Deer Park’s native daughter Bethany Loos traveled to Olympia in late January and served as a page in the state House of Representatives. She was sponsored by her 7th district Rep. Shelly Short, R-Addy.
“It is so important to teach civics to the next generation,” said Short, R-Addy. “I really hope Bethany enjoyed her time in Olympia. Forming friendships to last a lifetime and imparting the knowledge of the Legislature is the goal of the page program.”
The daughter of parents Brett and Elaine Loos, Bethany is very excited to begin competing in a Speech and Debate League through the National Christian Forensic and Communications Association. This, in addition to her five years of playing violin, keeps Bethany very busy. So learning to navigate the busy hallways on the Capitol campus and delivering messages and documents to legislators and staff was old hat to her.
Bethany managed to keep up with her page school duties as well, spending a few hours each day learning the operations and actions of the Legislature as is required to serve as a page. At the end of her time at the Capitol, Bethany presented to a group of fellow pages on her mock bill addressing the implications of the presence of gray wolves in Washington State.
Each year, students from around the state apply to participate in the legislative page program. Students spend a week attending page school, learning the inner workings of state government and assisting legislators on the House floor. Pages earn $35 per day while serving in the program.
To become a page, applicants must have a legislative sponsor, be between the ages of 14 and 16, and obtain written permission from their parents and school. For more information about the House page program, visit: https://www.leg.wa.gov/House/Pages/HousePageProgram.aspx.
For more information about Rep. Short, visit: https://houserepublicans.wa.gov/shelly-short/
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Washington State House Republican Communications
www.houserepublicans.wa.gov
461 John L. O’Brien Building
P.O. Box 40600
Olympia, WA 98504-0600
