INSIDE: Hometown Hero … Island Life, A10
Record South Whidbey
SATURDAY, JANUARY 5, 2013 | Vol. 89, No. 2 | www.SOUTHWHIDBEYRECORD.com | 75¢
Hundreds face frigid waters of Double Bluff Beach for New Year’s Day tradition
POLAR BRRRRRRS
Mayor or not, Langley council gets back to business
BY BEN WATANABE Staff reporter DOUBLE BLUFF — Shivering, huddling and pacing, some 175 brave fools ventured into the frigid waters New Year’s Day. These Whidbey Island Polar Bears were young and old, man and woman and cold, very cold. “Still can’t feel my feet,” said 17-year-old Austin Pulley of Oak Harbor after a few minutes out of Double Bluff’s waters even while donning aqua socks. “Started off the new year on a bad foot,” added 15-year-old Dakota Dammen, Pulley’s cousin. Deceiving the hundreds of people lining the shore of Double Bluff Beach was a clear, sunny sky with only wispy clouds on the first day of 2013. It belied the freezing air temperature and the chilly waters, around 48 degrees, surrounding Whidbey Island.
“Still can’t feel my feet.” Austin Pulley Oak Harbor
From mid-morning until noon, hundreds of people meandered around the Island County park. Cars lined Double Bluff Road a
BY JIM LARSEN Record editor Mayor or not, the Langley City Council will conduct business as usual in the new year.
“Number one is making it clear to people that their government is still functioning ...” Hal Seligson mayor pro-tem Langley City Council
Ben Watanabe / The Record
Isis-Angellica, 6, enjoys a spin above the water at Double Bluff Beach with her dad Trever McGhee on New Year’s Day. quarter-mile from the small parking lot toward Highway 525. Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing” blared from a couple of PA speakers as the “polar bears” registered with the South Whidbey Parks & Recreation District and grabbed a 2013 Polar
Glass ball hunt returns to Langley The Langley Main Street Association and Callahan’s Firehouse Glass Studio host a Sea Float Scramble today. Glass artist Callahan McVay created one-of-a-kind glass sea floats which are hidden near Langley’s waterfront. Similar to an Easter egg hunt, people are invited to scramble for one of these art pieces. Presented by Langley Main Street Association, the hunt is free and open to all ages. Certificates of authenticity will be given to each person who presents a float. The first hunt is at 11 a.m. and the second scramble is at 1 p.m. For info, call the studio at 221-1242 or visit callahansfire house.com.
Bear Dive T-shirt. Suspense mounted as wristwatches ticked and tocked closer to noon. A false reading led a handful of swimmers to shed a few layers, baring lots of skin to the soft, cool wind earlier than was necessary.
Finally, the South Whidbey Fire/ EMS ambulance sirens wailed. Yet, the divers were still timid, each waiting for someone else to be brave enough to charge into the gently See Polar Bear, A6
The first regular business meeting since Mayor Larry Kwarsick pleaded guilty to a gross misdemeanor Dec. 17 will be held Monday, Jan. 7 at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall. But don’t expect to see the mayor. “Larry won’t be there,” said Hal Seligson, mayor prot-tem, on Friday. “I will chair the meeting as mayor pro-tem.” Kwarsick confirmed in an email to the Record on Friday that he will not attend the meeting. He said he will be “making a longer term decision shortly,” in his brief response to an email inquiry. The council held a special meeting in December after Kwarsick pleaded guilty. Council members were mostly supportive of the mayor at the time, but later all five members called for the mayor to resign. Island County Prosecutor Greg Banks influenced minds by filing a lawsuit Dec. 21, demanding that Kwarsick resign from office due to his “malfeasance” in public office. See Langley, A6