News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 26
With the Sisters School District facing $2 million to $3 million in cuts, the school board rejected a proposal to use early retirement incentives to cushion an anticipated reduction in force (RIF). The district will be sending out roughly 15 RIF notices to a mix of classified and certified (teaching) staff between April 25 - when the district begins to prepare its budget - and May 1. With the potential RIF in mind, the teachers union suggested that the district consider an early retirement incentive option. Superintendent... Full story
Juan Carlos Sanchez, former owner of Sisters Video, was sentenced by Judge Alta Brady of the Deschutes County Circuit Court on April 5 to a total of 275 months in prison after pleading guilty via an Alford Plea last month to charges of Rape I, Sexual Abuse II, Encouraging Child Sex Abuse and Coercion. An Alford Plea is a type of guilty plea in criminal court in which a person may assert a measure of innocence while admitting that the evidence and facts of the case will most likely result in a conviction by judge or jury. Sanc... Full story
Distinguished guests and loyal veterans turned out Wednesday evening at City Hall to pay tribute to Cecil Hector, a World War II veteran whose 60 years of service to the American Legion was honored with a special ceremony. Post Commander Gene Hellickson presented a humble and surprised Hector with a "Certificate of Continuous Membership" during the post's weekly meeting. The American Legion was founded in 1919 by veterans returning from Europe after World War I as a mutual-aid... Full story
To the Editor: Mr. Wessel stated in his guest column, "Social Security (SS), Medicare/Medicaid and defense are the biggest budget-busting items we have by far." Social Security is NOT part of the federal budget and has NOT contributed one cent to the deficit. It is a separate defined benefit retirement plan that may have funding problems in the future, but those can be remedied when the time comes. Medicare is a health insurance program for seniors that has some built-in future funding problems, but then, every health... Full story
It's that time of year again! The sun has been shining (sort of), the frogs have been chirping and everywhere in our beautiful town people are breaking out their walking shoes and leaving the car in the garage. As a habitual pedestrian, I walk or bike almost everywhere. I try to obey the laws of "hoofing it" to the best of my abilities and do the same when I drive. Not everyone is perfect but it seems that some people may need a refresher course on being a conscientious, respectful, and - most importantly - safe driver. Last... Full story
Central Oregon's semi-pro football team High Desert Lightning begins play with the home opener scheduled for Saturday, April 23, at Sisters High School. Game time is 6 p.m. Playing in the Pacific Football League with teams from Oregon and Washington, the Lightning hopes to improve on last year's results and make the playoffs this year. Practices have been underway for a few months now in the blustery and snowy weather, and the players hope that spring arrives in time for... Full story
Those were dark days. In the immediate aftermath of the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and the destruction of United Flight 93 in a field in Pennsylvania, the entire nation was plunged into a caldron of painful emotions. Shock. Grief. Anger. Jack McGowan, now living in Sisters, was then a Portlander, with his roots in New York City. He was consumed by a sense of depression and despair - and the need to DO something to push back against... Full story
A group of 20 Sisters High School students, teachers and parents returned Saturday from their whirlwind EF (Education First) spring break trip to London, Paris, and the Alps. Led by German teacher Isolde Hedemark, French teacher Susanna Harrison and former high school nurse Sally Benton, tour participants thoroughly enjoyed EF's approach to international education in breaking down barriers of language, culture and geography, and learning on the big stage instead of the... Full story
The Outlaws baseball team recorded its fourth straight league victory with an 8-2 win over La Pine at home on Friday, April 8. Three days earlier, Sisters defeated the Huskies 10-2 at Sweet Home. In Friday's action, Jordan Hodges and Erik Carlson combined forces and pitched a no-hitter against La Pine. Hodges pitched the first six innings and recorded 10 strikeouts, and Carlson came in as relief in the seventh and had one strikeout. Freshman Joey Morgan caught for the Outlaws... Full story
Sisters mountain biker Joel Palanuk is taking a shot at getting into the lineup for one of the sport's most prestigious races: The BC Bike Race. And it's up to folks in Sisters to help him get there. "It's a seven-day, eight-stage mountain bike race in British Columbia," Palanuk explained. Palanuk has been nominated for the Kazlaw Community Mountain Biking Award, which honors people who make mountain biking happen in their community. The prize is a spot in BC Bike Race 2011. P... Full story
The boys tennis team kicked off their week with a 4-4 tie against Madras on Monday, April 4, and a day later the Outlaws notched two wins; a 7-0 victory over Cascade and a 6-2 win against Canyonville. Sisters finished out their packed week of tennis at the White Buffaloes Invitational on Saturday, April 9. In Monday's action against Madras, Ben Fullhart, No. 1 singles, dominated his match against Ryan Fine and won in two straight sets, 6-0, 6-0. Austin Williams (No. 2 singles) beat Carlos Garcia in his first singles match of... Full story
Janis Quiròs took her 21st tour to Spain this spring. With the assistance of Gail Greaney, Ms. Quiròs took 18 students and two adults on a 12-day tour to Cinque Terre on the Italian coast, Nice, Barcelona and Madrid. The trip was flawless as students experienced travel by bus and street car, visited multiple museums and palaces, and had a phenomenal cultural experience. "I thought that the Cinque Terre, its people and culture were amazing. I wish we had had more... Full story
Governor John Kitzhaber has told the legislature he won't support "legislative entitlements for specific development projects, particularly where there is no demonstrated public benefit and no opportunity for local input." That stricture would seem to include Representative Gene Whisnant's House Bill 3372, which would exempt the proposed 1,500-acre "Cyrus Heritage Farm" destination resort development at Aspen Lakes from city or county land use planning control. On April 5, Governor John Kitzhaber sent a letter to both the Spe... Full story
