||| FROM CINDY WOLF, COUNTY COUNCIL MEMBER DIST #2
I have been receiving phone calls and emails from constituents regarding communication from a group running a recall at EWUA asking whether there are safety concerns that need to be addressed.
Today I followed up with Sheriff Peter. He assures me the Sheriff’s Department has no knowledge of violence or vandalism in the past connected with the ongoing EWUA disputes, nor is there any reason to believe violence or vandalism or would occur during the September 1st meeting of the Recall group. No threats have been reported and meeting organizers have not contacted his office regarding a need for security at the event.
Here on Orcas we are familiar with public controversy. It is to be expected that lively community debates will proceed, as usual, without physical harm to people or property. There are no facts or past events that support fearing each other, certainly not to the point where private security is needed at a neighborhood meeting about a utility.
Neighbors on Orcas understand that we live on an island. Whatever our differences, we depend on each other in times of trouble. There is plenty of evidence that our trust in each other is smart, effective and justified. Thank you for being part of our strong and resilient community. Please stay connected.
Kind regards from your District 2 County Council Member
I trust that either Council Member Wolf or Mr Peter, in doing the due diligence for this communication, reached out to the meeting organizers to ask about the nature of the concerns. Was anything elucidated from that conversation?
I am also curious what “private security” has been retained.
The communication I received didn’t mention that…
A question to anybody that knows–
I received the proxy form from the Elections Inspector EWUA (POB 24, Eastsound) in today’s mail… as many of you did as well.
Like many of you perhaps, I also received a pre-filled out copy of a proxy form from a group called “Friends of EWUA” (POB 1857, Eastsound). It is already filled out in favor of retaining the four majority board members, and recalling the three minority members. As there is no return envelope I’m thinking this is just a sample document that is trying to sway people into keeping the four majority board members and get rid of the three minority members. I don’t know who these people are as they’re not identified within the document.
Can anybody tell me who is behind this effort please? Thank you.?
The same group appears to be the one that took out a sizable ad in the Sounder recently. Their registered address traced back to Idaho.
It should be very concerning to people that the “Friends of EWUA” are hiding behind an out of state address. Indicative of the secrecy surrounding the financials of the organization itself. Which current board members are hiding behind this effort and not telling you?
The Washington State Department of Social and Health Services defines mental and emotional abuse as behavior that deliberately causes mental or emotional pain. “Examples include intimidation, coercion, ridiculing, harassment, treating an adult like a child, isolating an adult from family, friends, or regular activity, use of silence to control behavior, and yelling or swearing which results in mental distress.” Yet, the EWUA Board of Directors Officers allows or encourages the General Manager to publicly humiliate, ridicule and harass members who have asked questions about the Acuity Forensics Investigation Report or EWUA finances. One member was yelled at at the Post Office. Multiple members have been verbally confronted for attending monthly board meetings. Others have been cornered at the grocery store and other local businesses. I was verbally attacked at one of the EWUA meetings for asking a question about the Acuity Forensics Investigation results. What is so deeply concerning about this behavior, is that it is tolerated by the board officers and the community. As if it is somehow “normal” to ridicule, humiliate or yell at a person who disagrees with you. I was shoved by someone I didn’t know at the meeting after the General Manager ridiculed me. That’s assault, Cindy. Oh, and my car got keyed. That’s property damage and vandalism. Now that I’ve gone public with it. I’m sure I will experience even more unpleasantness. It is the fear of experiencing more abuse that keeps people silent, Cindy. We need grown ups in charge of our Water Association. This brawl has turned into a three ring-circus, thanks to all the fear mongering and nonsense being spread throughout our community via the EWUA website and email system.
Thank you for providing me with an opportunity to believe and support you. I am sorry for your experiences, Elizabeth. I am glad you have now shared them. I do think reports on the assault and vandalism would have been taken that could help establish a pattern. It is understandably difficult to come forward with complaints, and hard to know who to trust to have your back. Thank you for having the courage to finally say something publicly. I hope you feel safe today.
Thank you, Cindy.
Yes, Elizabeth, you are absolutely correct when you say, “we need grown-ups in charge of our water system.” Well put.
