— by Margie Doyle —
At a special meeting of the Orcas Fire and Rescue District Commissioners, sitting Commissioners Barbara Bedell and Wes Heinmiller selected Amanda Montague to fill the position vacated by Jim Coffin in September.
Montague has lived past Doe Bay for over a year. She serves as the Vice-President for education for the National Multiple Sclerosis Association. She was selected over other candidates including Tim Fuller, Pierrette Guimond, Jim Helminski and Steve Vierthaler, all of whom spoke to the commissioners and the public at the September 19 regular meeting of the Fire and Rescue Commissioners ( see: orcasissues.com/fire-commissioners-deliberate-appointee-increased-number-commissioners/ )
I would like to thank the Orcas Island Fire District for taking steps in this most recent process to receive public input and allow for a good, thoughtful process. In my opinion, and as I stated at the candidates meeting, every individual that stepped forward would have been an excellent choice.
I wish Ms. Montague the best as she takes her appointment to the Commission.
I also strongly encourage the commissioners to take swift action in making efforts to modify their board to a 5 member commission. I believe that it is in the publics best interest for this to happen and it is worth the electoral expense to take this step sooner rather than later.
I too thank the Commissioners for their thoughtful process and appreciate being considered as a candidate. I wish Amanda all the best and am prepared to support her in any way I can. I would like to acknowledge the fine work and great service provided by OIFR staff and volunteers. Thank you.
I am disappointed. I wish Ms. Montague well in her first service to our community. My disappointment comes from her selection over several candidates for the position who are far more qualified. NOW is the time to expand the Board to five members and take advantage of the other folks who expressed an interest in serving OIFR on our behalf.
Thanks to all, and thanks to the Commissioners. I am honored to have been chosen from such a qualified field of candidates. I look forward to working with, and getting to know, all of you!
For the past 30 years I have been on various boards and committees (public & private) that have dealt with board development, community visionary, strategic planning and tax district budgeting.
I have never during all that time witnessed a board or commission make such a gross error in judgment as our two fire commissioner’s did last Tuesday night.
Two weeks prior to that announcement, at the monthly fire district meeting, I was so encouraged, as well as many other attendees, to see what great candidates had come forward to fill the vacant commissioner’s seat. I was also very encouraged to hear the support from the audience in support of expanding the commission to 5 members. All five candidates would be a good and necessary fit for the expansion. However, only two Tim Fuller and Jim Helminski have what the commission so desperately needs at this moment.
The budget needs to be approved at the November meeting. There have been no public workshops or discussion on our two million dollar budget. Normally that starts in September. They are in the middle of hiring a new chief, negotiating a union contract and a lawsuit. Tim Fuller and Jim Helmninki are the ones that could provide the guidance and experience in making these decisions. Tim being a retired fire chief would be especially helpful in understanding the fire budget and hiring a new chief. Amanda could have been a good choice back in March or on a stable five member board but not right now.
This current commission had had to cancel two public meetings this year (never happened before) due to lack of a quorum because of a commissioner on vacation. We need commissioners that are committed to being here and willing to work with and understand the Washington State Open Meeting Act. Recently they had to admit that they broke the law regarding this act.
We need a five member commission and yes it will cost us tax payers to get it on the ballot the first of the year but I bet not nearly as much as the costly mistakes between hiring a new chief, contract negotiations and a lawsuit and a new budget. So disappointed
Leith Templin
I greatly appreciate the words of confidence stated by Leith Templin above. If you review the qualifications of Mr. Tim Fuller and me on LinkedIn:
Jim Helminski: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jhelminski
Tim Fuller: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tim-fuller-84917617
I think you will find that we both have vast experience in public safety organizational management at the executive level, Mr. Fuller as the Fire Chief of St. Paul, Minnesota and Redmond, Washington and I as Deputy Assistant Director, U.S. Secret Service and Special Agent for 27 years. These types of large budget public safety organizations require extensive professional expertise in budget development and forecasting, workforce planning, policy development, equipment replacement cycles, human capital development and a mired of other executive skills that allow an organization function their daily operations and long-term forecasting that are no different for the Orcas Island Fire & Rescue. I personally feel that Tim Fuller with his background as a former Fire Chief of two cities, medium and large was uniquely qualified to understand the internal nuances of the OIFR and eminently equipped to steer the Fire Commission in the proper direction. With our qualifications stated I would like to point out that Mr. Fuller or I may have been the “preferred” choice by some but Amanda Montague was certainly not the wrong choice. A review of Ms. Montague’s LinkedIn profile:
Amanda Montague: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanda-montague-12449689
Also indicates a great deal of organizational management as Vice President of Education & Healthcare Relations at Multiple Sclerosis Association of America and a skill set that compliments the present commission members. Though the Multiple Sclerosis Association is not a public safety organization I find her management experience will translate well in to the commission’s decision making process. I only wished the commission members spent more time explaining their decision to the community I believe then the their appointment would have been better accepted.
I believe Mr. Fuller and I would join in wishing the Fire Commission and Ms. Montague the greatest of success in moving the ball forward for the OIFR and the community. Public service has been life long endeavor of mine for 36 years, though disappointed I was not chosen to serve on the Fire Commission I am willing to provide any guidance and consultation for the Fire Commission if asked, and I intend to look for other opportunities to serve my community.
On a related note, I would like to point out the leadership and business acumen displayed by Acting Fire Chief Scott Williams. I personally understand how difficult it can be to step into a position of controversy. Mr. Williams has handled the position with poise and leadership displayed at the Fire Commission meetings I have attended. After speaking to numerous of his fire department peers and community members, Mr. Williams his greatly respected and considered a natural leader by the full-time members, administrative staff and volunteers of OIFR. I personally watched at the commission meetings as Mr. Williams gave detailed briefings of the current status of the OIFR, provide long term forecasting, and answered any question put forth with a confidence that demonstrated a command of the issues at OIFR. It was obvious Mr. Williams had the respect of all that listened.
I once served as the Chief Human Capital Officer for the U.S. Secret Service and I understand the intrinsic value of promoting of an accomplished and respected employee from within the ranks. Much is gained when you can put your trust into an executive that can “hit the ground running.” If Scott Williams has not been encouraged to put forth his application for the open position of Fire Chief I would encourage the Fire Commission, OIFR supervisors and leading community members to encourage Mr. Williams to do so and his application should be given a propriety.