Letters to the Editor

Thanks for support
The Editor:
On behalf of the Soloway family I would like to thank all of you who attended the service, sent flowers, and comforted us during our tragic loss. My only son Peter died of a drug overdose before his 21st birthday. If his death saves one of his friends from the same fate his passing would not be in vain.
Peter left his only sister Jana to deal with this unbearable pain we all feel. She as well as the rest of the family can only pray his death will be a warning to all who use drugs � it can happen to anyone of you.
Please dare to say no to drugs.
Janice Richards
Blaine

No problems here
The Editor:
Sliders restaurant has been located at Birch Bay Waterslides for 15 years. Sliders does not serve or allow intoxicated customers to remain on the premises. Birch Bay Waterslides does not allow any alcohol in the park and inspects all coolers entering the park to ensure the family entertainment is not in jeopardy.
Sliders and the Waterslides have co-existed for the last 15 years and have never had a liquor violation or problem with any of its customers �preying� on the children at the park.
All businesses that serve alcohol know they are responsible for the behavior of the patrons and the safety of the guests. Thank goodness both Sliders and our Waterslide customers all understand this and make both a success.
Bren B. Richardson, Owner
Birch Bay Waterslides/Sliders
Birch Bay

Go get some lunch
The Editor:
If you are 60 or over, have lunch at the senior center for $2.50. The menu is different each day of the month.
Francis prepares excellent meals: roast beef, French dip, pork loin, lasagna, taco salad, mashed potatoes with gravy, roasted potatoes, salad and desert.
Is your mouth watering yet? Come and join us at 11:45 a.m.
Sandra Morgan
Blaine

A quality educator
The Editor:
Of all the community leaders I�ve ever met in Blaine, one stands out as especially memorable. Dr. Gordon Dolman, educator and visionary, and now our retiring school superintendent, will be greatly missed when he retires, come Tuesday.
Gordon has a two-fold talent that I�ve always admired but never mastered. He knows how to roll with the punches, and he�s very forgiving. Far beyond the call of duty, in lieu of firing them, he has frequently forgiven school employees for their shortcomings. He has faced unspeakable tragedies during his career as superintendent. His wise leadership has brought the Blaine school district to remarkable heights, not to mention wholesome progress for the good of our community.
Unprepared as I was for the day he announced his retirement, I was deeply saddened. And why? Quite candidly, Gordon is the only Blaine community leader who took the time to know me, and then, much to my delight, to enlist me as a partner in promoting quality education through the Blaine Performing Arts Center. He gave me a rare but meaningful community role.
After the Blaine Performing Arts Center opened May 16, 1995, Gordon and I became much involved, promoting quality music programs. Most surprising to me was his hope that classical music would be fostered in our community.
At his behest, I was named the PAC�s first director of the arts. Never, since my graduation from Blaine high school in 1948, have I felt so honored. Gordon believed the PAC should become Western Washington University�s performing arts venue, and I heartily agreed. It was a great joy to see a bonding born that linked the university campus to our own school district.
Gordon motivated me to present weekly music reviews of �Artists at the PAC� over Radio KARI. Meanwhile, we gained the support of the Ken Kellar Foundation. So much had been accomplished during the next two years, that we jointly authored an article, �We Shared Our Dream, and It Came True,� published in the October 1997 issue of The American Music Teacher.
Year 1998 witnessed the birth of the Pacific Arts Foundation, a nonprofit organization under the able leadership of another truly gifted visionary, our charter president Sharon Oldaker, assisted by Gordon, elected vice-president. By February 1999, we found ourselves working with a 16-member board, complete with a charter constitution. More recently, we were working toward eliminating traditional educational distinctions between Blaine�s local residents and the school district�s youth, when sickness struck me last September, and then a stroke in March.
Fortunately, Gordon will continue to live in Blaine. Thank you, Gordon Dolman, for welcoming me as your partner in promoting the arts in our PAC. When the chips were down, you kept encouraging me. You enriched my life. What you did for me, you accomplished for others. Not all are enrolled at the school. Not all of them are kids. But that�s what quality education is all about.
Richard E. Clark
Blaine

