I had seen Lovel Pratt in action at council meetings before. She had always seemed thoughtful, well-informed and thorough. So last summer, even though she was not our representative on the council, I approached her about the concerns a number of us on Lopez had about possible environmental damage from the transit of Cape-size ships through our waters to the proposed Gateway Pacific Coal Terminal at Cherry Point. She was terrific.

First she listened and her questions and comments told me that a) she had been closely following the issue and b) she was concerned enough to follow up.

She brought up a number of ways that the county might be impacted and what sort of costs there might be, economically and environmentally. When I met her a month or so later, not only did she remember our conversation, it was obvious that she had done follow-up research and had more to discuss. She was incredibly helpful in filling me in on the background to many concerns and suggesting approaches to the issue.

She was an advocate in the best sense of the term. She was an advocate for us and our concerns. And it showed in her actions as the months passed and she continued to work on how best to address those concerns for us and for the county within the legal process of the EIS for the terminal.

I have been so impressed. Even before county-wide elections Lovel Pratt was OUR representative. She has consistently been responsive to our concerns and worked hard on our behalf.

Barbara Keller

Lopez