Enumclaw Courier-Herald, May 20, 2015

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SEE INSIDE: This year a quiet Fourth of July | Page 3 . . . Candidates file for November local elections | Page 5 . . . BLHS student wins Congressional art contest | Page 13

Wednesday, May 20, 2015 | 75 cents

What’s Inside

Views...................................Page 6 Sports.................................Page 8 Binetti.................................Page 12 Obituaries.........................Page 17 Classified...........................Page 24

This Week... • The Veterans of Foreign Wars post 1949 will host

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Rothermel charged with rape of a child

Enumclaw school bonds pass by just four votes

the annual Memorial Day program at 1 p.m. on Sunday, May 24 at Veterans Memorial Park in Enumclaw.

By Dennis Box Editor

• “Our Own Expressions”

contest winners with the Pierce County Library System will be displaying their artwork and stories at an awards ceremony at 7 p.m. May 27 at the Lagerquist Concert Hall at Pacific Lutheran University.

Weather The forecast for Wednesday calls for a small mostly clouds with highs near 72. At night, lows drop to 50 with calm winds. Thursday calls for some sun with highs near 67. Expect a cloudy night with lows near 50. Friday will see some sun with highs near 69 and a cloudy night with lows near 50. Saturday and Sunday expect mostly clouds with highs near 67.

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News ..................................ext. 3 Retail Ads .........................ext. 2 Circulation ........................ext. 1 Classifieds..................ext. 7050

By Dennis Box Editor

The Enumclaw School District roller coaster ride is finally over. After two weeks of not passing, passing, not quite and maybe, the King County Elections Canvassing Board certified the proposition as approved with 60.05 percent support, 3,913 votes, a margin of four votes. The measure had to reach 60 percent approval for it to pass.

Winning Ride

SEE BOND, PAGE 4

Wyatt Mason finishes first Saturday in one of Criterium races at the Mutual of Enumclaw Stage Race. The two-day event has been featured in the city for the past two decades. Photo by Dennis Box

East Pierce selects new fire chief By Ray Still Reporter

H

e might not come riding into town on a blazing saddle, but East Pierce Fire and Rescue will be getting a new fire chief all the same. In an unanimous decision during the May 14 special fire commissioner meeting, E. L. “Bud” Backer was issued a conditional offer of employment as East Pierce’s new fire chief. “Bud is skilled in all aspects

Who is Bud Backer?

of the job,” said Fire Commissioner Dale Mitchell. “He embodies Backer became Eastside all the things we are lookFire and Rescue’s deputy ing for.” chief in 2011 after joining Backer, who is curup with the fire departrently the deputy chief at ment a year prior. E. L. “Bud” Backer Eastside Fire and Rescue Before that, Backer was in Issaquah, is filling the the deputy chief for the spot opened when Fire Woodinville Fire and Life Safety Chief Jerry Thorson announced department in Washington for his retirement Jan. 28, ending a nine years. career of more than 40 years in Backer was also fire chief at the fire service. King County Fire District 45 Thorson will be official- from 1998 to 2000 at the end of ly retired at the end of June. a 12-year long career with that

A 37-year-old Enumclaw man, Ryan Rothermel, was arrested and charged Thursday with 20 counts of third-degree rape of a child. Bail was set at $150,000 during a King County Superior Court hearing Friday. Rothermel was scheduled for a second court appearance Tuesday. Check the website, www.courierherald.com, for an update following his court appearance. After an extensive investigation spanning several months, Enumclaw police

SEE ROTHERMEL, PAGE 2 district. Backer graduated from Eastern Washington University with a bachelor’s degree in industrial technology and graduated from Grand Canyon University in Arizona with a Master of Science degree in Fire Service Leadership. Backer is also a graduate from the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer program.

The selection process East Pierce began officially looking for a new fire chief when they hired Greg Prothman on March 2 to head a national search for fire chief applicants. There were 21 initial candi-

SEE FIRE CHIEF, PAGE 3

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