News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 101 - 125 of 268
Chad Kernutt has some nice hardware to show off. Photo by Conrad Weiler Novice Bicycle Motocross (BMX) racer Chad Kernutt, age 13, from Camp Sherman, brought home his fifth career win from Pasco, Washington, this month. Competing in the Great Northwest Nationals, April 4-6, Kernutt scoped the track in a Friday pre-race, finished third on Saturday, and took first place for his age division on Sunday. The win was the fifth in his career and moves him within one more win of reaching intermediate ranking on the racing circuit. Af... Full story
Tom Landis of Camp Sherman has received several awards for his outstanding swim record. Landis was awarded "The most valuable male swimmer for Oregon" at the U.S. Masters awards ceremony in Portland recently. Swim magazine chose him as one of the six outstanding male swimmers in the United States. He was chosen "Most Valuable Swimmer" for the year by team COMA (Central Oregon Masters Aquatics, Bend). Tom also made the U.S. Masters "Kart-a-Way" swimmers pool All-Star team for 2002. Landis holds the fastest time in his age grou... Full story
Charlotte Nitcher at work in the new Sisters Library computer lab. Photo by Conrad Weiler A new wireless six-station computer lab is up and running at Sisters Library. Users will have Internet access, a digital library catalog, software productivity and children's programs to select from on the Dell computers. Two of the units come from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Signup is right on the computer screen, thus freeing librarians from signup lists and checking time of use. Users simply type in their library card... Full story
Black Butte Ranch (BBR) is considering new maintenance, recreation and registration facilities. Loy Helmly, BBR General Manager, laid out concep- tual plans for the Ranch at a Friends of Black Butte Ranch meeting on Thursday, March 13. Using computer generated map diagrams, Helmly outlined major suggested modifications involving the lodge, maintenance and service center and a family recreation center. The proposed maintenance center generated the most interest and support from the audience. A $1 million hub would be... Full story
Local seniors -- like their counterparts everywhere -- have a keen interest in prescription drugs that save lives and improve their health. Meeting last Tuesday at Sisters Community Church for their weekly luncheon, 45 local seniors heard Brenda Chilcott explain drug choices and pricing. Chilcott, an American Association of Retired People (AARP) volunteer and Development Manager for the Central Oregon Council on Aging (COCOA), said that generic drugs can do the job and yet keep costs down. She compared Mevacor, a generic... Full story
Fire Chief Ed Sherrell presented Police Chief Gil Zaccaro with a defibrillator for a police cruiser. Photo by Conrad Weiler Fire Chief Ed Sherrell has obtained seven Life Pack 500 defibrillators to use at Black Butte Ranch (BBR). The units can help save lives in the event of a heart attack. "We've put units in all three police cars on the Ranch and two each at Big Meadow and Glaze Meadow golf course in the marshalls' carts," said Sherrell. Each defibrillator costs $2,000; the money came from an initial $500 grant from Air... Full story
A few final sites are in the running for the new Sisters Library and now the Deschutes Public Library System (DPLS) Board must make a decision. A four-member management team has been gathering input suggestions from hundreds of local area residents concerning possible library sites. Board members are now making on-site observations before their final decision, which may come as early as Wednesday, March 19, their next scheduled meeting in Bend. Four or five final potential sites are currently under consideration, but they... Full story
Bo Hill and the tree he saved. Photo by Conrad Weiler Today there is a tree standing at Black Butte Ranch, saved by the efforts of Bob Hill, a 10-year resident at the Ranch. Hill sought to save a ponderosa pine injured in a wind storm a few seasons back. A nearby ponderosa came down during the storm, so he quickly obtained a sign, put it on the standing tree, and spared it from being cut down. The sign read: "Wildlife Tree. Help us protect it. This tree has been saved to provide wildlife cover and habitat. Please do not cut... Full story
