Board of directors · Bend
William Oduya
Director
“I'm here to ask what the customer would ask if they were in the room. Usually it's 'why does that take so long?'”
Retired fire chief of Deschutes County and founder of a nonprofit that builds housing for wildland firefighters. The board's customer advocate.
- [email protected]
- Phone
- +1 (541) 555-0179
- Office
- Bend branch
- With Meridian since
- 2022
The story
William was born in Nairobi and adopted at age four by a family in Redmond, Oregon, where his adoptive father was a volunteer firefighter. He grew up at the fire hall, and joined the county fire district as a seasonal wildland firefighter at eighteen. He spent thirty-two years in the fire service, the last nine as chief of Deschutes County Fire & Rescue, retiring in 2021.
During the 2020 wildfire season he coordinated the evacuation of 8,000 people from the Santiam Canyon fires and lost two firefighters under his command. He speaks about them by name, Kyle and Marisol, in every public appearance. The following year he founded Hearth, a nonprofit that builds affordable housing for seasonal wildland firefighters, who often cannot afford to live in the communities they protect.
He joined Meridian Trust's board in 2022 and holds the seat the bank reserves for a community representative with no financial-industry background. He describes his job on the board as 'asking the questions a customer would ask if they were in the room.' He insisted that the board's quarterly packet include a summary of every customer complaint, which it now does.
William lives in Redmond with his wife Grace, a middle-school science teacher, and their adult son, who is a hotshot crew leader. He still carries a pager.
Off duty
When not at the bank
Backcountry skiing
He skis the Three Sisters Wilderness most winter weekends and has led avalanche-safety courses for the Central Oregon Avalanche Center since 2015. 'Risk management with better views than a board meeting.'
Smoking brisket
An offset smoker he welded himself from a propane tank. He feeds the entire Redmond fire station on the Fourth of July and has done so for twenty years.
Kenyan history
He has returned to Nairobi four times to trace his birth family and is now in touch with two half-siblings. He is learning Swahili, slowly, with his son.
Ask me about
Education
- A.A.S. Fire Science, Central Oregon Community College, 1992
- Executive Fire Officer Program, National Fire Academy, 2012
