News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 226 - 250 of 268
Camp Sherman residents would like to see downed trees and accumulated fire fuel from past years cleaned out of the Metolius Basin -- and the sooner the better. However, Sisters Ranger District personnel told those gathered at a public meeting on Saturday, August 12, it is not so easy to move full speed ahead. "There are layers of legal planning that must be followed, including the Northwest Forest Plan (1994) which mandates that we do a spring and fall species assessment before any action can be taken", said Bill Anthony,... Full story
The 61-year-old Sisters Library is at a crossroads. The City of Sisters, which owns the library facility, wants to start charging rent for the building the library occupies. Administrators of the library --Ênow part of the Deschutes County Library District -- want the current rent-free arrangement to continue. Library officials would like to see the City of Sisters sign the building over to the library district. The stand-off between the city and the library district may be a reflection of changing times, as the library... Full story
The City of Sisters plans to start charging the Sisters Library rent for its facility on the corner of Main Avenue and Spruce Street. At a work session last week, the city council instructed city administrator Barbara Warren to send a letter to the library informing library staff that that rent would be charged after one month's notice. Rent would be 65 cents per square foot and would amount to $1,690 per month for the existing structure. This action stems from last year's election separating the Deschutes County library... Full story
Mayor Steve Wilson thinks things are going pretty well in Sisters. "Sisters is on fairly solid footing right now," Wilson said, "and the city has been running smoothly over the past three years." Wilson spoke to a Lunch and Learn group at Sisters Central Oregon Community College Center last week. The city's sewer project drew most attention. According to Wilson, the backhoes should roll on the project in July. From that point, there is an 18-month completion date for the $12 million project. "We'll do the job section by... Full story
Hopes for salmon recovery in the Metolius River were bolstered last week with release of 11,500 juvenile coho salmon and about 4,500 sockeye salmon juveniles. Camp Sherman resident Jim Sternberg has been raising these fish adjacent to Spring Creek in a project sponsored by Portland General Electric (PGE). A large group of local Camp Sherman residents joined members of the Warm Springs Confederated Tribes, students from Black Butte School and public officials from the Forest Service and the Oregon Department of Fish and... Full story
Tim Lillebo wants to see more of Oregon protected as roadless area. The director of the Oregon Natural Resources Council, spoke at Sisters COCC Lunch and Learn meeting last week. He outlined the Wild Wilderness Campaign now underway in Oregon. Using maps and slides Lillebo noted that 10-15 percent of public lands are roadless (not accessible by cars), including Tumalo Mountain. Oregon contains 18.5 million acres of land managed by the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management (BLM); 11 percent of these lands have... Full story
The Sisters Branch Library will celebrate 10 years of service on Friday, February 11. Sponsored by the Friends of the Library, the all-day celebration will take place between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. Cookies will be served. The library building was designed by architect Neil Huston Keeton-King construction served as contractor. Sisters librarian Peg Bermel remembers "the tremendous energy and grass root community support that made the library building possible." Sandy McDonald remembered the "children's brigade" of elementary... Full story
The "Black Butte Ranch Cookbook" has provided many delicious recipes for Sisters residents and visitors, while supporting various local community causes. In the past, $1000 was donated to the Sisters Elementary School classroom raising project and a like amount was given to Sisters Elementary School to help fund a sound system. Now the BBR cookbook committee has created a scholarship of $2,000 for a Sisters High School student going on to an Oregon college. Cookbook chairman Marilyn Handy and BBR Women's Association... Full story
Salmon egg may lead to returnof mighty fish to Metolius river. But there are obstacles -- and dams -- to overcome. Old-timers remember catching 15-pound Chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, on the Metolius River. That was 30 or more years ago. An ambitious plan to reintroduce this native fish is spearheaded by Portland General Electric, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife and the U.S. Forest Service. There are no Chinook salmon presently in the Metolius River. Locations at Heising Creek, Jack Creek, the Metolius... Full story
The Sisters High School swim team is practicing at Glaze Meadow pool at Black Butte Ranch. There are currently 10 girls and two boys on the team, according to swim coach Isolde Hedemark. "When football season ends, we'll have two more boys on our team," she said. The swim season runs from November 8 until February 26. "Black Butte Ranch has been kind enough to let us practice here during the season," Hedemark noted. "Otherwise, we would have to make the much longer trip to Bend in order to practice." The swim program is... Full story
Sisters area skiers were set to head for the slopes and trails as Hoodoo Ski Area set its season opener Thursday, December 2. New owner Chuck Shepard was watching the skies, hoping for more snow. "We only have about six inches of snow at the bottom and about 12 inches at the top," Shepherd said. "I understand we are supposed to have a storm coming in the next few days." Bob Freund of the Hoodoo ski patrol said, "Another two feet of snow is needed before opening. The storm coming in may not bring that much snow and there may... Full story
Black Butte Ranch personnel tracked and killed a large black bear (Ursus americanus) after it made several destructive nocturnal visits at several golf course homes at the ranch last week. Dale Larsen, maintenance manager at the ranch, said that the bear had been "tearing things up," rummaging through garbage cans and dumpsters and knocking over outside barbecues and bird feeders at several homes. The golf pro shop was also damaged one evening during the bear's visit. The rogue bear returned Saturday night, November 20, to... Full story
