Board Meetings | South Bay Fire

BOARD MEETING INFORMATION

BOARD OF FIRE COMMISSIONERS

NOTICE OF SPECIAL WORKSHOP MEETING

Friday, May 17, 2024

The Board of Fire Commissioners of Thurston County Fire Protection District 8 will hold a special meeting of the Board on Friday, May 17, 2024, beginning at 9:30 am.

The estimated duration is approximately 4-5 hours. The meeting will be held at the South Bay Station 8-1.
The purpose of the workshop is to:

1. Review the District Master Plan
2. Review the Volunteer IR&R Plan
3. Discuss fee-based BLS transport Services
4. Discuss a possible third-party assessment of the District
5. Discuss a potential RFA

The next REGULAR Board meeting will be April 9, 2024 at 5:30 pm.

This meeting will be held as a hybrid meeting with in-person and Zoom available. To attend the meeting via ZOOM, simply click this link:

Zoom Meeting Link - Station 81: 3506 Shinke Road NE, Olympia WA

Alternately, you can call in and listen to the meeting by dialing: 253-215-8782 US (Tacoma)

- Meeting ID: 8242 6469 675

- Passcode: 590481

The meeting will begin promptly at 5:30 pm.

Regular Board meetings will be held once a month on the second Tuesday of the month beginning at 5:30 pm. All regular meetings will be held at the North Olympia Station 8-3, located at 5046 Boston Harbor Rd. NE unless otherwise noted. Most meetings last between one to three hours. All Regular and Special Board meetings are open to the public.

Note: Meetings are subject to change. Notice of change will be posted on this site and at the meeting location.

2024 Board of Fire Commissioners’ Meetings

January 9, 2024
January 26, 2024 - Special (Labor relations training and Commissioner responsibility training)
February 13, 2024
March 12, 2024
April 9, 2024
May 14, 2024
June 11, 2024
July 9, 2024
August 13, 2024
September 10, 2024
October 8, 2024
November 12, 2024
December 10, 2024

Download/print the 2024 Board of Fire Commissioners Calendar

BOARD MINUTES

2023 - 2022 - 2021 - 2020 - 2019 - 2018 - 2017

BOARD MEMBERS

Commissioner Milt Harper

moved here with his family from Michigan in 2005. Both of his sons went to Boston Harbor School and since he lived right across the street, it was hard not to get involved. He’s done a lot of classroom volunteer work, co-lead the playground building project in 2006, and served as PTA Treasurer and co-President. Mr. Harper has been a Fire Commissioner since 2011. When he’s not volunteering his time, he enjoys classical music, bicycling and trying to keep up with his kids.

“As a Commissioner, my goal is to assure we provide effective emergency services at a fair cost for tax payers. I value teamwork and am committed to maintaining strong community connections with the Fire District. I see our volunteers experiencing personal growth and having lots of fun while serving our community. Come check us out — I bet you’ll find a place for yourself here too.” Email Commissioner Harper at mharper@southbayfire.com

Commissioner Doug Kilpatrick

and his wife GayLee moved from California to their home in the Johnson Point area in 1988. They have two adult children who were born in Olympia and attended school in the North Thurston School District. During the kids' school years, both parents supported the school district by volunteering in the classroom and with the PTA. Doug coached baseball for their son's team. Doug has worked for the state of Washington with the State Energy Office, Utilities and Transportation Commission as an Energy/Utility Engineer and the Department of General Administration's Energy Program which later merged into the Department of Enterprise Services.

In 1992, a neighbor and volunteer firefighter recruited Doug to the South Bay Fire District. Doug spent 26 years as an active volunteer firefighter and medical First Responder. During those years, Doug was promoted from fire fighter to shift officer, then as Battalion Chief. Doug retired as an active fire service responder in June 2018. During his last two years of service as a volunteer, Doug held the rank of Assistant Chief. As a volunteer Assistant Chief, Doug strove to ensure the voice of the front- line volunteer responders was heard and considered during policy, procedure and budget discussions.

