News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 1 - 23 of 23
Sisters High School graduate Alyssa Adler is living a life full of beauty and adventure. A day at work for Adler takes her on ocean voyages and deep beneath the frigid waters of Antarctica. She’s a polar diver, underwater educator, National Geographic Explorer, and is in her first year of a Ph.D. program at Duke University. She also describes herself as a professional fun-haver. “People forget it’s important to have fun. That’s a goal I try to keep at the forefront of my life... Full story
Richard Oscar Carlson died March 1 in Sisters, from COVID-19. He was 94. Carlson was born February 25, 1927, in Salt Lake City, Utah, to Oscar and Faye Carlson, a banker and an educator. He was married to Barbara Nelson from 1948 through 1972, and to Joanne Kitchel from 1975 until her death in 2016. The Carlsons settled in Sisters for retirement in 1987. Carlson received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Utah, later earning a doctorate from the University of C... Full story
Many of Sisters’ signature events have slid off the roster over the past year due to the coronavirus pandemic. While it might not be thought of in the same context as big music and art festivals and the Sisters Rodeo, Sisters Annual Lacrosse Invitational tournament (SALI) — which brings dozens of teams and thousands of people to town — has earned its place as one of Sisters premier events. And the community has felt its absence in May for two years running. Organiz... Full story
Erika Eckert and her family lived part-time in Sisters prior to relocating from Seattle full-time two years ago. An Oregon native, Erika resided in Seattle for 25 years raising a family and creating art. Eckert is one of 76 artists donating a piece of art for the My Own Two Hands (MOTH) community arts fundraiser put on by the Sisters Folk Festival. The virtual auction event is currently underway, running through May 15. Eckert donated a hand-painted velvet-canvas piece titled... Full story
“You know, Billy. We blew it….We blew it.” — from the 1969 landmark, counterculture film “Easy Rider.” Uttered by the character, Wyatt/Captain America, the quote in the epigraph comes close to the film’s closing scene, capturing his repugnance at what he and his sidekick, Billy, initiated on their cross-country trip atop their famous Harley-Davidson motorcycles. Actor Peter Fonda’s simple, reflective lines parallel our current COVID-19 crisis. This article upd... Full story
Mary Jo Weiss and Denny Tower have been working together in support of My Own Two Hands (MOTH) for over four years. The part that each of them plays to create a unique piece of jewelry for MOTH is extraordinary. Denny cuts and polishes the stone used in the jewelry, while Mary Jo designs the jewelry piece to display the stone’s perfection. The stones used by Tower have been collected over time during rock-hunting trips across the state, dating back to when he was nine years o... Full story
Sisters is surrounded by boutique cattle operations. Boutique as in generally small and appealing to a market of carnivores who want their beef local, humanely bred, fed, and managed. More and more our tastes for beef are only satisfied knowing that the cows lived a relatively stress- and chemical-free life. In March we reported on the regenerative farming trend in Sisters Country. Part of that practice is intensive rotational grazing, moving a herd every two to three days to... Full story
The Sisters School Board met Wednesday, May 5 for its regular monthly meeting, which was preceded by a Sisters School District Budget Committee meeting, at which the 2021-22 budget was approved. Details of the budget will appear in next week’s Nugget. Board members in attendance for the Zoom meeting included chair Jay Wilkins, Edie Jones, David Thorsett, Jeff Smith, and Don Hedrick. • In the wake of COVID-19 cases that required quarantining students at Sisters High School and the entire 6th grade at Sisters Middle S... Full story
As the spring season continues to progress toward summer, the frequency of warmer temperatures and clearer skies will increase. Take advantage of the last full month of spring to appreciate the still-dark night skies in our Sisters community, because with light pollution still on the increase the magnificent star-studded sight may not last forever. With the arrival of dusk during May, our featured constellation will slowly materialize nearly overhead. Positioned about 10 degre... Full story
Following a COVID-19-compelled closure of over 400 days, Sisters Movie House is finally reopening for business. The theater on the FivePine campus at the east end of Sisters will once again welcome back patrons on Friday, May 21. “It’s been an extremely long haul. I believe we are one of the last businesses in Sisters to reopen and probably the last movie theater in Central Oregon,” said Drew Kaza, co-owner of Sisters Movie House. “With the recent zigs and zags of Deschutes County virus numbers, and the changes in risk le... Full story
Sisters Folk Festival (SFF) is hosting its largest annual fundraiser and community arts celebration, My Own Two Hands: Holding Hope, through May 15. The organization is celebrating its 20th year of the event, honoring community building, visual arts, and the creative spirit. This year’s donations feature 84 pieces of art, from sculpture, to painting, jewelry, mixed-media, musical instruments, furniture, fabric arts and much more by regional artists. Proceeds from the art a... Full story
J.T. Bushnell, a 1998 graduate of Sisters High School, dreamed of writing a novel from an early age, but he did not reveal this to others during his youth. “I had the notion from a really young age to write a fiction novel, but to me, that was like saying I wanted to be a professional athlete,” he said. “So I told people I wanted to be a journalist instead. That seemed safer.” Though he kept the secret for many years, the desire never left, and on May 11, his novel “Step B... Full story
