It seems as if folks are changing direction a bit where solutions to Pacific's current state of affairs are concerned. I'm happy to see that. If there is one positive result in this chaotic situation, it would have to be community members working together for a common goal. At this point, my goals are to continue community building efforts and assisting in the development of a plan for us, should the city fail. It seems at first we were so focused on saving the city that there wasn't another alternative. It was a "do or die" mindset. If we all go off half-cocked in a frenzy, avoidable mistakes will be made. If we look at the situation logically and create a well organized plan for if the city should fail, it's not this paralyzing impending doom looming over head. We can actually accomplish something. If we stop spending our time and energy trying to sort out the craziness at City Hall and better invest our efforts in building a "plan B", should we need it, we would be in a more solid place. What do you say? Maybe we get together and figure out where to start. Please feel free to share your thoughts on this. 
    Enjoy your Tuesday and thanks for reading = )

     I would love for all of you to send a nomination or two for "Our Community's finest". I'm looking for people in our community who actively participate in making it a better place. If you have a neighbor who has gone the extra mile to help you or someone else, if you know a child or teen who works hard to be a leader and positive role-model, or maybe you belong to a local church and know someone who volunteers there, please recognize them with a nomination. People who make the effort to contribute to our community absolutely deserve to be recognized. I'd like to reflect the diversity of our community, so all ages, ethnicities, religions, political views, and social status' should be represented here. Is there some one in our community that faces unusual challenges who inspires you? How about a teacher? A single parent? Daycare provider? Firefighter? Your nominee doesn't have to live in Pacific, but must be a part of our community. Do you have someone in mind? Please fill out a Contact Form on the home page and tell me about your nominee. Remember to include your name, and a contact number.
Thanks for reading = )

I am pleased to introduce Sandy Haugen, a community member of more than 10 years. Sandy, an Algona Resident, is married to Bruce and the couple have 5 children  and 7 grandchildren. Sandy is a volunteer at the Pacific/Algona Senior Center of 7 years. Her involvement with the Senior Center began when she noticed the friendly and welcoming atmosphere and decided it would be a worthwhile place to spend her time. She is responsible for filling out the activity calendar each month and she enjoys talking with other patrons to decide which fun activities to plan. One of Sandy's contributions was "movie night" which the community enjoys. Sandy is a crafty lady who is especially talented when it comes to greeting cards. Sandy makes all of the Birthday, Holiday, and Sympathy cards for both the Senior Center and Youth Activity Center all year! She shares her skill when she teaches her "card class" twice monthly during the school year, and once monthly over the Summer. Sandy even made lovely curtains for the Senior Center.
Moving forward, Sandy would like to see more staff added to the Senior Center, day trips to museums and dinner theaters. and less gossip.
Thank you Sandy for your committment to our community and for making the extra effort to welcome new people! Stay tuned for more of Our Community's Finest = )

I'm pleased to introduce Maryann Townsend, a Pacific Resident of 27 years. Maryann moved to Pacific with her husband and son for the sake of the city's quiet, and small town qualities. Maryann is a volunteer of 8 years at the Pacific/Algona Senior Center. What a great time to meet Maryann as she was voted July's "Volunteer Of The Month" at the Senior Center ( Congratulations Maryann!). Some of the hobbies Maryann enjoys are: playing dominos, playing the Nintendo WII, and singing.
Moving forward. Maryann would like to see more community activities offered. Mariann added that she "hopes and prays we can keep the Senior Center".
Thank you Maryann for your dedication to our community. Please stay tuned for more of Our Community's Finest = )

It's my pleasure to introduce Don and Shirley Thomson. This couple have been married 45 years and share a love and sense of humor that is contagious to the folks around them. The Thomsons moved into this community in 1990, when Shirley fell in love with our little town and they found the perfect house to call home. The Thomsons share their home with "a big brown poodle", some adopted goldfish, and the outdoor cats they "inherited" and care for. The couple has 3 children, 6 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren! The Thomsons are active volunteers in our community. Some of the volunteer work they provide to our Senior Center include: delivering food for Meals on Wheels, delivering commodities to the homebound, and assisting with the foodbank. These folks are both talented when it comes to crafting. Shirley is an amazing seamstress who owns 8 sewing machines, and she makes quilts which are donated to veterans and seniors. Don is a Veteran of the Air Force where he served from 1964-1974. His hobbies include creating yard art, and working on his classic cars.
Moving forward, Don would like to see "more comradery in our community because right now, everything is split". Shirley would like to see improvements to Pacific Park. The couple agree that they "love this town and have faith in our city and the people in it".
    Thank you Don and Shirley for your committment to our community, we are blessed to have you! Stay tuned for more of Our Community's Finest = )

