WACD honors individuals
Several individuals and organizations were recognized for their outstanding work and leadership in conservation at the 2024 Wyoming Association of Conservation Districts (WACD) Annual Awards Luncheon held at the Virginian Hotel in Jackson Hole on Nov. 21.
Awards were presented by WACD President Todd Heward to individuals who earned district employee certification and water quality training certification, as well as Outstanding Annual Reports and Plans awards.
Heward also presented awards to the winners of the poster and photo contests and honored the Educator of the Year, Outstanding Cooperator and Technician, Outstanding Elected Official and Conservationist recipients.
The awards ceremony concluded by honoring this year’s WACD Outstanding Employee and Supervisor.
District employee certification
Employees who completed various training programs, which qualified them for district employee certification, were Tom Streeter and Caleb Carter of Weston County Natural Resource District, Brady Irvine of Platte County Resource Conservation District, Erin Hannelly of Dubois-Crowheart Conservation District, Diana Olson and Kelsey Beck of Popo Agie Conservation District and Janet Hofmann of Washakie County Conservation District.
District employee certification recipients from the Cody Conservation District included Carmen McIntyre, Olivia Bergeron, John Tanaka, Russ Dwyer and Bobbie Holder.
Also receiving certification were David Lee of Teton County Conservation District, Anna Gray of Converse County Conservation District, Amanda Ablard of Lower Wind River Conservation District and Martin Curry of the Laramie Rivers Conservation District.
Laramie County Conservation District employee certification recipients were Kathy Cooney and Ann Sanchez.
Concluding this year’s district employee certifications were members from the Medicine Bow Conservation District including Ralph Brokaw, Todd Heward, Quade Palm and Kristen Tilley.
Water quality certification
The WACD Water Quality Monitoring Training and Certification Program was established in 1998 with the goal of ensuring district personnel were well trained to collect high-quality data which meets the credible data statute.
Four employees completed the requirements for certification including Amanda Konowski and Janet Hofmann of Washakie County Conservation District and Sarah Anderson and Bridget Helms of Crook County Natural Resource District.
To maintain certification under the WACD Water Quality Training Program, employees conducting surface water sampling are required to attend a recertification training and pass a field audit every four years.
Dawn Arnell of Little Snake River Conservation District, Kari Sabey of Uinta County Conservation District, Lisa Ogden of Natrona County Conservation District and Jessie Halverson of Crook County Natural Resource District were all honored for maintaining their certifications by passing their four-year field audit.
Outstanding individuals honored
This year, the Converse County Conservation District was the recipient of the Outstanding Annual Report Award, with honorable mention going to the Laramie Rivers Conservation District.
The Converse County Conservation District was also awarded the Outstanding Annual Plan of Work, with honorable mention going to the South Big Horn Conservation District.
The Educator of the Year Award recognizes any educator of a public or private school system who takes extraordinary steps to ensure a balanced natural resource conservation education is delivered in the classroom, and this year’s award winner was Amanda Furnival of Clear Creek Conservation District.
The Outstanding Cooperator Award recognizes landowners and stewards who exemplify conservation of Wyoming’s working lands, and this year’s award winner was Mike and Tara Miller of Miller Land and Livestock in Big Piney.
The Millers have a deep passion for their livestock, the cowboy culture, their land and wildlife.
The Outstanding Technician Award is given to an individual who is active in the field of natural resource conservation and provides technical assistance on natural resource stewardship.
This year’s winner was U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Employee Curtis Johnson of Lovell.
He has worked hard to support local farmers and ranchers and assist with various state organizations.
He has completed water monitoring training to help the local district manager during the primary recreation season and has assisted with various water monitoring activities.
Poster and photo contest winners
Recipients of the 2024 Poster Contest were Drew Jester of the Converse County Conservation District winning the kindergarten through first grade category, Claire Page won the second through third grade category and Emmi Grimes Beckworth won the fourth through sixth grade category, both of the Washakie County Conservation District.
Abigail Ostrander won the seventh through ninth grade category and Ava Ostrander won the 10th through twelfth grade category, both of the Converse County Conservation District
Each poster contest winner received a certificate and a $100 prize, and each poster has been forwarded to the National Association of Conservation Districts to compete in the national poster contest where winners will be announced at the national convention in February 2025.
WACD also offered a photo contest as part of the annual awards program to showcase the photography talents of those in Wyoming’s conservation community.
In the Conservation Practices photo category, Janet Hofmann won with her “Armor to the Soil” photo, while Sally Gray’s photo “Lockhart” secured her a win in the Close-Up Conservation photo category.
In the Conservation in Action photo category, Holly Dyer won with a photo titled “Range Camp Leaders Always Look Down,” while Lisa Shaw won with her “Next Gen in Ag” photo in the Conservation in Ag Across America photo category.
Outstanding Elected Official and Conservationist awards
The Outstanding Elected Official Award recognizes elected officials who have made extraordinary efforts to assist in promoting and representing conservation districts and their programs.
This year, the Outstanding Elected Official Award went to House Speaker Albert Sommers (R-20) of Pinedale.
Sommers is a Wyoming native who has dedicated much of his life to public service and is a great example of civic involvement.
He has served his state in many capacities including by serving on the Wyoming Livestock Board and has been recognized multiple times for his dedication to conservation.
The Outstanding Conservationist Award recognizes individuals who demonstrate outstanding service to the field of natural resource conservation, and this year’s winner was USDA NRCS District Conservationist Kenny Wolfley of Casper.
Wolfley’s personal background in agriculture, combined with his years of service to the NRCS, has given him a depth of knowledge in working with landowners.
WACD employee awards
The 2024 WACD Outstanding Employee Award recognizes a conservation district employee who has gone above and beyond their position requirements, as well as their community and civic involvement.
This year’s award recipient was Shari Meeks from the Sublette County Conservation District.
Meeks has been part of the WACD family since 2015 and strives to make her district one of the best in the state.
The next award given was the Darrell Walker Outstanding Supervisor of the Year which recognizes one of the elected conservation district supervisors from across the state who have been exceptional in their service as a conservation district official as well as their other community service and civic involvement.
This award is named in honor of Sublette County Conservation District Supervisor Darrell Walker, Wyoming’s longest serving district supervisor.
This year, Arlen Lancaster of the Popo Agie Conservation District received the honorable award for his exceptional leadership and unwavering commitment to the WACD.
Melissa Anderson is the editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.
