News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 29
As a new player becomes involved in plans for senior housing facilities in Sisters, the developers of the property where the facilities will be housed are seeking changes to a recent annexation agreement. Last December, the City of Sisters and the owners of the 30-acre McKenzie Meadows Village property signed an agreement to annex the land into the city. The property is owned by Bill Willitts, Curt Kallberg and the Reed family, all Sisters residents. Intended for a senior living community, the property lies on the west edge... Full story
After working through more than 30 applications, the Sisters School Board and a committee of school staff and citizens landed on three final candidates: Heather Cordie of Redmond Schools, Jim Golden of High Desert ESD, and Dr. Brooke MacNamara of Ruamrudee International School in Bankgok, Thailand. Since the finalists were selected, Cordie has taken another position, leaving two finalists who visited with Sisters school officials and local citizens Monday evening. Everybody associated with the process is hopeful that Sisters... Full story
Extensive work on Cloverdale Road between Highway 126 and Highway 20 began last week as the Deschutes County Road Department started a project they call Cloverdale Road Reclamation. The almost $1 million project is necessary because of the rapidly deteriorating cinder base and the steadily increasing truck traffic on Cloverdale Road. Trucks are reportedly traveling the Wilt Road-Camp Polk Road-Cloverdale Road route to avoid the scales on Highway 20. A deteriorating base... Full story
To the Editor; Mr. McGregor's last letter (The Nugget, Letters to the Editor, April 28) should have started and ended with his comment "I realize that I have no business getting attached to someone else's land. That land belongs to the Cyruses." What a world we now live in that it is everyday practice to get involved in what you consider the wrongdoings of your neighbors. It is also my opinion that I would fully support what ought to be a new special-interest group called "Hey, I'm a landowner. What the heck happened to my ri... Full story
The name Jeni Foster will always bring on a smile to those who have longtime ties to Camp Sherman. Foster taught music and entertained the residents of Camp Sherman for several years - right up until she and her husband Bill moved to Grants Pass in 2000. But Foster is coming back to sing for and with her audience on Saturday afternoon, May 18, in the Sisters Library Community Room at 1:30 p.m. This will be a free concert - first-come-first-seated - presented by The Friends of... Full story
Bringing new businesses to Sisters - and keeping the ones that are here - is proving to be a challenge for the citizen volunteers who have taken on that mission. The Sisters Business Attraction and Retention Team (SBART) has been working on attracting and retaining businesses for about 16 months. Team members include Mac Hay (Chair), Jerry Bogart (Vice Chair), Patty Vandiver (Project Manager), David Winter, Bill Willitts, Erin Borla, Lisa Clausen and John Tehan - all Sisters residents. "SBART is the 'rapid response... Full story
Two years ago, the Ford Family Foundation Leadership Program came to Sisters to offer training to citizens interested in taking a leadership role in their community. It was successful in bringing Sisters community members together to plan and implement a project that would benefit the Sisters Country. They completed the Sisters Middle School Pavilion project, resulting in a new structure to be used as a concession stand during sporting events and by students needing a shady... Full story
The boys golf team finished third out of six teams at the Mt. View Invitational on Thursday, April 29. They had tied for a fourth-place finish with Thurston at the Bend Summit Challenge three days earlier. Crook County took first place at Awbrey Glen in Thursday's Mt. View Invitational Tournament with a score of 330. Bend High was runner-up at 340 and Sisters placed third at 346. Mt. View shot 367, Madras 386 and La Pine finished at 420. Aaron Simundson played very well and led the Outlaws with a 79. Simundson shot a 42 on... Full story
Acting schools superintendent Dennis Dempsey surprised Bob Grooney at the monthly Sisters Kiwanis meeting last week with an award acknowledging his service on the Sisters School Board during the 1990s. The award given by the High Desert Educational Service District acknowledged how instrumental Grooney was in creating the FLEX alternative school (now facing the budget ax) and the SOAR (Sisters Organization for Activities and Recreation) program, which evolved into Sisters Park... Full story
Sisters students went on a spending spree last Saturday night. It wasn't iPods or clothes the students put $5,000 into - it was their community. The Sisters High School Leadership class hosted a dessert gathering to distribute funds they were awarded through a program called Community 101. Teacher Bill Rexford wrote a grant to the program and turned it over to leadership advisor Kristi Rawls. Bank of the Cascades, PGE Foundation and the Doris Coombs Thomas Fund of the... Full story
Central Oregon artists make up a big swatch of the rich fabric of talent showcased on OPB's Oregon Art Beat, seen each week on OPB. On May 20, Oregon Art Beat will visit Sisters to celebrate those artists. The public is invited to a special artful evening at Sisters Movie House on Thursday, May 20. Guests will preview a special Oregon Art Beat retrospective with clips of some of the extraordinary Central Oregon artists featured on the program over the past 11 years. Among them: Kathy Deggendorfer; J. Chester (Skip)... Full story
Whychus Creek, the once over-allocated irrigation ditch, is coming back to life for wildlife. It's happening because of all the restoration projects and the abundance of tender, loving care provided by the Upper Deschutes Watershed Council (UDWC). That TLC comes most recently from Samra Spear's junior biology class at Sisters High School. Last Friday, the entire class descended on the Wolftree holdings along Whychus Creek to carry out a planting and weed-control project... Full story
