To the editor:

Recently, The South Whidbey Record published a letter to the editor detailing the credentials of the candidate, Helen Price Johnson for Island County Supervisor. Upon reading the article, we thought it appropriate to respond and detail the credentials and accomplishments of the incumbent, Mr. Phil Bakke.

We find Mr. Bakke to be a modest, yet immanently qualified candidate and incumbent with an obvious respect for Whidbey Island. During his relatively short tenure, he has accomplished much.

As his campaign signs indicate: “Experience and knowledge working for you.”

We have attended several of Mr. Bakke’s events and visited his Web site. Through that process I have come to know both his credentials and accomplishments.

His experience is backed by more than 12 years working in county planning, with eight as director to his credit. I believe that he is dedicated to keeping Whidbey and Camano islands livable and affordable.

His stated commitment is to protect our natural resources and aquifers, and strengthen the business sector so young families can work and attend school here.

Mr. Bakke is a South Whidbey “native” with a degree in urban and regional planning and several years of “hands on” experience and accomplishments too numerous to mention here. He has worked in Olympia regarding land-use issues. This experience gave him the ability to learn from the inside.

As assistant planner here on Whidbey, code enforcement officer and a variety of positions in planning over the years, he built a warehouse of experience and knowledge, learning on the job. In 1999, he was unanimously appointed as planning director. Again, in September 2007 he was unanimously appointed as District 1 county commissioner when it was vacated by Mike Shelton.

As an advocate of continuous education, Mr. Bakke has recently completed his master’s degree in public administration at the University of Washington.

As we make these most important decisions during this election period, we highly recommend getting to know Mr. Bakke and his accomplishments better.

Debbie and Sam Cunningham

Greenbank