Alex Binkerd, a former Redmond High student-athlete, passed away early Wednesday morning at his home near Western Washington University.
According to Lt. Bob Vander Yacht, spokesman for the Bellingham Police Department, drug use may be the cause of death of the 20-year-old junior honor student and track athlete. Police are awaiting toxicology results and the Whatcom County Medical examiner will determine the cause of death.
“Our campus community offers its deepest condolences to Alex’s family and friends,” said Eileen Coughlin, senior vice president and vice president for Enrollment and Student Services at Western, in a Western Today press release. Western is providing counseling and support to Binkerd’s friends and family.
Redmond High track and field coach Denis Villeneuve said, “Alex was a wonderful, joyful, intelligent, kind, earnest young man. He was the heart of our track and field team for three years. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and to the greater Mustang family who knew and loved Alex.”
Vander Yacht said that medics responded to a call at 1:15 a.m. Wednesday from someone at the house that Binkerd shared with several roommates. When medics couldn’t resuscitate Binkerd, they notified police, who arrived on the scene and began their investigation.
Detectives are interviewing people and trying to piece together a timeline for Tuesday evening.
“This is just really sad and we can certainly feel for the parents,” said Vander Yacht, a parent himself.
A memorial service for Binkerd will be held at 11 a.m. Oct. 3 at the Timberlake Christian Church, located at 4505 236th Ave. N.E. in Redmond.
Binkerd, a computer-science major with a 3.96 grade-point average, was a sprinter on the Western men’s track and field team, which won the team title at the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) outdoor championships last spring. He was on the victorious 4×100-meter relay while placing fifth in the 100-meter run and fourth as a member of the 4×400-meter relay.
In indoor track, he placed fourth in both the 200-meter run and 4×400 relay and sixth in the 60-meter run at the 2015 GNAC championships.
