It is with sadness in our hearts that we announce the passing of one of Tukwila’s finest, Firefighter 1st Class Jason William Karwhite. Since his early beginnings in the fire service in 1996, Jason has touched many lives across our region and even on a National and International level!

Jason was doing something he loved to do on Saturday, September 30, 2014! He was riding his Harley Davidson motorcycle, when he was involved in an accident on Interstate 5 near Fife that tragically took his life.

Jason is survived by his dear wife and their two children, ages 12 and 14. Jason’s strongest love was for his wife and kids, and when not fighting fires he was focused on his children.

Before joining our department, Jason was a Volunteer Firefighter with King County Fire District 44 (east of Auburn) from 1996 to 1998. He then joined the Bellingham Fire department and served that city and its citizens from 1998 to 2005. In March of 2005, Jason began his career with the Tukwila Fire Department. He served the majority of his time at Tukwila Fire Station 54, near Foster High School. He was assigned to our Aerial Ladder truck, (Ladder 54) as a driver/operator. As a Certified US Coastguard Boat Captain, Jason was not only one of our best boat operators, but instructed many of our police and firefighters in boat operations. Mercer Island Police Department benefited from Jason’s boat skills as an EMT and Marine Patrol Technician. Throughout his career in emergency services, Jason was not one to sit on the sidelines.

Jason rose to positions of leadership and Instructor in many aspects of our industry, from Boat operations, Rescue Swimmer Technician, Certified Fire Investigator, Logistics Officer and more. Jason was a true mentor to our firefighters. He held himself to a very high standard of excellence. It has been said of Jason that he just naturally made you want to learn more, do better and set a higher standard for yourself! There are few in our department, old and young, who have not been taught and positively influenced by this great man! He would always take time to share his knowledge and experience. In many cases, his involvement helped some to advance in their career!

Jason didn’t limit himself to our region, he participated in 9/11 Memorials back in New York twice. He attended the first Firefighter Memorial in New York and the 10 Year Anniversary of 9/11, where he and others honored those who lost their lives in the 9/11 attacks. Jason even took his skills to an international level! With his investigator experience, he joined a group of firefighters that traveled to multiple locations in Thailand to help instruct them in current fire investigation methods.

His wife shared the following statement with us…”We all lost someone very special this week. Jason loved to help people, whether at work or home. The love and continued support of the community and our fire service family is so evident to me, and is a strong testament to how many lives have been influenced by such a great man. On behalf of my children and family, I want to thank the Tukwila Fire Department, Charles Wright Academy, our friends and the extended firefighter and law enforcement communities for their unbelievable friendship and support.”
Sandy Karwhite

Memorial services for family, friends and emergency service personnel will be held this Saturday, at 1:00pm, October 4th at the River of Life Church, located at 10615 SE 216th Street in Kent, WA 98031. All emergency service personnel are invited to attend. Please note there will not be a formal procession.

We are requesting emergency service personnel carpool as much as possible. Anyone wishing to attend should be at the location by 12:30 pm for a 1:00pm start.

A benevolent fund has been set up in behalf of the family. Tax deductible donations for the Karwhite Family can be sent to the ”Tukwila Firefighters Benevolent Fund”, at P.O. Box 69104 SeaTac, WA 98168. Any questions, please email IAFF Local 2088 at IAFFLocal2088@gmail.com.