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Dr. Tim Lawrence, director of Washington State University’s Island County Extension in Coupeville, explains how a meeting room will be used for WSU classes using video-conferencing equipment. Photo by Ron Newberry/Whidbey News-Times

News

Wazzu on Whidbey thanks to technology

Tim Lawrence admits to having a lot of ideas buzzing around in his head.

Staff from Deception Pass State Park works on an amphitheater stage project Thursday. They’re building the foundation for the stage that will serve visitors who come to watch entertainment at the amphitheater this summer. Park manager Jack Hartt, left, listens to details from a staff member. Photo by Ron Newberry/Whidbey News-Times

News

Busy year in store for Deception Pass State Park

Nothing gets Jack Hartt more flushed than the thought of another toilet backing up at Deception Pass State…

The aftermath of the Smith Barn Fire on the morning of Tuesday, March 7, 2017. The first occurred at 8 p.m. Monday night. Photo by Ron Newberry/Whidbey News-Times

News

Space heater likely cause of Smith barn fire

An investigation into the fire that burned down the historic Smith Barn in Coupeville revealed that combustibles in…

Coupeville’s Lindsey Helm attends Oak Harbor’s 2016 St. Patrick’s Day with daughters Finley, center, and Scotlyn. Photo by Ron Newberry/Whidbey News-Times

News

Break out signs for St. Patrick’s Day parade

The Irish Wildlife Society is trying to kick-start on old tradition during Oak Harbor’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade…

Xiuhtezcatl Martinez, a 16-year-old climate change activist who’s spoken before the United Nations on environmental policy, will be one of the speakers at the Climate Action forum on Whidbey Island this month. KC Golden, policy director at Seattle’s Climate Solutions, is the other. The forums will be held March 24 at the Coupeville High School Performing Arts Center and March 25 at the Whidbey Island Center for the Arts in Langley. Both will start at 7 p.m. Admission is free. Photo provided by Earth Guardians

News

Climate change ‘rock star’ to speak on Whidbey

Retired Oak Harbor physician Marshall Goldberg likens Xiuhtezcatl Martinez to a rock star.

Georgie Smith, Coupeville fourth-generation farmer, speaks to an employee with Skagit Farmers Supply about a soil test that was supposed to be conducted on her farm Wednesday. From her kitchen window, Smith can see the debris pile that remains of the family’s historic barn that burned down Monday night. Photo by Ron Newberry/Whidbey News-Times

News

Farmer overwhelmed by community response

Sunshine returned to Ebey’s Prairie Wednesday, and along with it, a smile from Georgie Smith accompanied by some…

Pastor David Parker gets his first upclose look at the original bell in the belfry at Oak Harbor First United Methodist Church Thursday, March 9, 2017. Parker and his congregation are preparing for Sunday’s celebration of the church’s 125th anniversary. The old bell, the same one used when the church opened in Crescent Harbor in 1891, will be rung 125 times Sunday. Photo by Ron Newberry/Whidbey News-Times

Life

Oak Harbor church rings in 125 years

Pastor David Parker’s first trip to the belfry at Oak Harbor First United Methodist Church revealed impeccable timing.

Sitting in the kitchen of her comfortable Oak Harbor home, Monday, March 6, 2017, Doris Janz said she has no secret for her longevity. She turns 100 on Sunday, March 12 and is still able to live on her own, though her daughter and son-in-law stop by daily to help out and run errands. She’s been painting for nearly half her life and her walls are filled with her paintings. Photo by Ron Newberry/Whidbey News-Times

Life

The world through Doris Janz’s eyes

In her cozy Oak Harbor cottage, Doris Janz is sitting at her kitchen table, trying to put a…

Firefighters with Central Whidbey Fire & Rescue look for hot spots Tuesday morning at Willowood Farm on Central Whidbey. A fire Monday night destroyed the historic Smith Barn. As of Tuesday morning, a cause had not been determined. Photo by Ron Newberry/Whidbey News-Times

News

Iconic Central Whidbey barn burns to ground

Fire took down an iconic Coupeville barn Monday night, turning the historic structure into a twisted heap of…

Moss covers the roof at Coupeville High School Thursday, March 2, 2017. The roof is leaking despite being only 10-years-old. Photo by Ron Newberry/Whidbey News-Times

News

Coupeville school board requests ‘emergency’ relief for leaky roof

Whidbey Island’s cold, wet winter has been particularly unkind to Coupeville High School, where a leaky roof could…

A sign mounted to an entrance sign to Admiral’s Cove reveals good news Friday, March 3, 2017 for residents awaiting test results from water samples taken from their community wells last month: No contaminants were detected. Photo by Ron Newberry/Whidbey News-Times

News

Admiral’s Cove well tests come back clean

Admiral’s Cove residents are breathing a sigh of relief after water samples taken from community wells revealed no…

Wyatt Brazelton, 3, is all smiles as he prepares to go on a ride around the roller coaster that his father built for him in their Oak Harbor backyard Wednesday, March 1, 2017. Photo by Ron Newberry/Whidbey News-Times

News

Navy pilot creates ultimate thrill in backyard for son: a roller coaster

If there were an award for world’s coolest dad, Scott Brazelton would be tough to top.

Therese Kingsbury, Oak Harbor Arts Commission member, and Melissa Riker, executive director of Oak Harbor Mainstreet Association, stand before an empty shop on Pioneer Way that will be transformed into a “Pop-up Stone Sculpture Gallery” during the month of April. The owner of the building is allowing Mainstreet to use the shop, once home to Maurices, to help bring more visitors downtown. Photo by Ron Newberry/Whidbey News-Times

Life

Sculpture gallery coming to Pioneer Way during April

Sculptors and their pieces to ‘take over’ downtown Oak Harbor in April