News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 251 - 268 of 268
Michael Gaston, library director for Deschutes County, earned plaudits from Sisters library supporters for steering the library system through tough financial times. Gaston led the Deschutes County Library District through three difficult 1998 elections, culminating in a funding tax levy overwhelmingly passed last November. The Sisters Library Board and Friends of the Sisters Library Board presented Gaston with a glass clock with an inscription thanking him for his tireless efforts in the library elections. Their meeting was... Full story
Camp Sherman area residents can feel a little more secure knowing there are more firefighters available in an emergency. The ranks of volunteer firefighters at the Camp Sherman station of the Sisters-Camp Sherman Rural Fire Protection District have swelled to 10 dedicated individuals. More are needed. Gene Lorenz, who worked with the Portland Fire Department for 30 years before moving to Camp Sherman, is spearheading new efforts to energize the volunteer group. Lorenz rose to rank of Deputy Fire Marshall while in Portland.... Full story
Students from Black Butte School sang at the annual Christmas dinner hosted by the Sisters Library last week. Held at St. Edward's Hall, the dinner honored 100 volunteers, Friends of the Library, board members and others. This year's volunteers included the large group of telephone committee members who helped get out the vote in three library elections in six months. Their efforts culminated in November's successful election securing stable funding for the Deschutes County Library System, including the Sisters branch. Cal... Full story
Camp Sherman residents trekked into the nearby forest recently, collecting plant materials for wreath making. The annual wreath-making project supports programs at Black Butte School. Parents, friends and students helped to cut, wire and attach plant materials onto wooden ring bases. The finished wreaths will be on sale at the Holiday Bazaar Friday, November 27, from 5 to 9 p.m. and Saturday, November 28, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Camp Sherman Community Hall. Food and craft displays will also be available. Prices for... Full story
Black Butte Ranch residents passed a four-year local option operating levy for their fire district last week. The levy received 194 yes votes (76 percent), 62 no votes (24 percent). They also approved a $1 million dollar bond for obtaining four new emergency/fire vehicles. Votes in favor tallied 148 (58 percent), while 106 no votes (42 percent) were cast. The district now will provide a Quint fire engine with 75-foot ladder, an urban interface fire unit, an ambulance and an emergency response/ambulance vehicle. Farther... Full story
A festive holiday crowd jammed the Camp Sherman Community Hall for Mexican dinner and a presentation of world cultures by Black Butte School on Friday, October 30. Students presented song and dance from various world cultures as part of Camp Sherman's Fall Festival. The hall was colorfully decorated with paper cutouts made by students. Outside, lanterns dimly lit the entrance way. Exhibits inside highlighted some of the student projects including masks made in conjunction with the Africa Quest program, an Internet... Full story
Perched on top of Green Ridge at 4,600 feet is the only volunteer fire lookout in our local forest. Sixteen volunteers divvy up the schedule (some as couples; some as single lookouts) for fire watch duty between July 1 and Labor Day. Marilyn Anderson, who has been doing this for seven years, is in charge of the volunteers. They work under direction from Sisters Ranger Station and Central Oregon Dispatch (COD). The fire watch day at Green Ridge runs from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. unless there is lightning or fire activity... Full story
The number of fish spawning in the Metolius River took a significant jump this year, according to a report on counts of redband trout redds. Redds are places where fish burrow into streambed gravel to make nests where they hatch their eggs. Brad Houslet of the Sisters Ranger District released the report on 14 river sites, which showed a 38 percent increase over the previous spawning year (1996-97) and a 62 percent increase over the 1995-96 season. The river was walked bi-monthly and the redds were counted. Ninety percent of... Full story
Camp Sherman residents raised questions about plans for roads in the rural area in a meeting held last week at Camp Sherman's Community Hall with Jefferson County Commissioners Bill Bellamy, Janet Brown and Jodi Egan. About 25 local residents attended the question and answer session that focused particularly on a plan to connect of Metke Lane (a public usage road) with Pine Lodge Road (a county road). Mike McCain, Jefferson County public works director, explained his reasons for signing approval of the permit last October 2.... Full story
