Residents of Mat-Su District 1 need to know about Brian Endle

To the editor:

My name is Patti Hurt. I moved to the Valley in 1987 to work as a staff nurse for the MatSu Pretrial jail. In 2013, I retired from a lifetime of nursing and continue to volunteer at Butte Elementary. I’ve raised my family here and this is home. Who we elect to represent us this November 5th will impact every member of our community. If you live in District 1, there is something you need to know about assembly candidate Brian Endle.

It’s been about 1 year since I first interacted with Mr. Brian Endle at a Borough Assembly meeting. I had not planned on speaking until Mr. Endle testified about the air quality issue in Butte. Mr. Endle claimed that the Borough was trying to take away our woodstoves, bring in the EPA to impose burdonsome regulations, and that there were no associated health concerns in Butte.

I did not appreciate Endle’s blatant dishonesty and stood up to tell another side of the story. While nursing at Butte Elementary, I witnessed first hand the winter days where smoke from big outdoor burns were trapped by low temperatures and lack of wind. I took care of these little kids after recess. I saw how they struggled to breath and it was a real danger. I live in Butte (unlike Mr. Endle) and did not appreciate going out with my horses on those same winter days. Despite Mr. Endle’s dishonest statements, once the facts came out public support shifted and it passed the Assembly. In reality, it did not impact wood stoves and actually helped to keep the EPA out of our community.

The real point I want to get across is that regardless of where we stand on issues, in order to find the best solutions we need someone who looks for the facts, listens, and brings the community together to find solutions based in reality. For these reasons, I strongly urge every resident of District 1 to think hard before casting their vote on November 5th and look into or reach out to Tim Hale, a Butte resident on the board of the community council, who is an honest to god problem solver who always picks up the phone and listens. Tim’s number is 907-590-8243. He took my call and I’m sure he will take yours!

Patti Hurt