A new commissioner was sworn into the empty Position 4 seat of the North Whidbey Pool, Parks and Recreation board last week.

Melissa Hartmann graduated from Oak Harbor High School in 2003, where she was on the debate team, she said. She now works for the health department and has three children who use the services provided by the district.

They swim in the pool, play volleyball and look forward to Day Camp, she said, so she’s happy to have her voice in the mix.

Hartmann replaced Marsha Smith, who resigned from the position in early April.

Hartmann has an excellent background in organizational leadership, said James Marrow, chair of the board. She participated in Leadership Whidbey this year and served as a volunteer treasurer for the military’s Family Readiness Group and a Day Camp leader.

In addition to her new role on the board, Harmann was nominated as the board secretary and will be a member of the levy committee.

“Everybody that comes in who’s never been in this organization before, they have a learning curve, and consequently it’s really about dedication and commitment as far as being a success,” Marrow said. “We have anticipation that she will be providing for us, because she stepped right up to the levy district and guess what the heavy lift is this year? The levy.”

This year, a proposal will go on the ballot to redesignate the parks and rec district as a metropolitan district, which would allow the organization to collect property taxes without asking voters to pass a levy on a regular basis.

Hartmann’s focus, above all, is equity, she said. She wants to bring the community together to enjoy the district’s services regardless of access point.

“We’re all looking out for each other. We all live here,” she said. “This is one of the most beautiful places on the planet, and how can we all be stewards of the area and support each other and create that kind of environment?”

Volunteer service can be thankless, so the board is grateful when someone steps forward to lead, Marrow said.

“Finding dedicated people to serve the community in something such as the North Whidbey Pool, Parks and Rec, you gotta do it out of your heart,” he said.