Waterslides a safe place
The Editor:
This is a letter to the woman who was concerned about the drinking at Birch Bay Waterslides.
I have to say I disagree with you. My dad works there. He has been there for a little over six years now and he basically runs the whole park, weeds out the creeps and protects everyone there from harm and makes sure things are running properly.
I have to say as a mother of four children we should protect our children and you having a 12-year-old daughter if you are so concerned about men or women hustling her or her friends, where are you?
Birch Bay Waterslides is not a baby sitting facility and you as a mother should be there with your child at least until she is 16 and mature enough to know better. I let my kids go there knowing that they are in a safe place. For one, Sliders or Birch Bay Waterslides does not let anyone in the beer garden into the park. It is locked and nobody can get in from the park and you must be 21-years-old to get in.
I do not drink, but I do go to Sliders often and I think it�s a lovely place and the water park is a safe place for children to play all summer. People are not allowed to bring beer into the park. Coolers are checked at the gate and they are really strict about that. Matter of fact, the owner has four kids himself. He would never do anything to jeopardize anyone�s safety in the park so I have to say I disagree on this matter.
Sliders and Birch Bay Waterslides are a wonderful places to relax with family and have a great summer. Sliders is for the adults to go when they have children that they feel they can trust by going to go play on their own. If you would not like your children bothered by drunks, watch your kids. Jessica O�Donnell
Blaine

Plover thanks
The Editor:
In last week�s letter to the editor in The Northern Light, Sumas elementary school teacher, Nancy Olson, commented favorably about her fourth grade class field trip to Blaine where her students and their chaperones visited the Peace Arch area, rode aboard the historical Plover ferry and visited the numerous galleries of Semiahmoo Park Maritime Museum all the while learning about the areas maritime and natural history, an interpretive program Drayton Harbor Maritime is proud of providing to the public.
In Ms. Olson�s letter, she mentioned my name but many more individuals also deserve mentioning: the many museum volunteers, the friends of the Plover, all of the individuals who help keep our good work going. There are too many to mention here.
However, Captain Nick Bartlett, owner/operator of the adventure tourism vessel Tahoma, which is moored here at Blaine Harbor and alternate Plover captain deserves to be recognized for his effort in helping make Ms. Olson�s school class field trip to Blaine the best one in her 17 years of teaching.
Captain Nick volunteered for the second year, donating his expertise, trekking three different groups of fourth graders around Drayton Harbor and Semiahmoo Bay aboard the historic Plover. Nick, a lifelong mariner, cheerfully guided the school children.
Near resting bald eagles perched on wooden piles, past the interesting and curious resident harbor seal population hauled out on the floating breakwater at Semiahmoo and past the remnants of former waterside structures that were once part of Blaine�s busy waterfront, which included salmon canneries, shake and sawmills, piers, warehouses, sailing ships, steamers, tugs, fishing boats and the like.
For those of you who haven�t had the opportunity to experience a harbor tour while crossing Drayton Harbor aboard the Plover, please do so, and welcome aboard.
Richard Sturgill Founding director,
Drayton Harbor Maritime
Blaine

Letters Policy
The Northern Light welcomes letters to the editor; however, the opinions expressed are not those of the editor. Letters must include name, address and daytime telephone number for verification. Letters must not exceed 350 words and may be edited or rejected for reasons of legality, length and good taste. Thank-you letters should be limited to 10 names. A fresh viewpoint on matters of general interest to local readers will increase the likelihood of publication. Writers should avoid personal invective. Unsigned letters will not be accepted for publication. Requests for withholding names will be considered on an individual basis. Only one letter per month from an individual correspondent will be published.

Please send your letter to:
225 Marine Drive, Blaine, WA 98230 or fax 360/332-2777.
E-mail:editor@thenorthernlight.com

Letters Policy

The Northern Light welcomes letters to the editor; however, the opinions expressed are not those of the editor. Letters must include name, address and daytime telephone number for verification. Letters must not exceed 350 words and may be edited or rejected for reasons of legality, length and good taste. Thank you letters are limited to five individuals or groups. A fresh viewpoint on matters of general interest to local readers will increase the likelihood of publication. Writers should avoid personal invective. Unsigned letters will not be accepted for publication. Requests for withholding names will be considered on an individual basis. Only one letter per month from an individual correspondent will be published.

Please email letters to letters@thenorthernlight.com