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FRIDAY, JANUARY 3, 2014 | Vol. 16, No. 47 WWW.BREMERTONPATRIOT.COM | 50¢
Here’s who to watch in 2014 Who were the newsmakers in 2013? What were their accomplishments, good deeds and actions? Will they vanish from our pages in 2014, or will they take on new roles and lead us to new heights? Will they make Kitsap County a better place to be? Those are some of the questions we asked the newsmakers as we looked at what may be ahead in 2014.
Josh Brown, Kitsap County Commissioner One of the more prominent names in Kitsap County in 2013 was County Commissioner Josh Brown. Brown announced in October that he would leave his commission seat at the end of 2013 to become the executive director for the Puget Sound Regional Council, working for the economic development well-being of the entire Puget Sound region. Known for being the first central Kitsap commissioner to be re-elected since 1990, he began his second term at the beginning of 2010. When he made his decision to leave, he said it was hard for him to leave his position as District 3 commissioner. But just knowing that the county is operating at a better level than when he took office made it a bit easier. “You’d be hard pressed to find a time in recent history when the county was stronger,” Brown said, as he prepares to leave his job Dec. 31. “We’re stronger today than eight years ago when I took office. The county as a whole and the organization has weathered the great recession and we have a more stable economic environment than even before
that.” Brown, who has served on the commission for eight years, plans to move to Seattle soon and will not maintain a residence in Kitsap County. In reviewing his time on the commission, Brown said one of the accomplishments he was most proud of were the changes to the department of community development. “It was broken when I took office,” he said. “There had been eight directors in nine years. The day after I was elected, I worked with the other two commissioners and began interviewing (candidates for) directors.” Brown said Larry Keeton, the current director of community development, who was the hire then “was the best hire ever.” Brown was one of three local leaders who went to the Paris Air Show in June to promote Kitsap County and the region to the aerospace industry. Following that trip, he had this to say: “It’s staggering the competition that’s out there,” Brown said. “For too long we’ve taken for granted our aerospace (companies) here in the Pacific Northwest. Our focus now has to be on what we can do to keep aerospace (work) in Washington.” In 2014, Brown hopes to accomplish much with the PSRC. He wants to work on keeping aerospace work in the Puget Sound region and enhancing the region’s employment base. He will remain connected to Kitsap County, where he grew up, because he has family here and because “some of my bosses are here.” Elected officials from various Kitsap-based governments and businesses are members and serve on the board of the PSRC.
Scott Bosch, CEO Harrison Medical Center This upcoming will be a busy one for Harrison Medical Center, according to CEO Scott Bosch.
In his year-end message to employees posted on the hospital’s website, Bosch summed up 2013 as a year of growth and change. Affiliation with the Franciscan Health System became official in late 2013 and will lead to continuing adaptation in 2014 including a new patient record-keeping system that will allow doctors to better share information. The opening of the Orthopaedic Center was long-awaited plus for Harrison in 2013 and as 2014 gets underway, the center will see more and more joint and spine surgeries, hospital officials have said. In 2013, Harrison earned national recognition on multiple fronts, Bosch said, including designation by the Joint Commission for Hospital Oversight as a Top Performer for quality measures related to heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia and surgical care. Other awards included Stroke Silver Quality Achievement Award and the Beacon Award for Excellence for ICU services. Continuing quality service to patients as the health care system changes and adapts to “Obama Care” is the focus for Harrison in 2014, he said.
Leslie Daugs, Bremerton City Councilwoman Local Democrats have tapped Bremerton City Councilwowan Leslie Daugs as their first choice to replace Josh Brown on the Kitsap County Board of Commissioners. “I think I was chosen because the Democrats know I have experience working with local governments,” she said. “And they know I have what it takes to get the job done and hold on to the job in the next election cycle.” Daugs has been on the Bremerton City Council for two years. She was just recently re-elected to SEE NEWSMAKERS, A6
Kevan Moore/Staff photo
Madrona Estates Apartments Manager Rick Lott stands in front of the burnt out remains of his old second-floor apartment and the unit directly below his in which Dora M. Crockett, 78, died.
Apartment fire victims regroup BY LESLIE KELLY LKELLY@SOUNDPUBLISHING.COM
For Rick Lott, last Tuesday started out like just about any other day for him. As manager of the Madrona Estate Apartments on Auto Center Way, he was up and making a list of things that he needed to get done before he headed off to his girlfriend’s house in Port Orchard for Christmas Eve festivities. And then everything changed. Lott heard the fire alarms going off outside his apartment. Still in his slippers, he ran outside to see what was happening. “I saw a lot of smoke,” Lott said. “But I didn’t see fire. I thought it was something I could put out myself. I was confident I could, so I got the fire extinguisher and went down a floor below me where the smoke was.” Soon, he knew it was more than he could handle by himself. “The office manager had already called 9-1-1,” Lott said. “But I had my cell and I called her and told her it was getting big and get the fire department here.”
He immediately began knocking on doors and windows and screaming “fire.” “I went to the two apartments where I knew there were single moms with kids,” he said. “I had to make sure the kids got out OK” Then he went to the apartment below him, where he had seen so much smoke. “I tried to bust down the door,” he said. “But I couldn’t. It was just too hot.” Then the realization came. His apartment was right above where it seemed the fire had started. And the fire was out of control. “By then, I couldn’t get back to my place to try to get anything out,” he said. “I just tried to gather all the residents and get them away from the building.” The morning fire took the life of Dora M. Crockett, 78, the woman who lived below Lott. There is no official cause yet, according to the Bremerton Fire Department, and the fire is still under investigation. The Kitsap County Coroner’s office said SEE FIRE VICTIMS, A6