News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
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The PCT hikers will soon be passing through Sisters for respite and refueling. They rely on the kindness of locals for rides from the trailhead to town and back. Occasionally, a generous friend of mine will go to the Santiam Pass and offer a hiker a ride. He’s the guy you see driving the Batmobile in town and has Superman in a phone booth on his driveway that is visible from Route 126. He recently installed a spaceship complete with aliens near Superman. I suggested that the next time he picks up a PCT hiker, he should ask t... Full story
Black Butte Ranch Art Guild hosted a fundraiser during Quilt Show weekend — Art at the Ranch — to benefit scholarships for art students at Sisters High School. Since 2003, the BBR Art Guild has granted $91,000 in scholarships, helping nurture the creative spirit in young minds. This year, in addition to donations from Ranch community members, the “Art at the Ranch” committee reached out to many businesses in Sisters, and more than 30 donated an item or items to be auctioned off in a silent auction. The silent auction raised... Full story
Seed to Table To the Editor: As the new Executive Director at Seed to Table, I’d like to thank our community for welcoming me so warmly. Seed to Table truly is a community supported and community serving nonprofit. I look forward to continuing to meet and learn from all of our great partners, supporters, and community members. Recently, I had the honor of attending an awards ceremony with other nonprofit representatives to receive a grant from the Cow Creek Umpqua Indian Foundation. This is the second year in a row we have we... Full story
In little over a week, we had an assassination attempt on a former president and the current president dropped out of the running. Immediately pundits and social media tycoons began talking conspiracy, victimization chatter., the need to control what feels out of control. Fear. As this political season ramps up, the wailing pontificators are at it again. So I want to throw out a simple question—a little personal but here it goes. Do you ever think about the breath of life, how it’s used? I once followed a friend to an obs... Full story
The Nugget’s story on the proposal by two companies to provide shuttle services to and from several trailheads on the Sisters Ranger District appeared in the July 17 edition, two days before the end of the official Forest Service comment period on July 19. That timeframe is not optimal for informing our readers about a project of interest in our National Forest. Unfortunately, The Nugget was made aware of the scoping letter for the project — by a citizen — only on July 15. We... Full story
Letters to the Editor should be 300 words or less. The deadline for submission is Monday at 10 a.m. for publication in that week's Nugget. Please submit your letter by emailing to Jim Cornelius at [email protected] with "letter to the editor" in the subject line.... Full story
“There’s no place for this kind of violence in America.” So said President Joe Biden in response to an attempt to assassinate former president Donald Trump on Saturday, in a shooting at a campaign rally that left an attendee dead and two others severely injured. The shooter was taken out by a Secret Service counter-sniper team. It was, of course, the right thing — the only thing — to say. But violence directed at political figures has all too often found its place in Americ... Full story
Forest Service Shuttle Proposal To the Editor: Our Deschutes National Forest does some very good things, such as prescribed burning to clear out historically dangerous fuel loads, and the wrongly maligned Green Ridge forest management project, designed to preserve — not harm —the older growth forests. But two recent USFS proposals are a direct threat to those who enjoy hiking, horseback riding, and traditional natural activities in our taxpayer-funded forest. The Forest Service proposes to introduce to numerous trails in the... Full story
Bill Kelly, president of Rotary Club of Sisters, and Kellen Klein, executive director of Citizens4Community (C4C), wrote: Rotary Club of Sisters and C4C extend our heartfelt thanks to the community for your overwhelming support of the inaugural Sisters 4th Fest. Your participation and enthusiasm made the event a resounding success. We want to express gratitude to our generous sponsors: The Nugget, Explore Sisters, Les Schwab, St. Charles, Big Chief Vintage, Blazin Saddles, Eurosports, Bivvi Homes, Next Phase Realty, Sisters... Full story
Eight-year-olds from cabin 3 practiced doing the splits while others banged on old pianos. Counselors rinsed blue finger paint from a little girl’s hair. There was glue everywhere. The kids danced and sang “the blessing song” before dinner, with hand motions to go with the ever-quickening pace of the guitar. Squeals, laughter, and ruckus filled the room. Dinner plates, full from the buffet, had heaps of black olives only (“I love olives”) or an excessive amount of sliced limes (“I squeeze one lime onto each tortilla ch... Full story
I was told many years ago that it takes just one consistent and caring person in a child’s life for them to develop resilience — resilience that will help them succeed in spite of circumstances like poverty, homelessness, and a challenging family life that deprive them of reliable care, support, and opportunities. If you don’t know about Circle of Friends, now is your chance to learn about its positive impact on the lives of underserved kids in our Sisters community. Circle of Friend’s annual fundraiser, “Changing Futures... Full story
You might be wondering why things seem to be so very, very weird out there in the wide world, and one explanation could be right under our feet. Scientists, it turns out, have recently determined that the earth’s core is now rotating backwards. That may be a hard sell to most of us, having never seen the thing with our own eyes, but taking the occasional scientific claim on good faith isn’t always a bad choice — the late covid conundrum notwithstanding. The earth’s core is a s... Full story
Over four years ago, I ran for City Council and lost. I ran because at that time, the city was lucky to find any candidates at all to fill the three open seats. That was a rather sad state of affairs. As a member of Indivisible Sisters Steering Committee, we encouraged running for local offices. We were not having much luck at it, so I ran as an example. I filed early, there was one other candidate and me for three open seats. Soon after filing my candidacy, I submitted a letter to the editor of The Nugget explaining the step... Full story
