By 1870, there was church every Sunday, not by the itinerant missionary from Victoria but San Juan’s own resident … sandy sideburned, beloved T.J. Weekes. As it happened, probably in the late 1860s, young T.J. Weekes, who was born in Kent, England, left his home and sailed around the Horn to land in Victoria, Vancouver Island. Here he met Thomas Summerville. In 1870, Summerville sent young Weekes to the San Juan Island Church to become their regular pastor.
Dr. Dennis Willows, former director of the U.W. Friday Harbor Labs, is the guest at this week’s Spring Street School Discovery Speaker Series presentation. The event is free and open to the public. Date and venue: Thursday, 7 p.m., Friday Harbor House San Juan Conference Room.
Homes in the Friday Avenue area were without water for about five hours Feb. 23 after an OPALCO worker broke a water main while digging to replace a light pole.
Griffin Bay Book Club will meet Friday, 7 p.m., at the book store, 155 Spring St. Topic: “The Geography of Bliss” by Eric Weiner.
Robin Jacobson had the winning answer to the question, “What will NOT be found under the 1894 King Farmhouse?” The contest was co-sponsored by the San Juan Historical Society and SanJuanJournal.com.
An electric blanket burned through a mattress in a bedroom at 817 Sunday Drive in Friday Harbor, Feb. 16. Renter Christine Dawson and her family were off-island at the time of the fire. A neighbor, Gary Hanson, heard the smoke alarm and called sheriff’s dispatch. The call was received at 1:26 p.m.; Friday Harbor and San Juan Island District 3 firefighters went to the home.
Great Island Giveaway and Social, a community recycling/swap meet, takes place Feb. 21 at Mullis Community Senior Center. Drop off items and social is at 8:30-9:45 a.m. Event begins at 10 a.m. The event is presented by Soroptimist International of Friday Harbor.
There will be an Ash Wednesday Service on Feb. 25, noon, in Friday Harbor Presbyterian Church. “Join us in the spiritual journey toward Easter with this noontime service, noting the beginning of the Lenten season with prayers of hope and healing.”
Ursula courageously fought and beat cancer three times over the last 30 years and her positive outlook in the face of adversity is an inspiration to all who knew her. An avid traveler, she made yearly trips to Europe to visit her daughter and friends, even last summer at the age of 91.
The skies may get a lot noisier over Lopez and San Juan islands. The Navy plans to increase training for crews at its Northwest Training Range Complex off the coasts of Washington, Oregon and Northern California.
It was a busy day in our state Capitol. More than 200 Washingtonians rallied in Olympia on Feb. 18 to speak out about the proposed options for future ferry service and present a petition with 8,000 signatures.
Huckleberry passed away in the loving care of her family, Maya, Sheryl and Andrew, on Feb. 17, 2009.
Free composting workshops are scheduled March 7 and 8 on the islands. The dates are incorrect in the ad on page 8A of the Feb. 18 Journal. The workshops are March 7, 8:30-11:30 a.m., Orcas Island Senior Center; March 7, 1:30-4:30 p.m., Mullis Community Senior Center; and March 8, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Lopez Island Elementary School.
