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Thursday, December 15, 2011
-- Week 50 -- The Voice of Mason County since 1886 -- Published in Shelton, Washington -- $1
• • • •
:9
Commissioners duck
out on mandatory
training session
By KEVAN MOORE
Mason County has reached a
$115,000 settlement with former
budget director Ione Siegler.
Siegler, who was the Mason
County Director of Budget and
Finance/Risk Management for 19
years, was fired June 22, 2009.
Just over a week later she filed a
claim for damages alleging long
running discrimination based on
her sex and age. She later filed
similar charges with the U.S.
Equal Employment Opportunity "given the distinction of being the the EEOC in October. As part of settlement.
Commission (EEOC). lowest paid director in the county, that agreement, the board this "I didn't stay for the entire ses-
At the heart of Siegler's griev- by a wide margin." week amended the county's per- sion, but I got the materials. I had
ances was an allegation that Ma- The way in which Siegler was sonnel policies by adding an en- another commitment," Sheldon
son County Commissioner Tim actually fired, following her meet- tire chapter on non-discrimina- said.
Sheldon urged her to retire be- ing with Sheldon in which thetion and harassment. When asked about the training,
cause of her age. ageist comments were made, also The EEOC agreement also very Ring Erickson had a nearly iden-
"He said, 'At your age, why don't raised several red flags~ clearly calls for a two-hour train- tical response.
you consider retiring,'" Siegler "I did not deserve being sub-ing on the Age Discrimination in "I was late signing in, stayed
wrote in her original claim for jected to unequal pay, discrimi- Employment Act to be paid for by for the PowerPoint presentation
damages. "He also said that the natory treatment, retaliation and the county and attended by com- and then I had another commit-
county could hire someone young- even violations of the Open Public missioners, managers and super- ment," Ring Erickson said.
er for my job who would be around Meetings Act in the rush to get visors. That $845 training was Sheldon and Ring Erickson re-
for a longer period of time." rid of me before the investigation held Nov. 8 at the public works fused to answer any other ques-
As far back as September 2006 into what I had reported was even building, but commissioners Shel- tions about Siegler's claims or the
Siegler noted that younger male started," Siegler wrote in her orig- don and Lynda Ring Erickson, settlement itself.
employees were being hired and inal claim, who was also intimately involved Calls to the EEOC and the
paid ten pay ranges above her County commissioners voted in Siegler's termination, did not Washington Counties Risk Pool,
while her salary remained flat for unanimously to approve a concili- actually stay long enough to meet which handled the case for.Mason
more than a decade and she was ation agreement with Siegler and the requirements outlined in the County, were not returned.
A Porsche leads a pack of cars through the straightaway at a charity track event at the
outside of Shelton on Sunday.
Journal photos by Natalie Johnson
Ridge Motorsports Park
Ridge Motorsports Park charity event raises $10,O00 for local programs
By NATALIE JOHNSON
Shelton's Ridge Motorsports
Park opened its road course last
weekend for the first time for an
invitational charity event, which
raised $10,000 for local programs.
All of the proceeds from the
two-day event were split evenly
between two organizations: SOCK
(Save Our County's Kids) and the
Foster Children Christmas Pro-
gram at the Shelton division of
DSHS (Department of Social and
Health Services).
The event also collected two
full pickup trucks of food dona-
tions for local food banks.
Co-owner of the Ridge Mo-
torsports Park Rod Powell was
thrilled to open the track to select
racers before the end of 2011.
"Oh boy," he said. "We needed
A pack of cars speed through a turn on the road course
at the Ridge Motorsports Park for a charity track event
on Sunday~
to introduce the track. Obviously On Saturday, the track hosted
what we get out ofit is seeing very 70 motorcycles and on Sunday
happy people and that's what it's 80 cars registered to run on the
all about." track. Organizers of the event
stressed none of the events were
races, just track days.
Drivers couldn't get enough of
the track, which has more than a
dozen turns.
"I've only been out once, it's re-
ally complex ... it's wider than a
lot of tracks," said Joseph Gilm-
ore, before his second set of laps
in his BMW M3.
He particularly remarked on
the change in elevation from one
part of the road course to another.
'~Your ears pop coming down
the ridge," he said.
Gilmore, owner of Munich Mo-
torworks in Portland, said he
wants to take every opportunity
to come back to the Ridge Motor-
sports Park in the future, and he
wasn't the only driver absolutely
See Cars on page A-7
Gregoire launches shellfish initiative in Shelton
By NATALIE JOHNSON ity and shellfish habitat in
Washington.
Gov. Chris Gregoire "It's a day about jobs
traveled to Shelton lastand economy but it's a day
Fridayto launch the Wash- about celebrating our cul-
ington Shellfish Initiative ture and leaving a legacy
to improve water qual- for our children," Gregoire
said.
IIIIU! !l!!ll!!l!!lUll II
The program is a com-
plement to the National
8 2 See Shellfish on page A-7
Gov. Chris Gregoire,
left, listens to Taylor
Shellfish spokesman Bill
Dewey on Friday.
Gregoire later
announced Washing-
ton's partnership with
the National Shellfish
Initiative.
Journal photo by Natalie Johnson
°
County
votes for
no tax
increase
By NATALIE JOHNSON
The Mason County Board
of Commissioners voted
Tuesday, after a lengthy
discussion with elected of-
ficials, to not raise property
taxes for 2012, eliminating
$89,000 of possible revenue
for the county.
Each year, local govern-
ment entities have the op-
tion to raise property taxes
by 1 percent.
The county commission
See Taxes on page A-8
Journal, 40 et
8 fund grows
to nearly $ 4k
By KEVAN MOORE
The 65th annual Christ-
mas basket fund, sponsored
by ~he 40 et 8 and the Shel-
ton-Mason County Journal,
has now raised $13,889.
This year's goal is $40,000.
Donations to support the
Christmas food baskets may
be mailed to the Journal at
P.O. Box 430, Shelton 98584
or dropped offat the newspa-
per office located at 227 West
Cota Street during business
hours. Make checks payable
to: Journal -- 40 et 8 fund.
Here is a closer look at
the latest donations: the
Norvold-Aho family, $200;
Gregory & Genell Brown,
$30; anonymous, $20; in
Memory of Joanne (Beynon)
Wolters, $200; the Wilson
Family, $500; in Memory of
Gene Rutledge, $25; George
Kaszycki, $100; Fred and
Karl Sleight, $300; Jim and
Peg, in memory of Ed Stock
and Mary Penney, $100;
anonymous, $100; John and
Nancy Bolender, $100; L.D.
Omdahl, $100; in Memory of
Allen and Wayne Coleman,
$50; Donald and Donna Falk,
$25; in memory of Lefty and
Lila Mac Riddle, $50; Victo-
ria Meadows and Chris Ve-.
blin, $100; Ann and Philip
Rousseau, $100; Ste-
ven and Joan Buzzard, $100;
Roxielee and Harmon Pow-
ers, $50; Kristmas Town Ki-
wanis, $500; Robert ancl Ar-
lene Jacobson, $100; anony-
mous, $100; Norma Larson,
$100; Robert and Evelyn
Trenckmann, $200; St. Ed-
wards Alter Society, $200;
and Ellen and Russell Stuck,
$30.