The Nugget Vol. XLVII No. 14
POSTAL CUSTOMER
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
www.NuggetNews.com
PRE-SORTED STANDARD ECRWSS U.S. POSTAGE PAID Sisters, OR Permit No. 15
Wednesday, April 3, 2024
Ready, set, go...
District committed to music program By Jim Cornelius Editor in Chief
PHOTO BY JACK TURPEN
Eager Easter Egg hunters swept up 6,000 eggs hidden by local firefighting agencies in a few frenzied minutes.
Private land abundant in Sisters’ forests By Bill Bartlett Correspondent
It often comes as a surprise to Sisters Country folk when out hiking deep inside the Deschutes National Forest and they come across fences or other indicators that they are now upon private lands. “How does anybody have a ranch smack dab in the middle of the
forest?” Clay and Maureen Whittier asked as they came upon Skyline Forest. They were snowshoeing near Three Creek Butte via Snow Creek Road when they faced a pair of signs: “NOTICE Entering Private Property” and “PLEASE BE RESPECTFUL. Thank You.” Little did they know See LAND on page 17
Sisters enters the burning season Deschutes National Forest firefighters plan to start spring prescribed burning in mid-April as conditions become favorable. The Deschutes National Forest may accomplish up to an estimated 11,000 acres of prescribed burning, including up to an estimated 7,000 acres on the Bend-Fort Rock Ranger District, 1,271 acres on the Crescent Ranger
Inside...
District, and 2,942 acres on the Sisters Ranger District. Prescribed burns are planned north of Sisters on the east and west sides of Highway 20 just south of Indian Ford Campground; within the Metolius Basin including along the eastern side of FSR 14 and just north of Camp Sherman on See BURNING on page 18
Sisters High School will continue its vocal music program, even as teacher Rick Johnson has been placed on leave while the Sisters School District looks into concerns about a potentially inappropriate text exchange with a former student. The student is believed to have been 17 at the time of the exchange. “That’s our next conversation,” Superintendent Curt Scholl told The Nugget. “Our intent is to still run the program. We want to, as much as See MUSIC on page 20
Sisters miracle dog brightens lives By Bill Bartlett Correspondent
On a cold December 21, Deschutes County Sheriff’s Deputy Jerad Bearson of the Sisters Station found himself on the Cold Springs Road cutoff near Highway 20 in search of a distressed dog. A citizen called it in describing the dog as looking like a black Labrador retriever, pregnant or having recently birthed. Bearson quickly found the dog, sitting up, guarded. When he approached, the dog became agitated and tried to bite him. Another deputy responded to Bearson’s efforts and they enticed the dog to come near their cars, but they couldn’t coax the dog into the back seat. A call was made to Lt. Chad Davis, who heads the Sisters office, and he brought the agency’s metal crate. After some more biting attempts the dog put herself into the crate, clearly worn down by her experience. Bearson called Brightside Animal Center in Redmond, and the dog was dropped off at 4 p.m.
PHOTO PROVIDED
Deschutes County Sheriff’s deputies found Ivy in a bad way in the woods. She delivered 10 pups at Brightside Animal Shelter in Redmond. Seven survived and have been adopted. The next day at noon, still highly malnourished, and showing signs of a hard existence, she delivered 10 puppies. “We call her the miracle dog,” said Taylor Campbell, Brightside executive director. “It’s amazing that she survived, and more amazing that she found the strength to live through the rigors of birthing.” While all 10 pups survived birth, three subsequently succumbed, probably due to her ordeal and having insufficient feeding capacity. The “miracle dog”
got better, gained weight, had her long nails and ragged coat tended, was vaccinated and chipped. Her face is scarred from encounters with fences, other animals, or brush. The pups were weaned after a couple of weeks and could be fostered until eight weeks when the surviving seven could be placed up for adoption. Within four days, all were taken by delighted families. Mom, named Ivy by the staff in recognition of her See MIRACLE DOG on page 16
Letters/Weather ............... 2 Obituaries ........................ 9 Entertainment ................. 11 High Desert Heroines .. 12-13 Classifieds..................21-23 Meetings .......................... 3 Announcements...............10 Trailgrams ....................... 11 Crossword ...................... 20 Sudoku ............................21