News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 39
Almost exactly a year after he killed 42-year-old Curtis Dean Kizer in Drake Park in Bend, Stephen Withrow of Sisters pleaded guilty to manslaughter in Deschutes County Circuit Court. Withrow, who had faced a murder charge, reportedly agreed to a 20-year sentence, which was officially handed down on Monday, April 11. Additional robbery and assault charges were reportedly dropped in the plea agreement. The Sisters man, now 18, must serve a minimum of 10 years of his sentence under Measure 11 provisions before being eligible... Full story
Sisters voters will decide next month whether to provide SOAR (Sisters Organization for Activities and Recreation) with some $262,000 per year for programs and facilities. The organization is asking voters on May 17 to approve a five-year local option property tax of 35 cents per $1,000 in assessed valuation. According to SOAR Director Tom Coffield and board of directors Chairman John Bushnell, the funds are needed to sustain and expand programs and to provide scholarships... Full story
A visitor to Sisters on Friday, April 8, would have been forgiven for thinking she’d stumbled into a Mardi Gras. The MarchFourth Marching Band, attired in a wild combination of uniforms, sombreros and gypsy garb were blowing the tent roof off of Bronco Billy’s Ranch Grill & Saloon while a packed crowd of Sisters folks ranging in age from five to 75 danced away the evening. The performance was the culmination of the My Own Two Hands “Make Time” Art Stroll and Chili Feed, w... Full story
The Deschutes Basin Land Trust will receive $400,000 to allow their acquisition of a conservation easement on an 1,100-acre private ranch near Sisters, according to Brad Nye, conservation project manager for the Land Trust. The grant comes from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and is funded by Wal-Mart. The retail giant is pledging this week to conserve at least one acre of wildlife habitat for each acre it develops — or will develop in the next 10 years. Nye said Wal-Mart will fund five or six projects per year as p... Full story
Sisters is rapidly becoming an arts center. This week’s Make Time Art Stroll and Art Auction drew people from across Oregon to Sisters and events like the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, the Sisters Jazz Festival and the Sisters Folk Festival have gained national recognition. Now advocates for the arts are asking the Sisters City Council to help create a physical arts center in Sisters, perhaps using the current Sisters Library building. Vickie Dugger of The Oregon Downtown D... Full story
The sixth annual Empty Bowls Soup Dinner fund-raiser will be held on Friday, April 22, 6 p.m. at Sisters High School. A ceramic bowl is selected the night of the dinner to enjoy home-style chicken noodle soup or garden veggie pasta soup along with French bread, cookies, coffee and punch. After dinner the bowl is yours to take home. The handmade ceramic bowls are made by art teacher Mike Baynes and his students. There will also be a variety of bowls to select from that have... Full story
Readers across Central Oregon will explore the tale of the friendship of two Afghan boys and how one’s betrayal of the other affects their adult lives in Kabul and California through reading “The Kite Runner” in a community-wide reading program. “The Kite Runner” is the focus of the second annual A Novel Idea…Read Together program. This countywide reading and discussion program encourages Deschutes County residents to read the same book, at the same time, to create a countywide book club. “The Kite Runner,” by Khaled Hosseini... Full story
Kay Cyrus Knott and Jane Gragg have filed a $3 million claim against Deschutes County. It is the latest in a series of Measure 37 claims presented to the county following approval of the land use measure by voters last fall. Under Measure 37, numerous Sisters area property owners have filed claims seeking either compensation for lost property value or permission to manage the land as allowed at the time ofpurchase. The 80-acre parcel involved in the Knott-Gragg claim is located east of Sisters on the south side of State... Full story
The Arts of Sisters and Best Western Ponderosa Lodge will host an Artists’ Mixer on Thursday, April 14 from 5 to 7 p.m. Artists who are presenting workshops in Sisters will gather at Ponderosa Lodge to meet and greet members of the business community in Sisters. • Paulina Springs Books will host Oregonian Lewis McArthur, author of “Oregon Geographic Names” on Friday, April 15 (see story, page 31.). On Saturday, April 16, the book store will host poet Ray McNiece, who offers a high energy performance that combines poetry... Full story
The Lady Outlaw golfers finished with a team score of 387 to crush their opponents in the first Capital Conference match of the season held at the Santiam Golf Course in Stayton on Tuesday, April 5. Runner up Molalla was 44 strokes back at 431, Sweet Home third (457), Stayton fourth (473) and Blanchet fifth with 527. Cascade, Kennedy and Central all had incomplete teams. Sister’s Kayla Miller and Christine Collier of Cascade both carded a 90 to tie for medalist honors. Krystal... Full story
In a rebuilding year, competitiveness is the name of the game and as far as Coach Ross Kennedy can tell his boys track team understands that perfectly. The boys placed a solid fourth among 12 teams in the Sisters Rotary Track and Field Invitational Saturday, April 9. Redmond won the meet with 155 points to edge Estacada (148). West Linn finished third with 81 and Sisters scored 63 points for fourth. Daniel Holloman took top honors in the high jump, clearing 6-feet-2-inches... Full story
Windy and cool conditions didn’t keep competitors from some hot marks at the annual Sisters Rotary Track and Field Invitational Saturday, April 9 at Sisters High School. Sisters finished second among the 12 schools competing with 78 points. 4A power West Linn dominated the meet with 138 points to claim the team trophy. Jenny Boswell raced to a great mid-season time of 15.74 in the 100 hurdles and blew away the field in a time of 46.86 in the 300 intermediate hurdles. Both t... Full story
Sitting in the sun on the grass of the Sisters High School football field after conquering Sunday’s Peterson Ridge Rumble 30k and 60k trail run, finishers swapped stories from the day while enjoying a barbecue lunch. When asked to comment about the quality of the experience one group of six runners all agreed that the tough course and beautiful weather combined with the strong race organization added up to a high quality experience. “Everything about the race was great,” said... Full story
