Retrospective on my job change one year later
More than a year ago I made a very difficult decision to leave my employer of 13 years. I left behind security, stability — and family — in favor of a more dynamic environment closer to people served by the conservation district system.
Now I’m working three hours away from family, only seeing them on weekends. Even though it still strikes some people as an odd choice to make, this job change was the right decision. Here’s why. Read More…
A bittersweet visit with friends old and new
Group exercise
This past week, I spent several days working on issues and opportunities with hundreds of other conservationists. We gather annually to collaborate and seek consensus. Sixteen years I’ve been doing this, and these past few years, I’ve been finding this meeting is becoming increasingly poignant and bittersweet.
Norm will always stand tall in my memory
Ring ring, sounded the telphone. “Hello Tom, this is Norm McClure.”
An hour later — possibly two — and I would likely have several pages of notes in hand after another in-depth conversation with Norm about conservation and range management.
This phone call came every two to four weeks throughout the year I served as president of the Washington Association of District Employees. During that time, I learned a lot from, and about, Norman Robert McClure.
Norm leaves a legacy of good conservation practices on his land, and also a legacy of stewardship and caring among the many lives he touched while he was with us.
