Letters to the Editor
Published 1:30 am Friday, July 17, 2026
PROPOSITION 1
Support Sno-Isle Library by voting ‘yes’
As you start seeing more information for the Sno-Isle Library levy over the next month, please consider it an invitation to reconnect with your local library if it has been a while.
Sno-Isle Libraries has 23 branches across Snohomish and Island Counties. However, the value of the library extends far beyond library buildings and physical media. You can access audiobooks, eBooks, and stream movies without ever stepping foot into a building. This also goes for many resources such as career development and learning a language. The branches themselves host community events, children’s story times, and plenty of quiet study space to get some work done or get out of the heat.
Libraries benefit everyone, and they are for everyone. Voting yes on Prop. 1 is an easy way to support your community and make sure our libraries and their programs remain accessible to all. This includes you! So please take a moment to check out what your local library can offer you and join me in voting yes for our libraries on August 4!
Chad Hansen is a local public interest attorney working in the Everett area and a member of the Sno-isle Libraries Foundation Board of Directors.
SNOHOMISH COUNTY PUD
I support St. Clair for PUD Commissioner
I read your recent article about the candidates for Snohomish County PUD. I am pleased to support Janet St. Clair for Snohomish PUD Commissioner.
Over the past 3½ years, I have had the opportunity to work closely with Janet as fellow elected officials serving the people of Island County. Throughout that time, I have found her to be collaborative, thoughtful, and genuinely committed to public service. She listens, asks great questions, and works respectfully with others, even when opinions differ.
Janet brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in local government, along with a sincere desire to serve the public. Those are the qualities I look for in a fellow public servant, and they are why I am pleased to support Janet St. Clair for Snohomish PUD Commissioner.
— Kelly Mauck, Island County Assessor
Kelly Mauck
Camano Island
An endorsement for St Clair
I endorse Janet St Clair for Snohomish PUD Commissioner. As the long time Park Ranger for the State Parks on Camano Island, I was lucky enough to work with Janet with Sound Water Stewards and during her time as an Island County Commissioner. Janet was a joy to work with, she supported her staff, was respectful to constituents and worked hard for us all. When she is elected, she will bring a positive attitude, a great work ethic and the drive to keep utilities affordable.
Jeff Wheeler
Camano Island
OTIS LULL
Good to see Otis hasn’t stopped moving
I was pleased to read the front page article about Otis Lull in the July 3-4, 2026 edition of the Herald.
After I retired in 1997, I began walking at the Alderwood Mall in the mornings, until the pandemic hit in 2020. I would see Otis often. Shortly after the Herald published a story about him several years ago, I stopped him to comment on what a nice article they printed. He concurred, I wished him well, and told him to keep walking. He replied, “My mother told me as long as I was moving, they couldn’t bury me.” His mother passed along not only good advice, but good genes.
It is heartwarming to see his picture and to know he is doing so well! And since I previously didn’t know about his military background in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam, I want to sincerely
Thank him for his service.
Lowell Bailey
Everett
