Promises, promises, promises. Voters heard a lot of those during the recent election season. There were promises for change, promises to create more jobs, and promises to reduce government spending and taxes, solve the budget crisis, and find a remedy for the health care situation. "We are going to represent the people we've been elected to serve," they have all said in one form or another.
The impacts of a $1.6 million budget hole were revealed during last night's council workshop, and the picture painted wasn't pretty. The cuts that will likely be made by the city are ones that will be felt and seen by citizens in a variety of ways. With cuts adding up to $800,000, levels of service that Camas residents have come to expect in recent years will certainly diminish -- even as many city employees, from library pages to firefighters, police officers and parks maintenance workers will be working harder to serve the public.
Election endorsements
OK, here's a quick survey for you just in time for the upcoming General Election on Nov. 2. Are you in favor of keeping current sales taxes on candy, bottled water and soda pop? How about getting rid of state liquor stores and letting your local mini mart sell hard liquor? Or setting a new income tax for individuals with income more than $200,000 per year?
True acts of selfless generosity are difficult to find. These are the kinds of acts that involve giving without getting -- expecting not even so much as a thank you in return. This kind of philanthropy was demonstrated on Friday, when it was announced that a local couple through their estate had left the Humane Society of Southwest Washington a $100,000 gift.
The statistics in today's front page article that takes a look into how one woman has worked to combat the sex trade in the United States are enough to make your head spin in absolute disbelief. The article recounts a visit to Camas by Linda Smith, a former congresswoman who founded Shared Hope International, and the War Against Trafficking Alliance to coordinate regional and international efforts to combat sex trafficking.
When it comes to the concept of government working efficiently for the people, very often the first reaction from a citizen and taxpayer is one of skepticism. Too often citizens have seen their government bodies, well meaning as they may be, talk of big plans but then end up only spinning their wheels as they attempt to get even the smallest task accomplished.
Sometimes it takes a single tragic event to realize that changes and improvements should be made. This is the case with the recent death of 22-year-old Camas resident Sami Nesta-Serrano. Although the exact cause has yet to be determined, BNSF Railway officials have surmised that he was likely hit by an oncoming train late Saturday or early Sunday as he stood near or attempted to cross the tracks located at Southeast Sixth Avenue and Franklin Street.
When the new Doc Harris Stadium is officially unveiled to the community on Friday, it will be almost exactly 40 years to the day since an equally important event occurred in local history -- in that very same spot. It was on Sept. 18, 1970, that the stadium was officially named the "Dr. Arthur K. Harris Stadium," to honor the local doctor's significant contributions to high school athletics, and his incredible capacity to give back to the community he loved very much.
Step into the Inter-Faith Treasure House in Washougal, and you'll see people hard at work. They're sorting clothes, putting food on the shelves, arranging donations, answering phone calls, and helping thrift store customers. Every person has a job to do, and they do it well, efficiently and with enthusiasm. And, amazingly enough, the people staffing the facility are doing all of this for absolutely no monetary compesation. They do it because they want to help the community, and filling their time doing worthy, meaningful work has its own rewards as well.
