Letters to the editor Community bikes vandalized

Some great community minded individuals, myself included, decided to start a community bike program to better serve pedestrians in town. Many of the bikes were lovingly restored classic cruisers that had been rescued from the exchange by myself and others. This project was a symbol of our communities strength and character and the son of the bike shop owner had made this his senior project. The bike shop has donated many parts and much grimy labor on the old machines to bring them to our community.

Now that has all changed. Some juveniles have vandalized our community bikes by breaking luggage boxes, running the bikes into trees and removing and jumping on the delicate spoked wheels, mindlessly ruining many hours of hard work and dedication from community minded individuals.

Several of the bikes had their classic, irreplaceable metal fenders torn asunder from the classic machines. This senseless act of vandalism leaves a hole in my heart for the holidays. I am posting a $100 reward leading to the arrest and conviction of those little miscreants that are responsible for this senseless destruction of our community property.

David Dunlap

Orcas Island

Santa ship sailed despite cold weather

Much to the delight of over 90 island children, the cold windy weather did not keep Santa’s ship from sailing on Saturday, Dec. 13. Tom Averna was able to steer his Deer Harbor Charter boat safely into Deer Harbor Bellport Marina with Santa aboard, to be greeted by a crowd of delighted children. Santa climbed aboard Terry Neill’s vintage red truck and quickly arrived at the Deer Harbor Community Club where he individually greeted the children and distributed presents. Members of the Deer Harbor Women’s Auxiliary were waiting at the Community Club with hot chocolate and cookies.

Thank you to our Deer Harbor community for making this such a rewarding event for our island children. Special thanks go to Dennis Kaufman, Tom Averna and Marc Broman. I also want to thank Judy Flath, who chaired this event, and the many Auxiliary members who baked, greeted, served and cleaned in an effort to provide a memorable day for our island children.

Ann Ramsey

President, Deer Harbor Women’s Auxiliary

Thank you for making Toys for Tots a success

I would like to express my appreciation to everyone who worked to make the Toys for Tots Program such a huge success for the Orcas Community.

Thanks to our wonderful donors who made possible that we purchase locally and our local businesses Darvills, Ray’s Pharmacy, Leaping Lizard, Eastsound Sporting Goods and Radio Shack for their generous discounts. We also want to thank Helene Picone who helped during the Saturday’s distribution, the Fire Station Team for all their assistance and support in making this happen, and fellow Lions Don Webster, Bill Buchen, Mairah Buck, Grant Stone, Jim Biddick, Melissa Halwax, Pam Harney, Kay Miller and Kim Rose.

With everyone’s contribution, we were able to provide 54 families and 170 local children with toys, games and books for the holiday season. We are open for donations preparing for the next season. Cash donations can be sent to Toys for Tots Progam, Orcas Lions Club, PO Box 1212, Eastsound, WA 982145. For toy donations please call Veronica at 276-8376.

Veronica San Martin

Chair for the Toys for Tots Program

Shop the Rock was fun for all

Before winter kicked into high gear, the Chamber of Commerce was pleased to kick off the holiday season with our annual “Shop the Rock” Friday night in Eastsound. The turnout was tremendous, and there are many to thank for making it possible.

The Christmas tree on the Village Green was gloriously decorated (tripling the number of bulbs of last year!) by super volunteers Ron Gilleland and Perry Pugh; Orcas Island Hardware, providing the Chamber with bulbs and more bulbs; the Community Band, under the direction of Joe Babcock, played all the right notes for a holiday celebration; Santa and Mrs. Claus (Scott & Judy Whiting), who sat in the chilly night air (nothing compared to The North Pole), handing out toys and making the little ones so very happy; George Garrels and Kiwanis, makers of delightful Orcas original toys; Perry and Mary Pugh, who suggested and led the “charge” of the Holiday Light Parade (sure to be a new island tradition); the Orcas Island Fire Department, reliable escorts for Santa; the businesses in Eastsound who took part in the “Shop the Rock” Friday night, allowing islanders to begin their holiday shopping that weekend; and the members of the Chamber who provided us with cookies, brownies and other tasty goodies to share with the community that evening … we couldn’t have done it without you!

Board of Directors and Staff,

Orcas Island Chamber of Commerce

COMMENTING RULES: We encourage an open exchange of ideas in the PNWLocalNews.com community, but we ask you to follow our guidelines for respecting community standards. In a nutshell, don't say anything you wouldn't want your mother to read. So keep your comments:

• Civil
• Smart
• On-topic
• Free of profanity

We ask that all participants own their words by registering for an account. It's a simple process that will take seconds and helps keep our comments free of trolls, cranks, and drive-by commenters.

As a community site, we ask that the community help by using the "Flag" button on each comment if they feel the comment has violated the rules. You can also use the up and down arrows on each comment to voice your opinion about that particular comment.

Want to tell us something but you don't want it to be public? Talk to us privately.