Wallace Wood has been an active member of the McCormick County, SC community for over 38 years. He served as the Executive Director of the Upper Savannah Land Trust for six years and has been on the board of directors several times since the organization began in 2000. In 2011, he was named South Carolina Tree Farmer of the Year

Walt McPhail, Brother Bill, and Dr. George Kessler (from a previous episode!) join Tom and Emily to discuss Walt’s farm. Walt and his ancestors have managed to keep the property within the family tree for a long, long time. He shares how he always knew he wanted to be a forester, why he’s been “retired” for nearly his entire career, and so much more, in this week’s episode!

Dr. George Kessler is a Certified Tree Farmer and a Registered Forester. Dr. George is a recognized treasure in South Carolina for his extensive work in the tree farm community. He has dedicated his most of his career to extension forestry and has created millions of acres of healthy forests. Find out about Dr. George and his journey into forestry, his impact on the South Carolina community, and so much more! 

Skeet and Gayle Burris are proud owners of Cypress Bay Plantation, a 2500+ acre farm and is nationally recognized for exceptional forestry, wildlife management and conservation. Skeet and Gayle share what it was like working on the farm in the very early days when it was an undeveloped 95-acre property. Lean in as Skeet and Gayle talk about how their vision back in 1986 has come true, and how they plan to keep the family legacy alive. 

John Spearman is a retired Colonel for the US Army and the President of Deer Hill, an award winning tree farming operation. John has been part of this farm since 1977 and shares a little bit about its rich history, the family legacy he is building with his farm, and just his love for being outdoors. John and his family have been able to create alternative income sources on his property that go beyond timber and trees! 

Annie Ruth Jones is a three-generation landowner and has successfully used her land to plant and sell trees. Her grandparents bought the land she is currently standing on in 1935 and she is very proud that she has kept the family legacy alive all these years later. She also credits the Center of Heirs Property for helping guide her to find the right resources to make a living out of her land. Find out more about Annie and her property in this week’s episode!

Randell Ewing is a tree farmer with deep roots in Darlington County, South Carolina. He got into tree farming by accident when he purchased a small piece of land in his early 20s for hunting purposes. Since then, he’s grown his property by thousands of acres and it’s now turned into a family business with him and his son. Listen in as you hear Randell’s stories about his tree farm and the amount of pride he has for growing trees.

Eddie and Linda Drayton are the owners of Cat Tail Tree Farm. Eddie is a retired forester and spends his retirement days as a tree farmer. As a man in his 80s, Eddie wakes up everyday excited for a new adventure on his farm and shares a little bit about his love for forestry as well as provides a bit of a background on how the surrounding area was discovered. Join Tom and Emily on this adventure as they talk with Eddie and Linda about the work they put into their beautiful property. 

Tom and Emily meet with legacy tree farmer Pat Dorn, based in South Carolina, to learn more about his beautiful property and how he got into the business of planting trees! You’ll hear some background noise as Tom and Emily march through the wilderness with Pat as they uncover what makes Pat’s property so special.

Tom is on the road and interviewing Mike Meetze from South Carolina! Mike shares his heritage property with Tom and explains how the property has evolved over the years. Everything from growing Soybeans to cattle to now timber. Mike has been on the tractor since he was eight years old, but he is actually an engineer by trade. Take a journey with Mike as he walks you through his property on this week’s episode!

Dr. Myron F. Floyd currently serves as Dean of the College of Natural Resources at NC State University. He first joined the college in 2005 as a professor in the Department of Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management. In 2010, he was appointed to serve as director of graduate programs for the department, and in 2014, he became department head. Dr. Myron discusses the importance of mentorship in his career, his role as a department head and professor, and what makes an exceptional leader.

Garth Fisher is the National Training Director of the Wildland Fire Management branch for the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Garth also services as the Chair and BIA Representative on the National Wildfire Coordinating Group and he has over 15 years of wildland fire operations and wildland fire management. In this week’s episode, Garth explains a little bit about what the BIA agency does and how they pride themselves on being able to provide ongoing leadership training to their staff.

