News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 1 - 20 of 20
It's hard to make up for more than a year away from family and friends in just one week, but Vern Johnson came pretty close this month. The National Guard veteran arrived home to Sisters after a tour of duty in Afghanistan to find the entrance to Junipine Acres festooned with yellow ribbons and the road to his house lined with some 300 American flags. Then, during the Sunday performance of the Sisters Rodeo on June 10, he was welcomed by the rodeo announcer and received a... Full story
The 11th annual Outlaw Open found a perfect day during Sisters traditional spotty June weather. The fund-raising golf tournament for Sisters High School's athletic programs marks the beginning of summer for many local folks. As the golfers came in from the 18th hole, there was no usual gathering around the leaderboard to find out who the winners were. With the new GPS system Aspen Lakes has installed in its golf carts, everyone knew their standings in real time. The result... Full story
Sisters Fire Chief Tay Robertson announced four competitors for the contract to build a new Sisters Fire Hall last Thursday in a public bid opening. Woodburn Construction Co. bid $3,439,850 on the project, with a 300-day construction schedule. Colamette Construction of Sherwood, Oregon offered a $3,453,877 bid on a 365-day schedule. Kirby Nagelhout Construction of Bend bid $3,565,000 on 365 days, and Todd Hess General Contractors of Portland bid $3,556,291 on a 300-day schedul... Full story
With heavy equipment raising a big dust on the fields of the Lazy Z at the east end of town, it appeared over the past two weeks that the City of Sisters was doing some work on the land that will be used for effluent dispersion from the city's wastewater treatment plant. However, the work is on a 4,000-foot waterline that will serve two residential parcels that lie across the highway from the city land. The properties are owned by Richard and Barbara Morrow and Sharon... Full story
To the Editor: In an article in the June 6th edition of this newspaper concerning Sisters School District's recent bond sale, I described the school board as "self righteous and arrogant." That was way too harsh and unkind, and I apologize to the board for it. ("Residents question school bond issue," The Nugget, June 6, page 3.) I am critical of the recent bond sale as it denies district voters the right to approve new debt for capital improvements and precludes a broader public discussion the proposal of a bond issue would... Full story
The Sisters School District borrowed $2.1 million this spring to finance much needed repairs to the elementary school and classroom renovation at the middle school. The district followed Oregon law to the letter, and the recent accusations of wrong-doing by Mr. Morgan and Mr. Yinger as reported in this paper reveal a complete misunderstanding of applicable law. In choosing its course of action, the board carefully considered four options: not undertaking the repairs; paying for them out of this year's budget; paying for them... Full story
School's out; the sun is shining - it's time to get the bikes out. Sisters is a great place to ride, but it can be dangerous. Sisters-Camp Sherman Rural Fire Protection District Fire Marshal Dave Wheeler is urging all riders to wear bicycle helmets and to observe traffic laws and safety rules while two-wheeling in the Sisters area. Children are of particular concern. More children ages five to 14 go to the hospital for injuries associated with riding bicycles than from any oth... Full story
A few months ago the Cloverdale Rural Fire Protection District (RFPD) formally adopted a new Oregon Fire Code and the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA 1142) standard for suburban and rural fire fighting. The ramifications of these changes have not yet been widely felt in the 40-square-mile Cloverdale district; the housing construction slowdown has kept their effects from becoming a visible issue in the public eye. "The code and standard require minimum water supplies for residential sprinkler systems," said Fire Chief... Full story
The U.S. Forest Service has quietly gone about replanting some 600,000 trees in areas damaged by wildfires over the last year. The work of the last few months has focused on restoring and improving habitat in the severely fire damaged areas surrounding Sisters. Although the lion's share of the work has been conducted by the Forest Service, the agency has received a lot of help from various community groups, organizations and individuals. "We had a lot of people that helped wit... Full story
Speeding on the streets of Sisters was at the top of citizens' lists of concerns aired last week at the first Coffee with the Sheriff program. Sheriff Larry Blanton met for two hours last Wednesday with citizens at the Sisters substation to hear their concerns about law enforcement issues and to sound them out about how their sheriff's office does its job. Frank and Jan Baldwin came out to tell Blanton about their concerns with speeders. "I workout at Cascade Fitness in the... Full story
