Letter: Gratefulness turns into art

Posted

Our county is fortunate to have vibrant food banks that serve anyone who comes through the door with no questions asked. They are staffed with dedicated and caring volunteers who help hundreds of individuals and families get through each and every week. Perhaps no time of the year is more meaningful to stock up on healthy food than Thanksgiving week.

As they have done for the last eight years, Arrow Lumber donated enough turkeys for everyone visiting the Port Townsend Food Bank last Wednesday to celebrate a traditional Thanksgiving with family and friends.

I was honored to join Arran Stark of Jefferson Healthcare and Officer Bill Corrigan of the Port Townsend Police Department to hand out the turkeys, along with tips on thawing and cooking the 11-pound birds.

As each patron expressed gratitude in their own way and words, we asked if they would like to sign a “Thank You” poster for Arrow Lumber. While the initial signer faced a stark white board and wondered where to make the first mark, the last signers searched for interstices of white space to express their thanks. The end result was a colorful work of art, filled with pictures and words of gratefulness.

This piece of thank-you art, hanging somewhere at Arrow Lumber, is a beautiful reminder of the meaning of community.

EARLL M. MURMAN

Port Townsend