Local Business Owner Reflects on Wild Sky
By David Meier, Sky Valley business owner
As a longtime resident of the Sykomish River Valley, I am very familiar with much of the area that will be covered under the Wild Sky Wilderness proposal and it is my sincere hope that this area will be preserved for future generations to enjoy.
Having lived in the Skykomish Valley for nearly forty years, including graduating from Sultan High School, I literally grew up in the shadow of the Wild Sky. The beauty of the area has shaped much of who I am today and is the reason I have chosen to continue to live in the Sky Valley.
I may also have a bit of a unique perspective regarding my support for the wilderness proposal in that I spent nearly twenty years employed in the timber industry, specifically saw mills.
I have firsthand exposure to the rapacious attitudes of many in the timber industry, whereby a tree has no value unless it can be harvested and turned into product. My attitude is that those same trees have a larger and almost limitless value by leaving them in their natural state and a cash value simply cannot be placed on the beauty of the forests, streams, mountains and creatures that live there. I lost my job due to the closure of the local mill in the early 1980’s and have been self-employed ever since, with no regrets.
As one of 110 local businesses within 25 miles of the proposal, I am especially interested in the benefits that can be achieved by having a wilderness area virtually in my back yard. Along with my wife Lynn, I own and operate A Stone’s Throw Bed & Breakfast and A Cabin on the sky vacation rental located in Index, just a few miles from the proposal boundary.
We have guests that come to this area from all over the United States and occasionally folks from around the work, from places as far away as Australia, England, Germany and Singapore. Our guests have many options when choosing to spend their money on a vacation and the reason that they come to stay with us it the appeal of the natural beauty of the area.
Protecting the Wild Sky is critical to the success of my livelihood and defines the quality of life that I have been fortunate to enjoy for most of my life.
David Meier is an owner of two vacation rentals, A Stone’s Throw Bed and Breakfast and A Cabin on the Sky, in the Index area and one of more than a hundred Sky Valley business owners that have endorsed the Wild Wilderness proposal.
