Kudos! Jack Millman, Metro Transit Operator
I just wanted to write in and say that this bus driver totally made my night last week! I sometimes am nervous taking the bus this late at night by myself, but his friendly attitude greeting everyone as they came on the bus instantly put me at ease. He was joking and commenting about different locations along the route and made everyone smile. I wish I had caught his name, but hopefully you can pass along the note that I appreciated his friendly attitude. – K. Renee
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Sheriff’s Marine Unit keeping local waters safe
Sergeant Jim Knauss and his unit of four deputies have a mission: to make sure boaters have a good time, but do so safely.
“We’re out here every day, we’re out patrolling. We have at least two boats out and we’re looking for things that aren’t safe,” Knauss said in a recent story produced by King County TV.
The King County Sheriff’s Office Marine and Dive Unit patrols eight contract cities and the unincorporated parts of King County, including water around Vashon Island, and in front of Shoreline and Burien. They also patrol 250 miles of river.
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DPD volunteers help former defendants get juvenile records sealed
Nearly once a month, three Department of Public Defense employees give over an evening to help adults struggling with the long-lasting repercussions of mistakes they made as teenagers. Some of the people who show up at the free legal clinic can’t get a job; others are denied housing; still others get by-passed for graduate school – all because of a criminal record from their days as a youth.
The DPD employees – Kari Boyum, an attorney, Matthew Pang, also an attorney, and Ryan Gray, an investigator – work with law students and other legal professionals at the monthly clinic held at one of DPD’s offices. Their job is to help people navigate a complex legal process, enabling them to petition the court to get their juvenile records sealed. All of those who work at the clinic are volunteers.
The Juvenile Record Sealing Project began in 2004, launched by George Yeannakis, now special counsel to TeamChild, and Kim Ambrose, a law professor at the University of Washington, under the auspices of Street Youth Legal Advocates of Washington (SYLAW). Today, a decade later, Yeannakis estimates the clinic has helped at least 500 clients seal around 1,000 records. It’s now managed by TeamChild.
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Five Questions with Lilly Simmering, Food Economy Program Manager, Department of Natural Resources and Parks
1. What does your role as food economy program manager involve? My main job duty is to shepherd King County’s new Local Food Economy Initiative. Part of that involves creating awareness of the initiative and its goals throughout King County and assembling a prestigious group of private, public, and non-profit stakeholders to form the Kitchen Cabinet, an advisory panel to the Executive on how we can achieve the goals under the initiative. I will also complete any necessary research and help put into action processes that are essential to moving the initiative forward.
2. Why has Executive Constantine launched a Local Food Initiative? The initiative is driven by the fact that King County is the largest food market in Washington valued at an estimated $6 billion dollars, and yet less than 2 percent of that goes back to King County farms. As Executive Constantine said in launching his initiative at Pike Place Market recently, getting more local food to more local tables will mean more jobs and an improved local farm and food economy, better access to healthy, affordable food in low-income communities, and a more resilient local food system to threats like climate change. We want to tap into this economic opportunity and do an array of things that will support our local farmers and food businesses so that they can grow and meet the demand of an area that is recognized nationally as a strong supporter of local foods and local eating.
3. What do you like most about your job? I like many things about this job but some of the highlights include meeting all the various stakeholders involved in our food system. Seeing how our food gets from farm to fork is a remarkable process and it really changes how you view food. Another highlight is just the overall education about eating. Coming from a farming family and one that has also run a restaurant, it makes you appreciate food and food preparation. A big perk is the necessity of research, which consists primarily of visiting all the farmers markets, farms, and food establishments here in King County. And finally, I like that I can play a role in helping King County catalyze efforts to improve the local food economy and address equity and climate change concerns at the same time. Read More
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Employees partner to produce career expo for veterans
When the Washington State Convention Center started to see more veterans applying to their job openings, they realized they wanted to do something to help veterans improve their job seeking skills. So, they teamed up with King County Veterans Program and WorkSource Seattle-King County to put on a Career Expo for Veterans and their spouses.
