WHEREAS, Dr. Ed Gray, a Colville physician, was awarded the prestigious American Medical Association's Nathan Davis Award in March 2006 for outstanding public service in the advancement of public health; and
     WHEREAS, Dr. Gray, a 1946 Colville High School graduate, was a founding physician of Colville's Northeast Washington Medical Group in 1979; and
     WHEREAS, The Northeast Washington Medical Group is the second largest clinic in eastern Washington, with all the major specialties, and serves as a teaching institution for residents in the Rural Residency Training Track; and
     WHEREAS, Dr. Gray served as Colville's public health officer for ten dollars per month in the 1960s; and
     WHEREAS, Dr. Gray served as the Stevens County public health officer and in 1975 helped form the Tri-County Health District serving Stevens, Ferry, and Pend Orielle counties with all the counties having an equal role in governance and providing more resources than any of the counties could afford on their own; and
     WHEREAS, Dr. Gray served as president of the Washington State Medical Association in 1985; and
     WHEREAS, Dr. Gray retired from his regular practice in 1994, but has remained active in the Tri-County Health District; and
     WHEREAS, Dr. Gray serves on the Colville City Council; and
     WHEREAS, Dr. Gray has lived by a philosophy of giving and caring;
     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the members of the Washington State Senate recognize and congratulate Dr. Gray for his lifetime achievements that earned him the Nathan David Award, and thank him for his selfless dedication to the advancement of rural health care in Washington state; and
     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be immediately transmitted to Dr. Ed Gray, Colville Mayor Richard Nichols, the Ferry County Board of Commissioners, the Stevens County Board of Commissioners, the Pend Orielle County Board of Commissioners, the Tri-County Health District, and the Washington State Medical Association.