Several recent articles and letters to the editor in The Nugget Newspaper have highlighted the problems of light pollution in Sisters. One article by Jim Cornelius was about the proper shielding of lighting on houses, and a letter from Signe L. Johnson told about the brightening light dome over Sisters and surrounding cities which is causing the night sky to become much brighter. According to the astronomers at the Pine Mountain Observatory, which is located 26 miles east of Bend, the light from the light dome over Bend is pr... Full story
School bond To the Editor: Before my husband and I considered starting a family, we knew Sisters was where we wanted to raise our family due to the amazing school district and the way the community comes together and takes care of each other. Because of these reasons, I am urging people to vote YES for Sisters School District bond measure 9-141. We now have three children, two are enrolled in elementary school now and our third will be in kindergarten in two years. The school is past optimal capacity, running at 106 percent... Full story
The path isn’t completely clear yet, but Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show (SOQS) Executive Director Dawn Boyd reports the outlook is positive for a modified show Saturday, July 10. SOQS has submitted a health and safety plan for the outdoor event, and Boyd said that the City of Sisters has indicated that it is satisfied with it. The Deschutes County Health Department has to sign off, but that is not expected to be a major hurdle, Boyd told The Nugget. “We’ve had very, very posit... Full story
Hunters outraged by wanton slaughter of elk want to see poachers in the crosshairs of the law. The reward for information on a poaching case near Sisters has hit $10,000. In early April, the Oregon Hunters Association Bend, Redmond, Capitol, Josephine, and Mid-Columbia chapters, along with several private donors, pooled resources to increase the initial reward amount to $6,500. Additional private donations and an infusion of $1,000 from the OHA State Board last week raised the total to $10,000. Several thousand dollars of... Full story
Like communities across the nation, Sisters is grappling with the complex issues surrounding homelessness. Because of where it’s situated, Sisters’ homeless population largely camps on public lands in the Deschutes National Forest. Colleen Thomas is Deschutes County’s Homeless Services Coordinator. She and the county’s new Homeless Outreach Coordinator Katie DeVito are working with the Sisters Ranger District to reach out to that population. “We are working with the Forest Se... Full story
Many folks in Sisters have doubtless already turned in their ballots for the May 18 election. If not, it’s probably best to drop off ballots at the secure drop-off in front of Sisters City Hall (520 E. Cascade Ave.). Ballots must be received by 8 p.m. on Election Day to be counted; postmarks do not count. For Sisters Country, the election will decide some significant issues. Voters in the Cloverdale Fire District will decide whether to approve a five-year local option levy to fund enhanced emergency medical and fire r... Full story
The Outlaws boys tennis squad played at Mountain View on Monday, May 3, and two days later hosted part of Summit’s JV team. On Monday, the Outlaws played without No. 1 singles player Nate Weber. Sisters had three players rotate through singles and doubles sets against the lower half of Mountain View’s varsity players. Dexter Payne came back after losing in a doubles set, and defeated his opponent 8-4 in a singles pro set. Two days later, the Outlaws had four players ava... Full story
The Outlaws recorded wins in all three of their games last week: a 17-9 road win at Woodburn on Monday, May 3; a 5-0 shut out at Sweet Home on Wednesday; and a 8-4 win at home against Sweet Home on Thursday. In Tuesday’s action at Woodburn, the Outlaws found themselves in a deep 0-8 hole at the bottom of the opening frame. They made the necessary adjustments and went on to score 17 unanswered runs. Garret Vohs started the Outlaws’ scoring spree in the third inning. With the... Full story
Sophomore Ella Thorsett rewrote the Sisters High School record book for 3,000 meters at the Wally Ciochetti Twilight Invitational hosted by Cottage Grove High School last Friday evening Facing her rival Anika Thompson of Junction City, who bested Thorsett at last month’s state cross-country meet, Thorsett used the opportunity to shatter the former record by eight seconds with a time of 10:11.42. Kate Bowen held the previous record of 10:19.88, set in 2018. Thompson set her o... Full story
The Lady Outlaws hosted Mountain View on Monday, May 3, in their last regular match of the season. Sisters lost 3-5, but there were many well-fought contests with four of the eight going to a tiebreak. Juhree Kizziar (No. 1 singles) continued her winning streak with a 6-0, 6-1 victory over Kailei Ouellette, and improved her record to 7-3 overall. “Juhree is learning the finer intricacies of match play,” said Coach Alan VonStein. “She continues to put in the necessary extra tim... Full story
“It’s 7 a.m. on an ordinary fall day in Sisters. I slowly open my eyes and realize that my husband, Tom, has already been up for a while. He has raked the entire property of pine needles and is now stretching next to the woodstove where he is stoking the fire. In addition to all that, he excitedly makes his famous breakfast egg scramble with bacon and sautéed breakfast potatoes. He’s excited to start the day and pour his love over our family. He knows that it will... Full story