“This partnership reflects a strong local commitment to our veterans and the sense of community we are building around them,” said Nancy Loverin, the King County Veteran’s Program Manager and the acting workforce development services administrator with the Community Services Division Employment and Education Resources. Read More
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Thanks to County support, a new department takes shape
One year ago, a rare event took place in King County government: A new department was added to the county’s roster. The Department of Public Defense came into being on July 1, 2013, when nearly 400 public defenders, mitigation specialists, investigators, paralegals and support staff transitioned from one of four nonprofit law firms to County employment.
The creation of the department occurred after a ruling by the state Supreme Court in a long-contested class-action lawsuit; according to the high court, the public defense employees were “arms and agents” of the county and should receive state pension benefits. In the settlement that followed, the two parties to the suit agreed that public defense employees would become county employees on July 1, 2013.
Much has happened in the year since the department’s birth. Voters approved a charter amendment that made DPD a permanent department, dissolvable only by a vote of the people. The Executive appointed 11 stellar professionals in indigent defense to the new Public Defense Advisory Board (the appointments are pending County Council confirmation). Less glamorous but no less important, DPD staff – with support from several other departments – undertook the painstaking mechanics of a complex transition, building a new infrastructure in support of this new department.
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Nine selected for Bridge Fellowship pilot
Nine employees from across King County have been selected to participate in the inaugural Bridge Fellowship Program as part of the County’s commitment to provide leadership and development opportunities to employees. 
This year’s Bridge Fellowship participants are:
- Debra Baker, Project Manager, DPD
- Markeith Blackshire, Park Specialist II, DNRP
- Sung Cho, Social Worker, DCHS
- Leeza Jones, Assistant Accountant, DES
- Daniel Kenny, Mechanic, DOT
- Ebony Martin, Personal Recognizance Investigator, DAJD
- Barbara Pastores, Transit Operator, DOT
- Kimberlee Sawyer, Wastewater Treatment Operator, DNRP
- Bill Stockman, Transit Superintendent, DOT
The nine fellows were selected in April from a pool of 186 applicants from across all County departments and agencies, and exhibited leadership potential, a desire to advance across the organization, and alignment with King County’s Equity and Social Justice principles. The program received so many exceptional applications that selecting just nine participants for the pilot was extremely difficult.
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Drug Court employee helps offenders get lives back
Working as a King County Drug Court Case Manager is Yuka Hayashi’s dream job.
“I am so happy that I’m here,” Hayashi said. “It’s such an opportunity to work for a program that helps so many people. There are people who walk in to the program that are so broken down. They have no family, no home, their health is bad— they have nothing. We have the opportunity to give them all these resources and I see people’s lives change.”
Hayashi works with defendants enrolled in the King County Drug Diversion Court, where she provides participants information about the program and assists them throughout the process. She also is the go-between with the drug treatment agency and the Drug Court judges in reporting participant compliance. Read More
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Healthy Incentives focuses on education at Express Market
Lindsey Hoeft shows a picture to explain what a kohlrabi is to Express Market goers.
This week’s recipe featured produce from Neng Farms and Hayton Farms.
The Healthy Incentives team knows health is more than just achieving bronze, silver or gold.
“We care about people’s health overall, not just having them get to gold,” Lindsey Hoeft, a Healthy Incentives health educator said.
One way Healthy Incentives is promoting overall health is by having a booth at the Seattle City Hall Pike Place Express Market this summer.
“A lot of our King County Employees visit the market, so we thought this would be a good way to get people to try some new things and promote the fresh, local produce,” Hoeft said.
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Awesome ad campaign aims to keep non-flushables out of toilets
With the help of a Macklemore parody titled “Flushing Awesome,” the King County Wastewater Treatment Division hopes to save $120,000 in annual wastewater treatment costs.
The TV, radio and bus ad campaign, includes two colorful cartoon “music videos” — one a parody on Macklemore’s “Thrift Shop,” the other “One to Flush” inspired by “A Chorus Line.”
“Not gonna flush my trash/ only put TP in my toilet/ I-I’m not gonna cause a sewer backup/ This is flushing awesome,” the cartooned ad sings.
The goal of the comedic campaign is to get King County residents to stop flushing non flushable waste. Commonly flushed non-flushable waste includes wipes, diapers, feminine hygiene products, hair, condoms, dental floss and grease. The campaign urges residents to only flush toilet paper and human waste.
Employee News 