By JEFFREY P. MAYOR
The News Tribune

TACOMA, Wash. -- Previous members of the Pierce County unit of Washington Explorer Search and Rescue have gone on to become a fire chief, police officers, sheriff's deputies and park rangers.

Now Grant Smith, the unit's co-founder and operations director, is looking for the next generation of youths, ages 14 and older, willing to serve their community.

A new training class starts Dec. 6. It begins with a two-day class indoors at Frontier Park in Graham, with three more outdoor classes scheduled for January, February and March.

This is a chance for young people to learn skills for outdoor survival and teamwork and to help on search and rescue calls across the state, Smith said.

"Since 1966, we have had over 3,000 young people participate in over 900 search and rescue missions in Washington state," Smith said. "We normally operated 25 to 30 operations a year. The young people are the searchers, they're wilderness-trained."

Members have participated in a number of high-profile searches, including looking for the plane that crashed last year while carrying 10 parachutists. Explorers also took part in evidence searches during the Green River and Ted Bundy cases, Smith said.

Participants must successfully complete four weekend courses to meet state Department of Emergency Management requirements to participate in searches, Smith said.

Not all cases make the national news, but they can be memorable nonetheless. Smith told of one instance when the phone was ringing when his family returned from a vacation.

There were two girls missing at Crystal Mountain. Searching during a snowstorm, the Explorer team found the girls and spent the night with them.

On the way home, the unit got a call on a missing boy in Carnation. But before they could respond, they got a call about a missing girl in Mason County. Unit members helped find the girl, then went back to Carnation to help search for the boy. After helping find the boy, the unit was asked to assist with a search of a plane crash site.

"Before we got home, we did four missions, found four people and one victim, went 500 miles, all in two days," Smith said.

Getting kids to sign up for the Explorer program isn't easy, Smith admits. He has to compete with extracurricular school, video games, computers, jobs and stricter state guidelines, which is why the unit currently has 106 members, down from the typical 250.

Yet Smith remains convinced the unit is a perfect outlet for teenagers who want to help their community and enjoy the outdoors.

He needs only to look at his own family to see the proof.

"My three sons took part in the unit. I helped start the program so they would stay out of drugs.

"My youngest son enjoyed the program so much he now works for the Drug Enforcement Agency. My two oldest sons met their wives in the program, and I have two granddaughters who have gone through the program," he said.

"If young people like the out of doors, they'll enjoy being in this program. We have a saying, 'If it's not raining, there is no training.'

"I think it molds people, it gives them a sense of responsibility. A lot of them go on to work in public service in some way," Smith said. "It's an involvement in the community and you have to give to be involved. These young kids happen to be givers."

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Jeffrey P. Mayor: 253-597-8640

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