Pine Needlers Jan Andrews-McKirdie, Martha Cathcart, Neva McCarty and Joan Weiler enjoy a break at the quilt show. Photo by Conrad Weiler The winter crowd that visited Camp Sherman's Community Hall last Sunday was treated to another colorful Pine Needlers quilt show. Quilters displayed their wares throughout the historic hall's main floor. Upstairs, the attic displays were more fanciful and included teddy bears, a favorite with the young in age and heart, clothing items and smaller quilts. But this quilt show is more than... Full story
Deschutes Resources Conservancy hopes to restore stream flow and improve water quality for a growing Deschutes Basin. Scott McCaulou, project manager for DRC, met with the Friends of Black Butte Ranch on Thursday, February 13, to describe goals of his organization and how BBR might participate. The Deschutes Basin is the second largest watershed in Oregon, according to McCaulou. The population of the region is exploding. Deschutes County is projected to have a 99 percent growth rate from 1990 to 2010, with 76 percent and 42... Full story
Ron Paradis of COCC explained cuts to College Centers at a Sisters meeting last week. Photo by Conrad Weiler Local residents weighed the future of Central Oregon Community College's Sisters Center in a meeting with college officials at Sisters Elementary School last week. COCC faces an approximately $3 million shortfall for the 2003-2004 fiscal year for the entire COCC operation including regional centers such as Sisters. Hopes for some relief from Measure 28 passage were dashed in the January 28 election. Across-the-board... Full story
Dick Spray leads snowshoers along the trail. Photo by Conrad Weiler Sisters College Center's snowshoe class visited Virginia Meissner Sno-Park (5,350 feet) last Friday, January 24, to test out the new 3.25 mile snowshoe trail constructed by snowshoe volunteers and the Bend-Fort Rock Ranger District. They were not disappointed. The trail is well marked and offers changing terrain challenges for snowshoers. The new trail is not recommended for cross-country skiers and indeed, some narrow, curving portions of the trail are not... Full story
Harry Gent -- a true soccer fan. Photo by Conrad Weiler Englishman Harry Gent doesn't let geography get in the way of his passion for football (not the American kind). Gent, who lived in Preston, England, uses a 56K modem, computer and Internet Explorer to connect with White's World audio service and listen to his favorite soccer team's action. To catch afternoon matches in England he must log on at 6 a.m. Sisters time. The service charge from White's is about $50 per year to connect via the Internet. Gent is not alone,... Full story
Lois Gill, Elke Dortmund and Norma Funai discuss Forest Service plans at a Camp Sherman meeting. Photo by Conrad Weiler Local residents weighed in on plans to enhance the management of the Metolius region at a meeting at Camp Sherman's Community Hall on Saturday, January 18. The ambitious Forest Service project would treat about 12,000 acres in the Metolius Basin at a cost estimated at over $4 million dollars and take about five years or more (see "FS brings citizens into forest planning," The Nugget, January 15). Toni Foster... Full story
Jean Nave with her book on the Cache Mountain Fire. Photo by Conrad Weiler Author Jean Nave is exploring whether there is interest in forming a new historical society in the Sisters area. "We have such a rich historical background in our area that it would be nice to form a group and pull things together in the Sisters area,"said Nave, who presently heads the Black Butte Ranch (BBR) Historical Society. "Black Butte Ranch was originally a working ranch and, going way back, was a major trail for the Great Plains... Full story
George Larson led the Sisters Community Choir in its Christmas performance. Photo by Conrad Weiler Director George Larson and the Sisters Community Choir gave an early Christmas present last weekend to an appreciative audience filling the Sisters Episcopal Church of the Transfiguration. Topping the 90-minute show was the dazzling performance of classically trained pianist Seori Hiler. "I started playing piano when I was two years old," said Hiler, who has trained at conservatories in Beijing and Paris on her way to Central... Full story
An elf offers candies... Photo by Conrad Weiler A standing room only crowd of over 200 parents, grandparents and friends enjoyed the Christmas show at Sisters Elementary School on Thursday evening, December 19. Colorfully dressed elves and pixies passed candies from baskets to happy younger audience members before the show started. Principal Tim Comfort warmly greeted the audience and asked that everybody relax at this busy time of year and simply enjoy the evening's Christmas show. A musical combination of songs, dancing... Full story
