PORT ANGELES — Patty Hannah is worried about Michael Luehrs’ stay aboard a 40-foot work barge in Port Angeles Harbor.
“It has been so cold — and now the wind is picking up,” said Hannah, executive director of United Way of Clallam County.
“I have had several calls from people concerned about how cold it is.”
But Luehrs says he’s fine.
“It was cold last night, but I will take the cold over the wind,” Luehrs said Thursday.
“I am hanging tough out here.”
Luehrs, general manager at the Red Lion Hotel, began living on the barge — anchored in the harbor just off the hotel with a tent, portable toilet, books and his own Web site — on Tuesday.
Luehrs hopes to raise $5,000 for United Way’s 2003 drive — and has pledged to endure life on the small barge for up to a week if daily goals are met.
More than $2,300 had been raised for United Way by Thursday evening, which will keep Luehrs on the barge through tonight and into Saturday afternoon.
An additional $850 is needed to keep him floating Saturday night.
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The rest of the story appears in the Friday/Saturday Peninsula Daily News.