Katie Lighthall is the Coordinator for the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Strategy in the Western Region. She assists federal, state, local, and tribal agencies as well as non-governmental organizations so that they can be ready in case of a large fire disaster. When you’re coordinating for multiple agencies, it’s important that everybody is on the same page as quickly as possible. Katie shares her experiences on today’s show and showcases how she got into this field, in the first place!

John Miller is the State Wildland Fire Chief for the Virginia Department of Forestry. John is responsible for oversight and state-wide coordination of the agency’s wildfire control, emergency management, and prescribed burning programs. John shares some tips about how you can coordinate with multiple government agencies so that everyone is on the same page when a fire is happening and he shares some close calls he’s gotten while he was in the field.

Kristel Johnson is the Support Services Program Leader for the USDA Forest Service. Kristel started her career in 1990 as a temporary firefighter and, later, she attended the Wildland Firefighter Apprenticeship Academy. Over her career, Kristel has worked in wildland firefighting, fire training, district management, employee relations, human resources, critical instant stress management, and more.

Robyn Broyles is the Fire Communication and Education Specialist for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the national interagency fire center in Boise, Idaho. In Robyn’s role, she focuses on the accomplishments of the Indian country’s wildland fire management and aviation programs. Robyn is also a tribal member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. Find out more about Robyn and her role with the BIA on this week’s episode!

Dan Smith is the Fire Director for the National Association of State Foresters. He is the Wildland Fire Representative for 50 states and 8 territories at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho. In this role, Dan works collaboratively with the Federal Wildland Fire Directors and serves as a member of the National Wildfire Coordinating Group, which provides wildland fire response on a national level.

Brian Pisarek is the Advanced Wildlife Instructor for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and he is also the Structured Fire Chief for the City of Aitkin, Minnesota. Brian has a B.S. in Forestry and has an extensive list of fire qualifications, too! In today’s episode, Brian shares a little bit about how to keep yourself safe during a wildland fire, how to best manage family expectations when you’ve got to abruptly cancel plans to fight a fire, and so much more!

Will Novy-Hildesley is the Executive Director of the North American Forest Partnership (NAFP), a diverse set of people and organizations who are passionate about the future of forests. NAFP is also the driver of #forestproud, where they collect stories from all over the world of what the forest means to individuals and natural resource professionals. Find out more about what NAFP is doing and how you can get involved in their amazing work in this week’s episode!

Buddy Huffaker is the Board President and Executive Director for Aldo Leopold Foundation, a non-profit conservation organization located in Wisconsin. Buddy is very proud to be part of the Aldo Leopold Foundation, an organization he joined over 20 years ago as an intern. In today’s episode, Buddy shares a little bit about how the foundation got started, what exciting new things the foundation is working on right now, and how students can get involved in its exciting projects!

Chris Joe is an NRCS District Conservationist and a landowner in Alabama. He is a Fourth-Generation African American landowner and he raises cattle on his land. However, through tapping into the NRCS resources, he’s found out how to maximize his land by providing bird and nature tours! The NRCS has a wide range of resources that not many people are aware of and on today’s episode, Chris shares some of these amazing and fantastic resources today.

Elaine Snowberger kicks off this new season of Leadership Nature. In this season, Tom will be featuring up-and-coming forestry and natural resource students to share their educational experiences. Elaine shares some of the benefits of joining a forestry club, why she loves being part of the Clemson University family, and shares tips on how she scored her first forestry position!

John Littles is the Executive Director for Mcintosh Sustainable Environment Economic Development. He provides technical assistance to grassroots organizations and asset-based economic development, food systems, education systems, land preservation and retention, and so much more! In his role, John has generated over $8 million dollars in funding for the organization and works as an outreach provider for the United States Department of Agriculture for Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi.

Yvonne Knight-Carter and Eleanor Cooper-Brown are both sisters and the owners of Broadaxe Branch Partners. Their property goes back almost 150 years and they are proud to be connected to the land once again. Both successful in their respective careers, Yvonne and Eleanor are taking on the task to make their land sustainable and to help educate the community about the free land management resources that are available to them. Do not be afraid to go into the USDA’s office to ask for what you need!