Lupe Chamberlain breaks ground at her new home. Photo by Conrad Weiler Last Saturday afternoon, December 7, was a happy day for Lupe Chamberlain and 50 of her friends who gathered at the dedication of Habitat for Humanity's 23rd Sisters area home site. Chamberlain will move in next year when construction is completed. The home, located at 379 E. Saint Helens, will be a one-bedroom, one-car garage unit. "Lupe will turn this house into a home," said Joe Eckstine, manager at Papandrea's Pizzeria where Lupe works. In order to... Full story
Angie Rands (left) receives gift from Sandy McDonald (right) at the Christmas party. Librarian Peg Bermel looks on. Photo by Conrad Weiler A large festive crowd honored the 28 Sisters Library volunteers at last week's Christmas party held at St. Edward's Catholic Church parish hall. Nearly 100 people enjoyed dining on Chef Rod McDonald's ham with associated potato dishes, salads and veggies after a relaxing social hour. Friends of the Library had made holiday cookie houses for each dinner table, which added to the gaily decor... Full story
Sandy Koch examines gift items at Camp Sherman Community Hall. Photo by Conrad Weiler Hundreds of holiday visitors enjoyed browsing at Camp Sherman's annual Christmas bazaar, held last weekend at the historic and gaily decorated Community Hall. Shoppers sampled the wares of 33 vendors displaying arts, crafts and food items organized by local artisans. The food bar also served hearty soup, chili, desserts and beverages for hungry shoppers. Titled "Spirit of Christmas," the event was directed by Pam Titchener and her... Full story
Bill and Marilyn Handy work on a motion sensing problem at Lunch and Learn class. Photo by Conrad Weiler Math professors Jack McCown and Doug Nelson presented a fitting conclusion to Central Oregon Community College's fall Lunch and Learn program last month. Providing student pairs with motion sensors connected with Texas Instruments 83-plus graphing calculators, they challenged the class with problems in detecting and measuring movement and velocity. The first and easier task was to detect motion by using the various stored... Full story
Jim Anderson (left), listens during DPLS recommendations meeting. Ann Tollefson, Michael Gaston, DPLS Director and Mary Beth Pearl-Gent, local Sisters representative (center to right) look on. Photo by Conrad Weiler Paul Bennett, Sisters Library Advisory Chairman, laid out his group's recommendation for a new Sisters Library at the Wednesday, November 20, meeting of the Deschutes Public Library Board (DPLS) in Bend. "Seniors (must) have adequate and friendly access to informational needs using computers for research,"... Full story
Mike Sequeria (R.) answers Anne Van Horne's question after class. Photo by Conrad Weiler Captivating his audience with a wide range of examples, COCCs math department chairman Mike Sequeria demonstrated graphic examples visual displays of information. Meeting with Sisters COCC's Lunch and Learn class last Thursday, Sequeria exhibited Saturn in pictures and text from Galileo's writings from 1613. These stationary two-dimensional objects were contrasted to the work of Christian Huygens (1659), which demonstrated movement of... Full story
Mary Zemke. Photo by Conrad Weiler Final results from last week's election elevated two new occupants to the Jefferson County Board of Commissioners. Democrat Walter Ponsford defeated Republican Mike Goss and Republican Mary Zemke ousted Democrat incumbent Mike Ahern. They join Bill Bellamy (not up for re-election this year) in forming the three-member board in Jefferson County. Camp Sherman, which is part of Jefferson County, followed the overall county trend by supporting both winners although by larger margins than the... Full story
A visit to the Sisters Library quickly proves that today's library not only offers books but also the latest magazines, newspapers, audio tapes, internet and e-mail connections, art works, reference help, meetings and the latest Hollywood has to offer. A large new collection of DVD (Digital Versatile Disk) titles is offered at the Sisters Library. These outwardly look like ordinary compact disks (CDs) but store from six to 12 times as much information. Titles ranging from "Amistad" to "Withnail and I" are among the over 700... Full story
