WHEREAS, Former Representative and Senator Mark L. Doumit was a native of Wahkiakum County who spent 18 years in elected office serving the communities and citizens of Wahkiakum County, southwest Washington, and the State of Washington; and

WHEREAS, He was a proud graduate of Wahkiakum High School in Cathlamet, Washington in 1980, where he wrestled and played baseball, and later attended Lower Columbia College in Longview; and

WHEREAS, He began his career of service to his community as a volunteer firefighter and EMT in Cathlamet starting at age 16; and

WHEREAS, While still in high school, he began a lifelong career in the commercial salmon fishing industry, starting out as crew for his cousin Milt Doumit's fish buying business, then later as a commercial fisherman himself on the Columbia River; and

WHEREAS, In 1984 he earned his bachelor's degree in international business at Washington State University, including a study abroad at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, affording him the opportunity to travel around Cold War-era Europe; and

WHEREAS, While still in college, he began a 40-year career in Alaska's commercial fishing industry, starting out as a summer cannery worker and fishing vessel crew in Bristol Bay and Prince William Sound, then later purchasing and operating his own salmon drift gillnet fishing vessel Cook Inlet, Alaska in 1986 where he spent the remainder of his Alaska fishing career every summer working alongside family and friends such as his sons, his brothers Paul and Matt, and friends Gordie Souvenir and Fred Ostling; and

WHEREAS, In 1992, Mark, along with his brother John, purchased a cattle ranch in Cathlamet, which they later converted into Doumit Tree Farm after realizing that trees do not jump fences nor mind the rain as much as cattle do; and

WHEREAS, Mark retained Doumit Tree Farm until his passing, learning how to manage forests for both economic benefit and other values like wildlife habitat, built relationships with others in the forestry industry, and eventually followed in his father's footsteps to protect the land by selling some of it for conservation purposes; and

WHEREAS, Mark's experiences in the fishing industry on the Columbia River and Alaska, cattle ranching, and tree farming gave him a deep appreciation and respect for our state's and country's natural resources, communities dependent on natural resources, people working in natural resources industries, and Washington's tribes whose history and culture is intimately tied to the land and water; and

WHEREAS, Mark ran for and was elected as a Wahkiakum County Commissioner in 1988 where he served until 1996, including helping to organize the county's response to the Inauguration Day Storm; and

WHEREAS, In 1996, Mark ran for and was elected to the Washington House of Representatives where he served until 2002; and

WHEREAS, While a member of the House, Mark served as Chair of the House Natural Resources Committee, where he was the driving force behind the transformative Forest & Fish Law in 1999, which improved forest practices and habitat for the benefit of both forestry industries and endangered salmon runs on more than 9 million acres of state and private forests and 60,000 miles of streams in Washington; and

WHEREAS, While a member of the House, Mark also served on the House Appropriations Committee where he helped negotiate state budgets and was regarded as a trusted voice on budget matters by both Democratic and Republican caucuses; and

WHEREAS, In 2002, he was appointed to succeed his friend and mentor Senator Sid Snyder in the Washington State Senate, where Mark served until 2006; and

WHEREAS, While a member of the Senate, Mark chaired the Senate Natural Resources Committee and served as vice chair of the Senate Ways & Means Committee where he continued to advocate for natural resources, natural resources-dependent industries and communities, and continued to be a respected voice on state budget matters; and

WHEREAS, While serving in the Legislature, Mark was widely respected by his fellow legislators, legislative staff, and the larger legislative community and earned a reputation for bipartisanship, integrity, kindness, a keen sense of humor, intelligence, strategic thinking, and grit, as well as someone who was hard to keep off the dance floor at the Governor's Inaugural Ball; and

WHEREAS, In 2006, Mark left legislative service to become a full-time advocate for working forests as Executive Director of the Washington Forest Protection Association in Olympia until his passing; and

WHEREAS, Mark continued advocating for natural resources communities in Olympia, and worked to recognize the importance of Washington's forestry industries in salmon recovery, combatting climate change, and preventing wildfire, and working to pass new funding for forest restoration and wildfire prevention; and

WHEREAS, Mark also continued to build relationships within the legislative community and promote collaboration between the forestry industry, Washington's tribes, and environmental interests in meeting natural resources challenges; and

WHEREAS, Even on the day of his passing, he was optimistic about the future of Washington's natural resources, excited to continue his work at WFPA, and looked forward to the end of the COVID-19 pandemic so that people could once again safely and effectively engage and build relationships to solve pressing issues; and

WHEREAS, Mark cherished the privilege of representing his community in the Legislature and representing the people working in the state's natural resources industries; and

WHEREAS, Mark passed away on June 21, 2021, at the age of 59, but his legacy lives on through his family, friends, colleagues, and record of service to the people of Washington; and

WHEREAS, Mark is survived by his wife Mindy; three sons Matthew, Benjamin, and David and their spouses Denise, Charleeann, and Molli; his three grandchildren Huntleigh, Eliana, and Hudson; brothers John, James, Thomas, Patrick, and Matthew, sisters Anne and Helen; and many loving friends and extended family;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State House of Representatives honor former Representative and Senator Mark Doumit and further his dedication and service to the citizens of Washington State.