Posted By Jessica Murri on Thu, Apr 2, 2015

Starting Monday, April 6, the Boise National Forest will have a new deputy forest supervisor. Sherri Schwenke is moving to Boise from the Black Hills National Forest in South Dakota, where she currently serves as the Hells Canyon District Ranger.

Schwenke’s CV working on public lands is substantial. She has worked as a staff officer on the Dakota Prairie Grasslands, a district ranger on the Colville National Forest in Washington, a minerals assistant in the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia, and a forest landscape architect on the Ottawa National Forest in Michigan. She’s worked closely with Native American tribes and Back Country Horsemen, restored a wilderness historic CCC lookout and worked to curb pine beetle infestations.

“I look forward to working with all the communities in the forest area, with the forest employees and with the many partners involved in public land management,” she said in a news release. “Working with people to attain land management goals resulting in landscapes where the resources are recognized and valued in a way that nourishes our economy, psyche and wonder is a desire I have in the new position.”

Boise National Forest public information officer David Olson told Boise Weekly that Schwenke’s position will put her in charge of developing the Boise National Forest’s budget as well as providing leadership over special projects.

“She’ll also partake in wildfire oversight,” Olson said. “She’s got qualifications that allow her to work with incident management teams for big fires.”

Schwenke will work under Cecilia Seesholtz, the Bosie National Forest Supervisor.

“I am looking forward to Sherri joining our team,” she said. “She brings a wealth of skills, knowledge and experiences that lend themselves to providing support and leadership to the forest.”

Schwenke will move to Bosie with her husband and two children. She enjoys outdoor activities, playing a mix of musical instruments and reading.