FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   

September 4, 2008     

Contact: Stephanie Perry
Communications Specialist/Website Editor
206-733-5932; stephaniep@wsba.org

Washington State Bar Association Young Lawyers Division and Starbucks Coffee Company Present Free Washington First Responder Will Clinic

(SEATTLE) — The Washington State Bar Association Young Lawyers Division (WYLD), in conjunction with Starbucks, will be presenting the seventh Washington First Responder Will Clinic (WFRW) on September 13, 2008. This is the third year of the program, which offers free wills, healthcare directives, community property agreements, and general durable powers of attorney to Washington’s first responders and their spouses.

The clinic expects to serve about 100 Seattle police officers and their spouses at the clinic, which will be held at the Starbucks Support Center. Nearly 75 volunteers are expected – half from Starbucks and half from the WYLD. Seattle attorneys Ford Clary and Jenni Frere Volk started the program in 2006, and continue to serve as co-chairs, along with a planning committee consisting of volunteer coordinator Sarah Ondrak, development and budget coordinator Hillary Morgan, and at-large volunteer Charity Anastasio.

Clients are asked to fill out a thorough questionnaire before arriving at the clinic, and once there, meet with a volunteer attorney for approximately one hour. The volunteer attorneys (with the help of a team of law clerks, notaries, witnesses, and other support staff) draft a healthcare directive, general durable power of attorney, and last will and testament for each client.

“We found everyone to be so gracious, helpful, and professional,” commented a client from a previous clinic. “Truly outstanding service by everyone involved.... Our attorney and paralegal were very helpful, informative, and just plain nice! They answered all of our questions about our will and made it a great experience. I just hope more officers/firefighters can take part in this great event in the following years.”

The First Responder Will Clinic program is always looking for volunteer attorneys and support staff to help out at the clinics, as well as donations of paper, printer ink, and used printers. If you would like to get involved, please contact Sarah Ondrak at ondraks@gmail.com.

About the Washington State Bar Association
The WSBA is part of the judicial branch, exercising a governmental function authorized by the Washington State Supreme Court to license the state’s 32,600 lawyers. The WSBA both regulates lawyers under the authority of the Court and serves its members as a professional association – all without public funding. As a regulatory agency, the WSBA administers the bar admission process, including the bar exam; provides record-keeping and licensing functions; and administers the lawyer-discipline system. As a professional association, the WSBA provides continuing legal education for attorneys, in addition to numerous other educational and member-service activities.
 
The governance of the WSBA is vested in its 14-person Board of Governors. There are three governors from the seventh congressional district; one from each of the other eight districts; and three at-large members, one of whom represents the Young Lawyers Division. The 2007-2008 president is Stanley A. Bastian, of Wenatchee. The 2007-2008 president-elect is Mark A. Johnson, of Seattle, the immediate past-president is Ellen Conedera Dial, of Seattle, and the 2008-09 president-elect is Salvador A. Mungia, of Tacoma. The Board meets regularly (every six weeks) at various locations around the state, and its meetings are open to the public. Much of the work of the Bar is carried out through numerous standing committees; 26 sections; and a Young Lawyers Division, with its many committees.

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