News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 1 - 24 of 24
The overall funding crisis for Sisters school programs has hit the middle school sports program hard. "We are $29,000 in the red for middle school operating costs," Sisters Middle School Principal Mark Stewart told the school board last week. "As I go through this, the bottom line is that we have two options. Option one is we cut middle school sports completely. Option two is that we take a good look at what we have developed (a partnership with Stewart and Sisters Park & Recreation District (SPRD). Business Manager Anne Heat... Full story
Quilts are still what it's all about, but over the past three decades, the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show has evolved into a major cultural event for Central Oregon. Quilting and music came together last week in a moving presentation of story and song with students and alumni from Sisters' Americana Project performing with the famed quilters from Gee's Bend, Alabama. The show also featured quilts from A Quilted Forest, an exhibition that hung at the Oregon State Fair. "When we got... Full story
Keith Schmidtke, 35, of Sisters, was arrested Saturday night in connection with an alleged attempted robbery in La Pine. According to Deschutes County Sheriff's Office reports, Deschutes County 911 received a call at about 5 p.m. reporting several subjects were standing in the middle of Burgess Road having a verbal argument. The group was then seen leaving the area in their vehicles. At one point, 911 received a broken cell-phone call reporting that one vehicle was being chased and shot at by the occupant of another vehicle.... Full story
Their faces were streaked with dirt, but they had a certain glow about them that wasn't just sunburn. The 12-person "Red" Crew of the Northwest Youth Corps, a youth development and outdoor education organization, spent last week undertaking the largest restoration project ever performed on the summit of Black Butte. They improved one of Central Oregon's favorite hiking trails, restored habitat - and rescued a baby golden eagle to boot. The mountaintop has been the most... Full story
To the Editor: I find it amazing but not surprising that most of the city council has no interest in finding out what Mac Hay did last year in his economic development job that is paid for with taxpayer dollars. They don't even want to know what he is going to do in the next year. I've found this to be typical behavior for the City of Sisters in my 11 years here. No one knows what city staff does and they seem to have no job descriptions. Their main goal appears to be keeping business owners from putting up signs. This is a... Full story
Sisters Park & Recreation District (SPRD) will host a family night in the park on Tuesday, July 19, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Village Green. The community is welcome to bring their friends, family, and neighbors and come out to enjoy a $1 hamburger or hotdog dinner. The evening will feature the music and memories of the Big Band Era with music from the '30s, '40s and '50s. The Notables Swing Band will serve up favorites from such bands as Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller, and Harry James. The 19-member band is a spin-off of... Full story
Magic happened in Sisters last week, in a tent under a warm evening sun. Hundreds of people gathered Tuesday, July 5, to witness the bond formed by six Americana Project students and the women from Gee's Bend, Alabama. The Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show and Sisters Folk Festival hosted an evening musical performance bringing together generations and cultures through music and quilting. The women came from an isolated rural community near the Alabama River that was once the site... Full story
Ky Karnecki's new Wild Mountain fruit stand at the corner of South Locust and Highway 20 is officially open for business and stocked with summer specialty fruits and gourmet jerky. The roadside market features the best in ranch-raised game jerky from Karnecki's grandfather's special marinades, fresh Bing and Rainier cherries, blueberries, strawberries and morel mushrooms. His previous stand operated at the corner of Camp Polk Rd. and Highway 126 for almost a year before he... Full story
Outlaws athletes are using their summer to get in top shape through the Outlaw Strong strength and conditioning program. The program started Tuesday, July 5, and will continue through August 12. Athletes will utilize the six weeks of training to be stronger and more structurally sound as they head into the fall season. Sisters High School (SHS) physical education/health teacher, Kevin Cotner, told The Nugget that the whole concept of Outlaw Strong was based on realizing that the culture of Outlaws athletes needed to be... Full story
• Ground work has begun on the new location for Sisters Subway. The sandwich shop will move from its current location to a new, much larger location at Outlaw Station, next door to South Valley Bank. • As a fundraiser for Andy Hartford's family, a raffle is being held with a long list of Sisters merchant giveaways as prizes. Purchase tickets at Bright Spot Juice & Java or Ski Inn. The drawing will be held at the end of July. Cost is $2 per ticket or... Full story
Often, as the afternoon sun wanes over the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, an uninvited guest blows in: the wind. Fabric masterpieces flutter and flap, threatening to break free. Yet every year their fate is secure, thanks to the steadfast presence of the Quilt Rescue Team (QRT) - a highly organized volunteer crew, devoted to assuring that no harm will befall the town's textile treasures. Are the QRT superheroes? As of yet, they don't wear capes. But they have indeed proven to be... Full story
In the Islands, Ohana means family, and owner Charlie Bunker and his family want to bring a taste of Hawaii to Sisters with the opening of Ohana, his new Hawaiian-style plate lunch takeout counter. Situated beside Sisters Market, that spirit of aloha is evident from the savory smells wafting from the kitchen and the smiles of happy customers digging into their Polynesian meals. Bunker has owned Sisters Market for the past two years, and was trying to think of something... Full story
