Letters to the Editor 10/14/2009

To the Editor:

I read and agree with the article "Hunter urges safety in Sisters woods" (The Nugget, October 7).

As an avid outdoorsman, and one who literally spends 10-plus hours a week on the local Sisters trails, much of it on the Peterson Ridge Trail system, I have a vested interest in not getting shot.

However, I disagree with the statement that it "would leave a bad taste in everyone's mouth if someone got hurt." Unfortunately, it would be much more than a "bad taste." Its not the kind of way that we want to put Sisters on the map.

On October 17, the fifth annual Sisters Poker Run will be held on the Peterson Ridge Trail system, crossing over Three Creek Road and connecting to the Metolius Windigo trail heading south.

There are currently close to 50 runners signed up for the 34-mile event, most of them from out of state. The event is scheduled for October 17, as deer season ends on October 16.

However, it is the beginning of elk season, so for those hunters still out in the woods, please use extra caution. As runners, we acknowledge the risks of being on the trails (including those from cougars, rattlesnakes, rocks, etc.), but also have to rely on other people to do their part to ensure our safety as well.

I have been attacked and bitten twice by dogs, and shot at once by target shooters while on the Peterson Ridge Trail, all within the past two years. Lets all be safe out there, and make sure that we can use the area together while being accountable for our own actions.

Eugene Trahern

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To the Editor:

"No big deal," says the alleged poacher who decided it was easier to drive over from Redmond and kill a deer in Sisters than out in the forest primeval where it is more difficult.

Why? Because too many uninformed residents of Sisters have turned the city and suburbs into a deer refuge with all their handouts. What if he had missed and hit one of your children?

Not a good idea, folks!

At Crooked River Ranch, lots of new residents like to feed deer that are so prevalent year-round, because of being fed junk food. Often this results in a condition called "scouring," and just last week the local deputy had to put down a big doe that was dying on a resident's lawn as a result of being fed corn (deer get violently sick from eating corn).

Many others have severe diarrhea from being fed non-native foods. PLEASE let deer get by on what Mother Nature provides them, and stop turning suburbia into a private deer-killing preserve.

Jim Anderson, Naturalist

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To the Editor:

In 2000, my first year as principal of Sisters Middle School, we began the tradition of Interim Week.

Though a recent Nugget article about after-school clubs at the school mentioned that the program was eliminated to "give more time for academics," ironically, Interim Week began because we wanted to do just that! That summer, as we evaluated our school schedule, teacher leaders and I believed our students would be better served by moving from seven shorter class periods to six longer ones.

However, the disadvantage to our new schedule was that students only had one elective period in their schedule. Chuck Dekay, a veteran teacher, proposed an idea from a former district: What if we suspended our regular schedule twice a year for three days and gave students opportunities to participate in intense elective classes?

What we quickly discovered was that Interim Week not only allowed students additional elective experiences, it provided much more. Student-teacher relationships were enhanced because we used all staff, as well as community teachers, to keep class sizes at 8-15 students.

For several days each year, students and teachers worked closely in informal, activity-based classes. Another benefit was the boost to many students' self-images. In typical school activities, students with analytic and verbal strengths are most recognized for their work; during Interim Week, the learning disabled student might have been the outstanding chef, or the introverted student might have helped classmates learn chess strategies.

While clubs are wonderful activities, and I applaud the staff's willingness to use professional development funds to support them, they serve a limited number of students.

In the last decade, Sisters High School has had varsity golfers who picked up a club for the first time in Interim Week, Americana performers who wrote their first song there, IEE interns who'd never gone on a hike before Interim Week.

I have devoted my career to academics, but I believe the Sisters School District has lost more than it has gained in its decision to eliminate Interim Week.

Lora Nordquist

Chief Academic Officer for Elementary Programs, Bend-La Pine Schools