Director Miller Announces New Division Administrator for Forestry and Fire and Idaho State Forester
It’s a pleasure to inform you that Julia Lauch has been hired as the next IDL Division Administrator for Forestry and Fire, joining the IDL Executive Leadership Team. In addition, I will be delegating the title and responsibilities of the Idaho State Forester to Julia.
Julia has more than 20 years of experience in wildland fire and forestry with State natural resource agencies. She spent 11 years with the Oregon Department of Forestry prior to joining IDL in 2011 as an Assistant Fire Warden and then as the first South Idaho Fire Liaison, responsible for establishing the Rangeland Fire Protection Associations (RFPAs) in Idaho.
Julia spent a couple of years as the Regional Operations Chief, South before taking 2 years off to stay home with her children while they were young. She returned to IDL 2020 to the position she’s in today, Deputy Fire Bureau Chief - Operations.
Julia studied Forest Management at Oregon State University (Go Beavers!) but has called Idaho home for quite a while now. Julia has thoroughly enjoyed fighting wildland fire across the west in many capacities, and prioritized building and maintaining relationships with partners and colleagues throughout the years that have contributed to a personally rewarding career thus far.
Julia lives in Boise with her children (9 and 7), who keep her busy with an ever-growing interest in sports as well as frequent household dance parties. As a family they also enjoy hiking, snow sports, and other activities that get them out enjoying the beautifully diverse natural environment.
Julia will begin in the position on January 6, 2025. Please welcome Julia to her new role!
Julia Lauch
Fall Fire Meeting - Boise
IDL held its Fall Fire Meeting December 11-12 in Boise. The meeting focused on the administrative level of fire leadership. It was a time of in-depth discussion, lessons learned and shared ideas.
There were two session led by Stronger Families - Oxygen. One focused on "Mitigating Stress in First Responder Relationships", the second was on "Leading From Your Strengths."
Several sessions were spent on Lessons Learned, time was spent reviewing the Governor's Wildfire Report Recommendations and also Fire Strategic Plan Efforts. There was also brainstorming time and discussion regarding the Fire Master Agreement Impact regarding Fire Ownership/Coding on Non-Forested Private lands.
Holiday Safety
Drowsy & Distracted Driving
The holidays seem to increase our time behind the wheel. Whether we are headed 20 minutes away or 20 states away, safe driving is absolutely vital. Distracted and drowsy driving can have serious consequences. Your life, and the lives of others, could depend on your awareness level and attention to your physical warning signs.
Drowsy Driving:
A study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety estimated that 328,000 drowsy driving crashes occur annually, more than three times the police-reported number. The same study found that 109,000 of those drowsy driving crashes resulted in an injury and about 6,400 were fatal.
Coeur d’Alene Lighting Ceremony Parade
The theme of the 33rd Annual Lighting Ceremony Parade was Hometown Heroes, and what could be a better fit?
Mica Forest Protective District firefighters, participated in the parade along with Smokey Bear (aka Blaine Frederickson), representing IDL's heroes who work tirelessly to keep our communities safe.
The parade entries lit up downtown CDA with marching bands, dancing, music, festive floats, and of course the IDL truck with Smokey.
The theme worked seamlessly with National Gratitude Month and IDL's prevention messaging focusing how best to thank a firefighter- Prevent Wildfires!
photo by Dusty Weeks
photo by Corrie Ivey
photo by Dusty Weeks
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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