Letters to The Editor: December 30, 2021-January 5, 2022

Posted

The Editor:

The flag of the United States is a tangible representation of our country, and, representing the United States of America is entitled to respect. It is so entitled to respect, in fact, that it is accorded its own section within U.S. Code.

Section 1, Title 4, of the U.S. Code concerns the flag, its treatment, and display.

One of those elements of display concerns the condition of the flag. It says, “When [a flag] is in such a condition that it is no longer a fitting emblem for display, [it] should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning.”

Looking around Whatcom County, even before the recent bad weather, I saw many flags, both on poles outside homes and businesses and in the backs of pickup trucks, which were tattered, torn or stained. Those flags should be taken down, and if desired replaced by clean and well-kept flags. People wanting to turn flags in for disposal should contact a local veterans’ organization, such as Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion, Disabled American Veterans or Vietnam Veterans of America. Some of those organizations can also recommend a source for replacement. Other contacts for disposal would include scouting groups.

It would be better to have no flag at all displayed than to have one that is tattered.

J.G. Phillips

Custer

The Editor:

To give Birch Bay a “sense of community” as my friend Doralee Booth said in the December 9-15 issue of The Northern Light, in support of gerrymandering school district redistricting. These folks in Birch Bay need to incorporate. Pay their own bills, rather than demanding city services from the county and a neighboring incorporated city. If I were God, which I now know I’m not, I’d merge Birch Bay and Blaine and call it all Birch Bay (Blaine was not a nice guy). And then grow the coming urban growth between the two, on flat buildable land, and leave northeast Blaine and its irreplaceable habitat alone.

Jack Kintner

Blaine

The Editor:

It is with sincere gratitude and great pride in our community that we announce that the Blaine Food Bank has met the $30,000 goal set by a generous benefactor in our 2021 Matching Funds Campaign. This amazing community has never let us down.

Our goal was not only matched but exceeded, and we ended the challenge with over $36,500 in donations. When the challenge was announced to the community, our local residents, churches, schools and businesses responded.

Who comes to the food bank? Your neighbors, your friends and people who attend your church are all among those coming to visit the food bank. They are people who are out of work, low-income families, seniors, veterans of the armed services, disabled individuals, single moms and dads or anyone who temporarily needs help.

We are incredibly grateful for the leadership support from this very generous donor who invested in the well-being of our community and inspires others to do the same. We are humbled by the donor’s trust and confidence, and by everyone who has rallied to meet the goal and ensure that everyone has enough food to eat.

We are so thankful for your support, your faith in our mission and your commitment to ending hunger in our community. We are so proud to partner with you in a united effort to feed the hungry. Thank you everyone!

Wishing you all the magic and joy of the holiday season, and thank you for caring.

Sally Church

Blaine Food Bank operations manager

Blaine

The Editor:

I was extremely disappointed with this paper and its recent articles about Doug Ericksen and Sharon Shewmake. The article about Sharon was positive and left-leaning. Information about Doug was negative and judgmental. Here we go again. Carefully read Sharon’s proposed bills. Be informed of what the Democratic Party is up to. Doug served our state for many years. He will be missed. I would advise the paper to be better informed when gossiping about people.

Susan Werner

Blaine

The Editor:

The Blaine/Birch Bay Community Toy Store leadership team would like to say a huge thank you for the outpouring of love and support this community showed to our local families in need of holiday gift assistance. Over 1,000 toys and 100 gift cards were donated this year, in addition to over $4,400 in monetary donations. This allowed us to help the parents of 374 children from 145 families provide gifts for their children. The parents were so grateful for the large variety of high quality gifts they were able to choose from. I’m sure there were a lot of smiles and excitement on Christmas morning from both parents and children, thanks to this community-wide effort.

Due to the abundant generosity of our community, we usually have a significant number of toys left after our Blaine and Birch Bay families have shopped. While we save the majority of these for the following year, we always go through our remaining inventory and pull out items that have not sold for several years or that we have too many of. This year, we donated a van-full of these surplus toys to Whatcom Strong for families in the east part of the county affected by flooding. Many children in this area lost all their toys, so the donation from our community was greatly appreciated.

This year’s shopping proceeds, which totaled $4,131, will be shared with the Bridge Community Hope Center’s emergency assistance fund, the Life Impact Pantry, and the Community Assistance Program’s utility bill fund. Through the work of these organizations, your donations will have an impact on families in the community throughout the year ahead. 

Thank you for making all this possible. A big thanks goes to all our volunteers, as well. We couldn’t do this without you. It is an honor to be part of such a giving community.

Laura Vogee

Toy Store director

Blaine

The Editor:

Pardon me if I’ve missed something in your reporting. I’m just an interested reader here asking if we are soon going to read some of the more salient details regarding the Birch Bay-Lynden Road closure?

By the way, I know I speak for many, I thank you all for your hard work putting the fine little paper together so well every week. You’re very much appreciated.

Merry Christmas and happy New Year to all.

Ken Arnold

Birch Bay

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