The Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) divisions of Fish & Wildlife and Nature Preserves recently presented awards to employees who provided outstanding contributions to conservation, mentoring, and teamwork during the previous year.
Award winners were Tiffany Dunkel, Joe Caudell, Mary Hayes, Fred Phillips, Bob Bell, Andrew Reuter, and the 2024 Annual Conference Planning team.
Dunkel, office manager for Pigeon River Fish & Wildlife Area (FWA), was awarded the Conservation Cornerstone Award. This honor recognizes a support staff member’s excellence in advancing programs within their division. Dunkel’s dedication to her duties and outstanding customer service has helped make Pigeon River FWA a hub for outdoor recreation in the local community.
Caudell, the deer biologist, received the Conservation Champion Award, which recognizes employees who have made outstanding contributions to conservation. Caudell developed two new innovative products that transformed the Division of Fish & Wildlife’s deer management practices for 2023.
Hayes, the public engagement supervisor, received the Mentor of the Year Award, which recognizes an exceptional ability to mentor others. Hayes’ thoughtful leadership empowers her team to be bold ambassadors for Indiana’s conservation efforts.
The team that produced the 2024 Annual Conference for the divisions of Fish & Wildlife and Nature Preserves received the Director’s Team of the Year award, which recognizes a team’s significant contribution to conservation. Led by Bell, Hayes, and Reuter, the team programmed a robust two-day conference that centered around increased learning, networking, and engagement opportunities. Team members consisted of Kacey Alexander, Tom Bacula, Jennifer Boyce, Alexandra Hicks, Alexander Ingersoll, Janetta Kelly, Jessica Merkling, Laura Minzes, Derek Nimetz, Anna Smithey, Rachel Van Voorhis, Savanna Vaughn, and Danielle Williams.
Phillips, a recently retired veterinarian, received the Budd Denneman Partners in Conservation Excellence award to honor his outstanding conservation efforts in the Division of Fish & Wildlife’s gray fox research. Phillips’ partnership was key to the project, as he gave Indiana DNR, the Wildlife Ecology Institute, and Luther College the resources and hands-on support they needed to provide specialized training for field technicians, process fox carcasses, collect samples, and determine causes of mortality. He served as the in-state veterinarian for DNR and delayed his retirement by one year to align with the end of the project.
The divisions of Fish & Wildlife and Nature Preserves also recognized employees for their years of service:
40 years: Tom Arthur, Jeff Malwitz, Dave Meuninck
35 years: Robert Greene, Earl Nading
30 years: Brad Feaster, Ray Shepard, Debbie Walter
25 years: Josh Griffin
20 years: Denise Brazel, Matthew Bredeweg, Randy Brindza, Debbie King
15 years: Sandy Clark-Kolaks, Amy Kearns, Donna Monroe
10 years: Kacey Alexander, Nicholas Echterling, Julie Gressley, Tim Pettifor, Joseph Simon
5 years: Jake Adams, Kenneth Ford, Phillip Kacmar, Emily McCallen, Bethany Rust, Seth Sanders, Kevin Shettle, Zachary Voyles, Kenneth Wetzel