Thank you, Sequim Gym

One of the saddest days in my life was Sept. 1, 2017. That was the day when Sequim Gym Health and Wellness Center officially ceased to exist.

Yes, this is a strictly personal and selfish lament about the loss of an institution which I dearly loved, enjoyed and was glad to be a member of. Sometime last year I wrote an enthusiastic letter to the editor about this gym, how much I appreciated it and was always willing to encourage people to check it out by attending one or more of their free trial classes.

The other gyms in Sequim are needed also. Each of them advocates and practices a different approach to the same goal, for a person to acquire a healthy life style. But none, I think, combined health, wellness, fun and friendship in the same way the Sequim Gym did.

I freely admit that I am biased. That is because I gained a lot while being a member there. The owners, Kevin and Holly Pedrey, their staff and support personnel were always friendly, helpful and congenial. You felt appreciated, and not only because you paid your dues, but also on a personal level.

I am not saying that other gyms do not have similar traits. The members of those gyms likely feel equally appreciated and attached to their clubs. It is just that Kevin and Holly and their crew seemed to put out an extra effort in how they taught people in their classes, how they helped participants to achieve their personal best. No one was looked down upon, no one was belittled for “not quite making it.” Everyone was supportive. I know this because I needed their extra help when I could not always do or go as far as I wished to.

Thank you, Sequim Gym, for having been there when I needed the encouragement and support. Kevin and Holly, I am sure, will strive to create a new program in cooperation with other gyms and partners. I wish them luck, success and good will from everyone in this community.

Renate Melvey

Sequim

‘Malignant mobs’ are not a partisan issue

Regarding the Charlottesville, Va., “Malignant mobs” opinion piece (Sequim Gazette, Aug. 30, page A-8), Bertha Cooper would have more credibility if she disavowed all such mobs.

Unfortunately, one can search her thousand word article in vain for any mention of violent groups on the left including Antifa, Black Lives Matter, Earth Liberation Front, et al.

For a more balanced view, search online for “The Rise of the Violent Left” in the September 2017 issue of The Atlantic magazine.

President Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress are far from perfect, but malignant mobs are not a partisan issue.

Jerry Ludke

Port Angeles

Fringe groups are problem

In response to Bertha Cooper article (“Malignant mobs” opinion column, Sequim Gazette, Aug. 30, page A-8): These are the fringe groups that decent people reject and find disgusting and are a cause of the friction between conservatives and liberals.

Bill Ring

Mission Viejo, Calif.

Time to back this country’s captain

In response to “Being Americans should come first” (Sequim Gazette Aug. 30, page A-8):

My congratulations to the writer for realizing that if it were not for the overwhelming victory of the allied free nations over tyranny in World War II he would “not now be free to write this letter,” today, sadly, that fact is not held as truth.

Quoting his last paragraph: “Perhaps the solution is to think of ourselves as Americans first and liberals or conservatives second.” Right on, and a further right on for his ship at sea analogy. I’m going to carry that analogy one step further. Let’s assume that ship is the Ship of State and the captain is Donald J. Trump, it is a fact that a good portion of the crew has utterly refused to accept him as captain and is hell bent on subverting his authority and having him removed from the ship’s helm.

Lastly a caveat to the writer’s opinion — Try to convince the liberals! It is the liberal side that views our Constitution as a living document subject to change to correspond to the beliefs of modern culture. It is the liberals who have deemed the framers of that Constitution to be merely a collection of racist, white slave owners unworthy of our esteem, ad infinitum.

Traditional Americans like the writer and others like he and me do not need convincing, we believe that the United States is the greatest country ever conceived. Indeed, “Being Americans should come first.”

Ethan Harris

Sequim