A slideshow of the San Juan County Fair, Aug. 18-21, 2010. Photos by Journal reporter Scott Rasmussen. Produced by Journal multimedia reporter Jane K. Fox.
About 7:30 p.m. tonight, my boyfriend and I saw a vessel engulfed in flames from the Jakle’s Lagoon pullout on San Juan Island. We saw a person in the water swimming toward the shore. It appeared the man was wearing a SCUBA tank on his back.
Military life during the joint military occupation of 1859-1872 was brought to life Sunday at English Camp for at least two members of the U.S. House Appropriations Committee. The island visit by Rep. David Obey, D-Wis., chairman of the Appropriations Committee; and Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., chairman of the Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, reporedly arrived on the island Saturday to visit with National Park officials here and depart Monday. The visit is part of a tour of national parks in the region.
Two vehicle accidents within minutes of each other on Roche Harbor Road kept emergency personnel busy, Friday. Both followed in the wake of a bomb scare on a ferry that had pulled into the Friday Harbor ferry landing; that scare was determined to be the result of a joke.
When it comes to music, there’s nothing clumsy about this group. The Clumsy Lovers have brought their mix of fiddle and banjo-fueled, bluegrass-ified Celtic rock to North American audiences for more than a decade. They rock the San Juan County Fair main stage tonight from 7-9.
Two men were questioned by San Juan County sheriff’s officers after an apparent joke resulted in a bomb scare on the M/V Yakima, scheduled to arrive at Friday Harbor at 4:05 p.m. The two men — who declined to give their names to The Journal — told investigators and ferry officers that they had joked they had a “bong” in their possession. Passengers apparently thought the men said they had a bomb, and alerted ferry officers.
We lost a great soul and a brilliant mind in the passing of Robert L. (Bob) Charters on Aug. 15, 2010. He is survived by his wife, Patricia (Pat) Charters; children, Bill, Robin, Jean (Ream), John, and Chris; sister, Jean Van Hoomissen of Portland, Ore.; and 14 grandchildren.
Now that the fairground is being administered by the (County) Parks, Recreation and Fair Department, I would like to be so bold as to suggest the creation of a Bunny Euthanization Center (BEC) at the fairgrounds. With a potential contract from the National Park Service, this could be a real moneymaker, and may be a natural fit for many of the advocates of the cynical “Save our Fairground” campaign who have plans to eradicate local agriculture already in place and readily able to be adapted. This could allow the Brickworks project to continue forward unmolested, and the integrity of the Land Bank remain unsullied.
Alaire Freeman died Aug. 5, 2010 at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Bellingham, Wash. She was 81. Alaire was born in Madeira, Calif., to Henry and Mary (Schmitt) McMullin. They lived several places in Montana before moving to Johnson County, Wyo., in 1940. She rode horseback to school as a middle-schooler and in high school boarded with her future mother-in-law. Alaire married Parish Freeman in 1948 and they had one daughter.
Now that the primary election results are in, the voters have spoken in the race for San Juan County sheriff. I would like to congratulate Rob Nou and Brent Johnson on being the finalists for sheriff. I would also like to congratulate Brad Fincher and Felix Menjivar on their campaigns. I believe we all chose to run for sheriff because we care about our community and want to ensure the safety and security of all our citizens.
Saturday is the last day of the San Juan County Fair. The 33rd annual Friday Harbor 8.8K Loop Run will take place. But a lot of the spotlight will be on the American Camp rabbits. Rep. David Obey, chairman of the U.S. House Appropriations Committee, will lead a delegation Saturday to San Juan Island National Historical Park. The visit is reportedly part of a committee visit to national parks in the region.
Each prairie is its own special system. When we have so little left, we have to conserve what remains. Let’s preserve the American Camp prairie. Let’s move the rabbits off the prairie — humanely. We hope the proponents of humane treatment of the rabbits can help.
San Juan County Auditor Milene Henley called the primary election Wednesday night for Deputy Rob Nou and Detective Brent Johnson in the race for San Juan County sheriff. With 300 ballots to be counted Thursday and an estimated 100 expected to arrive in the mail by the Sept. 1 certification date, Johnson was still the second-place finisher in the race for sheriff. “I don’t expect the trend to change,” Henley said.
