News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 25
At the flip of a switch, the turbine in a new 700Kw power generating plant at Three Sisters Irrigation District's Watson Reservoir began to hum last Friday. It was a symbolic culminating moment in a decades-long process that has put water back in Whychus Creek, improved delivery of water for local agriculture - and now is using piped waterflow to put power into the local electrical grid. Dignitaries from Senator Jeff Merkley to Dionne Thompson, deputy commissioner of the U.S.... Full story
It started out as a wonderful September day for retired Sisters resident Jo Reitan and her seven-year-old standard poodle, Kari. They were enjoying each other's company on one of their daily strolls down the walking path in Tollgate, with Kari on leash. What was about to happen would change Reitan's life in a way she never would have expected. During their walk, Reitan noticed a man, a woman and a large unleashed dog standing in a driveway around 50 feet away. Instinctively... Full story
Rep. Greg Walden visited Sisters last week. The Congressman stopped at Sisters Eagle Airport to check out the engineering and energy hub it has become and to hear from local businessmen and officials about issues that concern folks in Sisters Country. "I've been fascinated by the development of the airport here," Walden told the assemblage. Walden made a few opening remarks that acknowledged the turmoil amongst his party in the nation's capital as the position of Speaker of... Full story
Rob Merola, a senior at Sisters High School, is working with his ASPIRE mentor, Phyllis Smith, to actualize his dream of pursuing a degree that will prepare him to be a theater arts manager. Merola loves performing, but he doesn't want to be a starving artist hoping for his big break while waiting tables. Therefore, approaching the performing arts from a business perspective is aiming Merola toward a school with strong business and theater arts departments. That's the kind of... Full story
Something remarkable has happened on Whychus Creek over the past two decades. A stream that once ran dry in the summer now flows through Sisters even in the midst of drought. And this was done without harming farmers who depend on its waters for irrigation. In fact, they are getting more water than they might have expected under current conditions. And habitat for fish and wildlife is better than it has been since perhaps the early 1960s. Diversion dams have been removed and those who diverted the water have benefitted from... Full story
To the Editor: As an attorney I found Roger Detweiler's more narrow interpretation of the Second Amendment limiting the right to bear arms to that of being within a militia both a familiar and reasonable one. However, Oregonians should not forget such an argument is merely academic for them. Article I, Section 27, of the Oregon Constitution states: "The people shall have the right to bear arms for the defense OF THEMSELVES..." (emphasis added). In Oregon, the Constitutional right to own firearms is much broader than it is in... Full story
Every afternoon 21 students in the Sisters High School (SHS) Life Skills program head out into the community for some hard work. The program serves students from special education along with student mentors from the general education track. Students vary in age from fifth grade to those that have graduated but are not yet 21. "If someone were to look into the classroom they wouldn't be able to easily identify the mentors from the special education students," says advisor Josh... Full story
Last Tuesday was Outdoor School Day at Brand 33 Restaurant at Aspen Lakes. Jullian Johnsen (Camp Name: Waikiki), head of the Oregon Outdoor School Coalition, gave members of the Rotary Club of Sisters the latest news on attempts to provide the Outdoor School experiences to all Oregon fifth- and sixth-graders. Educational leaders throughout the nation have said over and over again there is a huge need to bring children back into having exciting and positive experiences with... Full story
The Outlaws have been on fire all season long and this past week was no different. Sisters defeated Elmira and Junction City, and pushed their record to a perfect 9-0. In Tuesday's action at home against Elmira, the Outlaws stymied the Falcons with scores of 25-10, 25-6, and 25-13. The entire squad got in a lot of playing time, and players got to mix it up and play in positions they normally never play during the season. Jessie Brigham, the Outlaws' top-notch libero, went to... Full story
The Outlaws trounced the Tigers 34-10 at Junction City on Friday, October 16, and pushed their league record to 6-0. Sisters started off strong, holding Junction City to three-plays-and-out. Mitch Gibney blocked the ensuing punt off the left edge, and Jacob Gurney recovered it and ran it down to the Tigers' 15-yard line. After a nine-yard run around the edge by Logan Schutte, Gibney finished the drive off with a six-yard sprint for the score. The Outlaws' third possession was... Full story
After a regular season of meets stretching from Seaside to Drake Park, the Outlaws cross-country team faces the state qualifying Sky-Em District meet set for Wednesday, October 21, at Lane Community College. Unlike other team sports that compete in a league schedule that determines state playoffs, cross-country teams' futures come down to one race to determine who goes on to compete for state-level glory among the six teams in the league. As defending Sky-Em District... Full story
The Lady Outlaws posted two more wins last week. Sisters topped Elmira 2-1 at home on Tuesday, October 13, and two days later the Outlaws bested the Tigers at Junction City (JC) in a final score of 2-1. In Tuesday's action, Taylor Schneider got the Outlaws on the scoreboard in the 14th minute of play. Schneider toe-poked the ball across Elmira's goal face, and an Elmira defender accidentally bumped it in the goal off her own knee. Twelve minutes later, Hannah Ceciliani sent... Full story
