shouldn’t). They are weird. They are afraid. They make noises. They come from every imaginable circumstance. Yet, they all seek out our love and respect and approval (one way or another). We are teachers. We smile. We laugh. We take breaks to tell stories and celebrate the mystery called learning.

We are teachers who recommit to slowing down yet keeping an engaging pace, to checking in more often, and to going deeper with our best resources rather than working too hard to find more stuff. Students respond to the rhythm of our learning organization. They crave community and friends and want to participate but only do so when they trust that it is safe. We celebrate the mistakes and learn from them for isn’t that the very definition of learning after all!

We are teachers who recommit to learning from our students and from each other. Every year we have new puzzles to solve: why is some content just plain hard for students? – How else could I teach this? – How do I give students choices but hold them accountable for the same high standards? We are teachers. We are at our best when we share our best and learn from the best. We are exhausted when we try to go it on our own.

This week marks the beginning a new year. Let the fireworks go off! We are teachers. We make a difference!

Respectfully,
Danna Diaz, PhD

A different vantage point for studying whales – Contributed photo

Using a Small Unmanned Hexacopter to Non-invasively Monitor the Health of Resident Killer Whales.
Presented by John Durban

The Whale Museum is pleased to welcome John Durban as part of the 2015 Summer Lecture Series on Friday, September 4th at 6:30 p.m.

Dr. Durban will give an overview of his research and collaborations using photogrammetry to fill key data gaps that currently constrain the conservation of Northern and Southern Resident killer whales in the US and Canada: specifically measuring whale growth and body condition to assess whether the abundance of their chinook salmon prey is low enough to cause nutritional stress and impair reproduction.

Currently this work involves the use of a small unmanned hexacopter to non-invasively collect images from 100 ft above the whales to assess the health of individuals. John will also discuss his use of this technique to study blue whales, gray whales and humpback whales, but will focus mainly on his current research on Southern Resident killer whales around the San Juan Islands and Northern Resident killer whales in Johnstone Strait. Authorized by permits and airspace clearances in both the US and Canada, this work addresses key elements of conservation plans in both countries that are aimed at maintaining adequate food supplies for these protected populations.

The September 4th lecture is free and open to the public. For more information, call (360) 378-4710 ext. 30 or visit the Whale Museum’s website at www.whalemuseum.org.

Dave McGraw and Mandy Fer – Contributed photo

Upcoming Salish Sea Benefit Concert with Dave McGraw and Mandy Fer on September 17 at Brickworks in Friday Harbor

Join Friends of the San Juans for an evening of music on September 17 with Dave McGraw and Mandy Fer while supporting environmental protection and preservation in the San Juan Islands and Salish Sea. Proceeds will support the many programs of Friends, including their latest initiative to designate the Salish Sea as a Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA).

Dave and Mandy are internationally-acclaimed songwriters who call San Juan Island home. Their latest album, Maritime, was recorded on the island and captures a moment in time and place from this special archipelago.

“The natural beauty and community spirit of the San Juans inspires us to do what we do and we’re thrilled to be teaming up with Friends of the San Juans to help raise awareness of the importance of a healthy Salish Sea! We are all so very fortunate to live here and should never take this place for granted. The islands are our heart and soul,” said Dave McGraw.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. at Brickworks (150 Nichols Street, Friday Harbor) for complimentary drinks, hors d’oeuvres and social time. Music starts at 7:15. Admission is $15.00. Purchase tickets at http://musicforsalishsea.bpt.me/.

More info: www.sanjuans.org and http://daveandmandymusic.com/

“Multiplicity” by Maria Michaelson

Sculpture Sale to Benefit Mount Grant Campaign

San Juan Island artist Maria Michaelson will donate 100% of the proceeds from the sale of her sculpture “Multiplicity” to the Campaign to Save Mount Grant. The artist will consider all offers of $1,500 or more and will sell the work to the person offering the highest purchase price by September 8, 2015.

The sculpture, approximate 30″ high, is high-fired ceramic and therefore suitable for placement in either an interior or exterior setting.

Michaelson has exhibited her work in studios and galleries around San Juan Island and the IMA Sculpture Park; Buzz Gallery and California College of the Arts in Oakland and the Benicia Arts Center (CA); and at Kirkland Art Center. Her work is in several notable private collections.

“As a working artist, I don’t have tremendous capacity to make a large gift to this effort, but I wanted to do something. I grew up in the neighborhood and hiked Lawson Ridge often as a child, so making it available for all to enjoy is important to me. Selling one of my sculptural pieces is one way I can contribute to the campaign,” Michaelson explains.

Michaelson will place “Multiplicity” at the summit of Mount Grant on the next two Sundays (August 31 and September 6) [next Sunday, September 6] so that potential purchasers can view the work first-hand. Alternately, interested parties may contact Michaelson to schedule a studio visit to the see the sculpture.

To make an offer or receive more information about Multiplicity, contact Maria Michaelson at 378-1661 or via email at mkmichaelson [@] gmail [.] com

Here’s a note from Minnie Knych about Trivia at the Legion…

On Tuesday, September 1st, we will begin a new season of monthly team trivia games at Post 163.
All questions are multiple choice.

Stacy Smith will be cooking dinner to be served during the game. Dinner is served starting at 5:30 PM. The trivia game begins at 6:00 PM

Cost is $3.00 per person and proceeds will go to care packages for troops in Korea and the Middle East.

Teams are forming now — Bring your own team or join one when you arrive. Call me if you have questions.

