This is a plea to our wonderful San Juan Island District community to vote in the Nov. 8-11, (11:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.) election of the Mullis Community Senior Center District Committee. To do so, you can go to www.mulliscenter.org where you can click on the Meet the Candidates and Download Ballot sections. Please note that anyone 60 years old or older, or who is disabled, can vote. One does not have to be a member of the Mullis Center but must be a resident of the San Juan Island District. The website provides information on eligibility and how to vote (in person or by mail).

Also, please be sure to read the box under the Download Ballot button, which gives the addresses used by those issuing misleading emails about the Center. (The Chair of the Center’s District Committee, Stephen Shubert, provides the correct facts in a statement beneath the box.) Use only the www.mulliscenter.org address to access the official ballot, information about the candidates, and instructions on how to vote.

Next year, I will have lived on San Juan Island for 30 years. During that time, I have witnessed attempts to take over the Mullis Community Senior Center by those who wished to profit from it. Shades of the past are creeping in, watching new groups (with some of the old mixed in) who want to seize control of the Center. This time, they tried to disrupt the Center’s operation by imposing their religious and political views on others (protests to force the Center to have the Pledge of Allegiance and prayers at senior lunches, for example).

In my 80s now, I become quite crotchety when someone tries to impose their way of life on me. One of the things I’ve always liked about the Mullis Community Senior Center is that it has been inclusive of all members of the San Juan Island District. We need to keep its mission of representing the needs and interests of seniors and disabled people alive. PLEASE VOTE to help make this happen.

Thank you for listening.

Wendy E. Shepard

San Juan Island