Another Turkey Day is behind us... and now the Christmas season is in full swing in this little village of the United States.
This year Santa left the reindeer at home so that they could save their strength for their Christmas Eve run. He arrived in Sequim in the side car of a motorcycle, and was accompanied by his friends on their Harleys. The line was long, but there was an air of excitement as the children waited for their turn to visit Santa in the Gazebo. Nearby the band played Christmas carols. The weather was all sorts: drizzling, sunny, cloudy, blustery, cool, warm - it was a "wait five minutes" day.
There was lots to do in town Friday and Saturday - Shopping in the stores downtown, and at the bazaars at Carrie Blake and the High School cafeteria. More of that will be available next weekend, too.

Three years ago, a special ground-breaking ceremony. On South Sequim Avenue, a parcel of land was being developed; 'Alpine Loop' - the main street, and utilities are in - and 11 homes (last year) were built. There are several unique things about Alpine Meadows. The persons building these homes had to meet income qualifications, and their down payment, that staggering 20% which is so hard for young families to come up with - were worked off as sweat equity at the rate of 30 hours a week.. Wow!. Family members over the age of 14 helped - even items such as babysitting so that parents can work on the homes counted as credit. The hours they contributed in the construction of the home went to meet the down payment. And the last unique thing about this subdivision is the sense of community it fosters; No one was allowed to move into their home when it was done, until all the houses were ready! Project sponsors had everyone in their new homes by Christmas. This year a new batch of homes were added to the Alpine Loop. May this help alleviate the housing stresses felt at lower income levels.

P.S. November 24, 2002: The new owners have met their commitments - they are at home by Christmas. This was such a successful project that a second project has been created, and they are ready, too!

And the Hurricane Ridge Rd and Ski area is expected to be open weekends from Now until April 14th - barring weekend storms. Already it has been so cold and precipitous - snow at the higher elevations; rain down here on the lower ones.... Snow level is reported to be at 2000 ft. after this weekend's stormy weather. There's even a snow bus departing from Port Angeles driving people to the top a mile high for a day of winter sports - returning at 4 p.m. More information can be found at their website.

Two Decembers ago, it was a wake-up call to Sequim when 7 primary -care physicians, employed by Virginia Mason Medical Center, Sequim office, resigned. As a consequence of that action, VMCC closed their clinic here in Sequim. Former patients scattered to the new clinics opened in conjuction with the Jamestown Tribe, which drew 2 of the physicians into their fold. Also 2 other physicians went into fee-funded private practise. The remaining 3 went elsewhere - and so did some of their other patients. We wound up in Port Angeles VMCC as we don't want to leave the Virginia Mason family - they have all our records, and we still have access to the Seattle main campus. Yes, it is a bit more difficult getting in to the doctor, but we just have to make it into an excursion.

Since 60-65% of Sequim's patients are on Medicare, and the Medicare reimbursement to physicians' is quite on the low side in Washington state, it was difficult to find replacement physicians willing to come into the community. Some of the new physicians have had their initial years subsidized by the hospital or Clinic. Anyone considering moving to Sequim relly needs to line up their medical care beforehand, as some groups are not taking any new medicare patients. It's a survival thing here.