Frank Baldwin looks right at home with the control panel overseeing his HO model railway system. The Sisters area resident has an upper level room in his home specially designed for his railroading hobby. Frank has an HO scale system that is 1/87th actual size and his system spans the equivalent of about 10 miles of track. "You never finish projects and I'm right on schedule," he said. There are double tracks circling much of the large room. A side track goes "up the mountain" with a timber harvest train. Frank's railroad... Full story
More than 200 women from all over the United States and some foreign lands joined in meetings, outdoor recreation, conversation and banquets in the second annual Sisters in Sisters celebration last weekend. The Friday through Sunday schedule was crowded with events and was launched with a buffet dinner and fashion show on Friday evening. After dinner, fashions were displayed by local Sisters merchants under the "big top" tent at the Village Green. The opening evening concluded with an entertaining and often humorous keynote... Full story
A new computer lab is open in Sisters, according to Celeste Douville, director of Central Oregon Community College's community education program. Eleven new Hewlett-Packard (HP) computers are now available for classes (which started this week) and student use. "The new computers are part of the college's program to provide students with the latest equipment and train them for today's technology and job market," Douville said. "The college has been moving to standardize on one computer platform throughout the main campus and... Full story
The discovery of ancient artifacts at the Paulina Pool site on Black Butte Ranch have sparked interest in carrying out further studies at the ranch. Jean Nave will present a proposal to the Black Butte Ranch (BBR) Board of Directors for establishing a project to study ranch history. According to the proposal, the ranch would participate in a flagship program being developed by the Center for the Study of The First Americans at Oregon State University. The Archeology Education Project would allow teachers to receive hands-on... Full story
After 18 years managing Hoodoo Ski Area west of Sisters, Mike and Nancy Obymako have left the resort. Chuck Shepard, from Coburg, recently purchased the operation for $1.6 million and will run it as a family business. Nancy is doing independent contract work in human resources administration. Mike, with his experience working on public lands, is looking into the possibility of developing a new company working with campground management. "It was a wonderful experience and a business challenge,"Mike said about his tenure at... Full story
A team of Camp Sherman youths placed first in Oregon and sixth nationally in a history competition with their presentation of "Science, Technology and Innovation in History." "We finished first in the state (at Willamette University) and sixth place in the nationals," said team-member Emily Sims. The other three team members were Matthew Adams, Tiffany Adams and Linda Nagle, all Sisters High School students. The National History Day competition was held recently in College Park, Maryland. "This team took on the 'big boys' at... Full story
Use of the Camp Sherman Community Hall will be limited to members of the Camp Sherman Community Association (CSCA), at least for the coming year. CSCA made the decision at its annual meeting Saturday morning, July 3. Until recently, unaffiliated groups, as well as members of the CSCA, could rent the hall for weddings, wedding receptions, family reunions and retirement parties. The CSCA board and membership decided to limit use for a year and evaluate the new policy at next year's annual meeting. The decision was prompted by... Full story
Karen Sheldahl took over as Camp Sherman postmaster last week after her husband, Jon Sheldahl's retirement. Jon had served the Camp Sherman community for 11 years and now his wife carries on the Sheldahl tradition of service. Karen had been postmaster at Powell Butte previous to taking the Camp Sherman position. She has been with the postal service for 20 years, having started in Denver on the graveyard shift working the letter-sorting machine. Karen was born in Fort Collins, Colorado and lived her early life in a small... Full story
After eight years with Central Oregon Community College (COCC), Lucy Burton has decided to leave her post at the Sisters office. During her term as director of local community education, Burton served thousands of credit students and others in the Sisters area. Burton was born in Texas, received her higher education degrees at Washington State University (WSU)(B.S., Home Economics Education; M.S., Adult Education). She presently lives in Redmond. Along her career path, she worked for Continental Airlines for six years.... Full story
Camp Sherman's Black Butte School held its annual graduation ceremony Friday evening, June 4, on a soft late-spring evening made for celebration. Parents, grandparents and friends joined in an early evening barbecue on the grass outside the school. Friends exchanged stories of the past year's accomplishments. A presentation of their award-winning performance was made by the local History Day Competition students Matt Adams, Tiffany Adams, Tyler Hamberger and Emily Sims. Jefferson County Sheriff Jack Jones was on hand to... Full story
A familiar face will be missing from behind the counter at Camp Sherman's Post Office. Jon Sheldahl, after 11 years service to Camp Sherman postal customers, is retiring. Local folks not only transact postal business but also cross paths with neighbors in the community at the Camp Sherman Post Office. The office also contains a small library of magazines, books and local information that readers have come to depend upon. Sheldahl has served as president of the National Association of Postmasters of the United States (NAPUS)... Full story
The Friends of the Sisters Library honored Cal and Marsha Allen as Family of the Year at its Monday, April 12, meeting. Cal was chairman of Friends of the Library for two years and spearheaded the successful "Bucks for Books campaign. Last year he led the group through three elections supporting better library funding and formation of the new Deschutes Library District (which starts July 1). Cal and Marsha worked tirelessly on the telephone committee to get out the library vote during last year's elections. These elections... Full story
All third and fifth grade students at Camp Sherman's Black Butte School have met or exceeded state standards in math problem solving and writing. The school recently received results from testing for the Certificate of Initial Mastery. The state-mandated tests demonstrate students' ability to reach certain "benchmark" levels of achievement at third, fifth, eighth and tenthgrade levels. A total of 12 students took the tests at Black Butte School, six at each grade level. Twenty-six students are presently enrolled at the... Full story
