Originally published September 30, 2008 at 12:00 AM | Page modified September 30, 2008 at 6:31 PM
Comments (0)
E-mail article
Print view
Boat crash victim was beloved Bellevue music teacher
A woman who was killed when the sailboat she was on was struck by a motorboat on Lake Washington Saturday was a beloved music teacher who was known for her energy, enthusiasm and interest in students.
Seattle Times staff reporter

KING5
Heather DeHart, a middle school violin teacher from Bothell, was killed when the sailboat she was on was struck by a motorboat on Lake Washington.
A woman who was killed when the sailboat she was on was struck by a motorboat on Lake Washington Saturday was a beloved music teacher who was known for her energy, enthusiasm and interest in students.
Heather DeHart, 38, of Bothell, was a violist who taught five full classes of string students at Tyee Middle School in the Bellevue School District, organized musicals and talent shows, and taught fiddle to a bunch of students before classes began in the morning, according to Tyee principal Judy Buckmaster.
That early-bird group, which called itself "Fiddle Thunder," frequently performed at Seattle's Folklife Festival, Buckmaster said.
News of DeHart's death hit students and faculty hard, she said.
"She had a big personality and was very positive, kid-focused and larger than life," Buckmaster said Monday. "Everybody is grieving."
DeHart, who had taught in the Federal Way School District before taking the job at Tyee five years ago, was working toward her master's degree at Central Washington University, Buckmaster said.
DeHart was killed around 8:45 p.m. Saturday when a motorboat, driven by a 17-year-old boy, rammed into the sailboat she was on with two companions.
Police said witnesses told them the motorboat was traveling at a high rate of speed before it struck the stationary sailboat west of Mercer Island, off the 4500 block of Lake Washington Boulevard South near Seattle's Seward Park.
Police said witnesses on shore said the motorboat hit the sailboat, went up over the back of it and struck DeHart, throwing her into the water.
Police did not release further details about the ongoing investigation on Monday, including the name of the 17-year-old driver, the make and model of the boats or whether the anchored sailboat had its lights on.
The 17-year-old was questioned by police and released.
His passenger, a 16-year-old girl, was taken to Harborview Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries, as was a 45-year-old man who had been onboard the sailboat.
Another man on the sailboat was not injured, police said.
Christine Clarridge: 206-464-8983 or cclarridge@seattletimes.com
Copyright © 2008 The Seattle Times Company
E-mail article
Print view Share:
Digg
Newsvine
![]()
NEW - 12:17 AM
Big demand, grim outlook for state Basic Health Plan
UPDATE - 11:31 PM
Flood fears dampen business, home sales
Nicole Brodeur: Homeless woman bent on giving
Portland cafe's specialty: medical-marijuana tokes
Thousands of tax-refund checks undeliverable

PNW Magazine | Easy As Pie
A little friendly competition between professional pie-baker Kate McDermott and The Seatttle Times' Kathleen Triesch Saul is handled with great taste.
general classifieds
Garage & estate salesFurniture & home furnishings
Sporting goods
just listed
Fabulous 139 pieces Fukagawa Arita #917 China - $475
Moyea SWF to iPod converter - $39
NO CONTRACT, NO DEPOSIT,NO CREDIT CHECK CELL PHONE - $59
More listings
POST A FREE LISTING
shopping
events for Tuesday, Nov. 24
- Black Friday Sale at Michael Cepress Studio a...
- Lizzie's Faves Sale at Lizzie Parker Designs
- Capers November Sale
- Cicada Bridal Party Dress Sale
editors' picks
- Phinney Ridge & Greenwood shopping
- Vintage, consignment and used clothing
- Independent bookstores
- Neighborhood shopping
- Illegal workers quietly let go
- Sprouts, raw fish on attorney's 'do not eat' list
- Jerry Brewer | Jerry Brewer: Seahawks can't lean on the Hutch Crutch now
- Woman stabbed by stranger in North Seattle
- Tattoos at Mill Creek church pierce skin, soul
- UW, WSU once again meet to see who's worse
- Food-safety lawyer's wish: Put me out of business
- Husky Football Blog | Ranking the Pac
- Vikings easily beat the Seahawks
- Tugboat sinks at Seattle waterfront pier
- Illegal workers quietly let go
406 - Climate change speeds up since 1997 Kyoto accord
215 - Metro won't cut bus service after all
160 - New Husky recruit: Enes Kanter
106 - Bellevue residents blast new bikini espresso stand
95 - Middleton says Huskies "plan on scoring at least 50 points'' Saturday
86 - Tattoos at Mill Creek Church pierce skin, soul
85 - Seattle woman charged with knife attack on boyfriend's ex
76 - Jerry Brewer: Seahawks can't lean on the Hutch Crutch now
75 - Senate Democrats split on health bill's fate
58
- Sprouts, raw fish on attorney's 'do not eat' list
- Tattoos at Mill Creek church pierce skin, soul
- Food-safety lawyer's wish: Put me out of business
- Illegal workers quietly let go
- Architects, chefs find 'kid' within to build Gingerbread Village
- Rediscovering Moab, 'the most beautiful place on Earth'
- Hutch gets $10M from Bezos family for immunotherapy research
- UW, WSU once again meet to see who's worse
- Children in home day care watching hours of TV, study says
- Taste | The Great Pie Bake-off pits friends and fruit