For the third time Sisters Rodeo Association has been recognized as the Columbia River Circuit Rodeo of the Year. The circuit includes PRCA rodeos in Oregon, California, Washington and Idaho. Gary Linton, board member of the Columbia River Circuit said, "The hospitality of your committee for other committees and for rodeo contestants is unprecedented." He added that with the quality of personnel and the rodeo's stock contractor, there was just no rodeo that compared in Sisters Rodeo's 75th anniversary year. "You all do such... Full story
The Sisters Folk Festival presents breakout artist Christopher Paul Stelling in concert at The Belfry on Sunday, October 25, at 7 p.m. "This guy is really exceptional," says SFF board member Jim Cornelius. "Everywhere we turn we hear "You've gotta book this guy!' We're really glad we could make a show at The Belfry happen." Christopher Paul Stelling isn't the first musician to take the stage with just an old guitar and the stomp of his foot. What sets him apart is an... Full story
John Siegel Boettner, teacher, avid mountain biker, and filmmaker visited two English classes at Sisters High School last week. He graced the classrooms with his stories of an interesting childhood, and stories of how he is giving back. Boettner started a program at Santa Barbara Middle School called Teen Press, where 6th- and 7th-graders learn how to conduct an interview. They learn all the fundamentals of how to talk to adults as well as how to research properly for an inter... Full story
Legendary Zimbabwean musician Thomas Mapfumo will come to Sisters for an evening of music on Friday, October 23 at The Belfry. Mapfumo is known for his mbira-infused music that echoes the struggles of the people of Zimbabwe. He has performed his own Chimurenga music around the world since the 1970s, forming his group Blacks Unlimited in 1978 and continuing a storied career through over four decades. Thomas Tafirenyika "Mukanya" Mapfumo was born in Marondera, Zimbabwe, in 1945.... Full story
A new residential development on the old Lundgren Mill property at the north end of Pine Street will get underway with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday, October 22, at noon. The symbolic launch of the 14-home first phase of the project has been 10 years in the making. Developer Peter Hall purchased the property from the Sisters School District for $3.3 million in 2005. The property was zoned industrial and Hall planned a business-park development there. That's still in... Full story
Wendy DiPaolo brings years of catering experience and a passion for quality, locally produced foods to her new enterprise, known as Willow Camp Catering. "I started catering 25 years ago in Marin," DiPaolo told The Nugget. She catered film sets, weddings and private parties. Eventually moving to Sisters, "I met Sarahlee Lawrence and I've gotten very involved in the organic movement," DiPaolo said. Lawrence operates Rainshadow Organics at Lawrence Farms just east of Sisters.... Full story
Well, the bad news last week is there will be no cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in 2016 for over 70 million Social Security recipients, disabled veterans, federal retirees and their survivors, and disabled poor. The COLA is based on the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), a broad measure of consumer prices produced by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The CPI-W measures price changes for food, housing, clothing, transportation, energy,... Full story
Our continuing dearth of precipitation is a disaster for the mountains, the snowpack, our water supply, and the skiing industry; but it does serve to extend the hiking season. Although, with dry lake-bottoms exposed, brooks dried up, and vegetation brown and bleak, the scenery isn't what we're accustomed to in the mountains. Yet there are some destinations that still have plenty to offer. So, when a friend asked me how recently I last wrote up Tam McArthur Rim, I had to think... Full story
David (Dave) W. Childress passed away October 11, 2015, surrounded by his family and friends after a long battle with cancer. Dave, 67, was born July 29, 1948, in Roseburg, Oregon, where he grew up. His parents are Joyce E. Childress of Sisters, Oregon, and the late Arthur L. (Roy) Childress. On March 26, 1994, Dave married Catherine Johnston in Atlanta, Georgia. While there, he worked as the Director of Procurement and Logistics for GWS, Inc. In 1997, they were transferred... Full story
You're looking to adopt a cat and wondering how to find the right feline fit for your household. Horses have it. Dogs, birds, fish and even mollusks do, too: The "it" is personality, something that both you and your cat will share with each other nearly every waking moment. But what, exactly, is personality? According to Sander Van Doorn, PhD, a researcher at the Santa Fe Institute in New Mexico and one of the world's leading experts on the evolution of personality in... Full story
"Those who would renegotiate the boundaries between church and state must therefore answer a difficult question: why would we trade a system that has served us so well for one that has served others so poorly?" - Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor Imagine for a moment you go to Sisters City Hall seeking a permit. Suppose, hypothetically, someone wants to build a small mosque in Sisters. Further assume it is to be located in a place zoned for a house of worship and there are no legal impediments or hurdles:... Full story
The Reno Championship Air Races are held on the third weekend in September. I've been there since they started in 1964. More than 250,000 fans of air racing come from all over the world to take part, and my family has been among them for many of those 51 years. My brother Don and his son David met me at the Riley Junction and we drove down together. When we arrived we met up with my Air Force Reserve son, Col. Ross Anderson, Commanding Officer of the USAF Reserve Wing at... Full story
The beautiful pine grosbeak is the cover bird for the 2016 Birds of Central Oregon Calendar, released this week. It is now available in Sisters. This is the sixth year that Oregon wildlife photographer Douglas Beall has created Wings & Feathers calendars depicting his wildlife photography. Sales benefit the Turtle Ridge Rehab Center in Salem. Beall, who lives in Camp Sherman, makes these calendars "to share what I see, and the beauty of Nature." All of the birds pictured in... Full story
