News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 1 - 16 of 16
A borrowed riding helmet saved nine-year-old Kimmy Reynolds from potentially fatal injuries in a horseback riding accident near Sisters two weeks before Christmas. Following the accident, an examination revealed that the helmet's slender visor had been ripped off and that the protective interior padding was in pieces. But for the sturdy outer material of the helmet - only dented above the missing visor - there might never have been another Christmas for Kimmy. For over two years prior to the accident, Kimmy had been... Full story
Timber framer Derwyn Hanney left Sisters on October 15 to join 30 other timber framers and another 15 of their European counterparts in Inverness, Scotland - a long stone's fling from the shores of Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. Hanney, who works at Earthwood Homes, went to Scotland to help build a medieval siege machine called a trebuchet. The project was filmed by NOVA for their Secrets of Lost Empires series, to be shown on PBS television. "I responded to a notice of the project in our guild news- letter," Hanney... Full story
Larry Dudley and two of his friends are setting up a "reach-out" plan to help Sisters area elderly, physically incapacitated, or homebound. "Our purpose is to reach out to let those members of our community know that someone cares about them," Dudley said. "Sometimes, they need an extra hand. It might be for repair of a faulty light switch, a leaky faucet, a sticky garage door. Or, it might be the need of someone to talk to or, maybe, just someone to share a smile with." Though Dudley's plan is for year-round assistance with... Full story
Replies are rolling in less than six weeks after Sisters' Elementary School students wrote to their heroes about courage. So far, 109 replies have been received. Courage is this year's school theme. The goal of the campaign is for all of the students and teachers to write letters to a family member, friend, or famous person they respect and to ask for their ideas, thoughts and stories about courage. School counselor Amy Stranieri said that since the arrival of the first replies, a few more have arrived each day. "My office... Full story
Sisters sixth graders will learn quilting from scratch as they create a quilt for next year's Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show. This is the second year the sixth grade class has produced a quilt for the show. Susan Mitchell an experienced quilting teacher and parent assistant on the first quilt, will serve as coordinator of this year's project . "I'll work with sixth grade teachers Carol Packard, Heidi Smith, and Wes Estvold in organizing the project so that the students will learn quilt making from scratch," Mitchell said. "This... Full story
Cheryl Butler, seventh-grade science teacher, was selected as Oregon's runner-up for the 1998 Conservation Teacher of the Year Award. The award is sponsored by the National Soil and Water Conservation Districts. Butler's program involves students in the betterment of local soil, water, and related resources. Butler has developed three hands-on field projects, all of which are on-going. One project is a 1/4-mile nature trail; another is the Sisters Middle School landscape project. The third project is a study of Squaw Creek.... Full story
"Courage" is the theme that will guide Sisters Elementary School during the 1998-99 school year. The students have launched a letter-writing campaign to find out what courage means to the people the students admire. "Last spring, we were discussing possible themes for 1998-99 that would tie in with our previous themes, Respect, Responsibility and Community," said music teacher Elizabeth Renner. "(Councilor) Amy Stranieri came up with courage, a strong and flexible word." "We try to do something different every year,"... Full story
The Sisters Folk Festival gave large and enthusiastic crowds two full days of music over the Labor Day weekend. Held in a different venue from previous festivals, this year's Pine Meadow Ranch location offered easy access to a huge, white tent, its setting an uninterrupted view of the Three Sisters across acres of open meadow. A near-capacity crowd filled the tent Saturday night and enjoyed performances from headliners Peter Case, Kelly Joe Phelps and Tom Russell. The evening kicked off with the announcement of the... Full story
There is a serious need for foster homes in Sisters for infants to 18-year-olds, according to Mindy Rickman, a 13-year member of the Deschutes County Services. "Currently, we have only one foster home in Sisters, and we need five or six more," Rickman said. "The most important thing we want to communicate is that we need foster homes in each school catchment (neighborhood) area. "Sisters is considered a neighborhood because all of the children go to the same schools," she said. "We want to be able to place children who have... Full story
In 1978, Becki Neal and her sister Judy moved from the Willamette Valley to Sisters to start a beauty salon. After 20 years, Neal can relate with amusement the unusual conditions they had to overcome after the salon opened in the Wakefield house on Cedar Street. "The front door of the house was on ground level, but the business was in the basement, which had no water. We had to go up two flights of steps to the top level to shampoo and come back down to work in the basement. "But, it was the only space available in Sisters,... Full story
For the thousands of visitors in Sisters for the 23rd Sisters Quilt Show, a cloudless sky and soft summer breeze were an added bonus to the harmony of color and design displayed in approximately 800 quilts along Sisters' streets. A surprising number of those visitors, apprised of the quilt show through articles or advertisements in magazines or on the Internet, had scheduled vacations around the quilt show or traveled to Sisters from Canada, Norway, Holland and states as distant as the east coast. Ellie Ryker, a retired... Full story
The art of quilting showcased each year in the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show has inspired artists in other media. Sisters artist Dennis McGregor has launched a series of prints titled "Seasons of the Quilter's Gardens." Goldsmith Peter Jon has created a series of Commemorative Quilt Show charms. Both artists will have their quilt-inspired work on display during the show Saturday, July 11. The first painting of McGregor's new series will be shown at McGregor's Artist Reception, Studio and Garden Tour. The public is invited to the... Full story
Sisters area veterans honored their fallen comrades in the sixth annual Veterans Memorial Day Ceremony held Monday, May 25 at Camp Polk Cemetery. The ceremony was attended by about 70 people. Just as the ceremony began, the sun broke through an overcast sky, to brighten the flowers that marked the graves. A light breeze touched the American flag and the POW-MIA flag and the sunlight shone on the wreath that contained the names of 38 veterans whose service dates from World War I to Desert Storm. Following the Pledge of... Full story
Sisters resident Barbara Butler is passing on her intimate knowledge of wilderness ways in her new book on tracking entitled "Wilderness Treks: How to Sleuth Out Wild Creatures and Wayward Humans." Butler took years to develop the professional skills necessary to write and teach about tracking. The list of the animals Butler has tracked is long and impressive, and some of her methods challenge conventional wisdom. The method by which she determines the sex of deer, for instance, might surprise the hunter who for years has... Full story
Farmers and ranchers along Squaw Creek are working to protect the creek as part of a federally funded conservation program. The Environmental Quality Incentive Program was established in the 1996 Farm Bill to provide a voluntary conservation program for farmers and ranchers who face serious threats to soil, water, and related natural resources. Todd Peplin, Resource Conservationist for the U.S.D.A. Natural Resources Conservation Service, is head of EQUIP. "The program is based on developing a whole farm plan," Peplin said.... Full story
Sisters Elementary School students conducted a grand tour of their four new, community-built classrooms on Thursday, December 4. The addition of the classrooms, begun in July, was completed on December 5. The project enlisted the enthusiastic assistance of parents and teachers; donations of supplies and labor from local businesses; and financial contributions large and small from individuals and businesses. "Whether in labor, time, or expertise, this has been one of the most positive and uplifting experiences I've ever had,"... Full story
