Your independent hometown award-winning newspaper
Your independent hometown award-winning newspaper
Sorted by date Results 1 - 19 of 19
The surreal became all too real last Wednesday as a few locals watched from both sides of the Swinomish Channel and the Rainbow Bridge, witnessing what for decades has been an everyday occurrence here. With cell phones and cameras in hand, they captured images that morning of Dunlap Towing skipper Tom Zimmerman bringing a log tow south past town, Swinomish Village, and Shelter Bay to storage off nearby Goat Island---a familiar scene that has played out for as long as most locals can remember....
“I’m seeing a lot of faces I haven’t seen in a long time,” said La Conner Chamber of Commerce board member Tami Mason of Washington Federal as she scooped ice cream last Thursday. From the banter and bonhomie in Maple Hall, it was clear that everyone else attending the chamber’s ice cream social shared her sentiment. About 150 familiar—and maskless!—faces greeted one another over ice cream and toppings, browsed displays and silent auction baskets, and enjoyed toe-tapping Irish mus...
La Conner residents are invited to a public forum addressing “Growing Pains” in town March 31 at 6 p.m. in the school district’s Bruce Auditorium. The forum is the first effort of the town council’s communication committee to both provide information to residents on pressing issues and to engage the community in discussion. Councilmember MaryLee Chamberlain started championing getting information on town plans and projects to residents last fall. With fellow Councilmember Rick Dole, a committee started discussing ways residents can get accurat...
I found it concerning when I read the recent letters by Mr. O’Donnell on March 9 and by Mr. Elliott on March 16 about taxes paid by Shelter Bay. Anyone buying a home here on leased land is clearly informed that we live here because the Swinomish Nation has granted us the privilege. In any lease situation, we do not presume to tell our landlord how to use their income. But even more than that, a non-native living here should not be taking the same position (or taking the same for granted) as we would living on land that is solely part of the U...
Dear friends, I want to recommend World Central Kitchens, founded by chef Jose Andres, as an organization worthy of your support for citizens of Ukraine and their abouts. You can find it easily online. It’s been in place for several years. I donate regularly. They have established cooking and serving stations, at least eight on the Polish Ukraine border at major refugee receiving spots, to help feed and comfort thousands and thousands of those fleeing war. WCK has also been providing the same care in other spots in the world where folks are h...
Congratulations to the planning commission for recognizing when a staff report is inadequate and should be ignored. Your vote to reject the Center Street project as too large and too impactful on the neighbors was the right thing to do. Thank you. I know how hard that was for you. The PC has been running short - three members (still a quorum) instead of five at this meeting. (One member was unable to attend). The vacancy which has existed since fall has still not been filled. Two good people from town offered to fill the role on the...
NW News Network An abrupt awakening in Congress is raising hopes on the West Coast that last weekend’s switch from standard time to daylight time might be the next to last time we go through the annoying clock change ritual. After sitting on the sidelines for years, the U.S. Senate Tuesday found the time to approve year-round daylight saving time beginning in 2023. The measure now goes to the House for further consideration. The Washington and Oregon legislatures voted three years ago to “ditch the switch” and stick with daylight saving time...
Robert (Bob) Lee Olson took his first breath on earth September 18, 1938 in Sayre, PA, and his last on March 11, 2022 in Anacortes, WA. Bob found great pleasure enjoying his love of sky, sea, and land at an early age. He grew up in beautiful Elmira, New York where his playground included the lovely Finger Lakes, the Thousand Islands, Watkins Glen Racing, and Harris Hill, home to many glider plane enthusiasts. Lots of time spent hanging around the “fly boys” often got him free rides in exc...
Earl Eugene Johnson was born in Port Bellingham, WA, November 23, 1928. His dad was an auto mechanic and mother was a school teacher, but Earl was destined for a career in sales. Earl is survived by his son, Ronald W. Johnson (Linda Weeks); daughter Cheryl Neff (Ernie); grandchildren Chad Neff (Kim), Jayci Shaddy (Paul), Ryan Neff (Jaime), and Damian Johnson (Rita); plus nine great-grandchildren, and two great-great grandchildren (and one on the way); plus numerous nieces and nephews. He is also survived by stepchildren, Veretta Edson, Jan...
