How Can I Not?

Friends ask me how I can launch a grassroots effort to prioritize clean water at a time when my primary focus is on being present with a loved one diagnosed with a serious health issue.
 
It’s a good question. 
 
When the unexpected news shook our lives so completely several weeks ago, my immediate response was the same as it has been for sixty-five years. I put my book, my writing, my life, on 

A perfect Lake Michigan day

hold to care for one I love. But then I went for a long bike ride that led me to the edge of a dune overlooking Lake Michigan. I did what I always do when I first see the lake. 
 
I prayed. 
 
For it is in the presence of this seemingly infinite-size lake, that I ask for strength and guidance, that I delight in the joy of each day, that I feel most connected to God. 
 
And what I knew immediately was that I could not stop writing or talking about protecting this lake. In caring for Lake Michigan and all the Great Lakes, I am caring for me. And I am no good to another unless I first care for me. Just like the airplane oxygen masks. 
 
And so, it is with great appreciation to all of you who join me, that I pose my second question to elected officials and candidates, to those I am counting on to clean up and protect these lakes—and all sources of freshwater.

​Thank you for taking a moment to stand for clean water. 

The McKSchmidt Questions: Week 2

A Grassroots Effort to Prioritize Clean Water

Why I Care: 
Heavy rains in June overwhelmed water treatment facilities in Milwaukee, resulting in 363 million gallons of sewage dumped into Lake Michigan and nearby rivers; 15 million gallons of sewage from Ashland, WI flowed into Lake Superior; almost one million gallons into Lake Erie from Dunkirk, NY . . . Tens of billions of gallons of raw sewage flow into the Great Lakes each year. Bacteria and viruses thrive in the untreated sewage, often causing skin rashes, eye and ear infections, diarrhea, and the closing of nearby beaches. The sewage overflows are caused by antiquated sewage treatment centers that collect rainwater runoff, domestic wastewater, and industrial waste into one pipe leading to the sewage treatment plant. During heavy rainfalls or snowmelts, the volume of wastewater exceeds capacity, resulting in the release of untreated wastewater into nearby streams, rivers, and lakes. Until we prioritize clean water and fund the expensive—but necessary—overhaul of our water treatment facilities, we will continue to contaminate our freshwater sources across North America. 
 
Question: Will you support an investment in our water treatment infrastructure to eliminate combined sewage overflows? And what funding sources do you plan to tap?   

(Please copy and paste this question and email it to elected officials and those seeking your voice. Also please consider sharing the question and blog post with friends to help spread the word. Thank you. Responses may be found at McKSchmidt Questions.)
 
Sources of information for "Why I Care:"

• https://www.epa.gov/npdes/combined-sewer-overflows-cso
• https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/milwaukee/2018/06/18/combined-sewers-overflow-local-rivers-and-lake-michigan/712021002/ 
• https://www.wpr.org/heavy-rains-cause-sewage-overflow-lake-superior
• https://www.wkbw.com/news/almost-one-million-gallons-of-sewage-dumped-into-lake-erie
• https://greatlakes.org/campaigns/sewage-overflows/​

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​My Email Contact List:  
Currently in office
President Trump: https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/
U. S Congress: https://upton.house.gov/contact/
U.S. Senate: https://www.stabenow.senate.gov/contact
U.S. Senate: https://www.peters.senate.gov/contact/email-gary
Michigan Governor: https://somgovweb.state.mi.us/GovRelations/ShareOpinion.aspx
Allegan County State Senator: https://www.senatortonyaschuitmaker.com/contact/
Allegan County State Representative: http://gophouse.org/representatives/southwest/whiteford/contact/
 
Those seeking my vote
https://webapps.sos.state.mi.us/MVIC/SelectPublicBallot.aspx  
 
How to find you federal representatives
Congress: https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative
Senate: https://www.senate.gov(Top left side of home page)
 
How to find your state representatives (each state varies slightly)
Legislator: Search for legislature.yourstate.gov 
Senator: Search for yourstatesenate.gov