Blog
Bridging The Gap
Bridging The Gap The economics of living on Orcas are complex. This week, the Orcas Community Resource Center (OCRC) distributed their annual report in which they cite that 13% of island households are living below the poverty level and up to 40% of island households...
Ready to Roll!
I am delighted to announce that OICF is fully staffed once again with the arrival of Tera Andaya. Tera launched her career at OICF this week and is already on a roll. As the Outreach and Support person, she is working on relaunching the Hive program. If you want to...
One Person Can Make a Difference: Bruce
Bruce Benton United Way of San Juan County, Board Member Can you share a little bit about yourself? I was born in Miami, Florida in 1942, where my father was stationed to train for World War II. He served as a Navy lieutenant in Antwerp, Belgium – known then as...
Ready, Set, RUN!
This coming November, there will be 16 commissioner positions on the ballot for Orcas. These include two seats each on the School Board, Park and Rec, the Port of Orcas, and the Orcas Health Care District. Both the SJC Fire District 2 (Orcas Fire Department) and the...
One Person Can Make a Difference: Rick
Rick Doty Long Live the Kings, Volunteer Can you share a little bit about yourself? I was born in Missoula, Montana. I moved to Orcas Island with my family in 1971 and finished high school at Orcas Island High. I started Orcas Homegrown Market, helped in the...
One Person Can Make a Difference: Miramonee
Miramonee Harrington Salmonberry School, Board Chair Can you share a little bit about yourself? I moved to Orcas in 2015 when my daughter was one. I had been living in Vegas for ~15 years and realized that this was not where I wanted to raise a child, so back...
In It for the Long Haul
This week we opened up two new endowment funds — one for the Orcas Community Resource Center and the other for the Orcas Island Food Bank. Both were seeded with contributions from Board Members currently serving or recently retired. What a lovely way to ensure the...
GiveOrcas Gets Rolling!
OICF’s grant making has evolved over the years into a true community process. Twice a year, OICF invites the community to submit proposals for funding through the GiveOrcas Campaigns. The application period for the Spring GiveOrcas Campaign closed this week, and we...
Everything Must Change
Hello everyone, Ed filling in one more time before Hilary arrives back from her well-rested vacation. I’ve been listening to a lot of Nina Simone lately. More than usual. The beauty, strength, and sheer determination of her voice and power of her words are...
Meeting the Challenge
Hello all, Ed Andrews here. Filling in this week while Hilary is off to Mexico and Molly is basking in Hawaiʻi. I obviously did not receive the office memo about going on vacation this week. I sense interoffice trickery, but I, and OIPI, can’t seem to prove such...