Camp Sherman's Road District 18 will be funded next year - and funds will be available to keep Deputy Dave Blann on the job. Elaine Henderson, Jefferson County Clerk, reported that the Road District 18 election in Camp Sherman on May 19 gathered more than the 50 percent turnout required to be a valid election. The vote approved a levy in excess of $8,800 for fiscal year 1998-99 for maintenance of roads in the Camp Sherman area. With it, there is now a working total of over $17,000 for the coming year. Up to $10,000 of this... Full story
Voters in Camp Sherman were still waiting as of Monday, June 1, to see if the Road District 18 levy has passed. The measure was ahead overwhelmingly with 124 yes votes (90 percent) and 14 no votes (10 percent) but Elaine Henderson, Jefferson County Clerk, was still checking valid signatures and absentee ballots. Since this is a budgetary vote, a 50 percent turnout is needed for a valid election. While it looks like there was a sufficient turnout of voters in the Road District 18 election, that was not yet certified by the... Full story
A suspected case of tick-borne Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever has been reported at Camp Sherman. Randy Trass, a 43-year old builder living in Camp Sherman was hospitalized for five days at St. Charles Medical Center with symptoms suggestive of RMSF. He had a rash near the palms of his hands, flu-like aches and general discomfort. RMSF is caused by the bites of some ticks (in our area, the wood tick, Dermacentor andersoni). Signs of the disease usually begin 3 to 12 days after a tick bite or after tick feces is rubbed into the... Full story
Camp Sherman will likely have to patch together funding to keep Deputy Dave Blann on the job as resident deputy. Jefferson County has allocated $30,000 of the $52,500 needed to fully fund the position for fiscal year 1998-99. County Public Works will kick in $10,000 because Blann plows Camp Sherman's county roads in winter. The Forest Service will provide $5,000 for county law enforcement presence in local forest areas. Willamette Industries supplies another $1,200 for support of protection in lumbering areas. The last piece... Full story
Mary Johnson of Bend took a trip back in time last Sunday, April 5, to the little chapel where she taught Sunday school 50 years ago. "I just knew it had to be the same school," Johnson said on her return to the Chapel in the Pines in Camp Sherman. "After seeing a newspaper article about the old Chapel, it had to be my old school." In those not-so-long-ago logging days, Shevlin-Hixon lumber camps moved from area to area harvesting timber, Johnson recounted. The workers' houses were loaded on railroad flat cars and moved to... Full story
Camp Sherman Road District 18 has pledged $10,000 to be used if needed to help keep Deputy Dave Blann on duty in the face of a potential Jefferson County budget shortfall. The money would become available if the road district serial levy vote passes on Tuesday, May 19. The levy is to fund road maintenance, plowing and improvements in Camp Sherman and the surrounding area. Eighteen people gathered Thursday evening, March 26, for the Road District 18 meeting at the Camp Sherman fire hall. Norm Scott represented Camp Sherman... Full story
A "posse" of about 30 Camp Sherman residents wearing "Save our Sheriff" badges trekked to Madras Thursday, March 12, to press for funds to keep Deputy Sheriff Dave Blann on the job in the community west of Sisters. The Camp Sherman contingent fears Blann's post will be cut because of a $1.2 million shortfall in the Jefferson County budget projections for 1998-99. Jefferson County Sheriff Jack Jones explained his department's budget request before the county budget committee. Jones was laudatory about the job Blann has done... Full story
Martin Winch, local writer and historian, took his Lunch and Learn audience on a virtual exploration of Camp Polk Meadow last week. Winch described early Native American groups in the area who found the meadow area inviting for hunting and gathering activities. These included the Paiutes, who migrated here from the Great Basin desert region, and the Columbia-based Warm Springs River people who found the area hospitable. In the early 19th century, white explorers and hunters came to the region particularly in search of... Full story
The old Sisters Library. photo by Conrad Weiler With the recent practice burn at the old Sisters Middle School site, attention will now focus on the replacement buildings proposed for that site. A new library, scheduled during 2005, a new City Hall and possibly a school administration structure are on the planning board. The two existing library buildings, both owned by the City of Sisters, will thus be empty sometime in 2005. The newer of these, completed in 1990, still offers valuable space for various uses. The older and... Full story
