Our family’s time on Orcas Island is drawing to a close, a time that has been deeply rewarding, full of community and magic and beauty.
As a pediatrician, I have had the privilege to get to know many of our young families on the island, and I have seen the struggles so many face just to remain here. I have seen several of these young families leave, and many more have expressed just how hard it has been to stay on the island. As a result of this unique vantage point and as part of just one family that has struggled and ultimately decided not to stay here, I have some fears for this community.
Beyond the economic slowdown and the high cost of living on Orcas, I worry that young families are not being supported here as they need to be. We all, wealthy and not so wealthy, make sacrifices to live on this island, including ferry lines, increased costs for groceries and gas, and the isolation of living off the mainland.
The tenacity with which so many families struggle to remain here is a testament to all that the island offers, but I have watched over the past two years as that balance has begun to subtly shift. Orcas Rec is in constant peril and the community just voted not to support this vital program supporting our kids, our school bond can’t seem to pass despite the clear need for a new building to give our kids a safe place to learn, and organizations from the Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program to Kaleidoscope to the Fun House to Family Connections and a dozen others are facing budget cuts from the state and decreased giving from donors.
On this island, it seems that people have money, or they have children, and not too many of us have both. As a result, the needs of families with children may be overlooked by the people with the means to help. I am making a plea that those with the resources in this difficult time support the people and organizations who support our families, because if they do not, then more and more families will weigh the pros and cons of living here and will move off island.
An Orcas Island without the sound of children playing and shouting, without soccer on Saturdays at Buck Park, without the Fun House, without safe and nurturing early education programs, without the complexity and joy and unpredictability of a truly multi-generational community- would this be the Orcas Island we all fell in love with?
Please, as much as you are able, support our schools, our young families, our support networks, and keep Orcas livable for all of us. When Orcas Rec and the school bond come up for another vote, think about whether the kids on this island deserve activities and a school that kids on the mainland take for granted. Then take a moment to think about what this island might become if the working families who are the heart of this community decide to leave.
Orcas Pediatrician Evan Buxbaum and his family are moving to Hawaii this month.