Eighteen months after retiring as an active volunteer firefighter, Doug was elected as one of South Bay's five fire commissioners. He decided to run for Commissioner so he could bring personal, local fire and emergency medical experience to the Board of Commissioners.

Doug is very active and in his spare time he enjoys bicycling, kayaking, camping and hiking. He also enjoys working around his home and helping his wife tend her vast vegetable garden. Doug enjoys collaborating with his wife to create large meals for their "extended family" that includes his own children, grandchild, and his extended family.

"As a Commissioner I want to help ensure the continued success of South Bay in recruiting volunteer staff to our department. Our combination department of volunteer and career staff is perhaps the most successful such department in Thurston County. I'd like to see us maintain that leadership position through outstanding training and employment opportunities. I urge anyone interested in a fire service career to consider beginning it as a volunteer at South Bay Fire District 8."

Commissioner Pamela Long

and her husband Mark live on more than 15 acres on Henderson Inlet. Both have lived in Olympia for more than 60 years. Pamela has lived in South Bay Fire District for past 19 years. Her husband was born, raised and is a life-long resident of this district. They have two married sons - Nate (Megan), Josh (Marilyn) and eight grandchildren.

Pamela loves spending time with family, friends, gardening, playing bass guitar and relaxing on their beautiful waterfront property. She retired in September of 2019 after 42 years working at Providence St. Peter Hospital. The first 25 years in Physical Therapy Department spending time in both Inpatient and Outpatient care; six years in Employee Health, and 11 years as Facility Safety Officer (a regulatory and safety compliance role).

Pamela has been trained in NFPA 101 Fire and Life Safety regulatory requirements, FEMA Emergency Management - ICS 100, ICS 200, ICS, 700, ICS 800a, Incident Command 300, Hazardous Materials and Waste and Emergency Response, Hospital Decontamination, OSHA - Industrial Hygiene Training, Ergonomics Specialist, and Fall Protection Trained. These trainings will be useful in her new role as Commissioner in the South Bay Fire District.

Commissioner Pamela started working with South Bay Fire in December 2019. She represents district taxpayers as well as assuring Fire Department members who protect life and property in our South Bay Fire District have what they need to do their job and be safe. Board members provide guidance and support on many issues including reviewing and approving purchasing, hiring, and policies.

To contact Commissioner Pamela Long by email - plong@southbayfire.com

Commissioner Gloria Zvirzdys

and her husband Victor have been married 37 years and have raised three wonderful children. She has lived in the district for 18 years and has a long history of volunteering in the South Bay Area. When her children were at South Bay Elementary she coached soccer, baseball, and basketball for over ten years. She was awarded with the Acorn Award for her effort, excellence and commitment to helping at the school. Those years were followed by serving as PTA President at Chinook Middle School for six years.

Gloria is a successful business owner of two hair styling salons in Lacey and a partner with her husband in an IT business. She plans to bring this entrepreneur knowledge and all-out effort to create and maintain positive values to the district, while keeping the interests of the tax payer and personnel in mind.

In Gloria’s free time, she enjoys growing fresh vegetables and fruits in her garden, decorating her house for the holidays, spending time with her family, and cooking massive feasts for the copious amounts of family events she hosts at their home. Because of her unending energy and amazing work ethic, her kids always tell her that she is the definition of a “super mom”.

“I look forward to be a part of the team of commissioners and look forward to the challenges ahead.” If you have any concerns or questions, please email Commissioner Gloria Zvirzdys at gzvirzdys@southbayfire.com

Commissioner Daniel Bivens

and his wife moved to the Olympia area in 2013. They currently live in Seashore Villa. In 2018 he volunteered as a receptionist for the South Bay Fire Department for a year. Daniel volunteered for many years with the Department of Emergency Services in Spokane County. He worked with members of the Sheriffs’ Department as President of the Explorer Search and Rescue teams, supporting the Underwater Dive Teams, and as a photographer for the DES community missions teams. He volunteered his time to teach BLS/ALS First Aid, CPR, and AED for the Red Cross and the American Heart Association for nearly 25 years and for more than 20 years he taught Hunter Education in Washington State with the last three years as the Chief Instructor. Dan also helped to organize an outdoor safety group in Spokane that focused on survival and mountain rescue.

