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Sunday, April 3 1:29 p.m.: Guns make noise – Several reports were made about a loud explosion and then gunshots in the Milltown area. Deputies contacted an individual, who owns the property, and they admitted to doing some shooting. Skagit City Rd., Conway. 3:03 p.m.: Was it cashed? – Possibly fraud involving bitcoin.. A market, Morris St., La Conner. Tuesday, April 5 12:11 p.m.: Family heirloom left – This was an abandoned fifth wheel trailer and the registered owner was deceased. Snee Oosh / Reservation Rds., Greater La...
La Conner School District board members met March 28 in a hybrid meeting to discuss changes coming to the school and even a new app. The board anticipates extending its high school Lushootseed language education program to the eighth grade. To help facilitate that, they unanimously approved use of grant funding to purchase a software app designed to increase Lushootseed proficiency. “We’ll be using technology that younger folks are used to,” Superintendent Will Nelson said. “Having that app,” added board president Susie Deyo, “will be very hel...
La Conner residents have an appetite for supporting local causes. To help feed that generous spirit, the community’s restaurants and cafes have added regular fundraising events to their menus. In February, Santo Coyote Mexican Kitchen donated 20% of one day’s proceeds to the family of Swinomish teen and La Conner High School grad Danny “Dano” Rapada, who earlier this year underwent a kidney transplant in Seattle. That event, including separate donations by the restaurant’s staff and residents, raised over $1,900. “Santo Coyote was amazing,” J...
It has been a rough road this season for the La Conner High School baseball team. But on Friday, the Braves were able to roll over Concrete in their NW2B/1B home debut, with a 13-3 victory behind solid starting pitching from Nathan Bailey and multiple hits by Logan Burks, Brogan Masonholder and Mason Wilson. Bailey started on the hill opposite Concrete and struck out 11 batters while holding the Lions scoreless through four frames. Masonholder came on in relief in the fifth to close the game. The double-digit triumph, La Conner’s first win t...
In my work representing our community, I’ve had the opportunity to meet so many of you and your neighbors, listen to your concerns and learn about what issues affect your daily lives. It’s clear that people want bold action to support a healthy economy – one that benefits all in our community. This session, I looked for ways to support our rural economy, fund important local projects, support veterans and military families and improve public safety. I’m pleased to report that we made...
Seasonal workers for the Washington Bulb Company are back at work after a three-day strike that made headlines throughout the state. The strike was sparked by an error the company made when calculating worker bonuses for daffodil bunches picked on Saturday, March 19. While pay for the harvest crew averages $17.50 an hour, it can fluctuate on any given day, explained Brent Roozen of Washington Bulb on March 24, when he talked to reporters in front of company headquarters. “Last Saturday, we b...
The La Conner High School baseball team was late to the chase in NW2B/1B baseball action at Coupeville last Tuesday. The Braves fell behind early to Coupeville, who took a 7-0 lead despite a late La Conner push across eight runs over the final two innings. In the end, the Wolves posted an 18-8 victory. La Conner fell 0-2, both conference setbacks. The Braves, scheduled at Orcas yesterday, resume NW2B/1B play this Friday when they entertain Concrete at 4 p.m. Despite their loss at Coupeville, head coach Jeremiah LeSourd felt his team made...
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...
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...
Sarah Cook has consistently recorded big numbers for the La Conner High School girls’ basketball team, filling the stat sheet with points, rebounds, assists and steals. It was a no-brainer when it came time to vote for top post-season honors. Cook was chosen the NW2B Girls’ Most Valuable Player in recent balloting conducted by league schools. She helped lead her team to fourth-place at the state Hardwood Classic in Spokane earlier this month, scoring 25 points in the team’s second round victory over Lake Roosevelt, The next day she had 18 po...
Top youth wrestler Delaney Cobbs did not let potential success slip through her grasp despite La Conner High School not having a mat program of its own. Cobbs was able to compete at the high school level thanks to a co-op arrangement forged between La Conner and 2A wrestling power Burlington-Edison. A senior and student rep on the district’s school board, Cobbs made the most of her opportunity. She posted a 24-4 mark this past season while placing second in the girls’ 190-pound weight class at...
