Page 6 - Chehalis Tribal Newsletter - November, 2018

6

DNR
From page 1
DNR provides a number
of services to the community
and Chehalis tribal members,
including notary services,
providing permits for wood
cutting and outdoor burning and
offering state park passes.
As part of the realty program,
DNR manages 16 rental homes
available for tribal members.
They coordinate land surveys
using a certified federal land
surveyor and provide land and
timber appraisals.
Meet the staff: The Chehalis Tribe’s Department of Natural Resources team is made up of (from left): Dan Penn, Wayne Barr,
DIRECTOR GLEN CONNELLY Colleen Suter, Glen Connelly, William Thoms, Charlotte Lopez, Brian A. Bland, Rickie Marion, Brandy Nies and
Sarah Myer, along with Jason Gillie and Kirsten Harma (not pictured).
Connelly has worked for
the Chehalis Tribe’s DNR since fish populations of the Chehalis
2004 and was promoted to be Basin.
the new director last year. He Originally from Cumberland,
grew up 3,000 miles from here Maryland, Nies graduated with
in a small town in northern New a bachelor’s in psychology but
Jersey. After Connelly earned changed career paths when she
his bachelor’s in environmental enlisted in the United States
studies at Ramapo State Army as a Korean cryptologic
College in 1993, he moved linguist, spending three years in
to Washington. He lives in South Korea.
Olympia and is the father of two After enlistment, she worked
sons, ages 18 and 21. He takes in the GIS industry for more than
great pride in working in the for archery elk hunting and involved in creating a holistic 10 years. She helped support
community and looks forward to anything related to the outdoors. approach to the environmental the Defense and Intelligence
utilizing his skills and experience He’s looking forward to getting programs with the tribe to communities by developing,
to protect and enhance tribal to know and working with the ensure the environmental and training and marketing GIS
lands and resources. Chehalis tribal community. cultural aspects of this land software and solutions. While
are here and thriving for many working full-time, she obtained a
REALTY OFFICER REALTY SPECIALIST generations to come.
CHARLOTTE LOPEZ AND ADMINISTRATIVE master’s in geospatial intelligence
and geoinformatics from
Charlotte is a mother of four ASSISTANT SARAH MYER WATER QUALITY George Mason University in
and grandmother of seven. Myer started with the COORDINATOR Fairfax, Virginia. She chose to
She has lived on and near her department in March of 2015 RICKIE MARION focus on geospatial intelligence
homelands of the Chehalis as the administrative assistant Marion is a Chehalis tribal by working at the National
Reservation her whole life. She and recently accepted a position native whose mother, now Geospatial Intelligence Agency
started working for the tribe in DNR’s Realty program as passed, was Dionne Heck. She (NGA) where she directly
in 1991 and held numerous the realty specialist. She enjoys obtained her bachelor’s degree supported the national security
positions before officially working with tenants to make from The Evergreen State effort to combat terrorism.
becoming the administration sure their needs are met and College, where she focused
assistant for DNR in October of to protect the Chehalis Tribe’s on environmental studies and FOREST AND LAND
2009. She worked closely with assets. She spends her free time human nature. SPECIALIST WAYNE BARR
the Realty office, which holds with her two children, a 12-year- After graduation, her passion Recently this fall, tribal
the records of tribal lands, trust old daughter and 4-year-old son. and curiosity drove her to try member Wayne Barr started as
and fee. She also keeps track of and figure out a position where a forestry and land specialist
individually owned trust tracts ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS she played a role in enhancing, for DNR. Barr has been around
within the Chehalis Reservation. MANAGER COLLEEN SUTER preserving and preventing tribal functions as the years
In addition to the Realty work Suter began with the tribe in further degradation of the progressed. He started working
she’s done for years, Lopez also September 2016 as the water systems so crucial to humans and for the tribe more than 12 years
works closely with the Regional quality lab technician. She other species. Serendipitously, ago as a laborer and dump truck
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) in received her bachelor’s from the the Chehalis Tribe had a position driver for CTC.
Portland, Ore., and the Olympic University of Washington with a open up that was perfectly He’s working on the new
Peninsula Agency in Aberdeen. focus on aquatic chemistry and relevant to her studies. grounds on the Brown Property,
stream ecology. pulling brush and evergreen
REALTY MAINTENANCE The rivers and natural GIS TECHNICIAN BRANDI NIES stickers with a mini excavator.
SPECIALIST BRIAN A. BLAND landscape is an intense passion Nies joined DNR in He also has worked with the
Bland began working for for Suter, both scientifically and May 2018. One of her main bison out on the Wilson property
the DNR Realty department in spiritually. Living in southwest responsibilities is creating, – feeding, watering and making
August of 2018 and loves his new Washington for the past 24 years managing and visualizing sure they are comfortable with
career. Bland has a three-year- has given Suter the opportunity spatial data relevant to the tribe their living space.
old son named Colten and is a to apply her devotion to the and its people such as land
combat veteran with a passion place she calls home. She is ownership, water quality and See DNR, page 7