Islands' Sounder, December 21, 2011

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SOUNDER THE ISLANDS’

Happy holidays!

Serving Orcas, Lopez and San Juan County

WEDNESDAY, December 21, 2011 n VOL. 44, NO. 51 n 75¢

10 ‘11

From the Sounder

www.islandssounder.com

Barefoot Bandit gets seven years

F R O M

by JESSIE STENSLAND Whidbey News Times assistant editor

Orcas Island’s Year in Review first of two parts

I

Colleen Smith Armstrong/staff photo

Two Vikings take down a Wolverine during the 2011 Island Cup. Orcas took home the trophy for the second year in a row.

by SOUNDER STAFF

commemorating the day. The trip was paid for by donations. The department plans to have the relic incorporated into a fitting sculpture by a local artist as soon as donations are sufficient.

t’s time for our annual round-up of the stories that made headlines throughout the year. From the touching to the sad, it was a busy 12 months for the San Juan Islands. This week features our stories ranked 10 through six. Check out the final five in next week’s edition.

No. 9: Orcas wins Island Cup again

No. 10: Orcas Fire brings piece of World Trade Center to Orcas This August Orcas Island Fire and Rescue welcomed to the island a 750-pound chunk of steel I-beam from the World Trade Center. Fire chief Mike Harris requested the relic in 2009. When it was finally ready for pickup, firefighter and EMT Ted McKey hopped in his biodiesel F-250 with his dog Merry to tote it cross-country back to Orcas. Harris said the artifact is a way to remember those in the brotherhood of firefighters nationwide who died in the line of duty on 9-11. “The true value of this World Trade Center relic wasn’t so much as a gravestone or memorial so much as it is a light-house or a beacon,” McKey said. “It honors not just what the 343 firefighters [and paramedics] were attempting, but what we all attempt –whether as parents,

Meredith M. Griffith/staff photo

Firefighter Dove Dingman with the World Trade Center beam after it arrived on Orcas. kindergarten teachers, or civil servants dressed in a uniform – when we offer a hand in service to another person.” The beam was displayed inside the fire station on Sept. 11 during a memorial ceremony

With just 18 seconds left on the clock, the Vikings pulled out a win against Friday Harbor, bringing home the Island Cup trophy for the second year running this September. “This was a game for the ages,” said coach Mark Padbury. After winning the Island Cup last year, Orcas hosted the annual face-off on its own turf. It was a closely matched game from start to finish. With just 2:23 remaining, a 32-yard touchdown pass on 4th and 10 to C.J. Woods over tight coverage by the Orcas secondary gave the Wolverines a seemingly insurmountable 15-13 lead. The Vikings gathered on the sideline before the final drive. The boys were 70 yards from the end zone when quarterback Robbie Padbury completed a 25-yard pass to Devon Stanzione.

SEE TOP 10, PAGE 6

The real Colton Harris-Moore bears little resemblance to the image of the brazen Barefoot Bandit who captured worldwide headlines with his exploits during a two-year crime spree. Instead, his defense attorneys, a forensic psychiatrist and even prosecutors described him as a painfully shy young man who survived a horrendous childhood, is embarrassed by media attention and does not consider himself a folk hero. Harris-Moore stared at his feet during most of his sentencing hearing that spanned Friday morning and most of the afternoon in Island County Superior Court in Coupeville. The stories of Harris-Moore’s trials and tribulations apparently swayed Judge Vickie Churchill, who pointed out that she had sentenced him in a different case four years ago. She balanced the

SEE COLTON, PAGE 7

12/28 and 1/4 deadlines Display advertising: Tuesday at noon Classified advertising: Thursday at noon Legal advertising: Tuesday at noon Press releases, Letters: Wednesday at 3 p.m.

How to reach us Office: 376-4500 Fax: 376-4501 Advertising: advertising@ islandssounder.com Classified: 1-800-388-2527, classifieds@ soundpublishing.com Editor: editor@ islandssounder.com


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