Arguably, this will be an island Fourth of July celebration unlike any other. Representatives of the Lummi Indian Nation — the First People of San Juan Island — are special guests at the town’s Fourth of July celebration, including participation in the Fourth of July Parade. The town fire department celebrates its 100 years of service to the community with several events. And regular annual events also take place: the parade, Rock the Dock, activities in Roche Harbor, as well as fireworks shows in Friday Harbor and Roche Harbor.
Irving Spector of San Juan Island, formerly of Memphis, Tenn., passed away peacefully on June 26, 2009 at Islands Convalescent Center on San Juan Island. He was 95.
Airlift Northwest will again base one of its helicopters at Friday Harbor Airport this summer to expedite emergency services for residents and visitors in the San Juan Islands. The helicopter will be at the airport during the day on alternating weekends and during the San Juan County Fair.
The World, a luxury residential ship that is owned by its residents, will visit Friday Harbor for 48 hours on Sunday. At 644 feet 2 inches, it is believed to be the largest cruise ship ever to anchor in Friday Harbor waters, Harbormaster Tami Hayes said. The ship has a beam of 97 feet 2 inches and a draft of 22 feet. By comparison, the Bremen, which anchored off of Brown Island during a visit about 11 years ago, is 364 feet in length, with a 58-foot beam and a 16-foot draft.
The skipper of a Bayliner photographed getting too close to an orca off the west side of San Juan Island in May has been charged with violating the state law related to protecting Southern resident killer whales.
Specifically, the skipper is charged with approaching within 300 feet of an orca, according to the San Juan County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. The penalty is a fine of $1,025.
Some will get more. Others will get less. But for the most part, San Juan County’s tourist-related facilities will have to get by next year with about the same amount of public support that’s helping them to pay the bills this year.
Meetings of a PeaceHealth-appointed governing board for a proposed hospital on San Juan Island could be subject to the state’s Open Public Meetings Act and the Public Records Act, according to an analysis by the state Attorney General’s open government ombudsman. Tim Ford, assistant attorney general for government accountability, said the governing board could be considered a public agency, rather than just an arm of the non-profit PeaceHealth system, depending on how it was created, how much tax funding it will receive, and if it performs a governmental function.
Graveside memorial service was held June 27, 1 p.m., at Valley Cemetery for J. William “Bill” Taylor, who passed away April 25, 2009. He was 90. Worshipful Master Brad Smith and Masonic Lodge No. 175 led the service for Mr. Taylor, who served as worshipful master in 1952. Service was June 27, 1 p.m., at Valley Cemetery.
The Lady Washington was shipwrecked on a sand bar off Nootka Sound in 1798, but a full-sized replica was built in 1989 and is the official ship of Washington state. She will be anchored in Garrison Bay at English Camp July 25 and 26 for the San Juan Island National Historical Park’s annual Encampment — a celebration and reenactment of island life during the mid-19th century and this year, the sesquicentennial (150th anniversary) of the joint military occupation of San Juan Island.
Jim Barnhart, CEO for PeaceHealth’s Siuslaw Region, has been named to lead the planning and development of the proposed critical access hospital and integrated medical center on San Juan Island. Barnhart will report to Nancy Steiger, CEO of the PeaceHealth Whatcom Region, which includes St. Joseph Hospital in Bellingham and PeaceHealth Medical Group. He will begin working in this new role part-time on July 1 while transitioning from his responsibilities at Peace Harbor. He will assume his San Juan Island-based duties full-time in July 2010.
Kathleen Kaska’s mystery, “Murder at the Arlington,” won the 2008 Salvo Press Mystery Novel Award and has just been released. The novel is the first in her new “hotel” murder-mystery series. The story, set in 1952 when gangsterdom and gambling were prevalent, centers around the historic Arlington Hotel, but also includes some of Hot Springs’ institutions: Buckstaff Bath House, Oaklawn Race Track, Coy’s Restaurant, the infamous Ohio Club.
The Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Initiative has been awarded $4.6 million in economic stimulus funding from NOAA to pull derelict fishing nets from Puget Sound. These funds, directed to the non-profit foundation arm of the Northwest Straits Initiative, will allow the immediate hire of vessels and crews to remove an estimated 3,000 nets from the seafloor. The project will employ 40 people, restore 645 acres of marine habitat, and will be completed in 18 months.
Islanders would have a little less time to conduct business at various county departments under legislation that’s designed to help offset the impact of $1 million or more of pending budget cuts. In a 5-1 decision, the San Juan County Council voted June 9 to put the proposal into the pipeline and have its legal team prepare it for possible approval at a July 14 public hearing, which begins at 2:10 p.m.