The La Conner School Board accepted a donation of 900 COVID-19 rapid tests from the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community valued at $7,000 at its Feb. 28 meeting. “This is a huge deal,” Board President Susie Deyo said. “We really want to thank the Swinomish Tribal Community for this donation.” During surges in positive cases earlier in the school year, athletes had to be tested several times weekly. The board voted 4-0 to accept the donation, with member J.J. Wilbur abstaining as he serves on the Swinomish Tribal Senate. Elementary School Princip...
When Jens Peder Nielsen came to La Conner from Iowa with the Hulburt family early in the 20th century, land was on his mind. Soon J. P. Nelson, as he began calling himself, was using earnings from his job with the Hulburts to buy small parcels as they became available. Many small parcels became substantial holdings for the Danish farmer. Through the Skagit County Farmland Legacy program, J.P.’s niece Nancy Dunton recently protected 170 acres of his prime farmland from development. “Nobody is...
Local emergency response volunteers will sport less gray hair if a recruitment drive by Skagit County Fire District 13 and the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community is successful. An effort by the tribe and fire district to grow the ranks of CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) was announced by Capt. Ted Taylor during the monthly District 13 hybrid meeting Friday morning, March 11. Swinomish Emergency Management Coordinator Brian Geer is leading the effort. “Brian is way out in front on this i...
Denied a state title, La Conner ended the season on a positive note Saturday morning March 5 at the Spokane Arena with a 67-52 win over Raymond to get fourth place at the 2022 2B Girls’ Hardwood Classic. “I’m proud of how we finished out the season,” said La Conner senior Sarah Cook, who scored 18 points, during a post-game interview aired on the NFHS Network. “It was our last game,” Cook said, “so we wanted to leave everything on the floor.” The Lady Braves defeated Lake Roosevelt 69-61...
There was a time, not so long ago, when the La Conner High School baseball team strung together some magical seasons. Now veteran Braves coaches Jeremiah LeSourd and Andy Otis hope to rekindle that magic within a program that has been sidelined since 2019 due to lack of roster depth and the COVID-19 pandemic. Spring 2022 is a new beginning for the Braves. “Our senior class has played in nine games while in high school,” LeSourd explained, “Normally, the number of games played would be at least 60 entering your senior year. “Giving these k...
Kathy Herrera doesn’t scare easily. That goes to show how harrowing the past few weeks have been for the former La Conner schools administrator who survived a recent near-death experience in California, where she is working on a charter campus after having taken a leave of absence here last spring. A kidney donor who is no stranger to pressure, from her days as a competitive athlete to juggling multiple school duties in her career, Herrera isn’t one to fret. But today, while recovering from an episode last month where she collapsed sud...
For the La Conner Daffodil Festival and the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival, the last two years have been all about no. In 2020 there were no visitors to Roozengaarde and Tulip Town and almost no sales when havoc in the food supply chain canceled wholesale and retail cut-flower sales. No Kiwanis Salmon Barbecue, no street fairs, nothing, nothing, nothing. “Don’t come” was the Valley’s message to flower lovers. Then 2021 was all about maybe, as the festivals adopted social distancing and advance...
Libraries are magical places. Every book is a window to the world just waiting to be explored. Maybe it’s because I grew up the grandchild of a high school English teacher, who instilled in me a love for language and books – but I’ve always believed libraries are necessities, not luxuries. Not only do they enrich our minds, they also keep our democracy healthy. By providing comprehensive access to recorded details of history, government, philosophy, medicine and countless other topics, libraries protect and defend every citizen’s right to...
Daniel Rapada has been in and out of hospitals numerous times over the years battling an array of serious health issues. Last Wednesday, his admirers showed their hearts during a benefit fundraiser for the Swinomish teen at Santo Coyote Mexican Kitchen. Rapada, a 2021 La Conner High School graduate, is recovering from a kidney transplant. It is the latest in a series of medical procedures he has undergone since having been diagnosed with Aplastic Anemia, a rare condition in which the body does...
The La Conner High School girls’ basketball team took care of business in Coupeville last Thursday. As expected, the team (20-1) breezed to the Northwest 2B District title with a dominant 70-19 victory over the hosts, who had placed a distant second to the Lady Braves in the league championship race. La Conner advances to regionals this weekend, a round that will help determine bracket placement for the state Hardwood Classic March 2-5 in Spokane. The team, which has defeated foes from the 1...
