Two seats on the Keizer Fire District Board are up for election in May and a long-time board member is retiring from his seat.
Joe Van Meter has served as a director for 23 years and decided against seeking another four-year term.
“It’s time for me to step aside,” Van Meter said, noting he’s 77.
The other seat is held by Colleen Busch, a longtime community volunteer elected to the fire board in 2021. She said she hasn’t decided whether to seek another term.
A registered voter or property owner within the Keizer Fire District can seek the office. The deadline to file to run is Thursday, March 20. Candidates file with the Marion County Clerk’s Office and the official election day is May 20.
The five-person board oversees operation of a fire agency with an $14.2 million budget, 52 employees and 14 volunteers. The department, formed as a volunteer agency in 1948, handled 7,096 calls in 2024.
Incumbents remaining on the board include Louis Risewick, Kevin Clark and Betty Hart.
Van Meter said service on the fire board is challenging and rewarding.
“It takes a lot of education to be on a board, any board,” Van Meter said.
He explained the board’s primary roles are “making sure the district stays solvent” with a solid budget and hiring and evaluating the fire chief. The board has no role in hiring any other district employee.
He said board members also are instrumental in helping campaign for special levies to either support fire district operations or buy equipment
“The property tax structure in Oregon doesn’t allow us to just rely on property taxes to fund our organization,” Van Meter said.
Van Meter said serving on the fire board is like earning “another college degree,” noting fire services have their own terminology and standards.
He noted board members have a fiduciary responsibility to the district and the public.
“It’s a technical, complicated board position,” Van Meter said. “You’ve got to want to learn. You can’t just come into this position and rely on stuff you’ve learned in the past.”
He also doesn’t see board service as a political stepping stone for higher office as city council and school board positions sometimes are viewed.
He also noted that the fire district is its own agency, not part of city government.
Van Meter said he stepped up for the board because “I’ve always wanted to give back to the community.”
He’s lived in Keizer since 1972 with children graduating from McNary High School.
“I’ve got a lawyer, an engineer and a pharmacist,” Van Meter noted.
Van Meter said the Keizer district is in “very good shape, financially and leadership wise.”
He said among the gratifications of board service is the steady stream of compliments from citizens about the service they get from fire crews.
“We get so many positive comments about how staff handled their crisis situation. That’s the reward for me.”
Now, it’s time for someone else to reap such rewards, he said.
“I would encourage young people to get involved. It’s a way to give back in the community,” he said.
KEEP UP – SUBSCRIBE: Get around-the-clock access to news about Keizer with a digital subscription to the Keizertimes. It’s secure and takes just a moment when you go HERE.
