For Want of a Nail . . .

This letter is in regard to the recent election in which Raul Garcia lost his seat on the Garvey School Board by only one vote.

Garcia came to my neighborhood, door-to-door, to introduce himself to the voters. He introduced himself well manneredly, simply and in a non-pushy manner. I never vote in school elections because I am not sufficiently knowledgeable about the candidates, but in this case I was able to personally meet and speak with Garcia. I admired him for his initiative to meet the people and invite their opinions.

I then checked the papers to confirm that I approved of his views, etc., and decided to vote for him. However, I was going to be out of the country on Election Day, so I sent for an absentee ballot. On this ballot, the only vote cast was for Garcia, and I mailed it on Oct. 31. The next day I left the country.

When I returned on Nov. 18, I found my sample ballot returned to me because I had failed to sign the outside of the envelope. Since the election was past, I then discarded the ballot, hoping Garcia had won.

Then I found out that he had lost by only one vote! From this comes two messages, which I hope everyone will heed. First, every vote does count. Second, I wish to personally apologize to Garcia for my negligence. If he runs next time, I will vote more carefully.

Judith M. Seki

SAN GABRIEL