Attorney appointed to hospital board
Published 1:30 am Tuesday, February 24, 2026
The newest member of the WhidbeyHealth hospital district board is a Coupeville attorney.
During a special meeting Monday morning, the board publicly interviewed four candidates for one of the two vacant positions on the five-person board and unanimously chose Katherine Nelson, a health dispute arbitrator and attorney.
In addition to Nelson, the board interviewed Henry Veldman, a Freeland resident and retired health care insurance administrator; Roxanne Kroon Shepherd, a Coupeville resident with experience in nonprofit administration; and Kristina Hines, the director of the Economic Development Council of Island County.
The board members emphasized that all of the candidates were qualified and would bring important contributions to the board. They urged them to consider the second open position, which will be filled later this year.
The five-person board had two vacancies following the resignations of James Golder and James Canby. The two men resigned from the board last month following a dramatic meeting at which they, along with board member Dr. Mark Borden, voted to fire CEO Nathan Staggs but then reversed their decision after medical staff spoke in support of Staggs.
The process will start over again to fill the other position. The board will ask for nominations, with the newly appointed hospital commissioner participating in the vote. Under state law, a person who is appointed shall serve until someone is elected in the next election, at which a member of the governing body normally would be elected. For the hospital commissioners, that would be the 2027 election.
At the end of the meeting, Board President Marion Jouas said that the regular meeting on Feb. 26 will be very full.
