Richard Kirton was appointed CENCOM director on June 30, 2008. Mr. Kirton is CENCOM's fourth director since the agency was created in 1975. The following is an excerpt from Mr. Kirton's bio:

"I started in public safety 22 years ago as a volunteer fire-fighter/EMT. In fact, I was one of the first people under the age of 18 certified as an EMT in Washington State. I served in the Army as a Medic, first as a hospital corpsman in the Reserves and later in the National Guard as the Medical NCO (squad leader) for an Armor (tank) unit. While in the Guard, I won two Army Achievement Medals (one for academic achievement and one for leadership). After returning to Washington, I worked as an EMT at Madigan Army Medical Center and for an ambulance company in Thurston County. I was stranded at work for about a week due to a major snow-storm and ended up working dispatch. I felt like I’d found my true calling.

In 1990 I got my first 911 job with Shelton Police. We dispatched police, fire, and EMS with no CAD system and often worked alone. I’ll never forget working my first Thanksgiving. My family has a big family reunion every year for Thanksgiving so I was feeling a bit sorry for myself, for having to work from 2PM to Midnight, when I received a call from an excited man telling me his wife was in labor. I dispatched the medics and walked him through the childbirth instructions. The baby was delivered about a minute before the medic walked in the door and suddenly it was the best Thanksgiving I’d ever had.

In 1993 I started working for Valley Communications in Kent. Within a couple of years I was promoted to Lead Dispatcher. Just prior to my leaving Valley Com I received the King County Red Cross Hero award for my handling of a 911 call from a young child who was in a car with her mother who had gone into diabetic coma. In 1998 when I came to CENCOM as the Training and Operations Manger, I thought I would stay for three years, but I’ve really found a home here. Being the Deputy Director since 2005, has been one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my career. I'm looking forward to the challenges of my new role and to many years of continued service to the people of Kitsap County."

Richard Kirton
Director
Kitsap County 911 (CENCOM)