News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 1 - 24 of 24
Several Sisters area streams have below-standard water quality, according to an updated analysis by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). All the local streams were listed due to elevated water temperatures. According to Bonnie Lamb, a natural resources specialist with the Bend DEQ office, temperature is only one of several criteria used in water body evaluation. She pointed out, however, that temperature is an obvious factor and does not preclude the existence of other problems for which data do not exist. Sq... Full story
Pay attention, folks... The new alternate route through Sisters claimed its first accident last week. Fortunately, nothing more than metal was crunched in the non-injury accident, but it served as a public reminder that Barclay Drive is now a through street and Pine Street now has a stop sign. According to Deschutes County Sheriff's Deputy Allan Borland, Traci Tandy was driving her 1996 Ford Windstar eastbound on Barclay Drive when she T-boned a 1983 Ford Ranger pickup driven by Manuel Menendez Valdovinos. Valdovinos was... Full story
Molalla High School has banned a young man from school athletic events after he was identified as having yelled racial slurs directed at a black Sisters player during a September 16 soccer game. Coach Mark Keel and his players left the field with a few minutes remaining on the clock, feeling that the atmosphere was threatening. Some witnesses indicated that more than one adult spectator was involved. However, an investigation by Molalla Principal Roy Reynolds found that only the one young man was responsible for shouting the... Full story
Nancy Dempsey administers a hearing test on Austin Nicholson. Sisters children got their vision and hearing checked last week during the first visit of the Oregon Lions Mobile Screening Unit on Friday, September 27. Screeners offered free hearing and eye tests for all first and second grade students at the Sisters Elementary school. "We are testing for visual acuity, and we also test the children on how well they see up close," Dick LeFrancis, MSU facilitator, explained. "The school district wanted us to test the first and... Full story
When Bob and Shawn Taylor moved their three ranch estates from Western Oregon, they didn't have room for all the stuff. "We couldn't keep it all," said Shawn Taylor. "So we decided to auction it all off and give the proceeds to a good cause." The Taylors chose the Three Sisters Lions Club (which sponsors Habitat for Humanity in the Sisters area) as the recipient of their fund-raiser. "Bob used to be a Lion, and I'm with the Kiwanis -- but we thought the Lions would be great to work with," said Taylor. The auction was held... Full story
Eighth graders re-sided an outhouse at Suttle Lake as part of an outdoor school program. Sisters middle schoolers helped restore forest facilities and trails and replanted burned areas last week as part of their Outdoor School experience at Suttle Lake. Ninety-six eighth grade students, 15 high school counselors and a host of adult helpers gathered at the Suttle Lake Methodist Camp for the sixth annual Eighth Grade Leadership Retreat. "The retreat was started in conjunction with the Forest Service," said Tricia Biesman, who h... Full story
The big white tent that has taken up residence throughout September in the Sisters Village Green Park now is in the hands of CATS (Community Action Team of Sisters). On Thursday, September 26, the Sisters City Council voted to disburse $2,000 to CATS to help defray the cost of the community tent. The money had already been approved. "It's only a part of the cost of the tent," City Administrator Eileen Stein noted. "The Forest Service was going to give $7,500, but with all the forest fires they've had to fight, they ran out... Full story
Representatives from over 80 institutions of higher learning will be on hand Tuesday, October 8 at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds in Redmond at the first annual Central Oregon College Fair. The fair will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and is free to the public. Parents and students are invited to visit representatives from colleges throughout the Northwest and from across the country. Juniors and seniors from Sisters High School are slated to attend from 9:30 to 11 a.m. Students are required to sign up and turn in a... Full story
The No. 2 ranked Sisters football team continued to look impressive last week by rolling up a big lead and then cruising to a 35-8 win over Philomath on Friday, September 27. The Outlaws began the scoring on their second possession by putting together a 53-yard drive in seven plays. Ryan Harper took the option and ran 30 yards for the key play. Quarterback Pat Burke capped the drive by hitting Jawan Davis with a 10-yard touchdown pass, and the home team had a 7-0 lead. "We started off with some penalties, a couple of drops,... Full story
A change in the weather helped mule deer hunters after a slow-starting opening weekend September 28-29. Biologist Stephen George of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife said success rates for opening weekend were at about 8 percent, down from a 10-12 percent average. However, when weather turned chilly at the beginning of the week and snow began to fly in the higher elevations, rifle hunters began to score. "With this cooler weather and the snow we've been having... the... Full story
Just toss it all together... Gone are the days when Sisters residents painstakingly separated their recyclables -- newspaper, clear glass, colored glass, aluminum, tin... Now we just chuck most everything in a bin together, only keeping cardboard and paper separate. This process, called "comingling" in the trade, has given rise to some concerns among local recyclers. Does all that junk really get separated out and recycled, or does it just get dumped back into a landfill? It... Full story
Funds are now in hand for the construction of a restroom facility at the proposed Harold Barclay Park on Ash Street in downtown Sisters. Last Thursday, September 26, the Sisters City Council entered into a grant award contract with the Central Oregon Intergovernmental Council (COIC) to receive the grant funds. "This gives us the authority to enter into a grant contract," City Administrator Eileen Stein said. "The city will receive close to $34,000. I'm not sure of the final number amount. It has fluctuated up and down,... Full story
