Wednesday, December 27, 2017 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
2017 was a year of fire, smoke and snow
By Jim Cornelius
Editor
Mother Nature kicked
Sisters Country around pretty
hard in 2017.
The year started in the
midst of a winter of deep
snows and frigid tempera-
tures, with many residents
dealing with damage from
ice dams, water intrusion and
broken pipes. Sisters schools
were forced to close repeat-
edly due to snow and cold
conditions.
In the face of the frigid
conditions, volunteers opened
a cold weather shelter for
homeless people, which is
now in its second winter of
operation.
The winter that persisted
into March was replaced by
a particularly nasty fire sea-
son. Sisters, along with much
of the Pacific Northwest,
was inundated, starting at
the beginning of August
with smoke from wildfires
in British Columbia. Then
we got hit with fires of our
own. The biggest of these,
the Milli Fire, was sparked by
lightning on Black Crater on
Friday, August 11. It blew up
to ultimately cover more than
24,000 acres.
The blaze forced evacua-
tions in Crossroads and along
Forest Road 16 south of town,
PHOTO BY GARY MILLER
The Milli Fire had tremendous impact on Sisters — economically and also in terms of people’s health.
but by far the biggest impact
on the community was the
persistent, heavy smoke —
from the Milli Fire and from
a host of other fires across
the region — that inundated
Sisters for weeks, produc-
ing unhealthy air quality and
visibility levels resembling a
London fog.
The conditions had a seri-
ous impact on the local tour-
ist economy, and forced the
cancellation of events from
Cycle Oregon to Sisters Folk
Festival.
PHOTO BY MARLENE LEE MCCORMACK
The winter of 2016-17 was the Big Story at the beginning of the year.
New Year’s Eve Dinner
Come and share a delightful meal with
your family, and let us do all the work!
Chicken Apple Slider
Smoked SGlmon CGke Gnd Filet Mignon
with Spicy CGyenne Demi GlGze
PineGpple Cole SlGw
RoGsted GGrlic PGrmesGn MGshed PotGtoes
Brownie Trifl e
Dinner will be served at 6 p.m. | $33
Kids 4 and under eat - ee, kids 5212 are $15
Th is does sell out, make your reservations now...
Call 541.516.3030 | www.lakecreeklodge.com
Possibly due to fire condi-
tions, the expected massive
influx of visitors to view a
total solar eclipse on August
21 did not materialize. In fact,
Sisters was very quiet for the
eerie event.
While the year was domi-
nated by weather and fire phe-
nomena, there were plenty of
human achievements to cel-
ebrate in the community. The
Sisters Outlaws volleyball
team repeated as state cham-
pions, and individual Sisters
artists, authors, and athletes
continued to excel in a wide
variety of endeavors.
New leaders emerged in
the community. Chuck Ryan
was appointed mayor by
his fellow city councilors,
and that council hired Brant
Kucera as Sisters’ new city
manager. Sisters District
Ranger Kristie Miller retired,
and Ian Reid was named last
month the new Sisters District
Ranger.
Other changes were afoot,
as Kiki Dolson sold The
Nugget Newspaper after 34
years of ownership. Longtime
newspapermen Tom and
Louie Mullen are the new
owners, and the staff remains
intact.
Sisters marked the pass-
ing of two of its leading lights
in Dorro Sokol and Georgia
Gallagher, who both passed
on in 2017 after lives full of
accomplishment and honors
— and significant impact on
the community of Sisters that
was their home.
Travelers and locals have
adapted to navigating Sisters’
new roundabout at Highway
20 and Barclay Drive — one
of the first roundabouts to be
sited on a state highway in
Oregon. Planners are looking
ahead to another at the east
end of town, as traffic only
continues to increase through
Sisters.
The Sisters School District
continues to work to increase
enrollment as it completes
multiple projects funded by a
bond passed in 2016.
Through what was a chal-
lenging and difficult year
in many respects, Sisters
remains a beloved place to
visit for thousands of people
— and it remains home to an
active, giving and resilient
community.
Smile,
Sisters!
We’re
committed
to your dental
health!
Exceptional Health,
Prevention & Aesthetics
Ben Crockett, D.D.S.
p 541-549-9486 f 541-549-9110
410 E. Cascade Ave. • P.O. Box 1027 • Sisters, Oregon 97759
Hours: Mon., 10 a.m.-7 p.m.; Tues.-Wed., 8 a.m.-4 p.m.;
Thurs., 7 a.m.-3 p.m.
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