News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 26
The City of Sisters is set to launch several street projects this spring, using funds from the city's Urban Renewal District and from a parking fund paid into by business district property owners. According to City Manager Eileen Stein, the city will realign East Cascade Avenue where it runs from the library parking lot past Sisters Jewelry Co. and intersects with Cascade Avenue/Highway 20. Instead of the oblique angle now existing at the intersection, engineers will realign... Full story
There is an unspoken sense of camaraderie that exists between those who risk everything, a glue that connects at the soul. Never was that bond stronger than at this year's annual firefighters' dinner at the FivePine Conference Center. All heads were bowed as the invocation set the mood for the evening: "It is so wonderful for us to all be gathered together in a non-emergency situation," said John Gerke, Chaplain for the Sisters-Camp Sherman Rural Fire Protection District. "I... Full story
Two Sisters High School 2008 graduating seniors have been named National Merit Scholar Finalists. Rachel Sims and Brian Greaney are members of the elite group of less than 1 percent of high school seniors nationwide to receive this recognition from the National Merit Scholarship Program. Administered by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC), the college scholarship competition initially judges scores students receive after taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit... Full story
In contrast with an upturn statewide, enrollment in Sisters schools is on a downward trend. Enrollment district-wide was reported to be down by 42 students to 1,389 at the end of January 2008. Last June at the end of the 2006-07 school year, district-wide enrollment was 1,431. Next year's estimates call for an even greater decline. "If you just go by what we call rollover numbers, if you take the first grade that goes to second grade and so on, the middle school will be down about 38 children. The elementary was down 50 this... Full story
The Sisters-Camp Sherman Rural Fire Protection District honored their own this week at their annual awards dinner. The Sisters community should take a moment to tip the hat to the whole department - and to the Black Butte Ranch and Cloverdale firefighters who also protect our community. The past couple of weeks have provided a vivid example of the hard work these men and women do for our community. There has recently been a series of horrific accidents on Highway 20 in the Sis... Full story
The Sisters High School Mock Trial team placed second among six teams in the Central Oregon region, earning a berth at the state competition set for March 14-15, at the Mark Hatfield Federal Courthouse in Portland. The reaction on hearing the verdict of the team's selection was shocked silence followed by whoops of joy. "I'm just so proud of the kids," said coach Mary Thomas. "It's our fourth year having the club, and this is the first time we've qualified to go on to state. Our hard work paid off." Summit High School's... Full story
It may turn out to be Sisters' event of the year. Parents who are members of the elementary school's Sisters Parent Teacher Community (SPTC) are hosting a major fund-raiser: the "Gold & Green Gala," so-named to invoke the luck of the Irish. The gala is slated for Saturday, March 15, at FivePine Conference Center. Funds will be raised to benefit the elementary school through both silent and live auctions. The event kicked off Thursday morning, February 28, with the unveiling... Full story
As show time neared and the lights went up on the main stage, the stakes were higher than ever for this year's Sisters Act talent show. The lofty goal was to raise $3,800, and impressionist Nathan Woodworth was taping his act live as a part of his bid for a slot in this summer's national television series "America's Got Talent." Last Saturday night's crowd was very enthusiastic, nearly filling the auditorium at Sisters High School to enjoy a colorful rainbow of area talent... Full story
The boys baseball team lost only one player, Hayden Mayea, from the varsity squad and will return 11 players with varsity experience. Seniors Nate Jackson, Jarred Hasskamp, Tanner Hodges, Taylor Davenport and Ryan Burbank will lend both experience and leadership to the team. Hodges was a first-team all-league infielder last year and an all-state selection. He has a very reliable glove and will play at shortstop, second base and pitcher this year. Hodges is a left-handed hitter and last year led the team in RBI (runs batted... Full story
Thirty students from five high schools throughout Central Oregon spent last weekend in Sisters absorbed in song. The event - the first annual Americana Project Song Academy for Youth - was patterned after the Sisters Folk Festival's Americana Songwriting Academy which is held each year in conjunction with the folk festival. According to Americana Project executive director Brad Tisdel, one of the goals of the youth academy was to build a sense of community among students... Full story
Sisters' defense set the tempo for the Outlaws' 61-36 win over the Cottage Grove (CG) Lions on Friday, February 29. Sisters will advance to the state basketball playoffs as the Sky-Em's No. 3 seed. The Outlaws jumped out quickly and held a 14-4 advantage at the end of the first quarter. Sisters held the Lions to just nine points in the first half of the contest and forced 10 turnovers. Daniel Ketchum scored nine of his 16 points in the second quarter, and at the half Sisters... Full story
Nathan Woodworth has stars in his eyes and the hope of a million dollars in his pocket. The young impressionist has been invited to audition for NBC's 2008 summer talent competition "America's Got Talent." Woodworth, a Sisters resident, is a homeschooled sophomore. After sending a DVD sampling of his impersonations, Woodworth recently received a phone call from Nigel Lythgoe of America's dance reality program "So You Think You Can Dance." Lythgoe asked Woodworth to travel to... Full story
There was a packed house at Pleiades on Thursday night - and Sisters' newest restaurant wasn't even serving dinner. Hundreds of Sisters area residents turned out for an open house just to see the new restaurant at FivePine and to tour the upstairs professional offices and check out the changes at the adjacent Sisters Athletic Club. Not that anyone went hungry. There were plenty of hors d' oeuvres, and wine flowed freely. There was a palpable sense of excitement. "Everyone is... Full story