Assault? That’s a lie. Just like the lies about blocking the Farmers Market booth. Car keyed? The water company board are good people and are serving the membership well. Neither they nor the good people who support them would ever key a car.
Eyes wide shut.
I think we all agree that shoving people and keying paint jobs are crimes and shouldn’t be tolerated in our community. It can be impossible in the moment to determine who did these things, but it is helpful for records to be made in case a pattern eventually emerges that brings a bad actor to account.
Treating people with dignity and respect when they speak up helps to encourage others to report such incidents to the Sheriff. We are lucky enough to have a good person in that office who very much understands his mission to keep the peace. If people disclose to you that a crime has been committed, especially if they have been assaulted in any way, please offer them support and also encouragement to report it to the Sheriff’s Office. Speaking up can feel frightening precisely because you risk your credibility. It is the Sheriff’s job to sort out true from false. Let them do that part. If you see a systemic problem with that in our County, please let a Council member know, but to my knowledge we are in a good situation with our current leadership.
Well said, Cindy!
Hi Cindy. This isn’t a criticism or a cry for help. Just an FYI. I did file a written report back in June with the Sheriff’s office about another unpleasant event at a meeting . But I never heard back from anyone in the department. I don’t think the sheriff’s office places a high priority on these kind of experiences. But things have escalated since June. During my risk communication training with Dr. Covello in Olympia, I learned that fear mongering is the deliberate act of arousing public fear, dread or alarm about a specific issue. Fear is a very powerful emotion. It is also a powerful weapon in the wrong hands. Once engaged, fear exploits and manipulates our natural inclination towards anxiety and distrust when confronted with the unknown. It is often used in political messaging, media and in communities to manipulate and control behavior. How do we counter fear mongering campaigns? It’s simple. Talk with one another. Last Sunday, I attended the minority board open chat at the Orcas Center. The attendees had lots of questions and concerns. Some were frightened. Others were angry. Yet, the conversations were civil, neighborly and community-centered. The event lasted three hours and the attendees left feeling hopeful about the future of the EWUA. Even if they disagreed with the recall process. For our neighbors who couldn’t take part in those discussions. Please do the community a favor. Do not share or pass on other people’s fear-mongering. It might make for juicy gossip, but it is dangerous and harmful to long standing friendships and the community as a whole. We are better than this.
1. None of the majority board or the manager have been involved in any unwarranted fear-mongering. They are only telling the truth.
2. I did attend Sunday’s recall water open chat. There were hardly any people there! That should tell you something — that the people are sick and tired of the strife that recall water is causing!
Well said, Cindy!
As a long-time member of the Eastsound Water Association
my vote is that we transition to a public utility with automatic state audits and a state Utilitiy Commission that is authorized to investigate complaints.
All parties have destroyed trust.
Clean house and start over.
I suggest that the members start to ask for a move to somehow combine the Eastsound water department with the Eastsound sewer and water district. This switch would take time and deliberate measures. It would stop the good old boy issues that keep popping up since the early 80’s.
I am confident that this would solve many issues.
Turing the voting to official ballots that are on our November ones for example allowing for the county to count the votes, taking the counting out of the water department hands.
Allow for hiring certified higher administration.
Tracking of every penny in and out so none of the funds become ‘lost or misappropriated.’
And allowing for a more trained and watched board.
Thus change would stop this crap.
Have a look at the envelopes that arrived from both EWUA for the recall proxy vote, and the one from the mysterious “Friends of EWUA” (I checked and there is no such nonprofit or other corp registered in WA). Notice that the labels with your name and address on them appear identical–same font, layout, even in my case “98245-” with a dash? Clearly whomever paid for the “friends” mailing used a copy of EWUA’s mailing list to send those envelopes out. I’d love to see a detailed list of how EWUA funds have been spent on advertising, marketing, postage etc. over the past several months, but if the current four board members remain in place, I doubt we’ll ever see such information again. A vote to recall them is a vote for transparency. Oh, and don’t bother emailing them or the Manager, they don’t respond to questions, especially awkward ones.