BELLINGHAM, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com)—In an unassuming building near Bellingham International Airport, a team of people works together to ensure Whatcom County is prepared for a worst-case scenario. When mass catastrophes strike the region, the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office Division of Emergency Management is set up to be a main support system when people need it most.

For the last few years, Doug Bestle has led a program called “CERT,” which stands for Community Emergency Response Team. The program educates community members on how to protect and assist others in an emergency.

From fire safety to search and rescue operations, Bestle teaches people a mix of different skills over the eight-session course.

But before Bestle was educating the public on emergency preparedness, his time was spent doing plenty of other things.

In January of 1969, Bestle went off to basic training in Fort Lewis, WA after enlisting in the United States Army. Soon after, he spent some time in Fort Lee, VA before shipping off to Vietnam. He served as a company clerk for the 114th Assault Helicopter Company in the Mekong Delta. 

When Bestle arrived at his assignment, he said his work was pretty cut out for him.

“Their clerical system was just a mess, and I cleaned it all up and got it up and running,” Bestle said. 

On his 21st birthday, Bestle spent the night eating a ration meal by himself. It was then that he made a realization that would change the course of his life.

“I was sitting there cooking this food, and I made a pact with myself that from that point on I was going to take full charge of my life. And once I got out of the military, it was me and the highway. That was it. I was not going to be influenced by other people; I wasn’t let other people run my life,” Bestle said.

Before getting out of the Army, Bestle spent a period in Germany before returning to the United States. But when he did return to American soil, he was immediately met with the harsh reality of returning from the Vietnam War.

“I remember the Oakland Airport, it was like two or three in the morning,” Bestle said. “I was so excited to be back. And I remember this girl walked up to me and she spit on my uniform and said, ‘You [expletive] baby killer.’ And I just went, ‘Who, what the hell?’ But that was the way it was all over. People didn’t spit on you all the time, but they certainly treated you like dirt. You couldn’t get a job; you couldn’t do anything.”

From that point forward, Bestle says he was determined to help fellow veterans.

Bestle began working in his home state of Colorado before finding his way to Bellingham, where he became very involved in community groups and volunteering.

In his spare time, he has been a member of the Board of Directors for the Brigid Collins House, volunteered work for YMCA fundraising, volunteered for Whatcom United Way, the Whatcom County Children’s Museum, ACLU, has been an active member of KIWANIS Club of Bellingham since 1987, the Whatcom Hispanic Organization and the food bank.

To say the least, Bestle has written a long chapter of community service in Whatcom County. He has continued to make his mark with the CERT program he operates, preparing the community for obstacles in their lives one class at a time.

For more information about upcoming CERT programs or how to get involved, click here.

We Are Whatcom is a weekly column featuring Whatcom County residents making a positive impact on the community. To submit a Whatcom County resident to be featured, click here.