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Don Gronning
NEWPORT - Pend Oreille County honored two of its long-time employees with certificates of appreciation Monday, June 2, in presentations in the commissioner’ room at the county courthouse.
Sergeant Questin Youk of the Sheriff’s Office has been on the job 25 years and Elections Manager Liz Krizenesky has worked 20 years in the Auditor’s Office.
Youk plans to retire in eight months. When he started in June 2000, he worked mainly in the north end of the county as a patrol deputy.
By 2003, he was an acting detective and promoted to a full-time detective a year later. His focus was on drug investigations. Pend Oreille County had more meth labs per capita than any county in the state in the early 2000s.
He was promoted to sergeant in 2006 and held that title ever since. He earned three life-saving awards during his time on the job. In 2020 and 2022 he saved drug overdose victims and in 2024 performed CPR and other life saving measures on a person who had been declared deceased.
His father was retired from the Seattle Police Department and Youk was considering joining that force after he got out of the service. His father discouraged him from joining the Seattle PD and he had family in Pend Oreille County, so he came here.
Youk said that he is confident the Sheriff’s Office has qualified people to take his place.
“I feel it’s a good time to leave,” he said.
Krizenesky started her career with the county in 2005 as an Elections and Licensing Deputy.
Since then, she has administered more than 50 elections and currently serves as the county’s Elections Manager.
“She has a ton of knowledge,” her boss Auditor Marianne Nichols said.
Krizenesky’s expertise in election administration is recognized statewide, Nichols said.
She has served on several boards, including the VoteWA Advisory Board, where she represents Pend Oreille County in at-large position.
Krizenesky doesn’t have a retirement date in mind, at least not yet.
She said she’s glad to work for the county.
“I’m thankful to have been here 20 years,” she said.
She’s seen quite a bit of change in elections during her time. She says technology is probably the biggest one.
She has worked with four different voting systems.
Election results and processes didn’t use to be as controversial as they have been in recent years, she said.
County commission chairman John Gentle said the hand count he witnessed last year was impressive.
In addition to her work, Krizenesky is passionate about animal welfare, serving as president of the Chesapeake BayRetriever Relief and Rescue, finding good home for dogs in need.
“Known for her lover of good food and her heart of gold, Liz brings warmth and dedication to every endeavor she undertakes,” Nichols wrote in a salute read by Gentle.
