Race and Your Community Essay

It’s easy to see why scenic Belfair, Washington in North Mason County, a semi-rural region of the Kitsap Peninsula, has been attracting people for generations.   I have lived here for 11 years now with my husband and two children.   Belfair is easily accessible off the Interstate 5 corridor and only about two hours from almost anywhere on Puget Sound.   Families have been vacationing here for generations, drawn to our premium beaches and boating opportunities, a wide variety of outdoor recreation, shellfish gathering, and nature’s year-round calendar of spectacular sunsets over the Olympic Mountains (North Mason, 2007). The popularity of Hood Canal, one of only two saltwater fjords in the lower 48 states, brings thousands of visitors each year (North Mason, 2007).
Belfair officially adopted its name in 1915, but was first established as a town in 1880 (North Mason, 2007). The promise of logging, farming and commerce in those days brought people to the area, and a brief glance at past history parallels the boom of economic development and new construction that is happening today (North Mason, 2007).
Sam and Mary Theler are best known as the town’s benefactors (North Mason, 2007). Married in 1922, the couple operated a general store and post office in Belfair and began acquiring real estate for additional businesses (North Mason, 2007). In June of 1935, Theler purchased 500 acres of land between Belfair and Allyn from the Puget Mill Company for $4,500 (North Mason, 2007). By the next year, he had paid off the debt and platted the land into lots, which he generously gave to local organizations, churches and the school district as a way to encourage the town’s growth (North Mason, 2007).
Belfair has a population of 7,939 residing in 4,035 households (NW Realty, 2007). The median income is $19,801 per person and $43,375 per household (NW Realty, 2007). The average value of homes in this Belfair Washington community is $147,500 (NW Realty, 2007). (From Census 2000 data)....