Contact Information:

Office: 541-278-6203

john.shafer@umatillacounty.gov

Commissioner Shafer was born in Walla Walla Washington and raised in Athena Oregon. After his graduation from Weston-McEwen High School Commissioner Shafer spend two years at Eastern Oregon University before transferring to Boise State University where he met his wife Amy. Commissioner Shafer and his wife decided to return to Athena to raise their family. They were married in June of 1995 in their hometown of Athena.  They have two adult sons Michael and Matthew.

Armed with a degree in Criminal Justice, Commissioner Shafer rose to the rank of Sergeant while he worked for the Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office for over 18 years before being elected to the Board of Commissioners. Commissioner Shafer spent nine years as a 4-H Shooting Sports leader. He enjoyed spending his vacations for many years at the Umatilla County Fairgrounds watching his children show pigs and several other projects. He also served on the Board of Directors for the East Umatilla County Health District for 10 years, serving for 6 as the Chairman of the Board. Commissioner Shafer was on the Athena City Council for 10 years, six of those as the Mayor of Athena. In 2017 Commissioner Shafer was chosen as Athena’s First Citizen of the Year. As the First Citizen of the Year, he was also named Chieftain of the Day for the annual Caledonian Games held in Athena.

Commissioner Shafer was elected to the Board of Commissioners in November, 2018, and began his first term in 2019.  As commissioner, he was appointed in 2020 by the Association of Oregon Counties (AOC) to the Board of Trustees for City-County Insurance Services (CIS), the provider of insurance services and products to Oregon Cities and Counties. He has also served on numerous committees for AOC and for the National Association of Counties (NACo)