Meet Travis Stolley
Candidate for Boundary County Sheriff
Sheriff Dave Kramer is retiring after a long and distinguished career of service to Boundary County. This will leave vacant the most important elected position in local government. I am running for Boundary County Sheriff and the primary election will be May 21, 2024. Sheriff Kramer’s support in my decision to run for office has been appreciated.
I was raised in Boundary County and graduated from BFHS in 2005. My love for this community has been formed over a lifetime. After dating through High School, I married my wife Jessica Stolley, who is also a local graduate of BFHS, in 2006.
I enlisted in the Marine Corps October 2005 and served on active duty until August 2014. I credit the Marine Corps for molding me into the leader I am today. I have experienced the difference and understand the impact good or bad leadership has on the Sheriff’s Office. I have learned from first hand experience what it means to truly lead. both from my successes and often even more from my failures. I hope to use these experiences to lead our Sheriffs Office into the future.
While serving in the Marine Corps, I was deployed to Iraq twice, Afghanistan once and with a Marine Expeditionary Unit aboard the USS Iwo Jima. I reached the rank of Staff Sergeant (E6).
A Marine is molded into a leader by being accountable to oneself as well as to the Marine in front and behind you. We are taught part of being a good leader, is being a good follower. From day one we focus on pushing ourselves to learn the role of the person ahead of you in the chain of command while also teaching the Marine below how do your job. From boot camp up until I ended my service in the Marines as a Staff Sergeant, we were always following, leading and teaching. I will take this same mindset into the Boundary County Sheriff’s Office and I believe it will allow us to conduct our duties in a professional and efficient manner.
While serving in the Marine Corps I started out as a helicopter power train and rotor mechanic, becoming qualified to ensure aircraft were safe for flight before eventually becoming aircrew myself. After three years, I was promoted to the rank of Sergeant and became an Aerial Observer (AO). As an AO, I was qualified as a door gunner on the UH-1N “Huey.” Over my eight years and nine months on active duty, I held various qualifications, billets, and duties all with significant responsibility. These responsibilities were valuable in molding me into the leader I am today. I assisted in managing aircraft maintenance and over fifty Marines responsible for that mission. I lead and mentored Marines both professionally and through personal life circumstances. I ensured they had the training required to conduct themselves in a professional manner focused on mission accomplishment. I learned through hard work and communication we could accomplish any mission at hand despite the many challenging and high stress work environments. I believe a big picture approach is critical to running the Sheriff’s Office as it allows us accomplish the tasks required now and work towards the better future.
My wife and I successfully navigated military life and its many many challenges. We were stationed at Marine Corps Air Station New River, in Jacksonville North Carolina. After having two children, one being born while I was deployed on the USS IWO Jima with a Marine Expeditionary Unit and the other being born a short time before deploying to Afghanistan, Jessica and I decided to end my career in the military and move home to Bonners Ferry in 2014. There truly is no place like home and we wanted to raise our children close to family in Boundary County. Both of our children attend our amazing public schools here in Boundary County. My son Alex is a freshman at BFHS and my daughter Kaylee is in 7th grade at BCMS.
I began my career in Law Enforcement in the fall of 2014 when I was hired by the Bonners Ferry Police Department (BFPD). While at the BFPD I held the rank of Corporal and additionally served as a Patrol Officer and as the School Resource Officer. While working full time, I was able to use my GI bill and obtained a Bachelor of Science Degree through American Public University System, graduating with honors.
Additionally, I served at the Boundary County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO). While at the BCSO I reached the rank of Detective and held several different billets such as Patrol Officer, Field Training Officer, Police Officer Standards and Training instructor and Reserve Program Coordinator. I am currently a active member of the BCSO’s Dive Team and a Level One Reserve Deputy. I have maintained my law enforcement certifications, and I am certified as a Peace Officer in the State of Idaho. I hold both Intermediate and Advanced POST Certificates.
I am active in our community having served as a volunteer hunter education instructor for several years. I also volunteered as a youth wrestling coach for several years. I have been both the assistant and head wrestling coach at the Boundary County Middle School as well as the Bonners Ferry High School. I am currently the head wrestling coach for the Bonners Ferry High School, Go Badgers!
I believe it is imperative to elect a Sheriff who is dedicated to serving Boundary County and its people. Someone who has a lifetime of service and has been involved with our community over many years. We need a Sheriff who understands the reality of working in a rural agency with limited budgets and large patrol areas. I have proven that I can work well with other agencies and departments. I believe in a firm but fair philosophy where others are treated with respect but held to a high standard.
Boundary County needs a Sheriff who will stand up for what is right and who will be accountable to the people and who holds those in his charge accountable. Boundary County needs a Sheriff willing to be proactive in solving crime and keeping the public informed and safe. I swore an oath to uphold the constitution as a Marine and again as a Peace Officer in Idaho, nothing has changed.
I believe I can bring all of these things and more if given the opportunity. I will bring accountability, work ethic, transparency, and the ability to work together with other members of our community to the Sherriff’s Office. I know bringing this approach will serve the citizens of Boundary County and the community we know and love. I am proud to be born and raised here and feel like I have represented our community well. I am proud to have been able to serve both our Country and our County combined over the last eighteen plus years. If elected I will continue to serve, and I will always strive to make the correct decisions.
Thank you for your consideration,
Travis Stolley
Resume
Education
- 2005 Bonners Ferry High School
- 2006 USMC Basic Training
- 2006 Marine Combat Training
- 2007 Fundamentals of Marine Corps Leardship
- 2007 Aircraft Maintenance NCO
- 2008 Sergeants Distance Education Program
- 2008 Aviation Maintenance Work Center Supervisor Training
- 2008 Survival Swimming
- 2008 NCO Officer Basic Nonresident Program
- 2009 Staff NCO Career Distance Education Program
- 2013 Craven Community College FAA Airframe and Power Plant License
- 2014 North Idaho College Idaho Peace Officer Standards and Training
- 2014 D.A.R.E. Instructor Certification from Utah POST
- 2015 North Idaho College Law Enforcement Program
- 2016 School Resource Officer Certification
- 2017 ALERT Active Shooter
- 2017 Combat Medical Training
- 2019 P.O.S.T. General Topic Instructor
- 2019 Bachelor of Science Degree from American Public University System
- 2019 Breath Test Specialist
- 2019 School Safety & Security Training
- 2020 Basic Firearms
- 2020 Firearms – Rifle
- 2020 Advanced Firearms
- 2021 Drug Interdiction
- 2021 Breath Test Specialist
- 2021 Field Training Officer Certification
- 2022 Underwater Criminal Investigator Certification
- 2022 Drug Identification and Investigation
- 2022 Missing and Exploited Children
- 2022 Criminal Investigations
- 2022 Defensive Tactics
- 2022 Legal & Liability
- 2023 Use of Force Lecture
Community Experience
- Volunteer Hunter Safety Instructor
- Volunteer Bonners Ferry Wrestling Club Coach
- Middle School Wrestling Coach
- High School Wrestling Coach
- Volunteer Boundary County Dive Team