Beau Fitzke scored four of his five goals in the fourth quarter to help Sisters come from behind and beat Mt. View 9-8 on Friday, April 8. The first half of the contest, both teams fought hard but played very sloppy lacrosse. "We were both trying so hard," said Coach Bill Rexford. "The energy and effort was there but neither team played clean or precise." The Outlaws found themselves down 4-2 at the half due to sloppiness on offense which forced their midfielders to play out of position. The Outlaws were out of sync and... Full story
Sykes Mitchell of Sisters was fined $4,200 last week in Saskatchewan, Canada, after a court found that he had failed to properly supervise a crew of teenaged boys who left more than 100 geese in a farmer's field instead of cleaning and processing them. Mitchell told The Nugget that he accepts responsibility for the failure of his employees to properly handle the game birds, and emphasized that he does not condone any wastage of game. The affair dates back to May 2009, when... Full story
• A woman signed a citizen's citation on a driver she said committed a traffic violation (see guest column, page 2). • The trailer hitch broke on a log truck heading eastbound on Highway 20 east of Sisters. The trailer drifted across the highway and plowed through a wire fence. There was no collision with any other vehicle and no one got hurt. • A woman reported phone calls from an ex-employee threatening to ruin her husband's business and reputation. The reporting party didn't want any law... Full story
Sisters author Jill Stanford took readers for a fun frolic back to the heyday of female trick ropers and riders of the West during a book chat Friday night at Paulina Springs Books. Her latest offering, "Wild Women and Tricky Ladies," is a tribute to the gallant gals of the rodeo whose daredevil antics atop a horse thrilled audiences around the world in the early decades of the 20th century. "The book was launched at last year's Pendleton Roundup, and it was wonderful," recalled Stanford. "Many of the famous trick riders and... Full story
After a one-year hiatus, thanks to the efforts of Brett Hudson and Rochell Curti, Sisters will have a Junior Little League team (13- to 14-year-olds) competing against teams from Madras, Prineville, Redmond, Bend, Warm Springs and La Pine. "I could see a need for development of the program with the high school only able to field a varsity team this year," said Hudson. "I talked with my daughter (Haylie) and asked her to go out and recruit her friends so that Sisters Little... Full story
The annual Peterson Ridge Rumble trail run included changes in its ninth edition as the distances for both categories were rounded up to an even 20 and 40 miles. The added distance appeared to have no negative impact on the 310 total participants, who seemed to literally take it all in stride, according to race director Sean Meissner. Local racer Josh Nordell came through with a win in the 20-mile race, finishing in 2 hours, 16 minutes and 13 seconds. After trailing much of... Full story
Nicky Blumm was the sole delegate from Sisters to the annual Model United Nations (MUN) conference in Eugene last week. Blumm, a Sisters High School sophomore, is pioneering Sisters' participation in the state-wide event. MUN replicates the actual United Nations, an international organization developed after World War II in an effort to maintain peace between and prosperity within nations. In the MUN program, students don the role of an ambassador from the UN member state they have chosen, debating, negotiating and crafting... Full story
The boys golf team has improved its scores with every match played and has high hopes to finish the season strong. The Outlaws took second place at the Aspen Lakes Invitational held on Friday, April 8. Stayton took first-place honors with a team score of 343 and Sisters, just two strokes back, posted their best score of the year at 345. Cottage Grove placed third (376), Sweet Home fourth (381), and Cascade fifth (396). Madras carded a 417 and Mt. View rounded out the scoring at 420. Zach Cummings played well on the front... Full story
The Lady Outlaws tennis team turned in a strong performance in their 6-2 win over the White Buffaloes at Madras on Monday, April 4. Amity Calvin (No. 1) played a very consistent and patient match against Shani Rehwinkel. Calvin capitalized on Rehwinkel's mistakes and won the match 6-2, 6-4. Megan Minke's power shots were difficult to return and helped Minke to dominate play in her 6-2, 6-4 win over Kayla Flowers. Chloe Stein (No. 3 singles) rolled over Stephanie Garcia 6-0, 6-0. "Chloe had a breakthrough in her game," said... Full story
Benjamin Dunn is a busy man. The alternative folk musician, songwriter and band leader is a seasoned road warrior, touring hard in support of his new CD "Circus of Love." That tour will bring him to Sisters Coffee Co. on Wednesday, April 20. But performing his music is only a part of a much broader mission for Dunn and his wife Stephanie. The couple, founders of the foundation Joy Revolution, travel the globe spreading their faith-based message of love and hope to the world's most downtrodden - people living in garbage... Full story
Prior to the start of the season this winter, coaches of the lacrosse team required drug testing of all players. Lacrosse is a club, or pay-to-play, sport run through the Sisters Park & Recreation District, so there was no requirement for a school board decision to institute the program. Coaches Bill Rexford and Andrew Gorayeb sent a letter to parents of the athletes informing them of that fact: After much research and reflection, we have decided that in order for us to meet... Full story
Betty Buehler of Sisters, Oregon, passed away on March 14, 2011. She died peacefully in her sleep. Betty was born Mary Elizabeth Lowe in Rochester, New York, on January 29, 1923. The Great Depression both revealed and forged her cheerful spirit. Among other things, she sold the apple and peach pies her mother baked to supplement the family income. After graduating from high school, Betty moved to New York City to attend the Traphagen School of Design. One of her favorite... Full story
