During this past Thanksgiving season, two of our valued citizens joined the ranks of octogenarians. Mike Milat turned 80 on Nov. 21 with Don Boyer following closely behind on Nov. 25. I had the distinct honor to recognize these gentlemen for their lifetime of community stewardship. They are members of a handful of leaders who have given their level best to make our city great.

Mr. Milat served 24 years on the Oak Harbor City Council, of which 22 years he was chosen as mayor pro tem. During that time, he worked to establish the Oak Harbor Senior Center, the Oak Harbor Marina, the John Vanderzicht Memorial Swimming Pool and the City Beach Lagoon. In addition, he spent his 30-year career serving in public education, beginning in the Oak Harbor School District as a teacher and retiring as the principal of Olympic View Elementary. Mr. Milat continues his community service to Oak Harbor by way of Oak Harbor Rotary. He was quite active during the drive to build the new Oak Harbor High School stadium. Mr. Milat is a lifelong member of the St. Augustine Catholic Church.

For 29 years, Mr. Boyer owned the Chevrolet-Pontiac dealership in Oak Harbor. His distinguished business career reached its pinnacle in 1989 when he represented the Oak Harbor business community at the White House in Washington, D.C., as one of the 10 National Small Business Persons of the Year. While serving on the Oak Harbor school board, with one term as president, he was part of the team that selected and built our current high school. He was, and is, a staunch supporter of our military through high profile leadership in the United States Navy League, both on a local and national level; however, he never forgot the personnel stationed at NAS Whidbey Island where he always lent a helpful hand to the military members and their families in need. Mr. Boyer is a lifelong member of the First United Methodist Church of Oak Harbor.

On behalf of the City of Oak Harbor, I would like to personally thank these two men for their vision, energy and passion for Oak Harbor. They have set the bar high in community service for generations to come.

Jim Slowik

Oak Harbor mayor