Dear North Pacific County voters,

I remember, as a kid, Mom rushing me to the hospital for stitches in my head after a bicycle accident. I was grateful for the hospital being here after my Dad’s stroke, after our son’s accident with a forklift and after the ’07 storm when our daughter was nine months pregnant and all roads out of the area were closed due to downed trees and a landslide.

My husband (Bunny) and I were both born in Willapa Harbor Hospital in the mid to late 1950s. We now have great-grandkids, with most of our family living in South Bend. Our current hospital has provided for this community well over the years. But our hospital is now tired and very out of date — not at all compliant with today’s codes & standards, let alone technology. The size of the hospital is not sufficient to add the services we would like to see in our area, like chemotherapy that would have been so helpful to have locally when Mom had cancer.

I know the cost of a new hospital is expensive and is a big ask, but it will never get less expensive. (Remember, you can deduct your portion of hospital taxes off your hospital bill.) We all deserve local, quality healthcare; for us and for our future generations. Please vote yes on Pacific County Public Hospital District 2, Prop 1 and let’s build it now!

TONI WILLIAMS

Willapa Harbor Hospital Commissioner