Sisters salutes...

• Julia Hammond wrote:

Millard Fuller, the founder of Habitat for Humanity back in 1976, died a few weeks ago. We were privileged to have had him visit Sisters in October 2007. He dedicated some Habitat land and was the speaker at a Habitat dinner held at FivePine Conference Center, which raised $30,000 for our Sisters Habitat. He was invited to stay with the Slavkovsky family, our first Sisters Habitat homeowners.

Millard Fuller was the commencement speaker at Portland University in 2003, the year Judah Slavkovsky graduated. The family met him at that time and since then he followed Judah's journey to Harvard Medical School. In fact they have had lunch together several times. I will quote from the October 3, 2007 Nugget article: "Judah is one of the most outstanding young men I have ever met. His goal in life is to be a medical doctor to the poor and he wants to have a positive impact upon world health."

Mr. Fuller used Judah's accomplishments in many of his talks to Habitat chapters. In fact, the entire family are outstanding examples of Habitat homeowners. The parents, Rick and Theresa, were missionaries in their early years. The daughters - Mary graduated from the University of Seattle in 2005 and Rose in her junior year at the University of Seattle - are both outstanding students and have spent time helping in third-world countries.

Judah has been invited to attend Millard Fuller's memorial service in Americus, Georgia on Saturday, March 14. He will help to conduct the service along with President Jimmy Carter.

I feel this is a most significant honor and should be known here in Sisters, Judah's hometown. Millard Fuller was an outstanding Christian man and touched the lives of millions of Habitat homeowners all over the world. When you can be a homeowner and bedrooms are provided for your children, you are truly blessed, and we all benefit. Please let us pause and honor a truly great man! Thank you.

• Katie Powers wrote:

Ray and I want to thank the Sisters-Camp Sherman Fire Department and Cloverdale Fire Department for the excellent care I received on February 16. Jeremy Storton and Ben Bruegeman transported me to St. Charles Emergency on that Monday. They did their jobs as they have been trained to do. They were so professional, caring and compassionate all the time that I was being hooked up to the IV and heart monitor.

They made sure that my dignity was not compromised the entire time they were working on me.

To our community - if you see these men and women working and volunteering with the fire department, please say thank you. You never know when they may save your life.

Jeremy and Ben, you are my heroes!