Sisters Little League
volunteer honored page 4
Sisters Rodeo
poster is out page 6
The Nugget
Vol. XXXIX No. 11
Children’s author is a hit
at elementary school page 24
P OSTAL CUSTOMER
News and Opinion
from Sisters, Oregon
www.NuggetNews.com
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
Students shine in epic Battle of the Books
By Charlie Kanzig
Correspondent
Sisters Middle School was
teeming with young readers
of all ages on Saturday, March
12. An epic battle was joined,
involving students from
throughout the greater Central
Oregon region. Book titles
were tossed like grenades,
arsenals of author’s names
flew like arrows, and highly
detailed facts from some of
today’s best books became the
weapons of choice in hand-
to-hand combat between the
teams.
And one Sisters team did
well enough to qualify to
travel to state competition.
According to its web-
site, Oregon Battle of the
Books (OBOB) is “a state-
wide voluntary reading
motivation and comprehen-
sion program sponsored by
the Oregon Association of
School Libraries in conjunc-
tion with a Library Services
and Technology Act grant.
Students in third through 12th
grade, regardless of ability,
are exposed to quality litera-
ture representing a variety of
PRE-SORTED STANDARD
ECRWSS
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
Sisters, OR
Permit No. 15
Council
to review
report
on city
manager
By Sue Stafford
Correspondent
“One thing I love is how
intense each battle is, and how
exhausted they are afterwards,
like a true competition of any
kind,” she said. “These teams
of kids work very hard and
compete very hard as well. It
The investigation into
complaints received from sev-
eral Sisters City Hall employ-
ees regarding City Manager
Andrew Gorayeb is complete,
and the Sisters City Council
is trying to determine how to
review the report.
According to Mayor Chris
Frye, the investigator hoped to
have the report completed by
the end of this week, with per-
haps an executive summary
prepared by the time of an
already-scheduled executive
session on Wednesday, March
16. However, that execu-
tive session was canceled on
Monday.
See BooKS on page 22
See GorayeB on page 26
photo by Jerry baldock
Sisters fifth graders qualified for state competition in the Battle of the Books that packed the middle school.
literary styles and viewpoints.
The mission is to encourage
and recognize students who
enjoy reading, to broaden
reading interests, to increase
reading comprehension, pro-
mote academic excellence,
and to promote coopera-
tive learning and teamwork
among students.”
By the end of the day, all
squads felt the weariness of
the clash, but also the satis-
faction of good teamwork and
true sportsmanship, according
to event organizer and Sisters
Middle School teacher Deb
Riehle.
Sisters veteran testifies Winter storm blankets Sisters Country
in Washington
Jim Cornelius
News Editor
On February 24, repre-
sentatives of the American
Legion from all over the
United States converged on
Washington D.C. to pres-
ent the Legion’s Legislative
A g e n d a t o t h e 11 4 t h
Congress, 2nd Session, sub-
committee on Veterans’
Affairs.
The American Legion
serves as a voice for over two
million American veterans
and service members.
Representing Oregon
was Sisters resident Eugene
H e l l i c k s o n , 2 n d Vi c e
Commander Department of
Oregon. Leading the Legion’s
agenda in a packed chamber
Inside...
was National Commander
Dale Burnett, retired Army
Lieutenant Colonel and West
Point graduate.
The primary focus of this
year’s testimony before the
subcommittee was centered
on driving accountability.
The federal government has
struggled with accountability
in recent years, in particular
in regards to veterans. Issues
facing veterans are numerous
and complex. No one wants
another gross systematic
failure in the Department of
Veterans Affairs like the one
that led to preventable death.
See HellICKSoN on page 25
It may be a little late in the
season for some folks’ taste,
but a heavy winter storm
brought good news to irriga-
tors and skiers, dumping well
over two feet of snow across
the Cascades.
The heavy snowfall means
that Hoodoo Ski Area west of
Sisters will have prime condi-
tions for skiing when Sisters
schools let out for spring
break next week.
The ski area will host
a demo day, “Preview the
New,” on March 19, provid-
ing free test runs of new ski
and snowboard models.
The snowpack, which was
jut about normal or slightly
photo courtesy hoodoo
Hoodoo is reveling in a heavy blanket of late-season snow — just in time
for spring break.
above normal through most
of the Deschutes Basin,
received a significant boost
from the heavy high-elevation
snowfall.
Precipitation falling in the
form of snow instead of heavy
rain means the water stays
locked up for longer, instead
of simply washing down
See SNoW on page 27
Letters/Weather ................ 2 Obituaries ......................8-9 Movies & Entertainment ....11 Crossword ....................... 27 Classifieds ..................28-30
Meetings ........................... 3 Announcements ............... 10 Focus on Health ...........13-21 Sisters Salutes ................ 27 Real Estate .................30-32