Letters to the Editor 05/07/2008

To the Editor:

Regarding transfer students: When our family moved here almost 16 years ago, the local high school my brother-in-law attended struggled to protect him from the racist views that students and staff had at the time.

His siblings were enrolled in Sisters because of that and the difference was day-and-night. They were met with support, acceptance and given every opportunity to succeed if they so wished to. From the time our boys were toddlers we decided Sisters would be their school.

From preschool on, we have volunteered in some way every year. Field trips, class helpers, school improvement projects, book fairs. We've gone to band concerts, art displays, family nights, We've worked on Little League fields, in snack shacks; my husband coached for seven years and I still serve on the board even though my boys no longer play and he will be coaching his eighth year of flag football even though our boys have been done for three years.

We've watched all our kids play soccer and baseball together. We've traveled for wrestling, track, and cheered our Sisters teams on. And after years of watching Friday football games with our boys when they were little, the pride we felt the first time our son came running on to that varsity field under the lights as an Outlaw was overwhelming.

Because we do not pay in to the city as district members, we have tried to offer support in other ways. We've sponsored jump ropers, bought and sold cookie dough, cookies, teas, mixes, wreaths, etc. We attend fund-raising dinners, bid at auctions, bought raffle tickets.

We've done anything and everything we could to show the community how appreciative we are to live where we do. Sisters is our home, regardless of boundary lines. So while our taxes do not go into the district, our time, efforts, support and love do, and that's a hard thing to put a price tag on.

After spending almost half our lives here, and raising our boys in Sisters, all we can do is hope that our efforts can in some way give back to the place and people that we care so much for.

The Porraz Family

•••

To the Editor:

I would like to thank all the wonderful and generous supporters of the Sisters Folk Arts Circle who gathered last Thursday to celebrate our spring membership drive. The Folk Arts Circle is a community of patrons who support the innovative and far-reaching work of the Sisters Americana Project, an educational outreach program of the Sisters Folk Festival. From helping elementary school teachers learn better ways to teach art; to creative, hands-on projects in middle school; to the in-depth music classes in high school and the song academy; the Sisters Americana Project reaches out to all our students.

When school funding is being stretched thin, it is the responsibility of the community to pull together and support programs that enhance, enrich and empower our youth. The community of Sisters does this so well and I applaud everyone who reaches out and gets involved.

For more information on the Folk Arts Circle, call Katy Yoder at the Sisters Folk Festival office, 549-4979.

And once again, I thank the fabulous Sisters Folk Arts Circle members!

Ginger Durdan-Shaw

Sisters Folk Festival Board Member

•••

To the Editor:

Your article last week regarding the decision of the U.S. Forest Service to deny a special use permit for the zip line project in the Three Creeks area was encouraging.

I am pleased that District Ranger Anthony made the correct decision in denying the request for a permit.

The Three Creeks area is truly one of the special gems in the Sisters area. It is a fragile area which already shows many signs of overuse, particularly during the short summer window. The idea of thousands of additional visitors, vehicles and the infrastructure needed for a zip line operation is distressing to say the least.

Everyone who truly loves the forests, mountains and streams of our beautiful area should be grateful for the wisdom displayed by the USFS in this case.

James K. Coons