Washington State Search and Rescue Volunteer Advisory Council

09/01/2026

Washington SAR Session
SAR Donation Bill – GET MONEY FOR YOUR TEAM
Hosted by SARVAC
Tuesday, September 8, 2026 - 7pm Pacific Time
One Hour – Via Zoom

A coalition of interested SAR parties has been working for over a year on a bill that would be life-changing for SAR teams in Washington state.

Under this proposal, people applying for certain types of state licenses would be able to opt-in for a donation to SAR. This would happen on the “check out” screen,” similar to the donation opportunities for state parks, or the eye bank.

Initial math suggests this proposal could raise over $3 million annually, to be distributed to SAR teams across our state.

We are now at the stage where grass-roots contact with legislators and other officials will be critical to the success of this effort. That’s where YOU come in.

This month’s Washington SAR Session will cover:
• The bill itself (The $$$ Part!)
• Our outreach and communication strategy. (That’s you!)
• The legalities of lobbying by non-profits. (Yes, it IS legal!)

At the conclusion of the class we will make available a toolkit to help guide outreach and make sure we all deliver the same consistent message. We are also available for post-class coaching and overall moral support. It can be scary contacting legislators but guess what? They don’t bite!

Although this class is intended for Washington SAR teams, those from other states who might wish to try a similar strategy in their state are welcome to listen in.

https://forms.gle/kmMzBxyzWGpvwxiL9

Be sure to whitelist [email protected] in your e-mail handler so that you receive the class link.

Monthly Washington SAR Sessions are brought to you by SARVAC, the Washington Search and Rescue Volunteer Advisory Council. For questions or to suggest a topic contact [email protected].

08/22/2026

Early bird registration for the PNW SAR Conference is ending September 1st!

This is a great event with something for everyone. Hope to see you there!

Register here: https://www.pnwsarconference.com/

08/08/2026

Washington SAR Session
Drone Operations for SAR Managers
Hosted by SARVAC
Tuesday, August 11, 2026 - 7pm Pacific Time
One Hour – Via Zoom

It’s pretty intuitive that an “eye in the sky” can be an asset on almost every search. But the details come at you fast:
• What are the different kinds of drones?
• What can they do?
• What’s the best use of a particular type of drone?
• And most importantly, what results can you expect?

Our August SAR Session will give you an overview (pun intended) of the different types of drones and how they fit into the overall search management effort.

Our host will be Darren Moffatt, drone unit leader for the King County Search and Rescue Association. Darren has operated drones on dozens of missions and trained others to do the same. He’ll go through the different types of drones and show where each type adds the most value.

This class will benefit those working in all SAR disciplines but is intended for SAR planners and managers who determine search assignments and deploy resources.

This is specifically not a class on how to start a drone program, nor is it a class on how to become a pilot.

Sign-up is at the following link. Because we are getting this out so late, registration will close 24 hours prior to the class. At that time a Zoom link will be distributed to registrants.

https://forms.gle/kmMzBxyzWGpvwxiL9

Be sure to whitelist president -at- sarvacwa.org in your e-mail handler so that you receive the class link.

Monthly Washington SAR Sessions are brought to you by SARVAC, the Washington Search and Rescue Volunteer Advisory Council. For questions or to suggest a topic contact [email protected].

08/06/2026

This is for teams in Washington only.

For many months a coalition of SAR organizations has been working on a bill that would be life-changing for SAR teams.

In December we will be dropping a bill with our state legislature that would allow those who purchase or renew certain state licenses to opt-in for a donation to SAR teams.

If passed, the bill sequesters the donated funds so they MUST go to SAR. No local government can divert them to their general fund. It provides a formula for distribution to counties based on population size and mission count. Some small counties have recreation sites that draw people from outside their area. They get a disproportionate number of missions so they get a few extra bucks.

Now is the time to contact your local legislator about this bill. As important as it is to US, they'll have bigger fish to fry once session starts. It's election season and legislators are reaching out to voters. THIS is our chance to get on their calendars.

SARVAC has prepared a toolkit to help you do this. It helps us deliver a simple, concise and most of all consistent message state-wide.

If you are a Washington SAR team and you would like this toolkit please e-mail me at President -at- sarvacwa.org. We hope you'll be able to help us pass this important legislation.

06/19/2026

Washington SAR Session
The “Alpine Divorce” – When Two Go Out and One Comes Back
Hosted by SARVAC
Tuesday, July 14, 2026 - 7pm Pacific Time
One Hour – Via Zoom

We’ve all been on those sketchy missing person calls. Is the person really just missing? Or are they the victim of what detectives call an “Alpine Divorce?”

As SAR responders we show up, get our assignment, and clear our area. This is NOT that class. This SAR Session is intended to give you the “rest of the story.” What cool things do detectives do OUTSIDE the search that we never see?

- Is the merry widow getting calls from a burner phone in Belize?
- Which one was having the affair?
- Annnd…why DOES hubby’s cell phone ping back to a trailhead he denies visiting?

We are fortunate to have a couple of terrific instructors from IRIS Investigative Strategies.

Kathy Decker is a long-time homicide detective and SAR coordinator in Washington State’s most populous county. Since retirement her passions include SAR visual tracking and working cold case murders with a team of fellow retirees.

Doug MacGregor is a geographic profiler from Canada. We use Lost Person Behavior data to search for a legitimate missing person. Doug does the same thing but inside the criminal mind.

“Where would THIS killer hide THIS body?”

This free Zoom class is for all members of SAR from team leaders to front-line responders. The intent is for SAR responders to learn how they fit into a larger investigation. (OK, and to hear some fascinating stuff about how homicide investigations work.

