CSBJ Daily

The El Paso County Board of Health will meet July 16 to consider who will take over for former department director Rosemary Bakes-Martin who died earlier this week after battling cancer.

Deputy director Kandi Buckland has been filling the role during her illness and since her death.

Bakes-Martin was hired as deputy director of the El Paso County Department of Health and Environment in 2000 and was unanimously appointed as public health administrator for El Paso County in 2002 by the El Paso County Board of Health.

“Rosemary has left an indelible mark on the Health Department and the field of public health that we will strive to uphold in her absence,” said board President John Suits. “Her innumerable contributions and achievements over the years are only outweighed by her tremendous heart and concern for the well being of our citizens. She will be greatly missed.”