Letters to Editor 02/28/2018

To the Editor:

I have recently been the beneficiary of an outstanding program for the removal of barbed wire where the barbed-wire fencing is no longer in use. The program is a partnership between Wild Wings Raptor Rehabilitation of Sisters and the Deschutes County Juvenile Department. I was aware of the risks to deer, especially fawns, but didn't realize how many raptors are injured by the wire.

A neighbor brought the removal program to my attention. I made contact with the program and the next weekend a crew of young people with two adult supervisors arrived at my farm and went to work. The crew was well-organized, well-supervised and hard-working. On the second day they were here they discovered a great horned owl caught in the barbed wire. A supervisor called Gary Landers of Wild Wings, who came and freed the owl and took her to the rehabilitation center, where she is now doing well.

For the youngsters it was a graphic illustration of the value of their community service. I believe the participants went home at the end of the weekend proud of what they had accomplished.

This program is free. If you have, or know someone who has, barbed-wire fencing that is not in use you can call either Kellie Landers of Wild Wings, 541-213-4411; or Jim Smith, Deschutes County Juvenile Department, 541-322-7653, to have it removed.

This program also operates on public lands. So, if you see downed or not-in-use wire on public lands you can call about that as well.

Barbara Bagg

••••

To the Editor:

We should put cowboys on horses in the roundabout. Cowboys represent Sisters Country. Cowboys are the perfect thing to put in the roundabout.

We should put cowboys in the roundabout because they are part of our community. For one thing, cowboys live here. Also they represent the Outlaws! And cowboys help us by raising cattle and sheep. Cowboys should go in the roundabout.

Horses are a good addition to cowboys. Cowboys ride them while herding cattle. Horses live here too because they belong to cowboys. Cowboys and horses work for us, so horses should go with the cowboys in the roundabout.

We should really put cowboys and horses in the roundabout. Cowboys on horses would be a great addition to the roundabout in Sisters.

Brennan Frutos (age 9)

•••

To the Editor:

The City Council has a decision to make regarding roundabout art. I support "Butte" as the best alternative.

"Helix" is beautiful, but too detailed and complex to appreciate while driving. Plus, the local scenes are up at the top, even harder to see at speed.

"Gateway" is the expected solution, which is a strong reason to look deeply at who we are and whether the expected solution still works. It hits all the local genres - Western, wildlife, rocks and trees. But Sisters is also an art center. Art is more than pretty pictures or straightforward portrayals of our environment. The best art is inventive, surprising, pushes the limits, provokes new thinking, and encourages new ways of seeing. "Gateway" only gives us more of what we already

know.

And so I support "Butte" - an ingenious, innovative design - beautiful, simple, easily comprehended even at speed, with the elegance of a good logo. It will change with the play of light and shadow and in the snow. It references our ponderosas and buttes in color and shape, but in a new and entirely different way. The model alone, with its detailed craftsmanship, promises that the final piece will delight our visitors and make us proud.

We will always be a Western and wildlife town, and will cherish our history and location - but we aren't just that. Contemporary times live here too in the form of high-tech bikes, skis, outdoor clothing, at our library, banks, and stores. We don't ski on wood slats with leather bindings anymore; let's put Sisters on the art map by supporting 21st-century art in the roundabout.

Joellyn Loehr

•••

To the Editor:

As we move into the second half of the school year, I am excited to share another letter following our school board meeting on February 7.

Enrollment is up again, by one student, keeping us ahead of where we finished the prior school year! 

Deb Riehle and Tiffany Tisdel presented on Sisters Middle School use of the Response To Intervention (RTI) as a data protocol and action plan to help improve reading of all students at Sisters Middle School. They have seen significant improvements as large numbers of students have improved their reading levels and all teachers are working together to support literacy.

Josh Nordell, Dan Saraceno and Mark Stewart gave us an update on special education and the Transition Program. They were excited about the partnership with the school district, which employs these students and has allowed us to qualify for grants that provide job coaches for some of our students. 

The district has begun work on updating its mission and vision. A series of stakeholder meetings is being organized to get input. Our community involvement and feedback in this process is critical. We have two community/parent sessions scheduled. The first session will be held on Monday, March 19, 5:30 p.m. at Sisters Elementary and the second is scheduled for Wednesday, March 21, 12:30 p.m. at the Sisters School District Office. If you are unable to attend either of these sessions, please visit the district webpage, ssd6.org or go directly to https://goo.gl/forms/PmcIHVl4mdwcpNBS2 to take a brief survey that will help provide us direction in this process. 

Our next Sisters School Board meeting is Wednesday, March 7, at 5 p.m. at the district office. These are public meetings and offer a great way to see how our students, staff, administrators, volunteers and community members all come together to make our district one of the best in Oregon! 

Curt Scholl

SSD Superintendent