Metro’s Anita Whitfield: Paving the way for equity in public transit
Crossposted from Metro Matters As Metro’s EEO/Diversity and Inclusion Manager, Anita Whitfield has been breaking down barriers and instilling a shared sense of responsibility for promoting equity and social justice. Whitfield has worked to create a culture where employees feel safe to have difficult discussions about historical and current inequities. She’s led training for many employees (which she calls “shared learning opportunities”), and played an instrumental role in shaping a vision for making Metro and King County government more equitable for all employees and residents. Whitfield recently was honored by the Puget… Read More
Corrections Officer couple achieves Gold one step at a time
Two King County corrections officers earned Gold in this year’s Healthy Incentives program, and they did it one step at a time up 12 flights of stairs each morning. Sonya and Randy Weaver are both corrections officers assigned to court detail with the County’s Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention. They have been with DAJD for 19 and 20 years, respectively, and have been a married couple for 10 of those years. Each work day morning, the couple climbs the 12-story stairwell of the King County Courthouse before their shift begins, and… Read More
From the Hip: Caroline Whalen, Director of Executive Services
Employee engagement is job #1 When Dow Constantine and Fred Jarrett asked me to serve as director of the Department of Executive Services (DES) seven years ago, I frankly was overwhelmed. How could I move out of operations and project management to lead the diverse set of agencies that make up DES? I told them, “I’m the person you put in a black suit and throw out of the helicopter with a specific mission, not the person in the planning room overseeing the operation.” But, they had confidence in me to make… Read More
Meet a “do-it-all” nurse, with a special passion for social justice
Crossposted from Public Health Insider Last week for National Public Health Week (April 3-7), the Public Health Insider featured unsung public health heroes who make our communities safer and healthier. Each day, they highlighted a public health worker through their own words, sharing their work and why they’re committed to serving our community. Tina Maestas, who serves as a Public Health Nurse based in Renton, is one of seven Public Health Nurses whose office is located inside a “CSO” – a state office where people can apply for assistance with cash, food, child support,… Read More
Finding my way into restaurant kitchens: A Food Inspector story
Crossposted from Public Health Insider For National Public Health Week, we’re celebrating by featuring unsung public health heroes who make our communities safer and healthier. Each day, we’ll highlight a public health worker through their own words, sharing their work and why they’re committed to serving our community. To kick off the week we spoke with one of our Food Inspectors, Shauna Cartwright. Shauna and her fellow inspectors are responsible for inspecting over 12,000 food establishments, 1,800 pools and spas, 3,000 temporary food events (such as farmers markets and street fairs) and… Read More
After 25 years of work, a geomorphologist has a deep understanding of how rivers change
Crossposted from The Downstream Blog For a quarter of a century, Terry Butler has been observing the way rivers course through King County. He has seen some, like the Tolt, transform overnight, when an avulsion – the rapid abandonment of a river channel to create a new one – has occurred. He has seen others migrate gradually, moving laterally across a basin over the course of years. He has watched side channels become main channels, witnessed erosion and sedimentation and has seen the dramatic changes a landslide can trigger. “That’s why my… Read More
Profiling amazing women working throughout King County: Diane Gimenez, Utility Laborer, King County Metro
Diane Gimenez, Utility Laborer, King County Metro How did you get your start in utilities? I started with Metro back in June 1995. When I started I was a maintenance worker, and then I moved to become a utility laborer in 1998. I took the job because it looked like it would be challenging. You were outdoors and I liked working outside. Then in 1998 I put in an application to get my CDL (Commercial Driver’s License). It was a good opportunity to move up and get another position within the County. Do… Read More
KCCF Corrections Officer Chris Chu lives for moments of peace and solace
Shared from the Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention’s Employee Spotlight The Chinese New Year in downtown Seattle’s International District can be heard clear across the skyscrapers to the Puget Sound. KCCF Corrections Officer Chris Chu provides the rhythmic drumbeat during the Lion Dance. When he is finished, he walks amongst the participants and onlookers, mounts his BMW motorcycle, and briefly, the exhaust’s roar mingles with the boisterous festivities. A pile of fallen orange and red leaves scatter excitedly as the motorcycle roars across I-90 as its rider travels up to Snoqualmie… Read More
Bus operator takes passengers on multi-lingual, multicultural experience
Bus driver Kathy Maddux cares about her riders. She wants them to enjoy the time on board her bus as they drive together around the city. In late December 2016 she used a car window marker to make them feel especially welcome, by writing write fun messages to her riders on the windows. Just an afterthought after finding the non-permanent marker in her daughter’s backpack, the messages Kathy wrote were simple and thoughtful. “The first day I did it, I wrote ‘Happy January’ facing the inside of the bus, and ‘Feliz Enero,’… Read More
Profiling amazing women working throughout King County: Eden Rogland Peak, KCIT IT Senior Applications Developer
This article is featured courtesy of Jamie Holter, Communications Manager, Department of Information Technology Eden Rogland Peak, KCIT IT Senior Applications Developer How did you get your start in IT? I spent a year after getting my Humanities B.A. working for AmeriCorps and at the end of my service I chose to use the education stipend I earned on computer classes at South Seattle College. At first it was just for fun but I was inspired by some great teachers and decided to go ahead and finish the Software Engineering program. That… Read More
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