Kirkland residents say thanks to the ‘friendly flagger’

It began with a friendly shout out from Carrie Grant on the Be Neighborly Kirkland Facebook page for Felicia Porter, the woman who works as a flagger at the Kirkland Urban construction site and is known for greeting all the cars that drive past with a smile.

December 22, 2016 1:30 am
Barbie Collins Young (left) and Jody Anderson (right) present Felicia Porter with a holiday gift basket outside of the Kirkland Urban construction site, where Porter works as a flagger. The gift basket is filled with items from appreciative Kirkland residents. Contributed photo
Barbie Collins Young (left) and Jody Anderson (right) present Felicia Porter with a holiday gift basket outside of the Kirkland Urban construction site, where Porter works as a flagger. The gift basket is filled with items from appreciative Kirkland residents. Contributed photo

It began with a friendly shout out from Carrie Grant on the Be Neighborly Kirkland Facebook page for Felicia Porter, the woman who works as a flagger at the Kirkland Urban construction site and is known for greeting all the cars that drive past with a smile.

This particular Facebook group, which has more than 9,000 members, embraces positive Kirkland experiences, and they decided to go beyond just the shout out. Members got together and collected gifts and goodies for Porter for helping ease the construction woes, thanking her “for warming the hearts of Kirkland.”

Kirkland Downtown Association Executive Director Barbie Collins Young and Jody Anderson presented the basket and other gifts on Dec. 13, and Porter was surprised and honored. She drives all the way from Auburn to work in the center of Kirkland, where she assists traffic and trucks through the Kirkland Urban construction.

In a thank you note to the group from Porter, she said she got home and opened the package with her children.

“Most of all, I just want to say thank you for all the amazing moments you all give me when you smile and wave back,” she wrote. “Everyday is so special and so amazing and so much bigger than I’d imagined. I just wanted to make people happy and smile, and in return, you’ve all done so much more and touched my heart so deeply. I want to say thank you for those special moments every day.”