INSIDE: Feed the hungry ... A10
RECORD SOUTH WHIDBEY
WEDNESDAY, MAY 29, 2013 | Vol. 89, No. 43 | WWW.SOUTHWHIDBEYRECORD.COM | 75¢
Holmes Harbor pollution eases By JIM LARSEN Record editor The tainted waters at the south end of Holmes Harbor have improved dramatically, leading to the possibility they will be declared safe for swimming, wading and shellfish harvesting later this year.
Jim Larsen / The Record
In a moment of levity, Mike McClung, commander of the Major Megan McClung Marine Corps League of Whidbey Island, hands the microphone to Anastasia Leese, 6, who looks a bit skeptical. In back from the left are the main speaker Marine Col. Brad Close, Chaplain Darrell Wenzek, and Senior Poppy Girl Krista Drechsel. Anastasia went to deliver a fine speech on why she’s proud to be the 2013 Poppy Girl.
Island turns out to honor fallen veterans By JIM LARSEN Record editor One of the largest crowds in years swarmed to pay homage to America’s fallen war heroes with a ceremony at Bayview Cemetery on Memorial Day. Cars lined the fence outside the cemetery and people kept coming as the 11 a.m. starting time neared. Maple Glen retirement center in Freeland sent a van load of folks, including Tudy Miller who was lowered to the ground on a lift. By the time of the opening prayer, at least 200 people were present, from the sponsoring American Legion Post 141 and its Legion Riders and Auxiliary, to the Col. Megan McClung Marine Corps League of Whidbey Island, to veterans of the military services and their families, to those who had lost relatives in war, and to regular members of the public who wanted to pay their
respects. “My grandfather was a POW in World War II,” said Amber Ek, explaining her presence as she held her young son Burl who was waving an American flag. Mike McClung, commander of the Marine Corps League that bears his daughter’s name (she was killed in Iraq in 2006), presided, telling the crowd this is the sixth year he’s been involved, and the sixth year it’s rained. He listed friends killed in several wars, the loss of his daughter to an explosive device, and urged those attending to “look among the graves; unless we remember those who have fallen we will be ill-served in the future.” Dozens of the graves had flags flying from them, showing how many South Whidbey residents served their country. Legion Poppy Girl Anastasia Leese, 6, proudly read a statement, SEE VETERANS, A6
Jim Larsen / The Record
Herb Weissblum of Clinton begins to recite a patriotic poem he wrote especially for Monday’s Memorial Day ceremony at Bayview Cemetery.
“We have to make sure the marine waters are clean. You guys have a lot of stuff that washes up on that beach.” Julie Schultz, Washington Dept. of Health
Warning signs posted at Freeland County Park have long declared “the current conditions at this beach are not suitable for recreational water activities. Small children and people chronically ill people are at higher risk for increased illness.” One sign flatly states “no swimming” and “no wading,” and another bans clamming entirely. Monday was one of the lowest tides of the year, at minus 3.4 feet, and the acres of clam grounds were devoid of clam diggers, no doubt making for happy clams. It was high fecal coliform test results that forced the beach closure. In 2006, a shellfish protection district was created by the state Department of Health, working with the Island County Health Department and area residents. A concerted effort began to clean up the waters SEE POLLUTION, A6