Promoting world peace through meditation is the mission of ordained spiritual humanist minister Terri Daniel. Daniel, who is currently building a home in Sisters, officiated at a Group Meditation for World Peace last Thursday at the Old Stone Church in Bend. About 50 people, several of whom are Sisters residents, participated. Sisters musicians Katie Cavanaugh and Lynn Woodward sang a composition about peace. "It was a ceremony that I learned at a spiritual retreat last year from a man named Ken Harsh," said Daniel. Daniel... Full story
Summer is here, and that means hiking season is in full swing in the Central Oregon Cascades. Three Sisters Fellowship is once again offering a schedule of group hikes that includes something for all ages. Kim Barry, coordinator of the program, has put together twelve different hikes to choose from between June 22 and August 25, ranging from an easy saunter into Hand Lake to summiting the South Sister. "We have discovered over the years that many folks who have lived in Centra... Full story
Francis Robert Petersen died May 17, in Long Beach, Washington, of pneumonia. He was 82. He was born in Columbia County and raised in St. Helens and Aurora. He worked as a soil testing engineer for the City of Portland. He served in the submarine service in the U.S. Navy in World War II and moved to Portland in 1946. In 1985, he moved to Long Beach, Washington, where he resided until his death. He attended Iowa State college in diesel engineering and Oregon State University to study public works inspection. He is survived by... Full story
The stables at Black Butte Ranch were extra busy last Saturday and Sunday, June 16-17, when 17 SOAR (Sisters Organization for Activities and Recreation) kids arrived for horse camp. Amid the happy chaos that happens when trail rides are getting organized, the kids learned how to groom, saddle and control their mounts. The horse camp was a family affair for the Herman family, who own Equine Management, the concessionaire at the stables. Parents David and Sandra and a few close... Full story
Peter Rabbit (aka Naughty Bunny) was convicted on charges of trespass in Fairy Tale Court with Judge Toni Coleman presiding. However, Rabbit was found not guilty on the more serious charge of theft of vegetables. He was sentenced to 25 hours of community service. Toni Coleman, fourth grade teacher at Sisters Elementary School explained the proceedings for The Nugget. "This was an exercise in critical and creative thinking and analytical reading. These are high-achieving kids,... Full story
Dads celebrated Father's Day with a barbecue and live rock and roll from Ed Fitzjarrel and Decider on Sunday afternoon. It was the culmination of an activity-filled weekend and the kickoff of the resort's summer music season. The Lodge also hosted art demonstrations by Annie O'Mohondro and fly casting demonstrations by Jeff Perin of The Fly Fisher's Place. This season marks some changes at the resort. The Boathouse Restaurant has reopened. According to resort owner Ronda Sneva, she had closed the restaurant to convert it... Full story
Changes to the health care mechanism for school district employees have been mandated by the State of Oregon. However, it will be a number of years before the economic effects are felt by school district staff in Sisters - if ever. "For the teachers, there will be no effect for three years, as we have that under contract. However, the classified employees contract expires in just two years," said Sisters School District Superintendent Ted Thonstad. The new statewide educators' benefits pool passed in this legislative session... Full story
The Barclay Gallery held special showings over the last two weeks to bring public awareness to Hooves and Halos, a homegrown horse rescue charity in Redmond. "We try to do fund-raisers several times a year for different animal rescue facilities. Usually, we do these for the ones that are not well publicized and don't have a big marketing budget," said Sandra Mayernik, owner of The Barclay Gallery in downtown Sisters. "We don't usually raise a lot of money for them (there was... Full story
The patio behind Angeline's Bakery and Café will be bursting with sound on Saturday night, June 23. One of Sisters favorite guest artists, internationally-known, multi-instrumentalist Joe Craven will be back in town to entertain. Craven is known for making instruments out of most anything. "He goes into thrift stores and finds musical instruments out of lamp shades and out of bicycle parts," said Bend violinist Julie Southwell, who is opening Saturday night's show with... Full story
Helping people in Sisters celebrate life on a daily basis is the key goal for special events coordinator Erin Deggendorfer. Deggendorfer has been professionally involved in events planning for more than seven years, working in both the non-profit and private party arenas. Now, Deggendorfer is specializing in planning private events in Sisters and its surrounds. "What I want for Sisters is for people to take some time to celebrate each other and celebrate being with one another - the small things in life. A wedding is a big... Full story