•Jennifer Lake Gallery is celebrating their beautiful new location with an open house on Saturday, March 8, from 1 to 6 p.m. with door prizes, new paintings, wine tasting and refreshments. The gallery is located at 370 E. Cascade Ave., next to Sisters Hometown Realty. •Out West Designs is promoting "Souper Saturdays" for the month of March. When you bring in a nonperishable food item for the food bank, you get 10 percent off your purchase on Monday through Friday and 15 percent off every weekend. Call 549-1140 for... Full story
Sunday night saw the last of this season's Sisters Folk Festival Winter Concert Series as Tracy Grammer performed to an enthusiastic house. A little more than 200 fans attended the performance. Grammer performed solo in Sisters, as she has turned a corner in her career. "I have always performed before with others; of course, Dave (Carter, in whose honor the folk festival's annual songwriting contest is named) and I worked together. Then after his death in 2002, I didn't feel... Full story
•Ross Grant was top seller for the 10-county Crater Lake Region in the annual Boy Scout popcorn sales drive. Grant won a Dell laptop for his efforts. The nine-year-old sat in front of Ray's Food Place and sold... and sold.... He sold a total $4,825 in popcorn in $10 to $50 increments. Grant thanked Ray's for allowing him to sell on the site. •Mike Osborne wrote: "I feel a huge thank-you is in order from myself and many other early morning coffee-bad-habit-BBQ-loving-pop-and-cold-beer-worm-getting-check-the-pass... Full story
Molly Blust finished second in the combined results of the Oregon High School Nordic State Championships held Friday and Saturday, February 22-23, at Mount Bachelor. Blust, a junior, finished second in Friday's 5-kilometer classic race (18:04) and followed up with another second-place finish in Saturday's 7.5-kilometer freestyle race (23:53) to complete her runner-up honors behind Summit's Bella Smith, who won handily on both days. Blust's heroics weren't quite enough to help... Full story
Loren Johnson went to be with the Lord on February 29. Although his death was a tragic and unexpected accident, he lived his life to the fullest to the very end. He died doing what he loved to do: working outside on his home. He was born on January 14, 1931, in Redlands, California, to Hennes and Edith Johnson, where he grew up and attended school. He served in the US Army during the Korean War, then moved to Oregon, the state he dearly loved. He married Betty Talburt on December 18, 1964, and together they raised four childr... Full story
Richard "Dick" Hogan, of Palo Alto, California, passed away peacefully on February 21, 2008, at Stanford Hospital with his family at his side. He was 85 years old. Dick Hogan has been a summertime resident of Camp Sherman since 1950. Born January 25, 1923, in San Carlos, Negros, Philippine Islands, to Curt Leland Hogan and Elizabeth Mumaw Reed, Dick spent his childhood years in the Philippines. In 1938, he and his parents moved to the San Francisco Bay area. After graduating f... Full story
The government's new digital conversion campaign is causing lots of confusion. The facts are simple. After midnight, on February 17, 2009, television stations will only be allowed to broadcast their programing in digital format. In actuality, very few people will be affected by the conversion to digital broadcasting, and for most the transition will be transparent. If you currently use satellite or digital cable to receive your broadcasts, the conversion will not affect your viewing in any way and you will never notice the ch... Full story
•Two white males threatened to "get their homies" and beat up another man if he kept flirting with a retail clerk. They clearly mistook downtown Sisters for "The 'Hood." •Deputies dealt with several disputes - trespassing, custody of a dog, etc. - that revealed the sweet reasonableness of man. •A deputy investigated a claim of horse neglect. He found the horses well cared for. •A teen punched another in the mouth in a dispute at Sisters High School over who got "shotgun." It must be spring. •Deputies... Full story
Although enrollment is low - lower than the 25 students required by the Oregon Department of Education - considerable positive energy surrounds the Sisters Charter Academy of Fine Arts. The free, public charter school that operates under the umbrella of the Sisters School District, opened its doors at the beginning of the school year. At that time 32 students were enrolled in the school that serves children in grades K-6. That number is in the low 20s today. Recently Michele Williams, chairman of the school's board of... Full story
Coach Bill Rexford and his lacrosse team are ready for the season to begin and are anxious for the Outlaws to reach the next level. This year's team is tough and talented and Rexford said he couldn't have hand picked a better team. Several players have been in the program for four years and have developed skills that will allow them to excel on the field. This year the Outlaws starting attack will consist of Nate Emberton, Ashton Sims and Marcus Gaboni. Rexford said: "In any given year I would be thrilled to have just one... Full story
Don Boyd, who is known to most of Sisters as the wine steward at Ray's Food Place, is taking a position for the second time on the Sisters-Camp Sherman Rural Fire Protection District board. Boyd is a veteran volunteer with three decades of commitment to Sisters. Boyd was the manager of Pioneer Century Market for several years before the concern was purchased by Ray's in 1995. With the transition to the new ownership, he decided to spread his wings and try his hand as an... Full story
High Lakes Pony Club, based in Sisters, is racing to a great start with 31 members in its first year. Yvette Chandler, the area district commissioner, is certain this is one of the largest clubs in the U.S. The members range in age from five to 17 years old, with most in the 10- to 14-year-old bracket. "We felt there was a need, but I had no idea we would have so many kids interested," said Chandler. "We're so pleased to be able to offer such a great program." Pony Club's... Full story
