Citizenship role critical in making communities civil

At a time when the national landscape is scarred with divisions wedged by alternative facts and cancel culture embraced by both left and right, time-honored values upon which participatory democracy was founded enjoy consensus support on the local level.

Though political tribalism can send a polarized electorate to respective echo chambers for spin disguised as information, there remains a “we’re all in this together” mindset when it comes to recognizing critical aspects of citizenship upon which communities rely.

This is especially true in the La Conner area.

Volunteerism, exercising the right to vote, striving to be well-informed on issues, serving on unpaid boards and commissions and perhaps even filing for elective office are among the actions – duties, actually – that define citizenship here, many community leaders insist.

“Citizenship for a community is the foundation to any town,” says La Conner Fire Chief Aaron Reinstra. “The La Conner Volunteer Fire Department was founded on that principle.”

Reinstra, who hails from a family steeped in local public service, is among those who maintain a community is bound together by a common understanding of citizenship and civic responsibility. La Conner Hook & Ladder is a prime example, he said, comprised of volunteers who provide vital firefighting and emergency services for the public good.

“In this day and age,” Reinstra told the Weekly News, “to find 20 young men and women willing to volunteer is incredible. In 30 years, I’ve never been so amazed and proud of a group of young people. They respond to calls, trainings, parades, community events, school events and anything else when needed. I could never say enough about these volunteers.”

Civic spirit is often developed early in life. That was the case for Wende Sanderson, president of the Skagit County chapter of the League of Women Voters.

For her, taking the time to vote has been a lifelong investment in democracy.

“I was raised in a family where voting was a family affair,” Sanderson said. “We talked about candidates over the kitchen table and even as a child my parents took me to the polling place as they cast their votes.

“What I absorbed from those early experiences,” she added, “is that voting is not optional – it was important that as citizens we express our individual views and participate in the processes that govern us.”

On the other side of that equation are those who stand before voters, seeking their support to promote policies, ordinances and legislation at various levels of government. Ideally, according to State Rep. Dave Paul, D-Oak Harbor, whose district includes La Conner, democracy works best when citizens are both informed and active in their respective communities.

“Political participation is critical to ensure that elected officials understand the issues of most importance to the public,” Paul said. “Community members are also a great source of ideas and innovation.”

Shelter Bay resident Danny Hagen, an appraiser with the Skagit County Assessor’s Office, agrees wholeheartedly.

“Society works best,” said Hagen, an alumnus of the acclaimed Leadership Skagit program, “when the business community, government and nonprofit organizations are all working in harmony. This doesn’t happen enough and might seem like a pipe dream to many, but I think it can be achieved at the local level. It just takes a community that is full of very active members.

“I think La Conner and Skagit County are both examples where this has shown a healthy recipe for a successful community,” he added. “We definitely still have a long way to go, but civic engagement is the backbone for getting to where we all want to go.”

Swinomish Tribal Community Senator Leon John, a La Conner High alum is, like Hagen, a product of Leadership Skagit, which promotes finding common ground locally to avoid the gridlock and adversarial relationships that mark national politics today.

“It was such a blessing to meet and learn with members of our great Skagit Valley community,” John told the Weekly News, when reflecting upon his Leadership Skagit experience. “It was reassuring to know that if needed we would be called upon to come together and work together as one.”

That perspective is shared by columnist Rebecca Winthrop, a senior fellow and co-Director of the Center for Universal Education at the Brookings Institution

“Americans’ participation in civic life,” Winthrop insists, “is essential to sustaining our democratic form of government. Without it, a government of the people, by the people and for the people will not last.”

Paul said citizen participation can be as basic as keeping abreast of current issues and events.

“Civic knowledge,” the second term legislator said, “provides the foundation for community members to assure that our government – and elected officials – are responsive to community needs.”

The daily mission of La Conner High English and journalism teacher Bryan Milliren is to provide students with tools they need to recognize the value of civic knowledge and be able to apply it throughout their lives. In that role, he is unfailingly encouraging.

“I try to instill in my students that their voices matter and civic engagement is the best way to make our community better,” Milliren said. “Unlike any generation before, my current students have come of age amidst significant social arrest related to #Metoo, #Blacklivesmatter and political polarization.

“It is critically important,” he added, “for them to stay engaged with current events and speak out in the form of letters to the editor or writing a guest column.”

Milliren’s approach merits applause from Winthrop, a frequent contributor to major publications and broadcast networks.

“Civic learning,” she wrote in a recent column, “needs to be part and parcel of the current movement across many schools in America to equip young people with 21st century skills.”

State Sen. Ron Muzzall, R-Oak Harbor, whose family roots on nearby Whidbey Island extend back more than a century, entered public service long before his arrival in Olympia 18 months ago when he was appointed to succeed retired Sen. Barbara Bailey.

Muzall worked two decades with North Whidbey Fire & Rescue, serving as a firefighter and officer and 11 years as a fire commissioner. He has also served on various farm-related committees, experiences that for Muzzall prioritized the need to work across political divides to achieve community goals.

“I’m dedicated to bringing civility back into our legislative process,” Muzzall said upon his legislative appointment. In November he won election to a four-year term, .

Sanderson said that spirit of community teamwork is as old as America itself and has survived previous tumultuous periods, from the launch of the two-party system to the Civil War and on into modern times.

“Our Founding Fathers,” she said, “envisioned the American Experiment as not just a way for our individual voice to be expressed, but as a structure which allows us to work together to construct the best America we can.”