The Sunlight Supply Amphitheater was briefly considered as the location for Cowlitz County sheriff’s Deputy Justin DeRosier’s funeral.
Amphitheater Operations Manager Minh-Kiet Callies said the Clark County Sheriff’s Office initially contacted the amphitheater about DeRosier’s funeral, which was held Wednesday afternoon at the University of Portland’s Chiles Center.
Representatives from Behind the Badge Foundation, which supports Washington law enforcement agencies, families and communities after an officer dies or suffers a serious injury in the line of duty, subsequently contacted the amphitheater and toured the venue.
“During this visit, there were expressed concerns about the lack of changing spaces for participants in the service and the lack of climate control and lighting inside the venue,” Callies wrote in an email to The Columbian. The amphitheater has thousands of covered seats, but is open to the air.
Shortly afterward, Behind the Badge Foundation told the amphitheater that a different venue had been selected, Callies wrote, adding that the amphitheater wasn’t given a reason.
The amphitheater had provided a $7,500 cost estimate to hold the funeral there, Callies said.
“There is an extensive shutdown and startup process that occurs at the end of every season and at the beginning of every season, in which we are currently in the middle of,” he wrote in his email.
“Much of the work is performed by outside service providers. The costs associated with the pricing given were hard pass-through costs, as the amphitheater writes checks to reimburse these outside service providers.”
Vicky Stormo, executive director of Redmond-based Behind the Badge Foundation, said the final decision on the venue was made by DeRosier’s family.
“The main thing to understand is we honor the family’s wishes,” Stormo said. “We will make anything work, regardless of the money or not. So that was not a factor.”
