Clerk's Memory Etched in Metal and in Student’s Lives…

Metal is refined through a crucible. Linda Ruehle’s memory is refined not only in the metal of a striking and whimsical statue on Sunset Boulevard, but also in a Kiwanis Scholarship fund aptly named the “Linda and Jeff Ruehle Scholarship.” Here is Linda’s crucible: Her only son, Jeff, died in a Motorcycle accident right before his senior year in Issaquah High School. She wanted to provide a legacy to help students, like Jeff, who may have had challenges in their learning. Through Kiwanis, she left $25,000.00 to fund a scholarship to honor her and Jeff. The award provides $2,000 for a graduating senior from Issaquah High School to be used for furthering his or her education.

It is fitting that a life-size aluminum sculpture of Linda, a petite redhead, a clerk’s ledger in hand, is on a bench just outside city hall. It is a tribute commissioned by a grateful city. This statue on Sunset memorialized a community servant who worked in Issaquah for thirty years. She is remembered for endlessly energy serving her communities. Linda held nearly every leadership role of the Washington Municipal Clerks Association. She helped form the King County City Clerks Association in 1979. Taking the heat of the crucible for others to follow, Linda was the first female member of the Kiwanis Club of Issaquah in 1987. She was elected its first woman president in 1990 and named Kiwanian of the Year in 2003. In 2005 Linda was voted into the Issaquah Hall of Fame.

Please visit Children's Charity and Fundraiser | Kiwanis Club of Issaquah (issaquahkiwanis.org) to learn more about this this Scholarship, its criteria and application form.

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