Editor,

Some opponents of the hospital bond have likened our facility to a “Band-Aid.”

Their implication is that we don’t need to modernize and sustain Whidbey General, if all one may ever need from our medical community is stitches, an aspirin, and a long ambulance ride off-island.

My father is a retired commander in the United States Coast Guard, and has sailed to both ends of the Earth as a plank owner and XO on the Polar Star. He taught all of us never to go out on the water without a Coast Guard-approved live preserver.

For almost a quarter century, my life preserver on Whidbey Island has been our hospital.

As a father myself, I put our daughter’s life in the hands of WGH physicians as they performed a spinal tap and head CT to diagnose and treat her meningitis. She is now a high-performing sixth-grader at North Whidbey Middle School and appears frequently on stage at the Whidbey Playhouse.

My wife has had all three C-sections at our hospital, and when we were both nervous about her risk for cancer, we felt safe having her mammography and breast care at Whidbey General.

Julie’s mom and dad have also had cancer surveillance and treatment by Whidbey General physicians.

And when I turned 50, where do you suppose I had my colonoscopy? The personal care and compassion I received by the nurses and staff at Whidbey General was five-star.

Sure, this letter is a bit personal. But my family and I believe this bond vote is that important, and they all gave me permission to share their stories, because we just can’t pass up this incredible opportunity to support our hospital, and the doctors and nurses who depend on it to take care of you.

Got your life preserver on, Whidbey Island? Good! Then vote yes on the hospital bond and let’s go sailing.

I wish you fair winds and following seas in the years ahead.

Douglas G. Langrock, M.D.
Oak Harbor