Jordan Beck sprints to a personal best time. The varsity boys and girls cross country squads both won team titles at the Silver Falls Invitational on Thursday, September 26 -- without the number one runner from either team. Resa Hodson was unable to finish the girls' race, but her teammates scored an impressive 21-point victory nonetheless. The boys came through with an exciting one-point victory without the services of Alex Templar, who took the day off to help with Sisters Middle School's eighth grade retreat. Anna Morton... Full story
Mike Riehle (second from left) answers a question for Norma Funai. Fish biologist Mike Riehle led a group of hikers to some of his favorite spots in and around the Metolius River under sunny skies on Saturday, September 28. Riehle displayed Kokanee salmon spawning spots near Lake Creek as it enters Metolius waters. "This is the best of two worlds as warmer water from Lake Creek mixes with colder river water," said Riehle. "It promotes diversity and health of river life and can be seen in the variety of aquatic insects and... Full story
Sisters won praise from a group of international directors for Good Samaritan Ministries during a visit last month for the community's contributions to the organization. Several of the directors gave first-hand reports of how the funds raised by the annual Sisters Act Talent show were being used to build schools and help the poor in their countries. The 34 internationals -- who represent 26 countries -- visited Sisters during their month-long "Building International Community" conference in September. Osborn Muyanja, who has... Full story
The United States served as neutral ground last month for directors of Good Samaritan Ministries -- like-minded altruists, who are sometimes separated by national conflicts. Reverend Yesuratnam of India and David Bhatti of Pakistan enjoyed spending time together during their September "Building International Community" conference -- something that would be illegal in their native countries. "David is my brother in the Lord," said Yesuratnam, "but we can't even speak to each other over the phone in our countries. "It is... Full story
Workers learned on the job how to build using straw bales. Some 30 people gathered northeast of Sisters last weekend to put their training in alternative construction to work in building a straw bale building for Janet Zuelke and Forrest Babcock. The work crew was part of a straw bale construction workshop sponsored by Central Oregon Community College and Earth Connections-Oregon. The workshop participants got an intensive, hands-on education in straw bale construction and... Full story
The Lady Outlaws soccer team lost 5-4 in a hard fought battle at North Marion on Wednesday, September 25. Sisters found themselves down 1-0 early in the game when an attempted save by Keeper Kira Durand deflected off her leg and the ball slid into the net. Within five minutes Krista Pagano crossed the ball to Rose Slavkovsky, who at 30 feet out booted the ball in to score and tie the match at 1-1. The game remained tied until Slavkovsky centered the ball to Pagano inside the goal box. Pagano drilled the ball into the left... Full story
This '33 Ford (Vicky) with a 350 Chevy crate motor was featured at Sisters Airport. About 15 hot rods showed up for the Third Annual Showdown, Chowdown and Hoe-down at the Sisters Airport on Sunday, September 29. Sisters-area car lovers showed up in a variety beautiful hot rods, from Steve McGhehey's '56 Chevy Bel Air to event organizer Ed Johnson's '67 supercharged Ford Fairlane, a '72 DeTomaso Pantera with a "far from stock" 351 Cleveland and a '40 Chevrolet with a new 350 cubic inch motor that purred like a kitten until... Full story
The Sisters girls varsity volleyball team got its first taste of league action last week, defeating Molalla at home and then losing a heart-breaker at Cascade. On Tuesday, September 24, the Outlaws hosted Molalla and beat the Indians handily in four games; 25-14, 25-18, 23-25, 25-14. "It was good to open in league play with a win," Coach Chris Crosby said. "It was also good that we got to play everybody." Bethany Benhower led the attack with 10 kills. Stephanie Pledger contributed with 39 assists. On defense, Chelsea Hill had... Full story
The Sisters Library's Preschool Parade program "Birds of a Feather" will be held on Thursday, October 3, at 10:30 a.m. Each Preschool Parade session features stories, finger rhymes, lap jogs, tickles and movement skills appropriate for children ages three through six years old. Parents or caregivers attending are encouraged to participate in all the activities. The Sisters Public Library is located at 291 E. Main Ave. For more information call 549-2921.... Full story
"Girls just want to have fun" was the theme of this year's Sisters in Sisters celebration. Over 200 women from around the country gathered together last weekend to celebrate the bond between sisters. "That's actually been the theme every year," said Leart Jett, who helped coordinate this year's event. "We intentionally tied Sisters in Sisters to the first weekend of hunting season. While the guys are out hunting, the girls get together and have fun." The fifth annual Sisters in Sisters drew women from as far away as New York... Full story
The Nugget welcomes contributions from its readers, which must include the writer's name, address and phone number. Letters to the Editor is an open forum for the community and contains unsolicited opinions not necessarily shared by the Editor. The Nugget reserves the right to edit, omit, respond or ask for a response to letters submitted to the Editor. Letters should be no longer than 300 words. Unpublished items are not acknowledged or returned. The deadline for all letters is noon Monday. To the Editor: In response to the... Full story
- Deputies responded to a report of a pair of suspicious men loitering around a local hotel, waiting for a room. One of the men gave a false name to a deputy, possibly because when he gave his real name, it had a felony warrant attached to it. Deputies gave the man a room -- in jail. - A man was cited for an open container after he laid claim to a couple of empties when a car he was riding in was stopped. - A man reported a deer wandering around with an arrow in its leg. The man was hand-feeding the wounded deer. A deputy... Full story
