Jim Ghiglione, Lopez fire chief, is no stranger to wearing several hats. He has served as the Lopez Fire Department Chief since July 2008, but prior to that, he worked in Shelton, Washington for 27 years. He went from a firefighter to a lieutenant, and then was promoted to assistant fire chief, but he also served simultaneously as the fire marshall, the building official and the building inspector. Shelton is a small town, like Lopez, and Ghiglione knows and respects the multiple contributions that community members make.
On behalf of the patients in our community’s hospitals, Thank You! Thank you! Thank you! During the Lopez Island blood…
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Lopez citizen scientists invite you to join them December 28 at Lopez Center for Salmon-ation, a celebration and re-cap of their first year of research on south end salmon nurseries. Activities include a slideshow, microscope demonstrations and food. Children are welcome.
As the holidays and cold weather approaches people spend more time indoors visiting with family, friends, and in crowded places, like airports. Their exposure to germs increases. Some germs are viruses that cause a mild illness and are challenging to the immune system like the sniffles or the common cold. Other germs like the influenza virus can lead to severe illness, and even hospitalization and death. There are 226,000 hospitalizations for influenza related illness each year in the US. Children have the same rates for hospitalization as seniors for influenza illness. Last year there were 86 pediatric influenza related deaths in the US, of which half were in the 5 to 18 year olds group. A hospitalization for islanders means a difficult off island trip, the trauma of a strange place, and parents needing to miss work (or a paycheck), or not being able to stay with other siblings left at home. Last year there were two pediatric deaths in Seattle, a previously healthy second grader and an infant. Influenza is a serious illness; people of any age can get it.
The John Trotto Sportsmanship winners for 2008 are Lynden Christian from the north district, and Lopez Island from the south district.
The Lopez Booster Club wants to bring Lopezians back to the school and back to the games.
The Audubon Christmas Bird Count with the San Juan Islands Audubon Society is only 10 days away. Participating in this event is a great way to kick off the holidays.
What better time than winter to gather with your friends and dance the night away?
LOPEZ Island
Seasonal choral music brings a universal richness to the holiday season, serving as a link to the past, a celebration of the present and as a bridge and hope into the future.
Faced with declining enrollment and early predictions of significant statewide reductions in education funding, the Lopez School District has determined that the position of superintendent should be reduced to half-time, as a cost saving measure, beginning with the 2009-10 school year.
