The five-member Chelan County Sheriff's Marine Patrol was recognized by Washington State Parks as the state's Marine Program of the year for 2024.
Sheriff Mike Morrison made the announcement before at a meeting of the Chelan county Commissioners on Tuesday.
"It's a good achievement, as we finish up our marine patrol duties probably by the end of this month," said the Sheriff.
The deputies on marine patrol include Sgt. Rob Huddleston and deputies Garrett Churchill, Alex Bushy, Dominic Mutch and Nigel Hunter.
Undersheriff Dan Ozment says the deputies will be presented their award later this month.
The law enforcement award comes on the heals of a challenging past few months with all three marine vessels having repair issues. Marine One, docked in Manson, has had its engine repaired. Marine Two, with the assistance of $100,000 from the city of Chelan and $50,000 from the county, was repaired. Marine three is in need of repairs as well.
The Chelan County Sheriff's Office posted on Facebook:
We’re thrilled to announce that our agencies marine program has been selected as the states marine program of the year!
This accolade follows Deputy Garrett Churchill‘s recognition as marine law enforcement officer of the year for 2023. The programs' 2024 award comes despite the team facing significant challenges, including a season long fire (Pioneer) and the breakdown of all the agencies primary vessels. The teams resilience and leadership insured high levels of performance continued and the record-setting pace from 2023 was maintained. Outstanding work Sgt. Rob Huddleston, Deputy Churchill, Deputy Alex Bushy, Deputy Dominic Mutch, Deputy Nigel Hunter and every other marine certified CCSO Deputy who contributed. INTEGRITY, TEAMWORK and EXCELLENCE at its finest.
Deputies Mutch, Hunter and Bushy, when not on marine patrol on Lake Chelan, according to the sheriff, are the best School Resource Officers for their specific roles to connect and establish relationships with students and staff in the Cashmere, Cascade and Chelan school districts.
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