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| October 22, 2020 Shelton Mason County Journal |  |
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SiNCE 1886 - VOL. 134, NO. 4-3
MASON COUNTY, THURSDAY, OCT. 22, 2020
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- SMALL TOWN PAPERS
927 w RAILROAD AVE
SHELTON WA, 98584-3847
90
Jim Sipprell of Lilliwuap returns his ballot Monday to a drop box in
Hoodsport. More then 5,400 ballots had
been received by the county election office as of Monday night. Journal
photo by Lloyd Mullen
Smooth start to voting in Mason County
By Justin Johngr
justln@masoncounty. com
The first week of general election
voting was brisk in Mason County.
As of Monday night, more than
5,:th ballots hadbeen received by H
public and planning Without know-
the" nature Ofiice. ,
That’s about a 12.5% turnout of
the county’s more than 43,000 reg-
istered voters in just a few days.
The county’s ballots were sent to
the Tacoma Postal Processing Cen-
ter on Oct. 13 and most were deliv-
ered by Oct. 15, according to Mason
County Auditor Paddy McGuire.
“We had a lot of ballots come
back over the weekend and tum-
out is strong,” McGuire wrote in an
' Monday night email to the Shelton-
Mason County Journal. “Things
have gone smoothly so far.”
McGuire wrote that uncertainty
was his office’s biggest challenge
during the run-up to voting.
“WQK have not known whether
our building would be open to the
ing how things would be has been
tough,” McGuire wrote. “We were
blessed to get two grants. One
from the CARES Act and one from
the Center for Tech and Civic Life
that have given us the resources
to remodel our space and build a
new public lobby, and do outreach
to tell folks about how things have
changed. . ,
“We are also having to run a
presidential election with less staff
than we would normally have be-
cause of distancing requirements
in our ballot processing room.”
McGuire wrote that the county
is emptying the drop boxes daily
and processing early ballots.
“We empty the drop boxes
daily, batch the ballots into groups
of 50 and then they go to signature
verification, where a staff member
. trained by the Washington State
Patrol checks the signature on the
envelope against the voter registra—
tion card,” McGuire wrote of the
process once a ballot is received.
'f‘If they match, the envelopes are
opened and the ballots, inside the
secrecy sleeve, are removed in a
gee VOTIlVG, page A131;
County
creates '
diversion
program
By Kirk Boxleitner
kboxleitner@masoncounty. com
Like many regions across the country,
Shelton and Mason County’s law enforce-
ment and legal systems have faced an
ever-increasing number of incidents af-
fected by substance abuse, mental health
disorders and extreme poverty, so several
elements of the county and city govern—
ment have teamed up to craft a more ef-
fective systemic response.
“This community has already worked
together for the past' several years to
create more opportunities to deal with
these problems as they continue to af-
fect individuals who intersect with our
law enforcement,” said Abe Gardner,
program coordinator for Mason County
Public Health. “As our officers in the field
encounter these individuals, simply not
dealing with‘ these issues is not an op-
tion.”
House Bill 1767, passed by the Leg—
islature and signed by the governor last
year, established a law enforcement grant
program to expand alternatives to arrest
and jail, and the Washington Health Care
Authority awarded nearly $900,000 to the
Mason County Law Enforcement Assisted
Diversion (MCLEAD) prdgram.
MCLEAD represents a partnership
among the Public Health Department and
the sheriff’s, prosecutor’s and public de-
fender’s offices, and the city government
see DIVERSION, page A-18
‘A real champion for people”
Shelton community
leader battling COVID
Syléordon Weeks
gordon@masoncounty. com
Shelton resident Ricardo De Bosque is
known throUghout Mason County’s Spanish-
speaking community as “The Don,” an honor-
ary nickname for a man esteemed as a long-
time leader and the leader of a household.
The Mexican immigrant is the bilingual
family and student. support coordinator for
the Shelton School District. When he was
named the state Office of Superintendent
of Public Instruction’s 2010-2011 Regional
Classified Employee of the Year, the award
noted, “His colleagues describe Ricardo as
the person the entire Spanish-speaking com-
munity turns to with their questions about
health care, schooling, housing, employment,
immigration, guidance for errant teenagers
and so much more.”
“He’s an amazing man,” said his son, Ri-
cardo Del Bosque Jr. “People look up'to him
very much.”
After the coronavirus forced the Shelton
School. District to close its doors in March,
Del Bosque continued to deliver food to
Spanish—speaking families in need in Mason
County. .
His son said he believes that’s how he con-
- tracted the coronavirus. '
.Del Bosque is battling for his life in a
Seattle rehabilitation facility. The disease
caused him to have a stroke. He spends most
of his time on a ventilator so he can breathe.
He can’t speak.
ége LEADERIpage A-15
a" ' 111
53263 00
Finalists announced
fer police chief
Page 51918
iisge
Ricardo Del Bosque,
the bilingual family
and student support
coordinator for the
Shelton School
District, is infected
with the coronavirus,
possibly caught while
delivering food to
Spanish-speaking
families in need in
Mason County. He
suffered a stroke and
is on a ventilator at a
Seattle rehabilitation
facility. Courtesy photo
INSIDE TODAY '
Hoodsport couple
shares love of diving
Union River summer
chum count complete
fags: N215