Member Agencies today
Mill Creek PD, Lake Forest Park PD, Medina PD, Issaquah PD, Mercer Island PD, and Lake Stevens PD, with additional agencies added by Board approval. Member Agencies are partners, not voting members of the corporation.
About the Mercer Island Chapter
A local chapter with a clear purpose.
Direct support for the personnel of the Mercer Island Police Department, inside a regional 501(c)(3) that already serves North Sound communities.
The arrangement
Why a chapter, not a brand-new nonprofit?
The North Sound Police Foundation is a Washington nonprofit corporation (formerly the Mill Creek Police Foundation) organized under IRC §501(c)(3). Its bylaws expressly allow community chapters and Member Agencies. Mercer Island Police Department is named as a Member Agency.
The Mercer Island Chapter uses that existing tax-exempt structure so Islanders can give immediately, with receipts, oversight, and designated-fund accounting, without waiting years to stand up a separate charity.
Gifts directed to Mercer Island are intended to directly benefit MIPD personnel through equipment, training, wellness, and community programs, never salaries or overtime. The chapter’s citizen delegate and MIPD delegate bring Mercer Island requests to the Foundation’s Board of Directors, which approves each expenditure.
of the City of Mercer Island.
Parent foundation
North Sound Police Foundation
The Foundation supports police departments across the North Sound through funding, volunteer service, community outreach, and public-safety education.
What the bylaws require of agencies
An active partnership; participation in Foundation programs; and an annual report to the Board on how allocated funds were used. The Board may remove an agency that misuses funds or fails its agreement.
Designated gifts
Gifts made through the Mercer Island donation form are designated for Mercer Island. Gifts to the Foundation without a designation are for general use across member agencies. Under Foundation bylaws, 10% of each designated gift supports the Foundation’s general operations and administration. The Board may still approve Mercer Island requests from that share.
Who governs
A citizen Board of Directors manages the Foundation. Police chiefs of Member Agencies may attend as observers and liaisons; they do not sit on the Board. No more than one employee of a Member Agency may serve on the Board at a time.
Chapter leadership
Current Mercer Island delegates
Salim Nice
Citizen delegate · Former Mayor of Mercer Island
Salim lives on Mercer Island with his family. He served more than eight years on the City Council, joining in 2017, including as Deputy Mayor (2018–2019) and two terms as Mayor (2022–2025). He did not seek re-election in 2025.
He is President and CEO of Reimbursement Recovery Partners, with more than 25 years in government reimbursement for U.S. hospitals. He previously led Healthcare Reimbursement Solutions and co-founded Healthcare Payment Specialists, serving as SVP, COO and CTO as the company grew from three employees to more than 85 before its 2018 sale to TransUnion.
As Mayor he focused on the City’s financial footing, with consistent surpluses and stronger reserves, along with public safety, parks and open space, and adoption of a 20-year Comprehensive Plan. LinkedIn · @salimnice on X
Cpl. Bobby Jira
MIPD delegate · Crime Prevention & Community Outreach
Cpl. Bobby Jira is the chapter’s MIPD delegate. He joined the Mercer Island Police Department in 2006 and has served as a patrol officer, lead detective, field training officer, marine officer, bike officer, and member of the Special Operations Team (SOT). Today he is the department’s crime-prevention coordinator and community outreach liaison.
Islanders know him from classroom visits, Summer Celebration, National Night Out, crime-prevention forums, and years of practical safety advice in the local paper.
For the chapter, he is the link to what MIPD’s officers and staff actually need. His focus is using the Foundation’s grant process to strengthen the department’s service to the Island.
Mission alignment
We borrow the Foundation’s values and apply them locally.
Integrity
Honest stewardship of gifts, with expenditures approved by the Board and reported back through the Member Agency process.
Transparency
Clear designation of Mercer Island funds, public explanation of what was purchased or supported, and no political activity.
Officer well-being
Healthy, supported people are a public-safety asset. Wellness and recognition are not extras; they are part of the mission.
Community partnership
The Island already shows up for its officers. The chapter gives that instinct a durable, tax-exempt home.
Stewardship
Ask first whether a need is truly non-budgeted, high-impact, and consistent with 501(c)(3) purposes.
No politics
The Foundation does not participate in political campaigns or devote a substantial part of its activity to lobbying, by bylaw and by IRS rule.