News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Sorted by date Results 1 - 17 of 17
A 21-year-old Sisters man suffered serious injuries to his face after he was beaten by unknown assailants on Thursday night, November 7. According to Deschutes County Sheriff's Office reports, the victim was riding his bicycle along Locust Street/Camp Polk Road near Main Avenue after drinking beer at a local bar when a pickup truck with several occupants approached. The victim reported that the occupants yelled at him and he yelled something back at them. The truck stopped and at least two men jumped out. The victim reported... Full story
Bryn Hazell on one of the trails that will become part of a local network. Photo by Jim Cornelius A network of trails linking Sisters with outlying communities could be in place as early as next spring, at least in a preliminary form. The Community Action Team of Sisters (CATS) has created a draft plan for a Sisters Area Trail system, based in part on extensive public input gathered at forums earlier this year. Some of the plan can be implemented right away. There are already... Full story
Representative Ben Westlund is calling for a complete overhaul of Oregon's tax system -- and predicting dire consequences if it doesn't happen. "We must fundamentally reform Oregon's tax system or we will continue to slide into mediocrity and worse," Westlund said on Sunday, November 10. "If we don't do that, we will become the Appalachia of the north." Local voters returned Westlund to the state legislature by a wide margin November 5. He returns to face a $1 billion or... Full story
As the Redmond School District's contract negotiation with teachers blows up into a contentious scrap over salaries and benefits, the Sisters School District has been quietly working on new contracts for its employees. The atmosphere here is considerably different. "It's not an adversarial situation and I've worked hard to keep it that way," said Kelly Powell, President of the Sisters Education Association, representing the teachers. Powell is a teacher at Sisters Elementary... Full story
Sisters teens have a new place to gather and have fun. As of Friday, November 8, SOAR (Sisters Organization for Activities and Recreation) opened its new "Teen Cabana." A Grand Opening celebration is scheduled for November 22-23. The cabana will be open to Sisters High School students and their guests on Friday and Saturday nights from 7 to 11:30 p.m. with live music and/or open mike performances There will be a Monday night gathering with an emphasis on watching football from 7 to 10 p.m. Sisters Middle School kids will... Full story
Fourth grade powwow participants: (left to right) Brittany Crawford, Zech Mickel, Bill Hix and Heidi Brush. Photo by Jim Cornelius Fourth grade students at Sisters Elementary School celebrated their annual powwow on Thursday, November 7. They were all dressed in Indian attire, elaborate costumes with handmade jewelry and feathers woven into their hair, held in place with leather thongs. The students recently completed their study of the different groups of Indians in Oregon. "Our focus was on how their environment affected... Full story
Mary Zemke. Photo by Conrad Weiler Final results from last week's election elevated two new occupants to the Jefferson County Board of Commissioners. Democrat Walter Ponsford defeated Republican Mike Goss and Republican Mary Zemke ousted Democrat incumbent Mike Ahern. They join Bill Bellamy (not up for re-election this year) in forming the three-member board in Jefferson County. Camp Sherman, which is part of Jefferson County, followed the overall county trend by supporting both winners although by larger margins than the... Full story
Ross Cristiano and Thomas Arends display their hand-crafted masks. Photo by Shawn Strannigan While most students around the country were busy with reading, writing, and arithmetic last week, the kids at Sisters Middle School were engaged in more creative educational pursuits. During "Interim Week," the sixth through eighth graders got to choose from a wide variety of courses, including knitting, acting, mountain biking, self-defense, international cooking and Japanese folk art. Middle school principal Lora Nordquist introduce... Full story
Sisters defense kept Banks down. Photo by Steve Post The Sisters football team overcame a rash of turnovers to beat Banks 33-12 in a first-round playoff game Saturday, November 9. The game, played in a cold rain before a less-than-full house, was closer than the score indicated. "We didn't play as sharp as we can," Coach Bob Macauley said. "We won the game, and that's a good thing. The kids gave a good effort, sometimes too much. That's where some of our turnovers came from -- things like second effort. "To give up five... Full story
Wil Mulford displays his craft. Photo by Shawn Strannigan Sisters resident Wil Mulford won a blue ribbon for a clock case at an Anaheim, California watch and clock competition last summer. "I'd never even entered a contest before," said Mulford, who operates Specialty Woodworking out of a shop on his property. "I felt pretty pleased. I'm also glad my wife Gaynelle went with me -- it was good for her to see something good come out of what I do." Mulford took honors in the case-making category. Locals Ed Beacham and Duane Houst... Full story
Wednesdays look a little different this year at Sisters High School. School doesn't officially begin until second period 9:30 a.m. "First period every Wednesday is Personal Enhancement Time, or PET," said Assistant Principal Bob Macauley. "While both teachers and students can benefit, it is primarily for our teachers. "Our teachers are our greatest asset," he continued. "We want to take advantage of their creativity and talent. The purpose of PET is to allow teachers to work on paperwork for state programs or to do... Full story
Kindergarten student Ethan Schneider shares with Dr. Robert Illinik. The Seniors Lunch turned into something special last Tuesday, November 5. The weekly noon meal, held at the Sisters Community Church, served as the occasion for the kindergarten class of Sonrise Christian School to present bird feeders that they had made to all the senior adults who attended the lunch. Steven Guzauskis, the Site Director for the Sisters Senior Luncheon, explained: "The kindergartners made enough bird feeders so that everyone will get one,"... Full story
Peter Friedman is a new member of the Sisters Planning Commission -- but he is not new to urban planning. Friedman worked for more than 20 years as a city planner for the communities of Mill Creek, Gig Harbor, Jefferson County and the Thurston region in his native Washington state before moving to Sisters in August of 2001. Friedman volunteered for planning commissions on Whidbey Island during this time, serving for seven years on the City of Langley Planning Commission and two years on the Island County Subarea Planning... Full story
"Canadian Versatiles" at the Lazy Z. Photo by Vickie Herring The Lazy Z and Robinson Road Ranch, east of Sisters, has had a recent influx of arrivals from Canada. The 240 weanling colts and fillies are the entire 2002 foal crop from the Griffin Valley Ranch in Alberta. Dubbed "Canadian Versatiles" by Vickie Herring, who manages the horses for owner David Herman, the weanlings are for sale from $300. "These horses will go from ranch to recreation," said Herring. "If a person knows what type of horse they want, we'll probably... 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: I'm writing about... Full story
- A former Sisters couple whose adventures in domestic dysfunction frequently appeared in "Sisters sheriff's calls" carried their feuding ways into Idaho. Sisters deputies were contacted by Benewah County, Idaho, deputies who explained that the female half of the duo had been left stranded after an argument with her ex-husband, with whom she was reconciling. She had no money and no way to get back to Oregon. Idaho deputies arranged a bus ticket home and sent a copy of a report on the domestic problem to Sisters for... Full story
It's a sure sign of winter for folks living in the Sisters country: The Oregon Department of Transportation has closed the scenic McKenzie Pass Highway as of noon, Friday, November 8. The McKenzie Highway between Springfield and Sisters is only open during the summer travel season. It opened July 3 this year. The longest open period occurred in 1934 when the highway was open for 250 days. The shortest open period was in 1999 when the highway was open for only 90 days. The highway has closed as early as October 18 (in 1996)... Full story
