29th May, 2012 Update

• Collected more than 40 petition signatures at the Saturday, 5/26 Farmers' Market.  We'll be back there again next Saturday, 6/2.
• Not so many petition signers at Ski to Sea, probably because folks were more interested in the revelry of the event than limiting fireworks in our City.
• Our first petition signature collection efforts today at both dog off-lease areas were very productive.  We'll definitely be returning many times in the next 6-weeks.   

Busy Memorial Day Weekend

The weather has turned gorgeous, and we will be out and about gathering petition signatures over this Memorial Day Holiday:

• On Saturday, we will be tabling at the Farmers' Market, between 10AM and 1PM, at the corner of Railroad and East Chestnut.
• On Sunday, the Democracy for America folks will be tabling for us in Fairhaven, starting at 10AM, at the rear of Village Books, near the Village Green.

If you are a registered voter in Bellingham, please stop by either location and sign our petition to get Proposition No. 1 on the ballot in November. Later . . .

Another Northwest Citizen Piece

Local activist Richard Conoboy just yesterday posted, in the Northwest Citizen, another interesting article regarding our efforts to limit fireworks in the City to professionally-staged public fireworks displays. It's an update to his January 20, 2011 article in this local newspaper (http://www.nwcitizen.com/entry/fireworks-in-bellingham) and it's worth a look: http://www.nwcitizen.com/entry/no-fireworks-by-conoboy.  Later . . .

Southside Community Meeting Report

Glad to report successful petition signature gathering at the Southside Community Meeting last evening. Filled one full petition. That's another twenty (20) toward the 5000 to 7000 signatures we need before the 2nd week in July to get PROP NO. 1 on the ballot in November. Later . . .

NEGATIVE IMPACTS

Since the launching of our hard-copy petition drive in mid-January, many citizens have asked why we are doing this. So we have compiled a list of the NEGATIVE IMPACTS of the personal use of consumer fireworks:

• Twenty-seven (27) fireworks-related FIRES between 2006 and 2011.
• FIRE DAMAGE ($120,000) to the Burlington Northern Santa Fe wooden railroad trestle and tracks in southwest Bellingham in July, 2011.
• DISTURBING THE PEACE with random, war-like barrages of loud, "frequent, repetitive or continuous" noises.
• TERRORIZING sufferers of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and both domestic and wild animals.
• LITTERING our streets, yards, sidewalks, roofs and gutters with trash from spent fireworks.
• POLLUTING the air we breathe, the water we drink and the water in our streams and lakes.
• Increasing risk of WILD FIRES in our wooded-areas as well as HOUSE and other STRUCTURE FIRES. 

Hence, our efforts to get PROPOSITION NO. 1 on the November General Election Ballot.  This proposition seeks to limit fireworks within the City of Bellingham to professionally-staged public fireworks display!  If you vote within Bellingham, we would appreciate your endorsement of our hard-copy petition to put PROPOSITION NO. 1 before the voters in November.   Later . . .

5/19 Farmers' Market Report

After a week away from the Farmers' Market, we did very well on 5/19: Just three of us for just over 2-hours with some 40-signatures gathered. We will be returning to the Market on a week-to-week basis. We're also looking forwarding to gathering petition signatures at the Wednesday Farmers' Market in Fairhaven starting early next month.

Look for us this evening at the Southside Community Meeting at Our Savior's Lutheran Church. Later . . .

Look for Us at the Farmers' Market on May 19th

After a successful petition signature gathering effort at Friday evening's Girls' Night Out in Fairhaven, our volunteers look forward to returning to the Saturday Farmers' Market in downtown Bellingham next week. We will be tabling at Railroad and E. Chestnut from 10AM until 1PM and will also have volunteers, clipboards with petitions at-the-ready, near entrances to the Market. If you are a registered voter and live in Bellingham, please take a minute to add your endorsement to support getting Proposition No. 1 on the November general election ballot. THANKS! Later . . .

5/5 Farmers' Market Report

Did very well this AM at the Farmers' Market. Just three of us for just over 2-hours with some 40-signatures gathered.

Three (3) volunteer ladies in pink, clipboards and petitions at the ready, will be at Girls' Night Out in Fairhaven this coming Friday evening, 5/11/12. Look for them "near" Harris and 11th between 5:30 and 7:30PM and then at the Ferry Terminal at 8:00PM.

Back to the Farmers' Market Today

Lot's going on downtown today, a "No Coal" rally and the "Procession of the Species" as well as the weekly Farmers' Market. We'll be back at the Market today, tabling at Railroad and E. Chestnut, seeking petition signatures to get Proposition No. 1 on the November General Election Ballot. Proposition No. 1 seeks to limit fireworks in Bellingham to professionally-staged public fireworks displays. Come by our table to sign-on so that we can let the voters weigh in on this issue.