In the five years I have lived full time here on Orcas Island, I have come to know Lisa Byers well, and to see her powerful positive impact on our residents. Through her exemplary leadership of OPAL and her prominent role as a citizen in our community, Lisa has demonstrated three qualities that I believe our county needs in its leaders.

Lisa Byers has a proven track record of competence in defining and achieving her organization’s mission. We need our county leaders to define what the most important issues are facing our county; make sure these are issues that the county council should and can impact; and, achieve those impacts as efficiently and effectively as possible. Lisa will do that.

As they define what’s most important and feasible, we need our county leaders to listen to us about what we need and make sure those with quiet voices or no voices are also heard. Lisa will do that.

And, we need the county’s limited resources leveraged by our county leaders in order to address these issues. They must connect people and organizations with common goals in innovative ways. Lisa will do that as well.

My confidence in these predictions comes from Lisa’s track record of accomplishments. It also comes from watching how that track record was achieved.

When Lisa faces reluctance to move forward, she applies reason and evidence and she truly appeals to our better angels. When Lisa is trying to break new ground (OPAL pun intended), she starts with common ground. And, Lisa makes sure those least likely to take a seat at the table, have a seat at the table.

I strongly urge my fellow citizens to give our entire county the opportunity to benefit from Lisa Byers’ leadership.

James Connell/Orcas Island