Sign-up is at the following link. Registration closes 72 hours prior to the class, at which time a Zoom link will be distributed to registrants.

https://forms.gle/kmMzBxyzWGpvwxiL9

Be sure to whitelist president -at- sarvacwa.org in your e-mail handler so that you receive the class link.

Monthly Washington SAR Sessions are brought to you by SARVAC, the Washington Search and Rescue Volunteer Advisory Council. For questions or to suggest a topic contact [email protected].

06/01/2026

Washington SAR Session
Managing the Search for Alzheimer's, Dementia and
Other At-Risk Subjects
Hosted by SARVAC
Tuesday, June 9, 2026 - 7pm Pacific Time
One Hour – Via Zoom

"911...what is your emergency?"

"My mother is gone! She has Alzheimer’s disease and wandered away," the voice is frantic. "Please, send someone quickly!"

Every day across the United States, this scenario is lived by families, by law enforcement officers and by search and rescue teams. There are other forms of dementia besides Alzheimer’s, plus conditions such as autism or stroke that can make people go missing.

This one-hour Washington SAR Session will cover not only the tactical approach to searching for those with altered thought processes, but the emotional and family side as well.

Ms. Kimberly R. Kelly is K9 handler in Dolores, CO. She is also a former reserve lieutenant and SAR specialist with the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department. She was her unit’s primary trainer while also serving as a tech rescue specialist and medical support responder.

This free Zoom class is for all members of SAR from team leaders to front-line responders.

Sign-up is at the following link. There is no charge. Registration closes 72 hours prior to the class, at which time a Zoom link will be distributed to registrants.

https://forms.gle/kmMzBxyzWGpvwxiL9

Be sure to whitelist [email protected] in your e-mail handler so that you receive the class link.

Monthly Washington SAR Sessions are brought to you by SARVAC, the Washington Search and Rescue Volunteer Advisory Council. For questions or to suggest a topic contact president -at- sarvacwa.org.

05/28/2026

I know many of you participated in these searches.

**Kittitas County Prosecutor Files Charges in 2020 Death of Ian Eckles**

Today the Kittitas County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office filed charges of Murder in the First Degree and Robbery in the First Degree against 40-year-old Jorge Alcantara Gonzalez in the death of Ian Eckles, a hunter from Kent who was reported missing in the Liberty area of Kittitas County in May 2020.

Ian traveled to the Liberty area on the night of May 16, 2020. Friends and family reported him missing on May 18, and the Kittitas County Sheriff’s Office opened an investigation that soon led deputies, along with Ian’s friends and family, to the Mineral Springs area. On May 23, Ian’s vehicle was found hidden in thick brush off a remote Forest Service road. As deputies approached the vehicle, a man later identified as Alcantara appeared and fled into the surrounding forest.

When Ian’s vehicle was searched, investigators found evidence consistent with a violent encounter, including multiple gunshots.

The next 23 days involved a coordinated manhunt by local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, with thousands of acres of public wildlands closed during the search. On June 14, 2020, Alcantara was arrested while burglarizing a residence in the nearby Teanaway Valley.

Alcantara later pleaded guilty and was sentenced to prison for taking or possessing two stolen vehicles, including Ian Eckles’ vehicle, and for multiple burglaries and thefts of fi****ms.

The investigation into Ian’s disappearance and death has continued since that time. Each year, as conditions allowed in the mountainous terrain where investigators believe the fatal encounter occurred, law enforcement officers and trained Search and Rescue volunteers conducted careful, methodical searches. Altogether, more than 100 targeted searches have been conducted, but Ian’s remains have not been located.

Six years later, Alcantara’s prison sentence is nearing its end. In view of his impending release from Department of Corrections custody, KCSO detectives forwarded the extensive and complex case investigation to the Kittitas County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for review. Prosecutors have now filed the case in Kittitas County Superior Court, and Alcantara will be transferred to the Kittitas County Jail to await court proceedings.

Sheriff Clay Myers said, “Ian Eckles has never been forgotten by his family, by this office, or by the community that searched for him and followed this case. We are grateful to the prosecutors who have taken on the difficult work of bringing this case before the court, and we remain committed to supporting that process.”

Filing charges does not end the case; it begins the court process. Prosecutors will now be required to prove the charges in court.

05/18/2026

Congrats to SAR members from Columbia and Walla Walla counties for completing this weekend’s SARVAC Boot Camp.

The final exercise simulated the very real situation of an autistic subject who runs from searchers. The lesson? If they can run they’re OK- don’t chase them across a road or off a cliff.

Of course…any mock search HAS to end with a pack-out, so our subject “twisted her ankle” while fleeing searchers.

Our two counties were great hosts and the class was fun for us, too.

05/17/2026

Our Boot Camps are for the most part basic training. The goal is to help small, remote teams that might not have an experienced instructor pool in their area.

We’re teaching the basics. We’re not teaching rope rescue or drone ops. We want a team we help to be able to go to a big multi-county search and successfully complete a BASIC ground SAR assignment.

But one new thing we are exposing folks to is called a Bothy Bag. It’s a multi-person quick shelter. No tent poles, that’s your head. No stakes, you sit on the corners. They go up quickly, get warm amazingly fast, and protect a patient from the elements.

Still to come? A mock search…with a twist.

05/17/2026

Instructor Amy can even make the most dry parts of SAR training exciting to hear.

This is Day 2 of our SARVAC Boot Camp for Columbia and Walla Walla Counties. (And the students came back after Day 1!)

This afternoon- a mock search.