The Outlaws baseball team defeated Cascade 12-8 at home on Thursday, April 7, to notch their first league win of the season. Tyler Trask led the offensive attack with three hits and two RBI. Andy Burke had two hits, including a double, and drove in two runs. Jeff Sampson recorded two hits and two RBI and Nate Jackson was good for a double. Sisters scored five of their 12 runs in the fifth inning. Coach Kevin Bigby said, “The runs came from a combination of our ability to h... Full story
Peggy Miller did not expect to become the administrator (principal) of Sonrise Christian School in Sisters. For that matter, she never expected to teach there. She has learned that many good things “happen by accident.” This arrangement will be expanded next year, when Miller will spend all of her time as administrator but at less than a full salary since she won’t yet have her administrative credential. If she receives a credential by the end of the year, she might becom... Full story
The Sisters School District last week “refunded” the 2001 bonds it sold to finance the construction of a new high school. The move will save money, but not as much as the school board hoped when it decided to pursue this option in February. Technically, the action is called an advance refunding of general obligation bonds. It’s similar to a homeowner’s mortgage refinance and is done for the same reason — to take advantage of interest rates that have dropped below those when the original deal was made. There is one significa... Full story
Sparky the Fire Dog made his first official visit to Sisters area children last week — only one day after arriving in town. Fire Marshal Dave Wheeler and other staff of the Sisters-Camp Sherman Fire District took Sparky on a visit to about 20 preschoolers at the Little Outlaws Learning Center at the Sisters Middle School on April 8. Fireman Matt Hodge had the honor of being the first to wear the brightly-colored costume with a large head of a Dalmatian dog. Purpose of the v... Full story
Sisters students from Sonrise Christian School tested their knowledge of history, science, math and religion against students from two other regional private schools on Thursday, April 7. They battled it out in the third annual High Desert Christian Schools Scholars’ Bowl held at Sonrise Christian School. This year’s competing schools were Trinity Lutheran School of Bend, Central Christian School of Redmond and Sonrise Christian School. Students were challenged with que... Full story
To the Editor: I would like to thank all persons for their comments for or against me. This helps encourage me to work harder. I would normally not disclose everything I do in the community (I feel this is personal) however as a Sisters School Board candidate I feel it is important to let the community know how I have been involved: Five years volunteering at Sisters Elementary School. This includes general classroom helper, testing, chaperoning, class parties, clean-up, etc.; 550 hours volunteering at the Sisters Hangar... Full story
The Japanese had a hard time letting go of feudalism. They took 500 years longer than Europeans to embrace the modern era. Japanese reluctance had a lot to do with the samurai. Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai (1954) is set in Japan’s Warring States Period (1467-1573). During this lawless age of civil wars, farmers were routinely attacked and pillaged by roving bands of brigands. Samurai, many of whom worked on farms between military assignments, were in great demand as independent Japanese states constantly fought each oth... Full story
As a (sometimes extreme) conservationist, I find the idea of human-caused species extinction incomprehensible and unforgivable. We know better. When a species is extinct, it’s gone. Done. Kaput; dead forever. Our power to send a species into oblivion was first documented in 1598 when Portuguese sailors landing on the shores of the island of Mauritius discovered a previously unknown species of gigantic pigeon, the Dodo, Raphus cucullatus. Having been isolated by its island l... Full story
Should Sisters restrict formula food restaurants? (Discussion began March 9) From John Rahm, Sisters The truest expression of democracy is clearly not Kevin Dumas’ notions about unfettered competition in “Now We’re Talkin,” but rather, by definition, government that responds to the will of the people and thereby serves their needs. With all due respect for the benefits of competition, I suspect you would look long and hard before you found a planner who shares Mr. Dumas’ definition of planning’s ultimate goal (to maximize co... Full story
Before “Play Ball” is called on Sisters’ Little League fields, Sisters volunteers must step to the plate in the “clean-up” spot. Volunteers are needed on Saturday, April 16, at 10 a.m., to prepare Sisters Little League baseball fields for the coming season. Parents, kids and anyone who can donate an hour or two are welcome. Two ball fields and adjoining areas will be spruced up and made ready for the April 23 opening day ceremonies. Fields need raking, bleachers need sweeping, batting cages need to be set up and sponsor s... Full story
The Lady Outlaws Softball team lost 7-6 at North Marion on Tuesday, April 5. Lead off hitter Crystal Jewell hit a single in the top of the first inning to get the Outlaws going. Cortney Peters followed with a double to right center to knock Jewell in for the first run of the game. Sisters scored one more run in the first and then rallied to score three more runs in the third. The final run for the Lady Outlaws came in the fifth inning. Jewell had two singles for Sisters and scored two runs. Peters finished with two hits,... Full story
Sisters area residents should start now to protect themselves against a potential onslaught of West Nile Virus. “We’re trying to get people to protect themselves now because mosquitoes are out,” said Shannon Dames, Communicable Disease Coordinator for Deschutes County Health Department. Dames said people should begin protecting themselves against West Nile Virus now through mid-summer when mosquitoes have been out longer and the virus is more rampant in the birdpopulation. West Nile Virus (WNV) is a potentially serious illne... Full story
