Public Education and Outreach Among Issues New Fire District Citizens Group Aim to Tackle

Ten people representing various segments of the Enumclaw community met last Tuesday as the newly formed (CAG) for Enumclaw/King County Fire District No. 28.

They were: Juanita Carstens from Enumclaw Rotary; Laura Curnan from High Point Village; Mike Nelson from Enumclaw School District; Britt Nelson from Plateau Outreach Ministries; Angie Stubblefield as a citizen at-large representing the city; Tom Hicks and Eileen Hicks from Mount Rainier Christian Center; Donna Russell-Cook from St. Elizabeth Hospital; Rene' Popke with Enumclaw Regional Healthcare Foundation; and Shelly Pricco as the Meeting Facilitator.

The purpose for the CAG is to advise the Fire District's three-member Board of Commissioners regarding community expectations and more specifically, to help develop a strategic plan that in part sets priorities for the department's operating and capital budgets as well as future program development.

According to District spokesperson Carina Davis, the group's input will cover a variety of issues including equipment purchases as well as personnel issues. "They will be the ones guiding us when items will be purchased and budgeted for, as well as when and/or if we need to go out for a levy, bond, etc," Davis wrote in an email to Patch. "They will decide what the priorities are for the FD and their community."

As part of its first meeting, the group brainstormed all the items they felt were pertinent to the operations of the Fire District and that they wanted to work on. According to minutes taken from the meeting, these items included:

• Safety assessments of area schools and businesses
• District's public image and transparency in operations
• District's finances
• Community education opportunities with first aid, CPR and fire prevention
• Outreach opportunities for district personnel to share their expertise, time with community projects
• Run down of District's equipment and technology
• Personnel and training

The CAG is formed as a permanent functional advisory group to the Board of Fire Commissioners and members are asked to serve a minimum of one year. The ten individuals who attended last Tuesday's meeting are committed to serving on the group for the year, Davis said. They were appointed by Fire Chief Joe Clow and are intended to represent a wide spectrum of the community including residents both within the city of Enumclaw as well as in the unincorporated areas of the district.

Details for the next CAG meeting has not yet been determined though it is expected there will be three more meetings before year-end so the group can help with the budget process for 2013. The meetings are open to the public. Patch will announce information regarding the next meeting when it becomes available.