Always a versatile player during her four years with the La Conner High School girls basketball program, Sarah Cook regularly filled the team’s stat sheet. Now Cook is filling her personal trophy case with a slew of honors following a stellar senior campaign during which she helped lead La Conner to a fourth-place finish at the Girls’ 2B Hardwood Classic in Spokane earlier this month. Cook has garnered a NW2B/1B Most Valuable Player recognition and was selected to play in the State 1B/2B Senior All-State Game. Earlier this season, she was voted...
La Conner High School had all bases covered early in its game Friday at Darrington. The Braves just couldn’t bring those baserunners home. La Conner opened the contest by loading the bases with none out. “Unfortunately,” head coach Jeremiah LeSourd said after his club’s 7-0 conference setback, “that was as close as we got to scoring.” Braves starting pitcher Haydin Dinuis yielded just one run through four frames, at which point the hosts held a slim 3-0 lead. Darrington blew the game open, however, with four unearned runs in the home fourth...
La Conner fans know how good their high school girls basketball team is. The evidence is in the selection of La Conner players to the Scoreboard Live 2B All-Hardwood Classic Team and the annual 1B/2B Senior All-State Game in Seattle last Saturday. Junior Ellie Marble and senior Sarah Cook were named last week to the popular sports website’s Hardwood Classic second unit All-tourney team after having helped lead the Lady Braves (23-2 overall) to a fourth-place finish in Spokane earlier this month. Cook, in addition, joined Juna Swanson in a M...
Town officials plan to focus on signage this year, and La Conner School Board members intend to follow suit. Board president Susie Gardner Deyo and Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) Executive Director Mick Hoffman conferred on a variety of topics, most notably how to better promote sportsmanship at interscholastic events. “We talked about what we can do to step up sportsmanship,” Deyo told fellow board members during a 90-minute March 14 hybrid special meeting. One strategy is to increase signage on the La Conner Sch...
The La Conner Swinomish Library, covered in silver insulation, looks like a jewelry box and adds sparkle to Morris Street. Tiger Construction is doing a great job. Have you noticed how tidy the worksite is? This may be the first public building in Washington state constructed using all cross laminated timber (CLT) for walls and ceilings. Vaagen Timbers manufactured CLT for the library using locally sourced wood from Sierra Pacific Industries in Washington. The La Conner Library Foundation,...
A La Conner Elementary School second grader is already a first-class gymnast. Lailoni Edwards, 7, who practices four times weekly at Ground Zero Gymnastics in Mount Vernon, placed second all-round and first in vault in her division at a youth meet in Shelton. That performance qualified her for state trials April 9-11 in Tacoma. She is proof, at such a young age, that dedication and discipline can equal success. “I think the most important aspect of her accomplishments in gymnastics is it is t...
The new Island Grown Farmers Cooperative (IGFC) meat processing facility at the Port of Skagit in Burlington is a dream come true for its 80 regional members, including the Mesman Dairy. Still primarily an organic dairy, the Mesman family began raising and selling beef, lamb and pork in 2019. Besides selling meat and eggs at their farm store at Chilberg and Dodge Valley Roads, they also supply meat for several local restaurants and the La Conner School District. IGFC has been their partner all...
Monday, March 14 4:05 p.m.: Prescription theft – Report of a doctor’s prescription pad being stolen. Fir Island Rd., Greater La Conner. 4:56 a.m.: Car accident – Deputies responded to a semi-truck vs pickup truck accident blocking one lane. La Conner Whitney Rd., Greater La Conner. Tuesday, March 15 12:20 p.m.: Suspicious – Caller reported someone knocking on his door when his daughter is home alone. The caller thinks it may be a process server for the previous owner. 3rd St., La Conner. 3:34 p.m.: Abandoned vehicle – C...
This is an incredible recipe. When cooking eggplant, it is best salted to remove some of the bitter flavor. The meatloaf is just vegetables, spices and ground beef – no fillers. I had only one eggplant and used the excess meat loaf to create two torpedo shaped small loafs and baked them on either side. Ingredients Ground beef, 1 pound Eggplant, 1 Green bell pepper, ¾, chopped Onion, ½ small, chopped Paprika, ¼ tsp Salt & pepper, to taste Water, to fill a large bowl...
Brandon and Kate Atkinson have a good thing planned for their commercial property behind The Slider Café. But nearby residents and lot owners believe the couple’s proposed multi-family apartment/condo building is too big, too tall, and has too many short-term rental units. As a result, the town planning commission voted last week during its 70-minute Zoom session to recommend hearing examiner David Lowell not approve a Conditional Use Permit when he considers the project on March 31. In doing so, commission chair Marna Hanneman and m...