Arbor Day is celebrated only one day of the year, but a tree can last a lifetime. Mayor Lon Kellstrom read the Arbor Day Proclamation at City Hall on April 22, and again on April 30 at Sisters Overnight Park, proclaiming April 30 to be Arbor Day in the City of Sisters, urging everyone to celebrate Arbor Day and plant trees for future generations. April 22 is the official day to observe Arbor Day in Nebraska, the birthplace of J. Sterling Morton, born April 22, 1832, and founde... Full story
Work crews are continuing to work on Sisters streets, adding parking, sidewalks, and providing safer walking areas. "We're adding 110 parking spaces in the downtown district from Hood to Adams and Pine to Locust," said Director of Public Works Brad Grimm. Funds for the project, which costs approximately $250,000, are from parking fees paid by property owners and from SDC (System Development Charges) funds. It's all part of the new TSP (Transportation System Plan) approved by... Full story
The Sisters High School varsity softball team recorded a 3-1 victory over Marist on April 29, ending the Spartans' 59-game Sky-Em League winning streak. The two-time defending 4A State champions and No. 1-ranked team in Oregon had not lost a league game since 2005. The victory at Marist moved the No. 4-ranked Outlaws into a tie for the Sky-Em League lead. Both teams are 7-1. Overall, the Outlaws are 16-4. The victory total is the most in school history, surpassing the 15 of... Full story
It was a great day to be an Outlaws senior at the Dick Baker Track and Field Invitational, as some of the Sisters 12th graders had career bests. Parker Bennett destroyed the school record for 3,000 meters, running alone at the head of the pack to win in 8:49.92, breaking Daniel Kemp's 1996 record of 8:55. Bennett's mark is the fifth best among all high school runners in Oregon thus far. Bennett now owns the top marks in school history for 1,500, 3,000, and 5,000 meters. Anothe... Full story
A five-course gourmet dinner was served to 30 guests at Jen's Garden on May 4 to raise funds for scholarships for women of Sisters to pursue education beyond high school. The event was co-sponsored by TR and Jennifer McCrystal, owners and operators of Jen's Garden, and the Sisters chapter of PEO, a national philanthropic and educational organization. More than $2,500 was raised. During the planning session for the event, TR explained, "We want to be part of the community... Full story
Sisters Country's very first pet parade drew a large turnout of pets and owners as it traveled down Hood Avenue, culminating in a May Day celebration at Village Green Park. Parade organizer, Jeri Buckmann of the Sisters Area Chamber of Commerce, led the parade with her dog Jake, a beautiful golden retriever. Dogs of all shapes and sizes, a rabbit, and even some alpacas rounded out the parade, some in costume, most bundled slightly to accommodate the chill in the air. Bend... Full story
On Monday, April 26, a memorial plaque was unveiled in the State Capitol to honor James "Mike" Yankey, 60, of Sisters who lost his life while working for the Oregon Department of Transportation. Yankey's daughter, Jessica Yankey, attended the ceremony in front of the transportation building in Salem, along with relatives of two other ODOT employees who died in the line of duty within the past year. Yankey was killed in an accident on November 30 while repairing a snowplow at... Full story
Jim King is not satisfied that the truth ever came out about the B&B fire of 2003. A newcomer to Camp Sherman, King is organizing a group to press for a reopening of the investigation into the cause of the fire, which burned more than 90,000 acres and twice forced the evacuation of Camp Sherman. The group will host a public meeting on Monday, May 10, 7 p.m. at the Camp Sherman Community Hall in an attempt to reignite inquiry into the cause of the Booth and Bear fires, officially determined to have been lightning caused. The... Full story
The Friends of the Sisters Library (FOSL) has announced the release of the second edition of its highly popular cookbook "What's Cooking in Sisters." The cookbook, a compilation of tasty recipes from many cooks in the Sisters Country, was first published in 1996 to raise funds for a new library. Over a 10-year period, the cookbook sold 6,500 copies and raised about $65,000 for the new library, dedicated in January 2005. The new edition retains all of the recipes but has made changes to some of the introductory material and... Full story
Local nurses Amber Carlson, Mary Ellen Salomone and Katherine Weiser bring to Sisters the concept of faith community nursing. Together the trio has 92 years of nursing experience and the desire to be there for those in need. Parish nursing is the integration of the practice of nursing with the beliefs of a religious community. A person must be a registered nurse (R.N.) and complete a parish nursing program in order to be called a parish nurse, church nurse, or faith community... Full story
Seth Norman has a lot of friends. They gathered in numbers last week to participate in a Soup For Seth Fundraiser organized by Sisters High School's Sparrow Club. Norman has been diagnosed with non-Hodgkins B Cell lymphoma and has been undergoing chemotherapy treatments. The fundraiser was designed to help his family with expenses associated with Seth's care - and, just as importantly, to show support for an ailing comrade. The turnout astonished the organizers. "It was an... Full story
A long-time Florence, Oregon, family ice cream business has opened up a new location in downtown Sisters. BJ's True Old Fashioned Batch Ice Cream has it's doors open in Barclay Square on Cascade Avenue, serving old fashioned batch-made ice cream, home-made fudge and Sisters Coffee Company coffee. "We've always liked the old store," says Brian Cole, referring to the former Rainbow Connection, "and when it came available, we jumped at the chance." In late February, Brian's son,... Full story
The boys tennis team lost 4-1 to Henley on Saturday, May 1; a day earlier the Outlaws fell 5-2 to Mt. View. Sisters' match with Henley was scheduled to be played at Black Butte Ranch, but the courts were so soaked with rain the match was moved to Pine Meadow. Since there were only two courts the match was abbreviated, and just the top two singles and top two doubles teams played. The Outlaws and the Hornets battled against swirling wind that took balls that would have been well in completely out of the court. Colby Gilmore... Full story
