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Staff
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Abbey Willard, District Manager
Abbey began as Winooski Natural Resources
Conservation District Manager four years ago. She manages watershed stewardship
projects, technical staff for agricultural producers, educational opportunities
for youth and the community, as well as the day to day function of the
District and its employees. Though she grew up in Peacham, VT, Abbey previously
lived and worked in Bozeman, Montana and graduated from Montana State University’s
Soils & Environmental Science Program. Abbey currently lives in Randolph
Center. Currently she is attending Green Mountain College part-time to
obtain a Masters of Environmental Studies degree with a concentration in
Conservation Biology. |
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Ashley Lidman, Natural Resources Conservationist/Assistant Manager
Ashley joined the Winooski NRCD during the summer of 2008, after graduating from the University of Vermont with a Master of Science in Natural Resources. Ashley’s thesis research focused on vegetation management practices, neighborhood satisfaction, and crime, and was part of the Baltimore Ecosystem Study, a Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) project. Ashley has an undergraduate degree in urban studies from Brown University and has worked for numerous non-profit organizations in New England and Washington, DC, with a focus in urban forestry, environmental education, and urban ecology. Originally from Rhode Island, Ashley loves living in Vermont and looks forward to promoting rain gardens and other stormwater management projects in the Winooski Watershed. |
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Marybeth Whitten, Land Treatment
Planner
Marybeth grew up on a sustainable
Angora goat farm, off the electric grid, in Maine. She received an Associates
degree in Natural Resource Management from Sterling College in Craftsbury,
VT where she met her husband of 17 years. She went on to get a B.S. from
the University of Maine Orono, in Sustainable Agriculture. She’s worked
on a number of farms, made award winning hard-aged sheep cheese, and worked
as a Land Treatment Planner for nearby watersheds. Her education, love
for the land and for farming, and her respect for the environment brought
her to the District in 2006 where her responsibilities cover all of Orleans
and Lamoille counties. “The best part of my job is walking the fields and
working one-on-one with the farmers.” |
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Jason Fleury, Land Treatment Planner
Jason Fleury has been a Land Treatment
Planner with the District since August 2006. Jason primarily services Washington,
Chittenden, and half of Orange County. Prior to the Winooski District,
Jason worked for the Franklin County NRCD for almost two years as a Farm
Conservation Planner for the Farmland Ranch Protection Program as well
as a Land Treatment Planner. He grew up on a small Jersey farm in Berkshire,
VT. He graduated from the 2 + 2 Program from the University of Vermont
with a degree focused in Agricultural Entrepreneurship. Jason currently
lives in Barre, VT. |
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Susan Alexander, Basin Planner/ Agriculture Resource
Specialist
Susan Alexander, joined the District in
April 2006 and covers responsibilities in Washington County and the three
Northeast Kingdom counties. Susan works 70% of the time as an Agricultural
Resource Specialist working with farmers in Washington, Caledonia, Essex
and Orleans Counties. The remainder of her time is spent working on the
agricultural chapters of the watershed plans for the Winooski, Stevens,
Waits, Wells, and Ompompanoosuc Rivers. She graduated from Cornell University
with a B.S. in Soil Science. Prior to working for the District she spent
15 years conducting ground and surface water studies on pesticides all
across the country. |
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Cherie Staples, Bookkeeper
Cherie spent eleven years with the Vermont
Land Trust, after six years at Vermont Natural Resources Council, and then
moved to Colorado for six years, where she helped care for her first granddaughter
and then managed the Denver office of The Wilderness Society. Along
the way, a camera has been a steady companion and she has quite a raft
of photos. Returning to Vermont in 2003, she's become a part-time bookkeeper
for several businesses in the central Vermont area. She is a member of
the Onion River Chorus and sings in the Old Meeting House Choir, and participates
on three East Montpelier community committees. Cherie has two children
and three grandchildren. |
