Guest Articles

The Measure of the Man.  Mary Earl

Tex Lewis is a remarkable guy.  A graduate of Purdue and Stanford Civil Engineering programs, Tex served 30 years in the Navy Civil Engineering Corps, retiring as Captain.  Since his “graduation” from the Navy, Tex has been active as a civil engineering consultant and with the youth of this community.   His renown as a results orientated character places him in high demand by many organizations. He gets stuff done.   This reputation led Kitsap County Commissioners to select Tex to chair a citizens’ committee to establish an Urban Growth Area for Silverdale.  Tex corralled a group of attorneys, engineers, and private citizens to hammer out a Growth Management Plan. No easy feat. With that under his belt, he drafted guidelines for creating the CK Community Council. He has served on the CKCC for six years, chairing the Parks, Recreation, and Environment Committee. 
  In the meantime, he contacted State Legislators to remove restrictions on design-build construction of public facilities. He was instrumental in the Citizen’s Walk to School initiative and in assisting with a comprehensive Flood Hazard Management Plan. Tex served on the Silverdale Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, representing the board regarding traffic improvements, environmental issues, and building community.   Tex serves on the Public Facilities District Recreation Advisory Board, member of the WSU Cooperative Extension Advisory Committee.  He’s a certified WSU  “Master Gardener”. 

In his role as Co-Chair of the Clear Creek Task Force, he forged an alliance of community service organizations, the Chamber, the Great Peninsula Conservancy, the Suquamish Tribe, church groups and many individual citizens and businesses.   Tex is adamant about including all groups in community efforts.  The County’s youths, Scouts of all ages, high school to grade school kids and the Alternative to Detention kids have done much of the trail work. Working together, trails were built, riparian habitat improved and volunteers volunteered. They became stewards of the land along the way.      Over the years, he has assisted the Kiwanis in their Salmon in the Classroom program by teaching over 1,000 elementary students and adult leaders about riparian functions, storm drainage, and planting trees.  He has encouraged countless Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and civic groups. To date, Tex has helped nearly 60 young men select and completed projects along the trail for their Eagle Scout Project. From Scouts to community clubs to local county workers, Tex is the one individual who is sought out as “Someone who gets stuff done!”   Tex is a prolific writer. Some of the Stuff important to Tex is community and our stewardship of said community. In writing a piece on the measure of the community (see below), he concluded, “We spend a lot of money trying to attract people here. We encourage them to visit or even start a business and live here. We are competing with every community in the state. Take a new look as you turn off the highway, and drive through town. I think there is a lot we can do to reflect our pride, and make this a better place to live. You may have additional ideas of things that you can do or encourage others to do. After all, we are in charge; and can make this place the way we want it to be.”  

One point that is very near and dear to his heart is the Thank You letter “…Your generous donation gave us a big boost in cleaning up the site and heading this project to completion. We very much appreciate your donation of the dumpster. The entire project will be completed with donated materials and volunteer labor. Thanks again for being such a supportive member of our community.” …”Your generous donation gave us a big boost. We have a lot of projects underway.  I met this evening with two young men who are starting their Eagle Scout projects. Our work on our new Pavilion is well underway, and we will have it open this fall. All these projects will be completed with donated materials and volunteer labor.
  We are totally dependent on the support we get from the community. You can imagine the tremendous excitement we feel when we get support such as yours. In addition to allowing us to move forward, it validates our efforts and inspires our volunteers. I can assure you we cherish each donation, and commit to using it wisely.”

An email of determination … “Think for next year we will continue to support Anderson Landing efforts including weed clean-up, get student group hot on skate park (no ifs, ands, or buts), expand the Clear Creek trail from bridge to bridge and tie into Bike Trail, and plan and begin development of walking path from Hotel to Waterfront Park. Maybe more stuff as opportunity arises. Tex”   Tex was awarded the 1995 Paul Linder Award as the Silverdale Chamber’s most outstanding member; the 1997 J.C. Penny Golden Rule Award for community service; the 2000 Silverdale Chamber’s President’s Award for outstanding service to the Chamber; the 2002 Kiwanis Club of Central Kitsap Distinguished Service Award; the 2002 Silverdale Citizen of the Year Award for community service and involvement; and the 2002 American Society of Civil Engineers Zone IV Citizen Engineer Award. Orca District and the Chief Seattle Council were proud to recognize “Tex” Lewis with the inaugural Community Leadership Award in 2007.    Tex has been a busy, busy guy in his community these past years and we wish to recognize his diligence, humor, inspiration and sense of community.

The Measure of a Community--Tex Lewis

We recently returned from a long trip across the country. While we appreciate our fine Interstate system for its efficiency, we really enjoy getting on the old back roads to get a close look at the country. We like to experience the smaller communities and see how the people live. We marveled at how different each community is, and how quickly we formed an impression of its character. Fair or not, I think that is the way we are judged by our visitors.

Most obvious is how you enter the town. Is the entry drive neat and welcoming? Is there a greeting sign and are there flowers and trees, or are there just speed limit signs and weeds?
Are the store fonts tidy, and the sidewalks clean; or are the streets littered? Are there flowers and benches along the streets, or is there graffiti on the buildings and signs? Does it look like you are invited and encouraged to spend some time there, or get gas and move on? Are there parks, however small, to provide relief from the bustle; or vacant lots? Are there places to walk and sit on the grass, or weedy lots with dog droppings? Do the schools look like kids and parents take pride in them, or are the windows dirty and vacant? Does it look like the citizens and government are working together and both doing their share, or waiting for someone to take charge?

We remember one town that had a sign saying "We are small, but proud." There was a public pool in a nice park in the center of town, and the kids were having a great time. In contrast, there were other towns that had had nothing to indicate that folks were involved and proud to live there. They were sterile places which only inspired you to move on.

We spend a lot of money trying to attract people here. We encourage them to visit or even start a business and live here. We are competing with every community in the state. Take a new look as you turn off the highway, and drive through town. I think there is a lot we can do to reflect our pride, and make this a better place to live. You may have additional ideas of things that you can do or encourage others to do. After all, we are in charge; and can make this place the way we want it to be.

RANDY PETERSON, TRAIL BOSS                        

Randy Peterson has been with the Clear Creek Task Force from day one. A retired Coast Guard Captain, he wanted to get involved in his community and stopped by for a meeting 15 years ago. He never left.

In addition to being totally committed to the Task Force mission, Randy is a Jack of All Trades who takes care of almost all of the trail maintenance, and oversees all the construction. He is out on the trail daily doing everything from the small litter pick up and graffiti removal, to clearing vegetation and fallen trees. He cleans the restroom, empties the dog poop can, restocks and updates the kiosks, mows the grass, plants trees, removes weeds, maintains the Stewardship Reports, and greets all the trail users. He leads work parties, and works on his own. A measure of his commitment is the fact that he funds almost all the incidental maintenance costs out of his pocket. He acquired most of the wide assortment of tools from garage sales or donations. He has inventoried and documented all the Task Force tools and equipment, and established maintenance and procedural documentation. 

Randy is that perfect volunteer. He knows what needs to be done and does it day in and day out. No job is too big or too small. He anticipates problems or issues that might affect the community’s enjoyment of this special place, and implements corrective measures.  If Randy says or commits to anything, you can take it to the bank.  

The community would not have the trail it enjoys without Randy’s dedication and commitment. He is a real treasure.

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