To The Eagle:

My wife, Roberta, and I have been acquainted with Sheriff Mark Howie since the middle of 2011. Since that time, we have been in a position to observe and discuss his positive professional development within the Wahkiakum County Sheriff’s Office.

Sheriff Howie was thrust into his current position by a sudden and unexpected tragedy, the death of then Sheriff John Dearmore. Mark kept the department on a steady course while guiding the employees of the department through a very dark and saddening episode that impacted every member of the sheriff’s office. He did so with dignity, compassion, with a full understanding of the impact this event had on the staff of the sheriff’s office, that his training, knowledge and professional experience allowed him to guide and assist the staff through a very difficult time.

Since his appointment to the position of sheriff by the Wahkiakum County commissioners and his subsequent election and re-election to that position, Sheriff Howie has led the sheriff’s office through a constant stream of changes, some mandated by changing laws, some by changes in technology and some due to the changing economic circumstances of the county government and the revenue available to his department.

Sheriff Howie has worked to further professionalize the sheriff’s office by seeking to provide his personnel with up to date equipment, patrol units, modern uniforms, current communication equipment and continued professional development and training. Two new supervisory positions have been created, allowing in-house advancement to his personnel and providing another contact position to the public in absence of the sheriff or undersheriff.

Sheriff Howie has worked to raise the public’s awareness of the sheriff’s office many different duties through a Citizen’s Academy that takes interested citizens through the duties and responsibilities of the sheriff’s office on many issues from search and seizure to firearms training. Additionally, the sheriff’s office operates a program (Volunteers in Police Service or VIPS) that trains and uses citizens to assist the sheriff’s office with routine tasks.

Sheriff Howie involves himself and his staff in public events whenever possible to promote contact with citizens of the county and raise awareness of law enforcement issues and promote co-operation between citizens and his office.

Almost all small sheriff’s offices and police departments in Washington deal with the seemingly endless problem of turnover in the ranks. People entering the law enforcement field often take positions with small agencies, having no intention of remaining there, to obtain academy certification, field experience and a personal resume that broadens their chances of obtaining employment with a larger, better paying sheriff’s office or police department. No sheriff or police chief has control over this fact. Wahkiakum County has faced this issue in the past, faces that issue now and will again in the future.

Mark Howie has done an outstanding job under his less than ideal circumstances and we are proud to say that we will vote for his re-election as sheriff of Wahkiakum County and urge our friends and neighbors to do the same.

Darrel and Roberta Trotter

Rosburg