New executive director onboard at the Port of Othello

Chris Faix has been hired as the new executive director of the Port of Othello. He takes over for Doyle Palmer who is retiring at the end of the month.

“I embrace the opportunity to be able to continue to serve the community of Othello and Adams County as well,” Faix said. “I’m really excited to be coming on board and looking forward to work with the people at the Port.”

Faix has spent the past six years working for the Othello Police Department.

“I’m currently one of the dispatchers. I answer phones, radio and 9-1-1 calls, and dispatch fire trucks, ambulances, EMS and law enforcement,” Faix said. “I’m also the evidence custodian — handle all the evidence for the police department. It’s been a very interesting part of the job. A lot goes on behind the scenes that you wouldn’t know about unless you got your hands in here and got dirty with it.”

Faix will be leaving his duties at the OPD Jan. 31. His first day as the Port’s executive director is Feb.1.

“I’ve enjoyed my time here — it’s been a great place to work. There are a lot of good people here that do a great job for the community,” Faix said. “I never saw myself leaving, but an opportunity such as this doesn’t come up every day, so I decided to jump in with both feet– hit the ground running and see what happens.”

Faix has had a long-standing relationship with Palmer who recommended him as his replacement.

“I’ve known Doyle since I was 14 years-old. He took me under his wing — taught me how to hunt and fish and schooled me on a lot of life lessons — been kind of a father figure to me. When he was getting ready to retire he thought I might make a good candidate for the position. He asked me if I was interested and after I mulled it over a bit, I told him I was so he recommended me to the board. I put in my application, went through the interview process and as they say, “the rest is history.’”

Although Palmer is stepping away from his duties as the Port’s executive director, Faix said he’ll still be available to offer him advice if need be.

“Doyle will be around for a little while to help smooth the transition. We’ve been buddies for a long time. He was the best man at my wedding ­— I’ve known him for almost 30 years and trust him whole-heartedly. I know he’ll steer me in the right direction. He’s been a great asset for the Port — I’ll certainly have big shoes to fill.”

Faix was born in New York. His family moved to Illinois when he was 2 years old, and then relocated to Othello seven years later. He’s a 1990 graduate of Othello High School and has two sons. One is a seventh grader at McFarland Middle School. The other graduated from OHS in 2016.

Faix attended his first Port meeting on Tuesday and got an overview of a couple of projects that are high on its priority list.

“There is a really big push to get the Bruce Waste Water facility moving forward — need to see it finished all the way through. Things are happening at the airport too with resurfacing of both runways. So those are a couple of things I need to get a handle on right away, but I pride myself as a quick learner. With Doyle’s help along with the three commissioners — all really great guys that want to do great things for Othello — I’m hopeful to be right in the middle of it and help make them happen.”