Sisters Country artists will be drawn to Indian Ford Meadow Preserve and surrounding properties on Saturday, July 23 to paint scenes of the community preserve, protected and owned by the Deschutes Land Trust. The National Forest Foundation (NFF) and U.S. Forest Service will host the Third Annual Plein Air Paint-Out at this picturesque meadow, an important wildlife haven crossed by Indian Ford creek, a tributary of Whychus Creek. The paint-out will help to offer an artists' eye and appreciation of the natural resources and... Full story
This spring, volunteers from Sisters Americana Project and the community gathered at Sisters Art Works and finished the renovation of the back concert lawn. Volunteers worked all day putting the finishing touches on what is the latest and largest outdoor concert venue in Sisters. The venue received over 300 square feet of fresh sod, two swales decorated with pine trees and wildflowers and a wooden fence lined with young aspen trees. In celebration of the venue's facelift,... Full story
• A man fought with the deputy who stopped him on suspicion of drunk driving. The deputy tasered the man and eventually got him arrested and lodged. • A driver complained about a man's driving on Highway 20 headed toward Bend. A deputy talked to the subject driver and his passenger - who was also concerned about the man's driving. The fellow promised to drive safely all the rest of the way to Arizona. • Deputies arrested a man for trespassing after he entered a woman's home wanting to talk to... Full story
Building on the success of last year's "Live at the Ranch" summer concert series, Black Butte Ranch announces the line-up for the 2011 series. This summer's three concerts will kick off with the roots music of South Carolina's Dangermuffin on Sunday, July 24 at 5 p.m., followed by shows on Sunday, August 21, and Sunday, September 4. The second concert will feature the big band sounds of Portland's own Shanghai Woolies an eight-piece band formed by Pink Martini's trumpeter... Full story
Anthony "Andy" Earl Hartford, age 32, left this world on July 5, 2011. Born and raised in Sisters, Oregon, Andy was a loving, generous and proud family man. He especially enjoyed being outdoors, riding dirt bikes and fishing with his family. He was a jack-of-all-trades and a master of each of them. Andy had a relentless desire to better his family's lives. He has been sober for the last 5 years and was going to COCC to become a helicopter pilot. Andy's successes in life were... Full story
Alexander George Kary was a member of the Sisters community since 1999. Alex was born and educated in Chicago, Illinois, and moved to the Northwest at the age of 16. He served in the Marines in World War II. Alex had many occupations including working in the Forest Service, logging and as a finish carpenter. Alex was an avid outdoorsman. His hobbies included prospecting for gold, hunting, skiing, and he loved restoring old pick-ups. Al loved his family. He is preceded in... Full story
Jacob May was born June 1, 1990, in Portland, Oregon, to Gregory Million and Lisa (Bryan) May. He was a Sisters High School graduate, and was planning on attending George Fox University in the fall. He had completed a couple terms at Ecola Bible School in Cannon Beach, Oregon. He enjoyed woodworking and construction. Jacob is survived by his mother; brother Jared May; and sisters Kelsey and Jackie May. He was preceded in death by his father, Gregory Million. Please sign the online guestbook at http://www.redmondmemorial.... Full story
Thomas Nelson Piper died June 24, 2011 at St. Charles Medical Center in Bend. He was 75. Tom grew up on the Punahou School campus in Honolulu, Hawaii, where his father was head of building and grounds. Tom worked for WESCO in California and more recently as an independent businessman in Honolulu. He moved with his wife, Frederica, to Sisters in 2007, where he pursued his passion for fly fishing. He is survived by his wife, Frederica Pohle Piper, of Madison, Wisconsin; his two sons Jeffrey and Richard of Honolulu; Jeffrey's... Full story
Beloved husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather A. John Marcoux passed away with his family by his side on July 9. He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Weibi; children Janice (Art) Thenell of Redmond, Jon (Susan) Marcoux of Sisters and Jeff (Sherry) Marcoux of South Plainfield, NJ; grandchildren Vanessa Herberger of Bend, Jonathan and Ryan Marcoux of South Plainfield, NJ; great-grandchildren Josie and Easton Herberger of Bend and his Sister Julie (Jay)... Full story
There are few things cuter than a baby alpaca, and with three new baby alpacas, and four more due any day now, Panorama Ranch is ripe with cuteness. The seven new additions will bring the herd back to the desired number of 25. "That number is manageable for us," said Barbara Pieper. The Pieper family operates the 50-acre ranch east of Sisters, where they breed and raise alpacas. A baby alpaca is called a cria and is born after an 11.5-month gestation period. A female alpaca... Full story
As anyone driving into Sisters from the west on a busy summer weekend can tell you, the traffic gets heavy. That has the Oregon Department of Transportation - and members of the Sisters City Council and the Deschutes County Board of Commissioners - concerned about the long-term prospects for the road that is Central Oregon's connection with the western half of the state. "In the Sisters area all the county roads work fine in the 2030 Travel Demand Forecasting Model. The only... Full story
Last Friday, three home-schooler families from Bend gathered at the Sisters Ranger District parking lot at 9 a.m., where they met up with me and my wife, Sue. The occasion was the Annual North American Butterfly Association (NABA) Fourth of July Metolius Butterfly Count. For 25 years, Sue has been taking people (mostly families) on two official counts in early summer. The first one goes over to the Ochocos on the last Saturday in June, where the counters spend the day looking... Full story
