IDL Employee Recognition Before Land Board
Director Miller gave special recognition to IDL's outstanding employees to the Land Board during the May 21 Land Board meeting. The criteria for consideration for the award recipients includes service and job performance exceeding normal expectations. Their performance must also align with IDL values of stewardship, service, accountability, cohesiveness and quality contributions. An overall employee of the year was also announced.
The director noted that the executive team faced difficulty in making these decisions as there were many deserving candidates. He also expressed appreciation for all IDL employees.
 |
|
Laurie Stone
|
 |
|
Robert Funk
|
 |
|
Marte is the recipient of the Accountability Award. He is the Returns & Refurbish Leader/Storekeeper for the IDL Coeur d'Alene Fire Cache. He demonstrates unwavering dedication, professionalism and passion for customer service. His leadership extends beyond daily responsibilities, offering guidance and support to teammates. Marte leads by example in patient communication and accountability.
|
 |
|
Alice is the recipient of the Quality Contributions Award. She is the Administrative Assistant for the Pend Oreille Supervisory Office and Kootenai Valley. She demonstrates a willingness to take on any task with positivity and adaptability and sees challenges as opportunities for solutions. Alice has a positive impact on the entire department and acknowledges the hard work of others, promoting a one-team ethos.
|
 |
|
Tyre Holfeltz
Tyre is the recipient of the Cohesiveness Award. He is the Program Manager for Fire Prevention and Risk Mitigation in the Coeur d’Alene staff office. He demonstrates a passion for the program and for protecting Idaho's natural resources. His devotion is evident in his decision-making and actions. Tyre proactively seeks ways to maximize resources and secure funding and he promotes collaboration with new partners and opportunities.
|
 |
|
Ed Wingert
Ed is IDL's Employee of the Year. He is the Good Neighbor Authority (GNA) Program Manager out of the Coeur d'Alene staff office. His leadership has increased the pace and scale of forest restoration on federal lands in Idaho. He achieved outstanding results in 2023, nearly doubling previous year's output. Ed is a positive reflection on the department and his positivity is recognized by customers, partners and staff. He demonstrates service, passion, dedication and the embodiment of organizational values.
|
Congratulations to all the recipients, you make us all very proud.
 photo by Robbie Johnson
Women in the Woods Field Day
The second annual Women in the Woods Field Day was held on Friday, May 10 in Sandpoint. It was a great success with 52 attendees and 16 instructors.
Participants worked in small groups making it easy to ask questions and gain confidence in managing family forests.
This year a number of new topics and tracks were offered including forest management and forest ecology. The plan is to offer new topics each year.
Attendees rotated through different exercises covering forest assessment and forestry work on the ground.
Participants provided very positive feedback and would like this to continue in future years. Some have requested that the field day be a 2-day event instead of just 1. There is a long list of topics attendees would love to see in the future.
Some of the overwhelming successes noted by those who filled out the evaluation include the new ability to better identify Idaho's commercial tree species, better able to identify forest insects and disease, better able to identify weeds and understory vegetation in their forest stand, better understanding prescribed burning on their property and the ability to thin and prune trees on their property.
Photos are by Maddie Goebel with University of Idaho
  
Spring Leadership Meeting
IDL staff in leadership positions came together this week in Sandpoint with a field day in the Priest Lake area for the annual spring meeting.
Area managers, bureau chiefs and others were updated on GIS and IT news, the FAMP and forest management bureau news, Legislative, budget and CEC, and the IDL Strategic FY23 - FY26 Plan and more.
The field day provided an opportunity to compare modeled growth versus actual growth in a plantation. There was further discussion on recreation management and leasing.
IDL Co-ed Softball Team
IDL softball team in Coeur d' Alene had its first game. They played Conner Guinn Real Estate on Wednesday, May 15, 2024. IDL won the game that was called in the 6th inning, with the score of 14-6.
The team is open to all IDL employees in the Coeur d'Alene area. Most are from the CDA Staff Office, with a few employees from other area offices filling in when available and a few teammates are former IDL employees. The team appreciates the support members who cannot play but show up to cheer on the team.
The co-ed league requires 5 males and 5 females to play throughout the games.
Team Roster: Archie Gray, Bjorn Jordan, Jeremy Shawver, Kyle Seigley, Spencer Hanson, Isabella Valdez, Megan Johnson, Shannon Gill, Rodney Cochrane, Corey Ivey, Molly Oscarson, Alexis Callaway, Eric Geisthardt, Riley Tschida, Adrienne Morrow, Renee Hoops.
Games are every Wednesday evening for those who would like to support the team.
 Kyle Seigley (swinging, Timber), Bella Prichard (on deck, Forestry Assistance) - photo by Lynn Buhl
 Bjorn Jordan (short stop, Fire Cache) catching pop fly for the out, Isabella Valdez (2nd Base, Forestry Assistance) - photo by Lynn Buhl
 High fives after the win - photo by Lynn Buhl
More Great Photos
Lynn Buhl shares a few more photos from the 41st Annual State Forestry Contest held on May 9.
      
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:
|
