The Nugget Vol. XLVII No. 49
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News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
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Wednesday, December 4, 2024
Sisters kicks off the holiday season
Farm kids in Sisters Country clamor for ag science By Bill Bartlett Correspondent
The annual Christmas Parade & Tree Lighting is the essence of small-town holiday charm. A big crowd turned out on Saturday to partake. PHOTO BY JAROD GATLEY
By Ceili Gatley Correspondent
The holiday season officially kicked off in Sisters Country this past weekend with the annual town Christmas Parade and tree lighting. Although there was no snow to frame the picturesque parade through town on Saturday, November 30,
spirits were high under a bright Central Oregon blue sky. The event is sponsored by Kizziar Properties and Sisters Woodlands, and organized by Sisters Parks & Recreation District (SPRD). The second “Holiday Palooza” combined iconic events, including the parade (in its 47th year),
and the annual tree lighting. Activities followed the parade this year at Fir Street Park, including ornament decoration, hot chocolate and cider, pictures with Santa Claus, and a spot to drop off a letter to the North Pole. The event culminated with a tree lighting ceremony at Fir Street Park, with a countdown and Christmas
Wild stallion sculpture repairs are extensive By Bill Bartlett Correspondent
Sisters’ signature stallion sculpture will hopefully be back where it belongs in the coming days. The iconic metal art sculpture of a rearing wild stallion near the entrance to downtown on the corner of Cascade and Larch was damaged when a vehicle crashed into it on the night of October 30. It was the second collision involving the beloved art. An 18-year-old driver
escaped injury when he fell asleep at the wheel early on the morning of July 7, 2017, and crashed his pickup truck into the plinth of the equestrian statue. The statue itself was spared but the vehicle had considerable front-end damage. The driver, from Missouri, was determined not to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol. “What is it about the horse? ” la ughe d R eed Sanders of Sisters. “What is See SCULPTURE on page 26
carols echoing through the park. “We decided to combine the events last year to transition from two minievents to one large celebration,” said SPRD executive director Jennifer Holland. “Additionally, it is more efficient with planning, staff, See PARADE on page 22
The iconic Sisters stallion sculpture should be back in its spot along Cascade Avenue soon. It is undergoing repairs after a vehicle crashed into it in October.
PHOTO BY BILL BARTLETT
Owen Christianson is an eighth grader at Sisters Middle School. He’s also in business for himself. He breeds sheep — a dozen-plus — only two of which he will enter for show. The rest is agribusiness in microcosm. He comes by it naturally. Both of his parents are selfemployed entrepreneurs. They reside on an 80-acre spread spanning both sides of Highway 126 about halfway to Redmond. Christianson wishes there was a vocational agriculture program at Sisters High School, as there is in every other school in Central Oregon. He sees himself as a full-time rancher when he’s finished with school. In the meantime, he finds his most beneficial class to be math. “I have to pencil out my costs and know my breakeven points,” he said. “Math is important to my budgeting, and I use it every day for feeding calculations, purchasing, and measuring my sheep’s development.” He’s been raising sheep for three years now encouraged by a friend to give it a try. He has no regrets. Along the way he has learned to weld and fix things. It’s a big job with many hours. He has the option of going to one of the Redmond High Schools, but his heart’s See AG SCIENCE on page 25
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