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(Editor’s Note: Sally Van Vleck, co-owner of the Neahtawanta Inn, encourages an atmosphere of respect and cooperation in this election year (and every year), to help all of us in Peninsula Township thrive. And if anyone is hosting meet-and-greets with the candidates, feel free to send me the info, [email protected], and I’d be happy to post it here on the Gazette. Read on for Sally’s thoughts. -jb)
Recently, I hosted a Meet-and-Greet at the Neahtawanta Inn for some candidates running for the Peninsula Township Board. It would have been great to see a large, diverse group of voters attend, regardless of party and vision for our future. For this election, we may be too divided for that to happen.
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As you all know, Peninsula Township is a unique township in more ways than one. The most obvious is the topography; we live on a long, skinny finger of land stretching into Lake Michigan that divides Grand Traverse Bay in half. In addition, it is comprised of a mixture of farmers, orchardists, small businesses, summer residents and year-rounders. So, it is inevitable that conflicts will arise. How we handle these conflicts will determine whether or not our township will thrive.
Currently, the level of hostility and polarization is impeding our progress, in my opinion. When we can treat each other with respect, when there is an atmosphere of cooperation, when we are able to listen to each other, when all interests are taken into account, we can thrive as a community.
When we can respectfully disagree, it promotes better understanding. Instead of roadblocks and dissension, a spirit of “we’re all in this together” will prevail, and the outcome will be so much better. Projects can get done, problems solved, and we can ALL thrive.
I feel that social media, in particular, has given people license to be rude and demeaning and make personal attacks. This attitude then invades our meeting process. Shouting, being overly critical, getting angry, attacking individuals — all of this prevents finding solutions that we can all buy into.
I believe we all want the same things fundamentally: a safe, peaceful, beautiful place to live. In order for that to happen, we must determine how to make good decisions about issues affecting the common good.
What is the common good? It’s all the things we share: the roads, clean water, the beauty we all enjoy, and the air, including sounds that travel the airwaves. With listening, openness and cooperation, we discover how to make the best decisions for all. Within that framework, people can enjoy living here, businesses can prosper, and a friendly atmosphere prevails.
Could we tone down the hostile rhetoric, help create an atmosphere of cooperation and respect, even if we disagree, and begin to focus on what will work best for all of us?
My suggestion is that, in the coming weeks, we encourage every voter to attend the Meet-and-Greets in Peninsula Township. Perhaps the Old Mission Gazette could publicize these gatherings if candidates want to send in notices of them. (I’d be happy to – email me, [email protected], with any upcoming gatherings. -jb).
In retrospect, I wish I had done that. The candidates that were featured were not all from the same political party; nor were the attendees. We had an interesting, civil discussion, and I think everyone went away with a better understanding of the issues facing us.
So, to start the ball rolling, here are the upcoming Meet-and-Greets from the ad-hoc, bi-partisan group that I am part of. The featured candidates are: Dave Sanger, Julie Alexander, Warner Queeny and Isaiah Wunsch.
These bi-partisan candidates are being supported by this group because we believe that they are team players, they have experience and valuable skills, they believe in transparency in government, and they support respectful dialogue.
The dates and locations are:
- Thursday, October 24, 6:30 – 8 p.m., First Congregational Church, 6105 Center Road
- Saturday, October 26, 10 – 11:30 a.m., Old Mission American Legion Post 399 Community Hall, 4001 Swaney Road
Can we meet and listen to each other?
-Sally Van Vleck
(Read all candidate and election 2024 info, op-eds and Q&A’s here. -jb)
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