Lynden School Superintendent Rick Thompson is the new superintendent of the San Juan Island School District. The school board voted 5-0 Wednesday night to offer Thompson the job, following a public forum in the Friday Harbor High School Commons in which Thompson was introduced to islanders. Thompson’s first day here is July 1, school board Chairman David McCauley said. He will receive a total compensation package of $120,000 — about $108,000 in base salary, and the rest in benefits. His base pay is the same as Interim Superintendent Walt Wegener’s, although the benefits package is more $1,100 more, McCauley said.
The San Juan Islands Museum of Art & Sculpture Park (IMA), at 28 First St. in Friday Harbor, will open “A Retrospective of Helen Loggie, 1917-1952,” Jan. 29, 5-8 p.m. Helen Loggie, a nationally recognized artist, lived most of her life in Bellingham and on Orcas Island. This exhibition links San Juan Island and Orcas Island in a unique manner, for The Lambiel Museum on Orcas is loaning part of its Helen Loggie Collection of more than 100 pieces, the largest private collection in existence, to IMA for an exhibit that will run through March 7.
Ask San Juan Island native and musician Ryan Browne about Salt Spring Island’s Harry Manx and he’ll tell you Manx is one of the “great talents to come out of the islands.” A successful touring performer (he just won “Acoustic Artist of the Year” from Canada’s Maple Blues Awards for the third consecutive year), Manx brings his unique mix of “east meets west” to the San Juan Community Theatre’s Whittier stage on Feb. 3 at 7:30 p.m.
Unique glimpses into San Juan Island’s history, people and culture come alive in San Juan Community Theatre’s intimate Gubelman Theatre during the 2010 Islands Playwrights Festival, Jan. 28-31 and Feb. 5-7 and 11-14.
Susan Meredith, an early island kayaker, historical reenactor and frequent participant in the Fourth of July Parade, died Jan. 26. She was 91. “Susan Meredith of San Juan Island passed away peacefully on the evening of Jan. 26, 2010,” Ron Garner e-mailed on behalf of the family. “She has loved the San Juan Islands for most of her life and has been a resident and enjoyed living in the island community for 30 years. She was 91. An obituary will follow when available.”
It’s a familiar story: You’re born and raised on the island, you spend some time on the mainland, you meet your life partner, you return to the islands to raise a family. A familiar story, even among birds. Western bluebirds have returned to the San Juan Islands, the San Juan Preservation Trust reports.
The San Juan Island School District will restore two periods of exploratory art instruction for grades 6-8 at Friday Harbor Middle School during second semester. Re-establishing these classes is the first step in a collaborative partnership between the Islands Museum of Art and the district to raise funds and create a community-based art program at Friday Harbor Elementary and Friday Harbor Middle schools.
Brett and Sandra Percich are happy to announce the birth of their son, Matthew William Percich, on Dec. 18, 2009. Matthew was born at Balboa Naval Hospital in San Diego, Calif., at 2:33 a.m. and weighed 8 pounds 9 ounces and was 22 inches long.
Matthew and his parents live in Chula Vista, Calif.
That the commissioners would seek to tax civic and environmental virtue is short-sighted at best, and 100 percent bass-ackwards (sic) at worst. If they must, they should keep the proposed one-time $1,000 development fee, but instead of levying a tax on conservation-minded citizens, raise the trash tipping-fees even higher yet and use the overage to offset the recycling costs.
Matthew Gray Palmer’s sculpture “All Things within All Things” was safely delivered, installed and dedicated in Norfolk, Va., last weekend. “Heartfelt thanks to all in our island community for your outpouring of support and interest in the project,” the artist and his wife, Danielle Dean Palmer, said in an e-mail.
The stakes are high. Island citizens are engaged in tasks that are leading to salmon recovery. Continued support is needed for salmon recovery efforts to be successful and we must make a long-term commitment toward completion of this work.
Our town isn’t just about whales and ferries. It’s about neighbor helping neighbor, children growing up and creating families of their own, small businesses serving the community and thriving, and a shared feeling of security and well-being.
Jan. 11 marked the beginning of our 2010 session in Olympia, and every indication tells us we are in for a bumpy ride. Just a year after tackling a $9 billion budget deficit — the largest in our state’s history — we’re faced with another $2.6 billion shortfall. This means we’ll be forced to look at even more program cuts and savings enhancements to keep Washington fiscally sound as well as keep our well-established social safety net in place for our most vulnerable.
