Letters to the Editor

The Editor:
This is an open letter to Jim Wynstra of Homestead Homes.
Your purchase of the Birch Bay Golf Course provides you with an opportunity to ensure that Birch Bay retains one of the finest dining venues in the region.
Stephani’s Restaurant draws people from all around North Whatcom County, as well as lower British Columbia.
As Stephani’s neighbor for three years, I see the great variety of people that come to enjoy her hospitality. They range from casual locals to one-time tourists, from family celebrants, to sophisticates looking for an evening of serious dining.
It has taken years for Stephani and her husband to build this broad appeal. I and, I’m sure, many others hope fervently that you do everything possible to retain this singularly wonderful asset to Birch Bay.
Holly Wertman
Dirty Dog Wash

The Editor:
My website, “Vigil for Peace,” is online. Go to www.vigil4peace.com and look it over. Truly, I hope you’ll like it.
If you find any article, paragraph, phrase or word that is in error or in any way unsuitable, don’t hesitate to send a message to dclark30@peoplepc.com or phone 332-5175.
I paid for the site with my own money, thereby representing none other than myself. Therefore, I am solely accountable for its contents. I want everyone to be happy with it.
“I think your ‘movement’ is in an educational phase,” writes a wise friend of mine. “You have become ‘educated’ about Pugwash and its purposes, and maybe a few others in town, but I sense that the general population’s knowledge about Pugwash is minimal.
What knowledge that does exist in the general population is undoubtedly based on hearsay and extrapolation. ‘Pugwash is political, it is against our president, it is against our troops, etc., etc.’”
He’s totally correct. He continues:
“You have a formidable task. You are trying to change the hearts and minds of an entire community. I admire you for your tenacity and vision.
But I would also urge you to consider the immensity of this task. You need to educate an entire community. You need to educate and inform its leadership.”
I would dearly welcome an invitation to do precisely that. Wish I could quote his entire message, but there’s a 350-word limit on this letter, you know.
Please read the notice I’ve posted elsewhere. Note that I shall not be present at the Vigil for Peace meeting scheduled at the Blaine Public Library, Thursday, August 17 at 7 p.m., in order that our group may assess my work and determine the future role that I should play.
Above all, I don’t want my ego to get in the way of healthy progress toward peace promotional activities in Blaine. Indeed, I hope many will attend and feel free to speak frankly.
Newcomers are welcome. Those who oppose our work are urged to attend and speak freely – not everyone agrees with us, you know.
Richard Clark
Blaine

The Editor:
My name is Julia Brady. I graduated from Blaine high school last year and now attend Gonzaga University.
I belong to a wonderful community service group, The Knights and Setons, who benefit charities in Spokane, Washington. I am one of 30 selected out of 125 applicants to represent the Setons and I also hope to represent my hometown community in a fundraising effort for our cause with donations from Blaine businesses.
I have helped with several community outreach programs in Blaine and Bellingham and know well the needs in our own community.
The need throughout Washington is no less and I want to be of help wherever I am.
The Knights and Setons are a caring group of students who work hard doing community service in the Spokane area. To learn more about our organization, you can find us on the web at www.gonzaga.edu.
Working in my community during high school I found Blaine to be a very generous and caring place to live and I hope you will help me represent us at Gonzaga. I am asking for a monetary donation, any amount is greatly appreciated, or auction items for our annual charity auction, which will be held October 21.
Unfortunately, we are unable to accept used items. Gift baskets, gift certificates, hotel stays, recreational equipment, artwork, jewelry, electronics, etc., are just some examples of past donations.
Please help me represent the Blaine community. I would be happy to answer any questions you may have or pick up a donation. You can contact me at 371-7283. If you would prefer to just mail a check, that would be wonderful. Checks can be made payable to Gonzaga University. You can send me your donation at home until August 16 and Gonzaga University after that time:
Julia Brady, 8154 Comox Loop, Blaine, WA 98230; or, Knights and Setons, Attn: Julia Brady, Gonzaga University, MSC# 2470, 502 E. Boone Avenue, Spokane, WA 99258.
The Knights and Setons and the Spokane community thank you very much for your generosity.
Julia Brady
Blaine

The Editor:
I just love dealing with some of the people in the city hall at Blaine – they make life so interesting. On June 29 my cousin Eileen drove up to Blaine from Longview and gave the city hall $350 to bury her parents ashes.
The next day she met the workers up in the cemetery and watched them bury the ashes on top of Uncle Henry's grave in the Dierks-Clausen family plot. She also stopped at Fussner Monuments in Bellingham and ordered a bronze memorial marker.
When the bronze marker arrived a month later, someone from Fussner Monuments went to the city of Blaine and they gave him a map of where the workers placed the ashes.
Some unknown person at city hall managed to mark the wrong spot on the map where the cemetery workers buried the ashes.
The memorial marker was put in the wrong place, several feet from where the ashes were buried.
My husband and I drove up to Blaine from Longview on Saturday, August 5. When we went up to the cemetery, we noticed the marker had been placed outside the Dierks-Clausen family plot.
We took several pictures to show Eileen when we returned home. She called the city and they told her that they did not have a record of her parents being buried there.
I love the city’s record keeping. They finally found the records but said that they never told Fussner Monuments where to put the marker. Gee, I wonder who gave them the map of the cemetery with the spot marked where the ashes were placed.
They sure weren’t there when the ashes were buried. I emailed Fussner Monuments pictures of where the marker was suppose to be and they have already moved it to the correct spot. One of the people in the city hall even asked if the marker had to be on top of the ashes.
Maybe it is okay with them if their parents are buried in the cemetery and their memorial marker is placed somewhere else in the cemetery, but it’s not okay with me.
Thank you Fussner Monuments for taking care of this problem so fast. You are wonderful people to do business with.
Cheryl Payne
Longview, WA

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