    
    The terms "preserving our community" and "saving the city" carry distinctly independent definitions. I thought it was a point worth mentioning. In my latest blog entry titled "Redefining Myself", I don't believe I drove this point home. 
    "Preserving our community" means we retain the ingredients that make up our foundation while continuing to build. Examples of this are: community gathering establishments (Senior Center, Youth Activity Center, Pacific Park, and Library), Community Services (Fire Department, Police Department, Post Office, Churches, Senior Center, Youth Activity Center, and Library), Utility Services (water, sewer, garbage, electric, gas, phone, cable or satelite). 
    "Saving the city" means we retain the name Pacific. We keep our Mayor, City Council, Police Department, and City Employees. 
    If we "lose the city", we may have a different name, a different Police Department, the Mayor and Council would no longer be required, the City Employees (what's left of them) would no longer be required, and we may become a part of Auburn or Unincorporated King County. The Fire Department, Library, Churches, Post Office, Utility Services (still available may change provider), and Park (belongs to King Co.) stay. The Senior Center and Youth Activity Center may carry different names, however they represent the heart of this community and no way would we let them go. Some of the grants may need to come from other sources, but as far as I'm concerned, they stay. 
    The intent with this blog entry is simple. Our community is torn right now. It's a stressful, overwhelming, uncertain time and I can see this is wearing on people. I've found peace with acceptance. We may lose the city and yes, the "unknown" is scary. What eases fear? A strong support system (community), education (stay informed), perspective (try to be objective and realistic), and preparation (proactive planning). I would also recommend recognizing and accepting your own limits, This is not a political site, and in no way do I want or expect you to change your personal views. I respect all views on this issue. I just found some peace around this for myself and wanted to offer it to you.
     In life, there are no guarantees, but for what it's worth, I firmly believe with a strong community, we will be just fine no matter the outcome.
    Have a great evening and thanks for reading = )
    

It's my pleasure to introduce Robin Layman. She and her husband Scott have been  Pacific Residents for 9 years. The couple chose to live in Pacific because they enjoyed the "small community feel, where you know your neighbors" and they liked Pacific Days. Robin is a Master Gardener and has so generously helped her neighbors with lawn and garden care for many years. She even facilitated a gardening class at the Senior Center where they produced 30 hanging baskets which were delivered to the recipients of Meals on Wheels. Robin was a great help to Terry Home when she volunteered in the Boggy Garden. This kind and giving lady is always willing to lend a hand. When Robin's neighbors are on vacation, she'll go over and tend to their yard and garden and when they return home, they are always pleasantly surprised. The relationships Robin has formed in her neighborhood are are definately worth mentioning. Around Christmas time every year, her neighbors share their various evergreen tree branches with Robin which she uses to create lovely wreaths. In return she presents each of them with a wreath. Robin is amazingly crafty and she utilizes her talent all year round for different projects. Another positive contribution Robin makes to her neighborhood is her watchful eye. She is  constantly looking out for the safety of people as well as pets and she is not affraid to get involved if the situation warrants it. Moving forward, Robin would like to see more community events. She suggested picnics at Pacific Park, an Easter egg hunt, a 4th of July barbque, and other community get togethers. 
    Thank you Robin for your dedication to our community, we are privelaged to have you! Stay tuned for more of Our Community's Finest = )

