The Green Mountain Conservation District Board of Supervisors is comprised of elected, non-paid supervisors.
Board of Supervisors
Bill Naegeli, Supervisor
Bill Naegeli was born and raised in Montana on his family’s ranch. He has been on the ranch for over 60 years. He has a degree in Agricultural Engineering and Technology. He has been associated with Green Mountain Conservation District and conservation practices for his entire life. He got on the board in 1991 as a supervisor and has been on the GMCD board for 31 years. He was elected to the Montana Association of Conservation Districts (MACD) board of directors for a few years in the late 1990s and then took a break to enjoy more time with family. Now, he has returned to MACD as a director representing Area 5 conservation districts from Sanders, Lincoln, Mineral, Flathead, Lake, Missoula, North Powell, Deer lodge, Granite and Bitterroot counties. He is also the Sanders County Emergency Manager, which he has been doing for 19 years. He has worked in many local industries in the area, including construction and the sawmill. He was on the Thompson Falls volunteer ambulance for 25 years. His ranch has hosted the kindergarten field trip to the Naegeli ranch for 25 plus years and has been a member of the Tree Farm Association for 50 years.
Bill is the Chairman of the board and has been for the last 4 years and has been in that role previously as well. In the 1990s, Bill secured grants to get the No-Till Drill that the Conservation District currently has and rents out. Bill feels that “There is only so much land, and we have to take care of it.”.
Terry Hightower, Vice Chairman
Bio Coming Soon!
Kristen Wing – Bio Coming Soon!
Mary Reed – Bio Coming Soon!
Nancy Mehaffie –
In 1979, I earned my degree in Forestry Sciences with an emphasis in Forest Pathology from the University of Idaho. Some of the highlights of my career include researching or implementing management techniques at the U. S. Forest Service, Forestry Science Laboratories in Moscow, Idaho and Missoula, Montana. I was a diversified Resource Manager on the Salmon, Clearwater, Idaho Panhandle, Kootenai, Sequoia and Angeles National Forests. Projects I assisted in were controlling White Pine Blister Rust and Giant Reed Grass (Arundo), Herbicide Effectiveness for Establishing Seedlings, Bark Beetle Anti-aggregative Pheromone Effectiveness, Forest Timber Management and Production as well as environmental assessment (EA) for a wide variety of projects that included recreation, wildlife, timber production, mining and resource protection and conservation.
In 1999, I transferred to the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers where I evaluated natural resources impacted by Flood Control in Las Vegas, Nevada. I was a Project Manager and Contract Administrator for the U. S. Air Force, covering Edwards Air Force Military Base Construction. I supervised Specialized Office Construction, Airfield and Soldier Housing Replacement and Testing & Evaluation Facilities. I then assumed project management duties at U. S. Army, Fort Huachuca, Arizona in 2004, from which I retired in 2007 after 32 years of Federal Government service. After my retirement, I returned to Montana in 2010, I was nominated by Lt. Governor, Kristine Juras in 2021 to be a board member of the Montana Forest Lands Taxation Advisory Committee, upon which I served as a representative of private forest land owners. Our land in Sanders County is a working example of the state sponsored “Family Forest Management, Tree Farm Program, and has served as a teaching example for forest protection, growth and production classes. Our family forest was also cited by the U.S. Forest Service’s Fire Management team leader of the Deep Creek Fire (Highway 200 Complex) in 2017, as an excellent example of fire protection preparation.
In retirement, I have enjoyed traveling and exploring the rural areas of the Pacific Northwest and will usually be found studying, hiking and wandering about our majestic mountains and public forest lands. I’m looking forward to applying my diverse background in natural resource management in order to benefit the Green Mountain Conservation District.
Associate Supervisors
Kent Wilby
Mindy Ferrell
Sean Moran
Staff
Sarah Busmire, District Administrator
Sarah Busmire joined Green Mountain Conservation District in January of 2022 and is a graduate of Oregon State University with a bachelor’s degree in Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences. She worked for 7 years in the dude ranching industry before transitioning to the natural resources field. Hailing originally from North Carolina, Northwestern Montana has been her home for the last 2 years and she looks forward to enjoying the many outdoor activities it has to offer including fly fishing, hunting, hiking and camping. She is excited to take on this new endeavor in a field she is passionate about, while helping to protect and enhance natural resources in western Sanders County. Sarah believes that “The Conservation Districts of Montana are our best bet to enhancing natural resources on private lands and in this position, I am able to help private landowners, ranchers and farmers conserve their soil, water, and other renewable natural resources for generations to come.”.
Daniel Holder, 2023 Big Sky Watershed Corp. Member
My name is Daniel Holder and I am a Big Sky Watershed Corps member who will be serving with the Green Mountain Conservation District and Lower Clark Fork Watershed Group throughout 2023. I graduated from Western Carolina University in May 2022, where I majored in geology and minored in Japanese. During my time at WCU I volunteered with the Western Carolina Hydrologic Research Station as well as worked as a research assistant for Dr. Jerry Miller. I am originally from South Carolina where I learned to appreciate the outdoors from numerous hiking and camping trips throughout the blue ridge mountains of North Carolina. I am looking forward to exploring and learning more about Montana as I help with various conservation projects aimed at improving the health of the Lower Clark Fork Watershed.
Green Mountain Conservation District
PO Box 1329, Trout Creek, MT, 59874
406-827-4833
Lower Clark Fork Watershed Group
Brita Olson, Watershed Coordinator
brita@lowerclarkforkwatershedgroup.org / brita@lcfwg.org
208-304-3852
The GMCD works closely with the Lower Clark Fork Watershed Group (LCFWG) to support watershed restoration efforts within the district. The GMCD provides administrative support to the LCFWG, while the LCFWG provides technical input and coordination for a variety of GMCD projects.