The Reporter recently established a feature that has been absent from our opinion pages — an editorial board.

We invited Issaquah and Sammamish residents who are interested in discussing hot topics and endorsing campaigns to apply to join the board. Many of you responded; we carefully weighed each candidate in an effort to provide balanced perspectives and fairness on this board.

We selected five candidates for this board who will join Issaquah resident and publisher William Shaw and me. The new members include Sammamish residents Bernadette E. Anne and Larry Crandall, and Issaquah residents Don Jacobson, Fred Nystrom and Dale F. Williams.

Anne is a longtime resident of the area and has lived in the Klahanie PAA, as well as the cities of Issaquah and Sammamish. Anne served as chair of Issaquah’s Independent Salary Commission, as a member of the Klahanie Potential Annexation Area Task Force and worked for the Issaquah Salmon Days Festival.

Crandall is a retired educator who has been involved with numerous organizations in both communities. He most recently served on the city of Sammamish’s Planning Commission.

Jacobson lives in Issaquah with his wife and their rather assertive 24-pound cat, Bear. As a college instructor, he teaches United States history, world history, the history of western civilization and research writing.

Thirty-four year Issaquah resident Nystrom is the executive director of Life Enrichment Options in Issaquah. He has served as the Issaquah Salmon Days’ parade marshal, on the Issaquah Chamber’s Board of Directors and was honored as the city’s Volunteer of the Year.

Williams retired from Boeing in 2002 and owned and operated a tax and financial services company for 12 years afterward. He has lived in Issaquah for 28 years with his wife, and they raised two children in the area.

We look forward to weighing local issues and providing you with more information to help you make the most informed decisions.