Letters to the Editor 12/20/2023

From the superintendent

To the Editor:

As 2023 comes to an end, I wanted to share with you a few highlights from the December Sisters School Board meeting.

Before the start of the meeting, the Board and guests celebrated the Sisters High School volleyball team as the 2023 3A state champions.

A group of middle school teachers presented on the continued support of transitions as the fifth grade will be in the new elementary school in the 2024-25 school year.

Brad Tisdel, who shared that the Sisters Folk Festival has been partnering with the Sisters School District for the past 23 years, spoke about the shared goal of complimenting and supporting the District in the form of creativity, self-expression, and community engagement around the arts. He listed many amazing collaborations in the field of art and music which have occurred over the past two decades, and insisted on the importance of continuing the remarkable connection and the need to push innovation in these domains. The presentation concluded by a fiddle demonstration of Scandinavian music by several Sisters Middle School students. The club was led by Melissa Stolaz, and is an example of SFF’s support and partnership with the School District.

Finally, 10 students from Rima Givot’s first year Biology class presented their work on the Trout Creek Conservation Area. The students shared the history and detailed findings of 160 acres of ponderosa pine and Western juniper forest. They closed with a message of what they learned and what we can do to help support the forest.

Enrollment figures were slightly up again this month. The new Sisters Elementary School construction is on track for a 95 percent completion by May 2024. To view the plans and videos of the construction, you may visit the website: https://district.ssd6.org/departments/district-office-operations/operations/2021-bond-new-elementary-school/.

The workforce housing project is moving forward with several viable candidates. ODOT is anticipating breaking ground on the new roundabout in March.

The Board reviewed a few policy updates and voted on a budget resolution, the integrated grant, the English Language Proficiency textbook adoption (as required by ODE), and OSBA candidates and resolutions.

On behalf of the Sisters School District, I would like to wish all students, families, staff, and the entire community a wonderful holiday season and thank you for your continued support.

Curt Scholl, Superintendent

Anniversary of January 6

To the Editor:

On January 6, two-and-a-half weeks from today, we will mark the third anniversary of the Insurrection, the violent attack on our Capitol that was called for by Donald Trump in an attempt to illegally hold on to power.

Since that awful event, we have seen the gears of justice grind slowly but surely to hold those responsible accountable. More than 1,200 people have been charged in connection with January 6, including 117 people who have been accused of using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily injury to a police officer.

Trump, the primary instigator of the violent assault, has been indicted in state and federal courts for his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, indictments that are supported by mountains of evidence.

Our Representative, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, was a proud Trump delegate to the Republican National Convention in 2020. She has never renounced the Big Lie that Donald Trump used to incite his MAGA followers to overturn the election. She has repeatedly dodged the question, refusing to state that Biden won in 2020. Instead, she likened the violent insurrectionists to peaceful protestors: “[W]e have a protected right for people to peaceful protesting [sic]; we should have been allowed to do so,” and, echoing MAGA propaganda, she asserted that their due process rights had been infringed.

Now Chavez-DeRemer has doubled down, voting for Big Lie No. 2, the baseless impeachment inquiry that is nothing more than another MAGA propaganda stunt. Even Republicans admit it is designed to help elect Donald Trump. Any doubt that she is MAGA, not moderate, has been erased.

Voters in Oregon’s District 5 deserve better. Americans deserve better. We must hold MAGA extremists who continue to undermine our democracy accountable and defeat them.

Mary Chaffin

Welcome, Deputy Bearson

To the Editor:

Thank you for writing such a wonderful article about Deputy Jerad Bearson (“New deputy joins Sisters patrol,” (The Nugget, December 13, page 1).

I am proud to live in a community where residents appreciate having the law protecting them and treating the law with respect and dignity.

Welcome to Sisters Country, Deputy Bearson, and thank you to you and your fellow officers for keeping our community safe.

Justine Gjurgevich 

Thank you for commentary

To the Editor:

Mr. Bartlett, thank you for your commentary on page 5 of the December 13 edition of The Nugget (“Call it for what it is”). As a Jew, and a grateful member of the Sisters community, I appreciate your words.

Wishing you and the staff of The Nugget a wonderful holiday season.

Eric Lieberson