Sen. Ann Rivers has been singled out by the Washington Fire Commissioners Association as its “Legislator of the Year.” She received the rare honor Friday in Marysville during the organization’s annual conference.

“Although we called Senator Rivers our ‘Legislator of the Year,’ we don’t typically give out an annual award. In fact, there have only been two other lawmakers in the last 15 years who have been recognized. Instead when we have someone like Senator Rivers who has really gone out on a limb – time and time again – for our members and their interests, then we let that person know how much we appreciate their support,” said Brad Lothspeich, regional director for the WFCA and Clark County Fire District 6 commission chair.

“After the successful passage of our top-priority legislation – a volunteer fire-service training and testing bill as well as a statewide fire-mobilization bill – this past session, recognizing our legislative champion was an easy decision for our association. Some lawmakers are more concerned with winning their next election than getting things done; that isn’t the case with Ann,” continued Lothspeich.

“Our firefighters are often forgotten until there’s an emergency, yet they play a critical public-safety role in every community. I’ve been committed to making sure they aren’t forgotten in Olympia. I appreciate this recognition but the gratitude really belongs to the fire-protection districts and the people who step forward to lead them as commissioners – it’s them who are working to keep families safe,” said Rivers, R-La Center.