A tribute in paint for Sultan firefighters

Published 10:20 pm Friday, June 19, 2009

SULTAN — Driving through Sultan?

Take a moment to stop and peer into the past.

The city recently dedicated a three-panel mural depicting real firefighters painted on what used to be the bay doors of the town fire station.

The murals, on the back of what’s now the post office, face U.S. 2.

In one panel firefighters gather around a table playing checkers, waiting for the fire alarm to ring. The others depict Sultan’s finest busily fixing trucks from an earlier time, taking pride in caring for the equipment.

There’s Louie Jelinek, a former fire chief of 30 years, and his devoted wife, Doris, just arrived with his lunch box. There’s Dan Lohr, a firefighter who died evacuating seniors during a flood in 1986. Ten townspeople are shown in total.

Several dogs appear in the mural, including Max, a dog apparently known for stealing and eating zucchinis. These pups, too, used to wander the streets of Sultan.

After the town’s centennial, the Sultan Centennial Committee had a little money left over and decided a mural would be a nice addition, said Donna Murphy, an economic coordinator for the city.

They didn’t have quite enough money to pay for the mural, which cost more than $10,000. So they asked for donations in exchange for a spot on the mural.

The family and friends of firefighters past and present responded.

“I heard it kicked around town — they were going to charge to put your picture up there,” said Roger Knowlton, a longtime volunteer firefighter and former chief. “The next thing I know a group of people who donated the money made a surprise of it.”

Knowlton said he was honored.

A younger, beardless version of himself is standing casually next to an antique fire engine. It’s an engine they fixed up and used to drive down Main Street in parades.

“The likeness is pretty good,” he said. “(The artist) captures a lot of things that makes it look like real life.”

The artist, David Hose, is a well-known muralist who lives in Sky Valley.

A mural like this one brings civic pride and preserves the town’s history, he said. People who might shoot through Sultan might also have a reason to stop.

Not too many towns in these parts feature murals with townspeople. Hose would like to see more of it.

“I’d love to do it everywhere I could,” he said. “These portraits are precious to their families and often to the town. I really feel almost a mission to get the nose right and the hair right.”

Debra Smith: 425-339-3197, dsmith@heraldnet.com.