EVERETT — Sanford “Sam” Kinzer, a prominent political adviser and attorney with ties to Everett, died Sunday afternoon near the Eastern Washington town of Liberty.
Kinzer, 63, fell down a steep embankment on mountain property his family had purchased as a vacation getaway.
He leaves behind his wife, Debra, and their two daughters, Alexis and Sonya.
The family lived in Silvana before moving to a ranch in Ellensburg, where they keep cattle and horses.
Kinzer was an aggressive litigator with law offices in both Everett and Ellensburg.
He also was a trusted adviser to many Northwest political movers and shakers.
“It’s a huge loss,” said Bob Drewel, former Snohomish County executive. “Sam was a marvelous man, a marvelous citizen who believed strongly in good government and everything good government could do. He’ll be greatly missed.”
Friends and colleagues describe a man who was as comfortable in the courtroom as he was on the back of a horse.
Kinzer was born in La Grande, Ore., and he was the first member of his family to attend college. He earned a master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin and a law degree from Georgetown University.
He often wore expensive cowboy boots, Wrangler jeans, ornate belt buckles and custom shirts — even to court and political events.
Kinzer served as a trustee of Central Washington University at Ellensburg and on the Everett Community College Board of Trustees. The president of Central, James Gaudino, said he was known around campus for his big smile, cowboy boots and a heart of gold. Kinzer resigned his position as a trustee last year in opposition to a 14-percent-tuition hike.
His career in law and politics included a stint as a research assistant to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and working as a lobbyist for the Teamsters union in Washington, D.C.
He later served as Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy’s chief of staff.
On Monday afternoon, Leahy said that he was still in a state of shock.
“The most important thing, really, was that he cared about others,” Leahy said. “He constantly wanted to help other people.”
Leahy described Kinzer as a talented trial attorney and a trusted adviser who moved easily into the role as the sensator’s top aide in the 1980s. Kinzer eventually left Washington, D.C., because he missed the West, Leahy said.
“He was so highly respected in Washington,” Leahy said. “He had an almost instinctive knowledge of what works and what didn’t work in government — and, more importantly, what should work.”
Friend Greg Tisdel described Kinzer as “a guy who cares about where he lives.”
They met when they both lived in the small town of Silvana. Kinzer convinced the local chapter of the Sons of Norway, who could no longer keep up their hall, to let the community have it. He brokered a deal where the community would take over the maintenance of the hall and use it as a meeting place. The fraternity could still use the hall too.
That kind of win-win outcome epitomized Kinzer’s “ability to connect the dots” and his sense of community, Tisdel said.
In 2005, Kinzer left Snohomish County and moved to Ellensburg so that he could live on a ranch with his family.
The Kinzer family had recently purchased the land in the mountains near Liberty, Tisdel said. Kinzer had taken him to the same vantage point where the accident occurred just a few weeks ago. They’d talked, taken in the view and smoked cigars.
Kinzer was showing another friend the view Sunday. He was standing at the edge of the cliff, kicking at a stump as he chatted with his friend. The stump broke loose from the rocks and fell. So did Kinzer, Tisdel said.
“He wasn’t doing anything risky,” Tisdal said.
The Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office reported that Kinzer was trying to remove a dead tree by pushing on it with a stick. When the stick broke, Kinzer lost his balance and fell more than 35 feet.
As of Monday evening, the family hadn’t yet released information about a service.
Debra Smith: 425-339-3197, dsmith@heraldnet.com.
“He was my friend. We had similar backgrounds and that really brought us together.”
James Gaudino, Central Washington University president
“When he put his mind and heart to something, he got it done.”
Bob Drewel, former Snohomish county executive
“Sam was a very, very close personal friend. When I got off the phone with his wife, Debbie, I was in tears.”
Patrick Leahy, Vermont senator
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