During 14 years as a Port of Orcas Commissioner, both as a past chairman, and as an active member, I have developed opinions as to what is required to be an effective commissioner. He (or she) needs to be aware of the needs of the Orcas community as well as the airport users; must be willing to cooperate and compromise with fellow commissioners; must participate in setting goals that satisfy both users and the community; must have budgeting experience; must be willing to avoid the temptation to micromanage the airport manager, and must remain familiar with the FAA airport requirements.

On all counts Dwight Guss is an ideal candidate.  He is a longtime Orcas resident; is a participant in various community activities; has been a major volunteer in the annual fly in. He is an EMT and firefighter.  For more than 10 years Dwight has been a volunteer mercy flight pilot, making numerous flights to the mainland carrying patients to critical medical treatments with his own aircraft, on his own time.

Significantly, Dwight has maintained continuous contact with the port by being a frequent attendee at scheduled port meetings.  Therefore, he has a familiarity with current issues affecting the port.  Dwight would assume port commission responsibilities without the usual prolonged learning curve typically required of new members. This is important when considering the steadily increasing complexity of operating even a small commercial airport.

With Dwight’s talents, background, community service, knowledge, and sensitivity to island  and user needs, a better candidate could not be found.  For these reasons I ask that you vote for Dwight Guss, Position 2, Orcas Port Commission.

Steve Hopkins

Eastsound