|
|
|
16th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration
Stride Toward Freedom!
2002 King County Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Humanitarian Award — group winners
Code Enforcement staff from the Department of Development and Environmental Services are pictured at King County's 16th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration which was held Thursday, Jan. 16, 2003 at the 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle.
Top row: Steve Wright, Darren Wilson, Beverly Harrelson, Patricia Malone, DenoBi Olegba, LaMar Reed. Center: County Executive Ron Sims Brenda Wood, Heather Staines, Jeri Breazeal, Sheryl Lux, Greg Sutton, County Assessor Scott Noble. Bottom: Erroll Garnett, Kathy Newborn, Rickelle Rose, Trudy Parman, Elizabeth Deraitus. [Enlarged view, 96K]
The 2002 King County Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Humanitarian Award for a group of King County employees goes to: Code Enforcement staff from the Dept. of Development and Environmental Services.
The nomination materials submitted for this group stated:
"The Department of Development and Environmental Services (DDES) Code Enforcement Staff set an example for all King County employees by the professionalism and commitment to public service they exhibit every day. These staff have an incredibly difficult job: they are charged with enforcing land use and building code regulations in the community. They often deal with lower income individuals and communities and they demonstrate their compassion and commitment to diversity by working for positive solutions in all circumstances. Often, the code enforcement staff provide advice and assistance to individuals requiring social services and other types of assistance. Recent examples include a code enforcement officer assisting a woman with obtaining a restraining order against her verbally abusive neighbor and two code enforcement officers buying lunch for an elderly woman when they learned that, as a result of a mid-day meeting they had with her, she had missed her free lunch at the senior center, which was likely her only meal for the day. These and other acts of kindness, compassion and professionalism are examples of Dr. King's ideology for non-violent social change."
The group includes: Jeri Breazeal, Elizabeth Deraitus, Erroll Garnett, Beverly Harrelson, Sheryl Lux, Patricia Malone, Robert Manns, Kathy Newborn, DenoBi Olegba, Trudy Parman, LaMar Reed, Richelle Rose, Heather Staines, Greg Sutton, Chris Tiffany, Bill Turner, Darren Wilson, Brenda Wood and Steve Wright.
DDES Code Enforcement staff's Humanitarian Award acceptance speech, delivered during the Celebration event on Jan. 16, 2003 at the
5th Avenue Theatre:
"Code enforcement is a unique job. To top off the need to understand a vast variety of codes, it seems that the part of the job that is most demanding is the human portion. Their job is not just about enforcing codes, it's about doing the "right" thing. They come in contact with people from all walks of life, and find themselves handling social work for those who are in need.
Hence a complaint regarding substandard housing, upon investigation, may actually be the need to require an elderly lady move out of her house because it has been affected by landslide.
There may be a clearing, grading and shoreline violation because someone takes equipment and builds a berm along a river to prevent flooding of their house.
Compassion is not something people can take a training course on and learn. It must be felt and lived. Every person has their story and if they are to be assisted, one must seek out the reason behind their current circumstance.
Many people who violate the codes are basically innocent of the violation because they had no comprehension what they were doing was a regulated activity, or they are a victim of something beyond their immediate control. Code Enforcement staff does an excellent job of listening to and assisting these people. However, for each innocent party, there are just as many who blatantly defy.
It is a fine line to differentiate between personal freedom and issues that harm the freedom of others. That is what is asked of Code Enforcement every day.
On behalf of the entire Code Enforcement staff, we thank you for the opportunity to be here today, and will continue to provide the best service possible to the public.
And on my own behalf, I wish to thank every member of my staff for their dedication and commitment. It is a pleasure...no...it is an honor to have the opportunity to assist these wonderful people."
|
