Our precious island community has no municipal government.

We depend on King County and Washington State for zoning, public roads, laws, and enforcement of those laws.

King County is massive, so it is often difficult to find the right person to address a question or complaint, let alone solve an issue. That is why our island created the volunteer-run Vashon-Maury Community Council.

In one form or another, there has been a community council to help address island needs for most of the last 100 years. Currently, the council has 615 people on its mailing list and over 250 voting members.

But we are in dire need of community leaders to step up and become board members.

The mission of the Vashon-Maury Community Council is to help the people of Vashon-Maury Island address island issues. The Council operates as a participatory, non-partisan forum, sometimes referred to as a “town meeting,” and can create specific committees to study and address specific Island needs.

The council aims to represent the interests of the Vashon-Maury community to King County and other government and non-governmental organizations in lieu of a municipal government.

Early on, the Council helped to stop illegal developments and an apartment complex rezone; helped establish the island’s local bus service; instigated dock repairs and improved ferry service; and assisted the County in conducting its Comprehensive Land Use and Zoning Study.

Many of our key island organizations began as ideas – then committees – of the community council, before spinning off on their own. The Groundwater Protection Committee, Vashon Household, and initial support for the Vashon Parks District are a few of the most well-known. At one point, the Community Council rented a passenger ferry and took islanders to Olympia to protest poor service by Washington State Ferries.

Most recently, the council has been instrumental in the installation of the sturdy metal garbage cans you have seen in Vashon town, the organizing of help and support for our beleaguered Post Office, and a stern recommendation against allowing developers to pay a fee to King County so they can build market-rate housing instead of affordable housing.

There is more the council can do. Much more. But as a matter of capacity, we need your help. We need islanders to serve on the board to help innovate and lead, and we need to include more diverse voices to make sure we’re truly representing the interests of our whole community.

No formal experience is required, just a willingness to serve.

To learn more, attend a meeting, take a look at our website v-mcc.org, and ask to meet with a board member to find out more.

We look forward to hearing from you – soon.

The authors are members of the board of directors of the Vashon-Maury Community Council: President Diane Emerson, Vice President; Debra Gussin, Treasurer John Affolter; Corresponding Secretary Jessica Anakar, At Large Member Ben Carr.