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Our beautiful Camano Island has a rich history and has been given many names over the years. "Kal-lut-chin", Macdonough Island, Caamaño, Perry, Crow Island and then Camano.Today, Camano island with two State Parks, roads, much development and thousands of residents is still a beautiful place to visit or to call home.

A bit of history:

The earliest inhabitants of Camano Island were the Kikalos and Snohomish Indians, who used the island for a summer dwelling while gathering seafood and berries. They called it "Kal-lut-chin," which in the language of the indigenous Snohomish tribe means "land jutting into a bay." They used the island as a base during the fishing and shellfish gathering expeditions.

In 1790, The Spanish expedition led by Manuel Quimper Benítez del Pino, a Spanish Peruvian explorer, cartographer, naval officer, and colonial official born in Lima, brought the first Europeans to map the area. It was Quimper's pilot, Juan Carrasco, who sighted the current Admiralty inlet on the west coast of Whidbey Island and thinking it was a bay he named it Ensenada de Caamaño, after the Spanish naval officer Jacinto Caamaño, Captain of the Aranzazu, (Nuestra Senora de Aranzazu) of the Spanish Navy, who explored western waters working out of Spain’s naval base in San Blas, Mexico during the 1700’s, and was the leader of the last great Spanish exploration of Alaska and the Coast of British Columbia but had not come into what was later known as Puget Sound. This was the first time the Caamaño's name had been used to name any o the local geographical points. Two years later, George Vancouver renamed it Admiralty Inlet, after his ultimate Naval commanders, the Board of Admiralty.

In 1838, Lieutenant Charles Wilkes of the United States Navy was given command of a United States exploration to chart western waters, including Puget Sound and the Oregon country. This United States Exploring Expedition marks America's first formal entry into Puget Sound water. It was also to name the areas not previously titled. Lieutenant Wilkes’ selection for this small island, nestled between Whidbey Island to the west and the mainland to the east, was to name it name it Macdonough Island – to honor Master Commandant Thomas Macdonough, captain of the Saratoga during the War of 1812 and his victory of the battle of Lake Champlain. Following that theme, Wilkes named the waters between Macdonough and Whidbey Island, Saratoga Passage after Macdonough’s flagship the “Saratoga”.

In 1847, British navy Captain Kellett of the surveying vessel Herald, reorganized the official British Admiralty charts and dropped the name Macdonough for the island in his effort to restore Spanish names to the area. He renamed the island giving it its present name of Camano Island to honor Lieutenant Don Jacinto Caamaño. who had started his expedition in San BlasMexico and explored much of the Pacific Northwest going as far north as what is now Alaska for the Spanish. 

As a note of interest, the Caamaño Sound and Caamaño passage in British Columbia were also named in honor of Don Jacinto Caamaño and still maintain the name. 

In 1855, in the treaty with local Indians, the first Governor of the Washington Territory, Governor Isaac Stevens, referred to the island as Perry Island. The first Euro-American settlers on the island arrived at the time of the signing of the treaty and began extensive logging operations. Farmers came later and developed the area agriculturally. During the logging era the island was called Crow Island, a name that is sometimes still used by local residents.

Sources:
Camano Chamber of Commerce
British Columbia HISTORICAL NEWS -Journal of the British Columbia Historical Federation
US government resources.https://www.biografiasyvidas.comwww.simply-san-juan.comhttps://wikivisually.com
Other: https://www.historylink.org/file/7523  and Individual research


The wintry west extends his blast,
   And hail and rain does blaw;
Or, the stormy north sends driving forth
   The blinding sleet and snaw:
While, tumbling brown, the burn comes down,
   And roars frae bank to brae;
And bird and beast in covert rest,
   And pass the heartless day.

“The sweeping blast, the sky o’ercast,”
   The joyless winter-day
Let others fear, to me more dear
   Than all the pride of May:
The tempest’s howl, it soothes my soul,
   My griefs it seems to join;
The leafless trees my fancy please,
   Their fate resembles mine!

