Public invited to meet County Manager finalists July 11
Todd Mielke
Gun-Sam Kim
Ryan Barrett
Amber Smith
CHEHALIS – The Lewis County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) is inviting the public to a meet-and-greet with its four finalists for County Manager.
Citizens will be given an opportunity to get to know the candidates at a public reception from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 11, in the Commissioners’ Hearing Room at the Historic Lewis County Courthouse, 351 NW North St. in Chehalis. Comment cards will be available for citizens to share their opinion of the finalists with the commissioners.
The commissioners and other county officials and staff members will hold private interviews with the finalists July 12.
The BOCC started its search in March, when former County Manager Erik Martin announced he had accepted an employment opportunity with a private engineering firm. The county commissioners then appointed Lewis County Chief of Internal Services Steve Wohld as interim County Manager, until a permanent manager was hired.
About the finalists (in alphabetical order):
Ryan Barrett has more than 19 years of public service in Lewis and King counties. He is currently employed as a Captain for South Correctional Entity, a regional correctional facility in Des Moines, Wash. Barrett, who spent more than seven years with the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office working as a Corrections Deputy and Lieutenant, has a Master of Business Administration from Western Governors University in Millcreek, Utah, and a Bachelor in Business Communication from Evergreen State College in Olympia, Wash.
Gun-Sam Kim began his public service career with the U.S. Navy from 1985 to 1987. After a tour in the Navy, he became Chief IT Operations Officer with Santa Clara County, Calif. He has been the Chief Information Officer for Washington County in Hillsboro, Ore., since 2020. Kim holds a Master of Science in Engineering and Master of Mathematical Finance. He is currently studying for a doctorate in Workforce Development & Organizational Leadership from the University of Nevada in Las Vegas.
Todd Mielke has 37 years of public service experience, with several years in a variety of municipal management positions. Since 2019, he has been the Chief Administrative Officer with the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office. He was the Chief Executive Officer for three years with Greater Spokane Inc., a nonprofit business development organization. Mielke earned a Master of Business Administration from the Foster School of Business at the University of Washington in Seattle.
Amber Smith is Lewis County’s Director of Human Resources and Risk Management. She is responsible for assisting and advising county management in various aspects of employee hiring, satisfaction and retention. She began in public service in Lewis County in 2018. Prior to her current appointment, she was a Deputy Prosecuting Attorney. Smith holds a Juris Doctorate and Master of Business Administration from Willamette University in Salem, Ore.