Minnie Knych
Friday Harbor, WA
360 378-7040 (home) 360 378-4662 (work)

Artist Terry Ogle with his work, “Tiger Striped Humpback”, a carving of Quilted Western Maple local to the island – Tim Dustrude photo

UPDATED Friday afternoon, Aug. 28th – This event is now sold out. Way to go Friday Harbor! There are no more tickets left, however you can still help Terry out by contributing to his medical fund at Islanders Bank, or Wells Fargo Bank, or online at his website linked below…

* * * * *

Hello Friday Harbor and friends of Terry Ogle!

This Saturday, Aug 29 is the big Benefit for Terry Ogle at the Fairgrounds. Be sure to arrive early. There are tons of wonderful items in the silent auction which ends at 6:00 pm as dinner is wrapping up. The Live begins just after 6pm.

A few event tickets are still available at Cotton, Cotton, Cotton clothing store, Radio Shack, Spa d Bune and for Roche Harbor go to Darlene Nixon’s art booth.

There will only be a few tickets available at the door. Limited to 500. Must have a ticket to enter. Enjoy the fun and help Terry!

Can’t make it to the event? You can still help out by donating on the website benefit4terryogle.com.

Brad Creesy, Assistant Chief/Training Officer – Sheila Harley photo

Sheila Harley checks in again with this month’s firefighter column…

After watching his next door neighbor’s house burn to the ground just days before their wedding, now Assistant Chief Brad Creesy wished that he had been able to help them. So along with the groom and several other neighbors, he joined Station 5 the Roche Harbor/ Yacht Haven fire station in the spring of 1983. “Our 1955 Mack Truck engine was the best, most reliable engine on the island at that time”, he recalled.

“Back then you only needed to show up at the station with a sincere desire to help the community. You were issued bunker gear and started training with the crew twice a month. Individual firefighters didn’t have pagers or radios; you listened for the siren on top of the station to alert you to a call. Although the training was informal, the firefighters were committed to doing what they could for a neighbor in their time of need.”

It was shortly after joining the department that he began to see substantial changes in the organization: the first full time Chief was hired in 1985; the District purchased five new engines; and the first structured, two-weekend long recruit class took place. While working at Roche Harbor, Brad continued to volunteer as a firefighter with long serving members Howie Rosenfeld, Rick Prescott, and Tad Lean. Continue Reading

Yellow Landscape by the Sea – a Michael Dailey painting

Three artists capture the uniquely muted Pacific Northwest light to create gems for the San Juan Islands Museum of Art (IMA) shows opening August 29.

Michael Dailey’s show is Early Dawn to Late Twilight. Called “one of the best painters the Northwest has ever seen,” Dailey’s fifteen oil paintings include large-scale color fields meditating on the shifting light of the skies. The studies capture the mystical soul of a looming storm, a sunset or a breaking dawn.

The Black Luminous Sea, by Joe Miller

Unlike Earth by San Juan Island artist, Joe Miller is a lyrical body of work that affirms the talent of four decades devoted to painting, living and working in nature. Miller’s boldly rendered watercolors uniquely reflect our local landforms, rocks, sky and rivers. These two shows are on exhibition until November 9, 2015

Immersion by Kathy Venter

Kathy Venter’s unrivaled IMMERSION Series terracotta sculptures connect with universal themes of the human spirit. Her internationally known, full-sized sculptures evoke ancient times and challenge our notion of figurative traditions. Venter’s figures are suspended in space as if floating underwater. Her series will be in the Atrium Gallery until December 14, 2015.

An opening reception preview is planned for Friday, August 28 from 5-8 p.m. and the public is welcome. These exhibitions and presentations are sponsored by The Lester M. and Bernice Smith Foundation. Continue Reading

The San Juan Singers 2015 – Contributed photo

San Juan Singers, a San Juan Island based community chorus, begins preparation for the Winter 2015 concert on September 9, from 7:00 to 9:00 pm, in the Community Room of Skagit Valley College. This chorus is open to all singers from age 12- ** with the director’s approval. This is not an entry-level chorus; participants should have some choral or musical theater singing experience and be able to follow music and musical direction. Members contribute a fee for participation; scholarships are available to students and partial scholarships are available to encourage families to participate together.

This winter’s concert features a performance of Vivaldi’s “Gloria,” (RV 589). This beautiful, lively and lyrical setting of the prayer, “Gloria in excelsis Deo,” written by Antonio Vivaldi in the early 1700s continues to inspire and delight music lovers of all ages world-wide. To balance and fill out the evening, carols and songs of the season will be presented along with guest performances by local instrumentalists. San Juan Singers programs are well-known for offering a deliberate and delightful mix of classical and popular, traditional and contemporary, and sometimes simply surprising music. This program is sure to make you laugh, cry, and make your heart glad (or perhaps grow two sizes, if you’re feeling a little “Grinch-y”).

Rehearsals are every Wednesday, 7:00 to 9:00 pm, usually at Skagit Valley College. There will also be a special Saturday workshop presented jointly by Angel Michaels and Tim Fitzpatrick (from Western Washington’s music faculty) on October 24, in addition to occasional Saturday section rehearsals. Concert dates are December 12 & 13.

If you are interested in joining the chorus this fall, please use the contact form at www.sanjuansingers.org or inquire by email at islandsongstudio [@] gmail [.] com.

Angel Michaels
Director – San Juan Singers

SVC’s San Juan Center – Contributed photo

The San Juan Center of Skagit Valley College has opened its doors for Fall registration. Come on in, have a cup of coffee and discuss your education future with our student advisor. Classes beginning on September 21 are available at the Center and online.

The San Juan Center is located near the airport terminal at 221 Weber Way overlooking beautiful Griffin Bay.

There is no better time than now to step into the San Juan Center’s welcoming campus and begin or renew your educational journey!!

Please call for more information (360) 378-3220