Long Time IDL Employee Passes Away
Our colleague and friend Howard Wright passed away in his sleep on Monday night. Howard was a Forest Resource Specialist Sr. in the IDL Payette Lakes Area office in McCall.
Director Miller interacted with Howard a number of times on visits to the McCall office and even got to spend a little time in the woods with him. Howard was passionate about forestry, forest management and the endowment mission. Howard had a difficult job of managing endowment timberlands around a diverse and rapidly changing community, but he did so with transparency, integrity and our mission squarely in mind.
Howard’s loss leaves a huge hole in IDL and he will be profoundly missed. These are difficult things to process and understand, but we need to come together to support each other through difficult times like these. This also serves as a reminder to hold your loved ones a bit closer tonight.
Howard’s memorial service was, Oct. 28 at the LDS Chapel on Elo Road in McCall.
Cyber Security Training - Is Your's Completed?
A quick reminder, Idaho’s 2023 October Awareness Cybersecurity Training campaign is about to wrap up.
Employees must complete the "2023 Danger Zone(Social Engineering)" training by Monday, November 13, 2023. It will take about 5 minutes to complete. If you have trouble finding or getting into the training email cybertraining@dhr.idaho.gov for assistance.
Director Miller Testifies Before Federalism Committee
On Wednesday, October 25, Director Miller presented information about Good Neighbor Authority (GNA) to the Idaho Legislature's interim Committee on Federalism. The committee is chaired by Sen. Van Burtenshaw and Rep. Judy Boyle, who presided over the hearing.
Miller's presentation, titled Good Neighbor Authority 101, provided a detailed overview of IDL's GNA Program and the ongoing and strong support is has received from the Idaho Legislature. He also discussed the how IDL has met the three goals for the program established by the GNA Working Group, and delved into how GNA can help future proof the supply of fiber Idaho's mills depend on.
WATCH THE COMMITTEE ON FEDERALISM HEARING
Because an IDL Team Member Asked for It...
Since it is the week of Halloween...
Director Miller's Favorite Dad Joke This Week:
Q: Why did the pumpkin lose the boxing match?
A: He let his gourd down.
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GNA Improves Forest Health, Mitigates Wildfire Risks, and Improves Ski Runs!
As winter quickly approaches, staff from IDL and Bogus Basin, a non-profit mountain recreation area near Boise, have been busy brush-cutting for the upcoming ski season. IDL's GNA Program continues to clear additional areas of thick undergrowth around Shafer Butte and Mores Mountain which helps mitigate wildfire risk and improve ski runs!
Capital for a Day- Montpelier
On Monday, Oct. 25, IDL's Michele Andersen, Division Administrator - Operations, joined Governor Little for his Capital for a Day event in Montpelier.
Montpelier is located in Bear Lake County.
IDL manages 14,827 surface acres and 16,349 subsurface mineral acres in the county. In FY23 the endowment trust distributed $283,933 to the local school district. Bear Lake County includes 24 IDL grazing leases that generate a total $72,420.00 for the endowment beneficiaries.
Questions for IDL centered around Bear Lake and vehicle travel on the exposed lake bed. Since the Land Board signed the order and the MOU with the county in July, the county has not returned a signed the MOU. The county has in fact changed their position on the order (due to lack of public support) and is working with Senator Harris to sponsor legislation to address their concerns regarding management of vehicular travel on the lakebed and funding for enforcement.
Montpelier, which was first settled in 1864, wasn’t always known by this name. First, it was called Clover Creek by Oregon Trail travelers and later it became Belmont, before being given its final name by Brigham Young. In 1896, the infamous Butch Cassidy and his Wild Bunch associates robbed a bank in Montpelier while allegedly trying to get enough money to bail out another gang member.
Wool Growers
On Friday, Nov. 3, Scott Phillips represented IDL at the 2023 West Central States Wool Growers Convention hosted by the Idaho Wool Growers Association in Boise. During the Idaho breakout session he discussed recreation on endowment land, provided a recap of the 2023 fire season and IDL's fire modernization initiative.
Doubling Down on Dad Jokes
Just when you thought the jokes couldn't get worse...
Q: What’s a fire’s least favorite month?
A: No-ember.
Natural Resources Interim Committee Meetings
On Monday, Nov. 6, Director Miller will appear before the Idaho Legislature's Natural Resources Interim Committee which is chaired by Sen. Van Burtenshaw and Rep. Britt Raybould. He'll discuss IDL's Good Neighbor Authority Program, the recently signed Idaho Master Fire Agreement, and the agency's work to modernize its Fire Program.
Winter is Coming. Are you Ready?
In the latest edition of the IDL Safety News, Safety Officer Vikki Snider offers practical advice for wintertime safety. In the article you'll learn about the risks of inadequate staff coverage at offices, traversing icy sidewalks and parking lots, and safely driving on snow and ice.
Halloween Fun
A chili cook-off and costume contest has become a Halloween tradition at the Boise staff office.
Five chili chefs entered the competition this year with Matt Perkins (Program Manager, Urban Interface/Planning) cooking up the winning chili.
The Grand Prize Winner of the costume contest (and elusive to the camera) was Michael Myers aka Chris Haines. Runner up was Little Bo Peep - Not a Wolf aka Addie Faust.
Employees Leaving IDL
We wish departing team members the very best in their new endeavors.
- Mark McMinn, Boise Staff Office
In Case You Missed It
Here's a recap of other recent IDL newsletters you may find interesting:
One Team One Voice Newsletter Archive
Did you miss some important news? Are you curious about knowing what's happening across IDL? Our One Team, One Voice webpage contains an archive of IDL's newsletters covering:
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