In his spare time, he enjoys hunting, fishing, and the relaxation of solitude in the mountains. He also does some woodworking - scrolling and soon to start turning pens. In recent years, he learned to knit hats and has produced a fair number of them, almost all have been donated to those in need. Daniel also enjoys writing and will soon be publishing his first book.

Daniel enjoys volunteering and helping the community. “The people that I work with are absolutely the best and I have been able to learn many things. I am looking forward to more years with them.”

Click the image for a bio

Duties of the Fire Commissioners

The Board of Fire Commissioners has full responsibility for managing all affairs of the District, including comprehensive planning, budgeting, organizational design and general policies for guiding the delivery of services. The Board appoints a District Secretary and a Fire Chief and delegates them certain authorities for managing the operational function of the District.

Fire Protection Districts

South Bay Fire District 8 is a political subdivision under the laws of the State of Washington authorized and responsible for the delivery of services for the protection of life and property, including fire prevention, fire suppression, emergency rescue and emergency medical response.

Chairman of the Board

The Chair is directly responsible to assure that meetings are conducted according to the State Open Public Meetings Act and District policy.

How the Board Operates

Regular meetings of the Board are held once a month on a Tuesday. Occasionally a meeting will be moved due to a conflict. Meetings begin at 5:30 pm and are held at Station 8-1 located at 3506 Shincke Road NE, Olympia. Most meetings last between one to three hours. All regular and special Board meetings are open to the public and all actions authorized or required by law are taken at these meetings. A schedule of all regular meetings is available on the District web site www.southbayfire.com

A draft agenda for each regular Board meeting is prepared in advance by the District Secretary in coordination with the Fire Chief and Board Chair. Meetings are then conducted by the Chair following the prescribed agenda. The Board draft agenda is available for public viewing on-line prior to the meeting. Click here for current draft agenda.

As the Board meeting progresses, you may notice that there is quick action on some items. This is because the Board generally considers an issue for several meetings before taking action and also because background materials on the various items are sent to them for their careful study prior to the meetings. You will be able to follow the meeting actions more closely if you pick up a copy of the agenda that is available at the meeting.

About Executive Session
During some meetings, the Board may go into “executive session,” meaning that the public and the media are not allowed in attendance. The Board Chair will estimate the time the session will require. In these closed meetings, the Board may discuss litigation, personnel selection or evaluation, negotiations, complaints against an employee, or real estate transactions where public disclosure could be damaging to the individuals or the District. However, while the Board will only discuss these issues in executive session, Board action must be done in an open public meeting.

Addressing the Board
The agenda of each Board meeting reserves time near the beginning of the meeting for citizens to speak on questions, observations, or requests. A signup sheet is available near the entrance before meetings for this purpose.

Visitors bringing concerns to the Board are asked to:

Keep comments concise and to the point. The Chair will establish a time limit for individual public comments which will generally be no more than 3 minutes

Speak to a current agenda item or request a future agenda item.

Speak to a present, in-progress issue.

Not reflect adversely on the political or economic view, ethnic background, character or motives of any individual, especially by name

Visitors need to be respectful of the Commissioners’ meeting and will not speak out during the remainder of the agenda.

Staff or Board members may provide an immediate response, if not, topics will be reviewed and responded to at a later date.

Many times a concern can be more quickly resolved outside of a Board meeting by contacting the Fire Chief or a Board member directly. If, however, a citizen has already met with a District representative and still feels the issue is unresolved, the Board Chair may admit the comments into the minutes of the meeting.