Editor’s note: This letter is in response to two letters, “EPD’s lack of mask enforcement puts community in danger,” and “Local police fail to enforce COVID safety measures,” published July 29, 2020.

I share the concerns expressed in recent letters to the editor concerning those in our community who have not been following the state health department face mask order.

The order is there for the protection of all of us. The more consistently we as members of the community wear face coverings, the faster the number of COVID-19 cases and deaths will decline. The faster those numbers go down, the sooner we can all go back to more normal lives.

When I see that community members are congregating downtown without masks, or in the grocery stores without masks, it saddens and concerns me, because that means not only am I as a person over 65 placed at personal risk, it means that we aren’t going to get back to normal business soon.

People in our community should not have to visit the police station or write letters begging the city council to address businesses or community members who don’t comply. We as responsible citizens should be proud to do our part to protect each other. Being an American is not a license to be selfishly concerned only with one’s own comfort and convenience. Our rights come with responsibilities, to each other and to our community.

I wear a mask to protect others. It’s a simple step we can each take to protect each other. It’s a simple step we can take to do our part to get COVID-19 out of our community and our state, so that our businesses can fully reopen and our economy can recover. My three-year-old niece knows how important this is, and she is not afraid to tell her playmates that she can’t play until she has her mask on.

If she can do this, it shows how simple it really is. Let’s all join her and keep each other healthy. The better we do this simple task, the faster we can have our normal lives back.

Linda Atkins

Enumclaw