Editorial: It’s time to thank those who have served us well

Every month, every week, maybe even every day, Islanders serving on commissions and boards step forward to work on our behalf. They pore over financials, discuss policy, debate issues and sometimes face the ire of other Islanders who are unhappy with a decision they’ve made.

Now that the election’s over, let’s take a moment to note three Islanders who are stepping down after years of public service — John “Oz” Osborne, who has served four years on the school board; Frank Jackson, who has been on the commission overseeing Water District 19 a total of 12 years, and Kristin Pesman, who has served four years as a commissioner on the Vashon Park District board.

All three have faced tough issues in the course of their service. Osborne, for instance, was a member of the board that raised questions about how former Superintendent Mimi Walker was handling the school district’s reserve fund and other financial matters — an emotionally difficult and divisive issue that ended in her resignation.

He also played a key role in an ambitious bond measure that failed earlier this year — only to get right back in the saddle and begin the work of shaping one that will likely come before voters next year. Osborne has been a member of the capital facilities planning committee for four years, giving untold hours to what he sees as a serious issue — the sorry state of the high school’s sprawling and unworkable campus.

And even in the final months of his term, he’s continued to press for changes he considers important — such as spearheading the district’s first energy and resource sustainability policy.

Jackson, a retired Boeing engineer, has also been on the firing line: He chaired the District 19 commission when it denied developer Dan McClary’s request for a reshuffle of his water shares at Vashon Village. The result of that decision? A draining and time-consuming lawsuit, with Jackson having to pour hundreds of hours into depositions, meetings, discussions and, undoubtedly, those conversations with constituents in the aisles of Thriftway.

But his greatest contribution, his colleagues on the board said, has been his many hours working behind the scenes with state Department of Health officials in ensuring District 19 customers have high-quality water — and enough of it. When Richard Bard was considering running for a term, he asked Jackson how many hours a month he should expect to work on district issues. Jackson told him 10 to 20. “I’ll bet he regularly puts in twice that amount,” Bard said.

Finally, Pesman, too, has faced her share of tough issues as a park district commissioner. During her tenure, the board took on the hard task of trying to find a way to keep the Vashon Library at Ober Park without sacrificing vast areas of the beloved park.

Meanwhile, her colleagues note, she’s been a strong advocate for the aquatics community and the driving force behind the creation of the Burton Adventure Recreation Center, an alternative park that is already acting as a magnet for teens who might otherwise have few places to go.

Public service is a thankless task only if we fail to thank those who serve. Let’s shift that paradigm. The next time you run into a commissioner in Thriftway, before you dive into a soliloquy about the latest controversy, say thank you for his or her countless hours of public service. Because you can bet that’s what the job entails.

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