    Good morning! I thought I'd take a minute today to do a personal check in. Before I do that, I want you all to know that I appreciate your patients with the changes I've made with this page. On average, this page is receiving between 100-200 views daily and that tells me that folks are interested in community building. I am thrilled about that!
    First I want to explain what "Taking Back Pacific" means. I want to give Pacific back to the community, where it rightfully belongs. It is the community that will make a  positive difference.
    With all of the "turmoil" in our city government and police department, I feel it's the community that's suffering. I would like to see that change. Our elected officials are in office right now because we put them there. It is their role to over see the police department. At this point, I'm not seeing leadership.
    In the beginning (a month ago) when I first created this site, My goal was to help my community. I felt at that time, things were out of control and I was convinced the blame belonged soley to our mayor. Mind you, I didn't have any education about our city's history. I just knew something needed to be done and I was ready to do it! First, I joined the Recall Cy Sun Committee. I spoke at the council meeting and asked Mayor Sun to step down. All the while I had made it my goal to become educated about Pacific's history so I was talking with people, reading online, asking questions, and I started getting a clearer picture of what was happening. I then decided I would meet with Mayor Sun personally and try to understand what he was trying to accomplish. At one point, I asked him to consider retiring because I respect him as a person ( he is a War Hero and my elder) and I knew the momentum of the recall was building. I wanted to see a more peaceful ending to Mayor Sun's departure from office where he could walk out on his own free will instead of being thrown out. Keep in mind, I'm still learning and beginning to realize that Mayor Sun may be the "squeeky wheel" but he is not the only problem at City Hall. My efforts with Mayor Sun weren't sucessful but I did gain knowledge there too. By this time, I started recognizing the strong alliances people in this community have. Though comradery can be a positive quality in a small town, I began to see there is a twist to what we have here. There aren't boundaries. I was in a situation where my red flags were popping up at an alarming rate, The lengths people were willing to go and the risks they were willing to take to help eachother or harm eachother were without limits. This was concerning to me to say the least. I ended up with a terrible migrane trying to make sense of it all and after that, I decided I needed to make some changes in my direction. I went back to square one and remembered why I got involved in the first place. It was my community. I wanted to help my community. At this time I have lost fath in our government and our police department. In my opinion  part of our police department is "morally and ethically flexible",  several members of our council are also "morally and ethically flexible", and our mayor is a "loose cannon". How do you work with that? My answer is you can't. They need to sort out their own demons and deal with the consequences for their choices. Until I see honesty, moral and ethical behavior, accountability, integrity, structure, consistancy, and loyalty to the community (not eachother or themselves), I am ceasing any effort to save the city. At the end of the day, if we loose Pacific, what will we actually loose? Our government and our police department. At this point, I'm wondering is that really a bad thing?  Instead of the community working so hard to hold onto them, maybe they should be working to hold onto us.
    With that said, I am directing my focus entirely to community building. We need to step up now and be strong. Let's work together, help eachother, volunteer, and encourage others to get  involved. Let's put our energy and efforts into building something positive!
    Thank you for reading and feel free to leave comments here = )
    

    Thank you to everyone at Terry Home for providing a fantastic opportunity for my boys to experience the gift of volunteering! It was a truly positive experience for them and when we left, they were proud. It's great that now when they walk by, they can see how nice the garden looks and know they had a hand in that. We would be happy to help out again so please keep us posted on future volunteer opportunities. 
    PS. my little guy was especially grateful for the delicious treats you provided = )

It's my pleasure to introduce to you, Linda Morris. The gifts Linda bestowed upon this community came straight from her heart. Linda worked as the City of Pacific's Community Services Director from March 2010 until February 2012. The folks who participated at the Pacific/Algona Senior Center and Rec.Center benefitted greatly from Linda's contributions. Linda's goal was to make sure everyone was having fun, and with all of the activities she made available, there were no shortage of smiles! She was dedicated to coordinating and providing activities, education, outreach, and resources to support the well-being of our community members. Linda believes strongly in the importance of building community connections and because of her efforts, our citizens had an abundance of support available to them. Linda created a wonderful community connection by volunteering and serving on
the Advisory Board at the Auburn Int'l Farmers Market,  which provided  fresh, healthy ingredients used for "Stone Soup". Stone Soup is FREE Lunch provided to the whole community every Monday, and there is often live music too.
Moving forward, Linda would like to see opportunity for multi-generational events in the community, family nights (especially Summertime), community dinners, talent shows, youth particiaption in the community, and maybe even a recording studio or musical activities for the Nintendo Wii. 
    Thank you Linda for the love and dedication you extended to our community, please stop by to visit anytime, we'd love to see your smiling face! Stay tuned for more of Our Community's Finest = )