Deputy, 2 other shooting victims remembered fondly

Skagit County Sheriff's Deputy

Anne Jackson

Anne Jackson never hesitated to help injured animals or people.

Not long after graduating from high school in California, Jackson and four friends moved to Bellingham, drawn to the area because it reminded them of Santa Barbara — only affordable, said her friend Monique Stefens.

The California transplants considered one another family and were bridesmaids in one another's weddings, said Stefens, who also shared a love of horses with the 40-year-old Jackson.

In 1994, Jackson translated that love into a job as a wrangler for the Black Mountain Ranch, a private recreational development northeast of Bellingham where she taught countless children to ride.

As news of her murder spread to Canada, home to many of the ranch's clients, calls poured in Wednesday from devastated and grieving people.

"She was always taking care of any stray animal we had here. Tons of kids would bring in injured birds to the office. ... It was always 'Call Anne, she'll know somebody out in the community,' " said Cherri Beard, account manager at the ranch.

Jackson bought a ranch of her own in the town of Deming, Whatcom County, and competed in horse shows on her Appaloosa mare.

In 2002 she left Black Mountain for a dream job: to develop the animal-control unit for the Skagit County Sheriff.

Will Reichardt, Skagit County's chief criminal deputy, hired Jackson as a deputy in 2005 and said she likely would have become a detective. Beard said Jackson loved her job.

"Anne was a compassionate person who loved animals. Even after she left the animal-control job, she still watched over the shelter and would do drive-bys," said Sandy Nelson, director of the Skagit County Humane Society. "We will greatly miss her."

Now Stefens and Jackson's other old friends from California are taking care of her horses. Stefens is one of the few people who knew that Jackson's late brother had mental problems, as did Isaac Zamora, the suspect in Jackson's murder.

It was one thing Jackson shared with Zamora's mother, Dennise Zamora, telling her to call her anytime she needed help.

"Anne is one of the sweetest brightest, kindest spirits that walked this Earth, and being a sheriff deputy was a passion," said her aunt, Nancy Kimball of Santa Barbara. "It was in her heart to help people."

LeRoy Lange of Okanogan County

A former Boeing missile detailer, steel worker and ferryboat deckhand and captain, LeRoy Lange was, above all else, a family man.

Lange, 64, who lived on a small ranch in the town of Methow, had come to this side of the mountains this week to care for his mother and visit his son.

He was driving on Interstate 5, going from his son's home in Bellingham to his mother's in Mount Vernon, when he was shot and killed. It was so random, said his son, Nicholas Lange, 33. "He's going to be greatly missed."

LeRoy Lange and his wife, Carla, had been married some 40 years. The family loved boat trips and camping in the San Juan Islands.

Growing up, Nicholas, an only child, recalled how his father built — but never flew — remote-controlled model airplanes. "He spent so much time putting them together, he didn't want to see them crash." This year, father and son were working on a large-scale remote-control airplane that was to be 8 feet by 8 feet. On Tuesday, his father brought over the engine he had built for it.

"Boy, he loved me," Nicholas said. "And I loved him too."

His father was jovial and liked to leave joking messages on answering machines such as: "This is Santa Claus. You guys have been bad."

His father would "do anything for anybody," Nicholas said. Three or four times a year, he would visit.

"He just came over at the wrong time, I guess," Nicholas said. "Maybe the Lord just wanted him."

Julie Binschus of Sedro-Woolley

All who worked at the Sedro-Woolley Food Pavilion knew Julie Binschus, a 30-year employee with an easy smile who liked to hunt and crochet and avoided speaking ill of others.

"She was an outstanding individual," said store manager Bob Carter. "She was a dedicated team member, a very forgiving person."

Binschus, 48, put up signs at the store noting which items were on sale and sometimes worked as a cashier. Carter said he last saw her after she finished her shift at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, filling in for another employee who had a family illness. On Wednesday morning, word trickled out to colleagues that she was among those killed in Tuesday's rampage.

"We all are devastated," said Lynn Willison, who worked with Binschus for 16 years. "It's terrible. It makes me so angry."

A memorial with cards, flowers and photos of the Binschus family was set up on a table inside the store, along with a register and sheets of paper on which colleagues and friends could write their thoughts and condolences. Some dropped money into a collection jar to help the family.

"I just want to say thank you," said a woman who identified herself as Julie's younger sister, as she shook hands with visitors at the table.

"We will never forget you, Julie Ann Binschus. Angels are crying in heaven," read an inscription at the memorial.

Seattle Times staffers Nancy Bartley, Jennifer Sullivan, Sara Jean Green, Janet I. Tu, Peyton Whitely, Sanjay Bhatt, Michael Berens and Miyoko Wolf contributed to these reports.