 I was very sad this week to learn of the passing of a dear friend to our City. Vinny Morris, passed away this week. Vinny worked for numerous years at the Auburn Golf Course and brought a smile to the face of everyone he met. His golf stories were famous, and his love for his family and friends unsurpassed. Please join me in sending thoughts and prayers to the Morris family for their loss.
 The Auburn School District All School Food Drive just set an all-time record with $85,665 donation total!
The city of Auburn never ceases to amaze me. Here are the stats:
2005: 45,395 pounds / $817 = 46,212
2006: 63,821 pounds / $4,804 = 68,625
2007: 63,837 pounds / $8,073 = 71,910
2008: 65,529 pounds / $7,662 = 73,191
2009: 56,568 pounds / $18,869 = 75,437
2010: 51,680 pounds / $16,872 = 68,552
2011: 53,607 pounds / $13,270 = 66,877
2012: 57,982 pounds / $19,339 = 77,321
2013: 46,153 pounds / $12,953 = 59,106
2014: UNBELIEVABLE
62,374.4 pounds/$24,291.18 = $85,665.58 total. This meaning each student avereaged 16.19 pounds each in the school district.
Congratulations to the individual school division winners:
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Auburn Mountainview High School 7,336.62 cash/lbs total
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Olympic Middle School 7,966 cash/lbs total
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Hazelwood Elementary School 10,454.7 cash/lbs total
Way to go, and congratulations to the Auburn Food Bank, lead by the amazing Debbie Christian for her tireless efforts and dedication.
What would you do?
Do you see Auburn as a small town, or as a big city? Which do you prefer, and why? How would you plan for the size town that you prefer? Let me know what you think!
For those that would like to see the feedback from last weeks question on marijuana-related businesses, you can view that here.
 King County Executive Dow Constantine was the guest speaker at the Auburn Rotary this week. He was there to speak about the King County Transportation measure that residence will be voting on by April 22, and also about the upcoming deadline for enrolling for healthcare coverage. The deadline is Monday, March 31, so if you still need to sign up, go to www.healthcare.gov and sign up now.
Executive Constantine provided statistics that 1 in 4 people living in Auburn’s 98002 zip code lack healthcare coverage. He also spoke about the importance of efficiency in government (I couldn’t agree more), and how to lean out processes. He spoke of social inequity and the fact that we can’t allow it to keep people from reaching their potential – because we need them all. He ended with, “When the next generation grows up, I hope they will feel that we believed in them.”
Neighbors Helping Neighbors
I had the honor of facilitating a neighborhood meeting this week hosted by Pyung An Presbyterian Church. Sometimes, neighbors just need an opportunity to gather together and understand the needs that each has, and how they can work together to accomplish that. I was so impressed by how everyone was interested in coming to resolution, and even created a work team made of neighbors and church members to meet monthly to discuss concerns and ideas. I am so very proud to live in Auburn and see just how much care and compassion exist. If you're interested in hosting a neighborhood meeting, call 253-931-3099 so we can set one up for you. It's always better when we can work together!
The residents at SHAG are a wonderful group of caring and hard-working individuals. There are some wetland areas behind their residence, and there was some concern over what could and couldn’t be done there to beautify the area. We have been working with some of their most passionate landscapers, and we’ve come up with a plan to allow them to enjoy the space, and still not damage the wetlands. Some cities might have just said that the land could not be touched, but we really do have some great employees that work for you. Chris Anderson, Environmental Protection Manager and Jamie Kelly, Environmental Planner are very creative, and have devised a plan that will replant some of the vegetation, and allow for a walking area and seating area. Working together we get it done!
 Congratulations to Auburn Volkswagen! They were a finalist in the 2014 Top Places to Work presented by Heritage Bank. They are an auto sales company located right here in Auburn - hence their name :), and they are lead by their CEO Matthew Welch. They have 61 full time employees and great benefits including a 401(k), formal training and health spending accounts.
One of their employees was quoted, “The environment here is unlike just about every place I have ever worked. We are truly a team here and all willing to help each other out. The management is very integrated into our team and consistently help us improve our abilities.”
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