Community garden To the Editor: I was dismayed to learn that the city is considering Clemens Park as one of the sites for the Community Garden. The park is one of the few expansive green spaces in the city and is used by many of us on a regular basis. Perhaps they don’t realize how much the park is used for our children to run and play, for walking our dogs, the occasional neighborhood event, and just sitting and enjoying the outdoors. Removing a large portion of the beautiful lawn and surrounding the resulting dirt patch w... Full story
The summertime constellation of Ophiuchus was among the first star patterns to be cataloged by Greek astronomer Claudius Ptolemy in the Second Century. The name means "Serpent Bearer" in Greek, though it is sometimes referred to by its Latin name, Serpentarius. Ophiuchus is usually depicted in star charts as a man holding a snake, namely Serpens. Ophiuchus is the eleventh largest constellation by area on the celestial sphere but contains no stars brighter than second... Full story
Politics are a necessary way of organizing our society around the values we hold dear. We all have political decisions to make. But if we lose sight of what our values are, we allow political parties to determine them and often we vote for the lesser of two evils. Politics are to be lived out. We can make a political difference in our own neighborhoods and towns. Whether our neighbors are Republicans, Democrats, or Independents, we are called to organize our values around... Full story
Common sense immigration To the Editor: Mass deportation as a solution for illegal or unauthorized immigration is wedging itself into our politics. That’s an impossibility and a distraction. We need a functional immigration plan. The Migration Policy Institute reports data for 11,047,000 unauthorized immigrants. Most were born in Mexico, Central or South America, or the Caribbean, some in Africa, Asia, Canada, or Europe. Of that total, 63 percent (6,933,000) have resided in the U.S. ten years or more; 33 percent (... Full story
On June 11, Sisters VFW Post 8138 presented its annual Teacher of the Year Award which included a letter of recognition and monetary award to Jeff Schiedler, a teacher at Sisters Middle School for his support of Veterans groups in Sisters, patriotic influence in the classroom, and support of Veterans Day assemblies at the school. Vice Commander Earl Schroeder, Commander Pat Bowe, and Service Officer Bill Anttila presented the award. His name will be submitted for possible state and national recognition this... Full story
Each Sunday morning at 11 a.m., the Sisters Scrabble Club convenes at Paulina Springs Books. I’ve attended a few times, and while I’m not especially good at Scrabble, the games offer good company who play with infectious enthusiasm. Though few men have attended so far, I always feel welcome. Katie Lombardo founded the club early in her relationship with Lane Jacobson, owner of Paulina Springs, when they had to address a serious incompatibility: he doesn’t like Scrabble. Lane’s effort to indulge her and play the game not only... Full story
Who's the person you can't get out of your mind? The one who broke your heart, haunted you day and night? That kind of heartache can feel like possession. Something that seems to stick around more adamantly the harder you try to make it go away. If that person's still in charge when you close your eyes; or when you see something that reminds you of them; or you hear music that clinches your gut, then I have a dream for you! For the past few years, I've been working on a memoir... Full story
It often comes as a surprise to readers when they first learn that all writers for The Nugget, with the exception of our editor, are freelancers, not staff. We are paid in the customary industry way - by the story. As you might imagine, working for a weekly community newspaper isn't going to change anybody's lifestyle. I don't know all of my colleagues personally but I'd bet they have a similar attitude as mine: We'd do this work for free. It's that satisfying. And interesting... Full story
I am on my third rewatch of HBO’s legendary series, Deadwood. I have found this perambulation along the muddy thoroughfare of that Dakota Black Hills mining camp more resonant than ever, given the tenor of our times. Strangely comforting, too. Deadwood is not for everybody. It is as raw as the lumber that built Al Swearengen’s Gem Variety Theater (a theater, yes, but also a saloon and brothel), notoriously violent and foul-mouthed. As was the historical town — although the r... Full story
Destroying America To the Editor: I appreciated Steve Woodside’s letter to the editor on June 19, where he wrote “the voting public can sit on a fence complaining about their choices in this election cycle, or they can understand where we are as a country, that there are people who actively want to destroy us from inside and outside our country.” The fact that so much threat to our country is coming from the “inside” is what is so chilling, and it is time we woke up to why that is the case. My friends, take a good hard look... Full story
Congratulations, graduates — the day is here. It’s been coming a long time. If you start counting with first grade it’s been 12 years. If you begin from their first year with a teacher, as in pre-school, it could be as many as 16 years. That’s a long time to stick with something. A celebration is well in order. How is it possible that so many of our young ones have reached this day, and done it well? The 2024 Sisters’ graduation rate will be above 90 percent. As well deserved as it is, they didn’t do it by themselves.... Full story
Local newspapers To the Editor: Imagine no local newspaper in Sisters. We all love The Nugget, but what if it disappeared? That’s the world our friends in La Grande, Hermiston, Baker City, Enterprise, and John Day are facing. Their local newspapers are disappearing before the start of July. And two dozen other Oregon-owned newspapers were sold on June 1 — to a company based out of Tennessee. If history is any guide, this ownership change will not be kind to the communities these papers serve. That means no real jou... Full story
