Preston Frederickson ’02: Whitman and Walla Walla

Name:  Preston Frederickson
Class Year: 2002
Current Job: Deputy City Manager, City of Walla Walla

Last week Preston and I spoke in his office at City Hall, with a gorgeous late winter Walla Walla sunset in the background.

How are you involved in the Walla Walla Valley and in the community?

I have family roots here. My dad grew up in Walla Walla and I lived here during fifth, sixth and seventh grades and fell in love with the place during those years.

I remember one time, probably around 1990 when I was in fifth or sixth grade. I was in a car with my sister and her boyfriend and a group of other people. They got pulled over by a police officer right in front of the old Sherwood Center. The officer said there weren’t enough seat belts for everyone in the car, and so my sister and I got out and sat down, and I was looking around and checking out the gym, and I thought “Hmmm … this is really nice. Maybe I’ll go to school here one day.”

I did wind up going to Whitman and then went to Gonzaga law school and returned to Walla Walla after I graduated in 2006, when my wife and I had two young children.  

I like to say that I moved back before Walla Walla was cool. Only a few people from my time at Whitman stayed or returned. Now it seems like that is more common.

Since returning, I’ve worked the entire time for the City of Walla Walla in a variety of roles including Assistant City Attorney, Director of Development Services and now as Deputy City Manager. 

I’ve also been involved in volunteer roles, like the Whitman Alumni Board, and had ecclesiastical involvement via The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I’ve been involved in various boards, like the YMCA currently, and I was on the board for Habitat for Humanity in years past.

What is something you’ve learned about this area that surprised you or that you weren’t expecting?

I’ve been here for so long—I knew what I was getting myself into when I decided to come back. So, I don’t know if I’ve been surprised. I’ve definitely learned that there’s strong activism in the community—people feel things intensely here, and bring these feelings to local campaigns and discussions, which is good.  
 

What is something you learned when you were young that is still with you?

How great a place it is! I enjoy Walla Walla for all the same reasons everyone else likes it. 

I have this theory that we’ve been successful because I-84 didn’t go through. I think it has to do with how enjoyable we are—what did the highway do to any of those communities that was good for them? So, I think not being an interstate town was good for creating the special community here.

How do skills you learned at Whitman help you today?

Whitman and the Walla Walla community provided an avenue for me to have learning experiences that have carried through my entire life. My own path included six years at Whitman which included leaves of absence for missionary service and also to find ways to fund this education that led me to graduation and to where I am today.

What is a way that Walla Walla is diverse?

In so many ways. From an economics point of view—where else can you find a community that is an island but where there’s higher educational institutions both public and private, government entities of local, state and federal levels, health care, school systems, manufacturing, agriculture, tourism, retail. We’re definitely not a one company town!

What should Whitman students know about our community that you haven’t mentioned yet?

Get out and get to know people in Walla Walla. Get out and volunteer at local organizations; and they don’t have to be the ones that Whitman hosts. Figure out how to get somewhere beyond where you can walk from campus. You can definitely go beyond the “traditional Whitman experience.” And when you do, focus on the people you meet—it’s the people here who make our community special. It’s amazing getting out and immersing yourself. 

What is your favorite thing about springtime in Walla Walla?

Winter wheat is amazing. The green arrives in December, blanketing our valley with that incredible color—there’s nothing like it. Also, I remember years ago a stretch of road between Walla Walla and Milton-Freewater where there used to be an onion field—you would go by in the spring and get that unique smell of the onions coming out of the ground. Now that field’s been turned into corn and you have to drive around a little to find the springtime onions—but it’s worth it!

Beyond the interview:

Preston Frederickson will be available for questions and further conversation this Wednesday, Feb. 12 at noon in Reid Campus Center, room 207. The Career and Community Engagement Center will provide lunch for the first 10 students in attendance. Questions or ideas or accommodation requests? Please contact Noah Leavitt at leavitns@whitman.edu.