Thou Power Supreme whose mighty scheme
   These woes of mine fulfil,
Here, firm, I rest; they must be best,
   Because they are Thy will!
Then all I want—O do Thou grant
   This one request of mine.—
Since to enjoy Thou dost deny,
   Assist me to resign.

Robert Burns (1759 – 1796), was a Scottish poet and lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. He is the best known of the poets who have written in the Scots language, although he also wrote in English. He is regarded as a pioneer of the Romantic movement, and after his death he became a great source of inspiration to the founders of both liberalism and socialism, and a cultural icon in Scotland. Burns also collected folk songs from across Scotland, often revising or adapting them.

Artist, Stan Kurth, is the 2023 juror for the show.
Venue: Matzke Fine Art Gallery and Sculpture Park , 2345 Blanche Way, Camano Island, WA 98282. 360-387-2759.
Awards Reception: Oct. 28, 2023, 2:30-5:00, Potluck party starts at 5:00.       

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One of the most frequent questions I get about Medicare is “Do I need to sign up for Medicare when I turn 65 if I have employer group coverage?” And the answer is: It depends….

It depends on the size of the employer group and some other factors:
• Your cost for the coverage (including premium contribution and out of pocket expenses for deductibles, copays and your annual out of pocket maximum)
• If the employer plan benefits meet your needs (benefits, provider network)

NOTE: If your employer group is less than 20 employees, you should sign up for Medicare Part A and Part B when you are first eligible or face a lifetime late enrollment penalty. Your Initial Enrollment Period is a seven month window:

• 3 months prior to your 65th birthday,
• your birthday month and
• 3 months after your birthday month

With employer groups of less than 20 full time employees, Medicare is the primary payer and your employer group coverage pays secondary based on the benefit plan.

If your employer group is more than 20 employees, and offers medical and prescription drug coverage that is at least as good as Medicare (aka "creditable coverage"), you may not need to sign up for Medicare Part B right away. However, it's important to review the benefits and cost of your employer plan compared to the benefits and cost of Medicare plus a Supplement and drug plan or Medicare Advantage plan. In many cases, people save money by enrolling with Medicare.

There are several options for Medicare Advantage and Medicare Supplement plans available, and the key is determining which one will offer you the best coverage based on your healthcare needs, your lifestyle and your budget.

Medicare agents must be licensed in the state they sell products and must complete an annual certification and insurance company specific product training each year to assure they are qualified to help beneficiaries in making good choices. If you need assistance with your Medicare decisions, please contact me at 206-569-5415 or by email at suderloy@gmail.com. I am a licensed and certified health insurance agent in WA State and represent multiple health insurance companies. I can help you with your decision and enrollment for the plan that best meets your needs.

"My teachers and my parents and the TV shows of my youth kept telling us kids that the way to deal with bullies was to confront them, they’re actually, deep down, nothing but cowards. My family moved north from Georgia to Milwaukee when I was 13, a radical transition from semi-rural living to urban discomfort. My junior high school had the usual mix of cliques with one exception, the hoods, guyz who dressed up as gangsters to celebrate Valentine’s Day, the Massacre. Nice bunch, kept switchblade knives on themselves and guns in their lockers. Welcome to the city, Farm Boy!"  More at The Skeeter Daddle Diaries ➜  

"I read in the news the other day that the average kid text messages 200 times per day.  You might be skeptical of that number … unless you’ve sat in a room with some of these nimble fingerers.  They will ignore an incoming meteor before they put down their I-phone or whatever device their parents have empowered them with.  Hell, I even see the folks now just as addicted, drifting off from our conversation to check an incoming text message." More at The Skeeter Daddle Diaries ➜  

A Comment by Loy

Your avatar
Loy • 08/18/2023 at 11:45PM • Like 1 Profile

I so enjoy your stories - often they make me laugh out loud and it’s such good therapy!

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