Operations Manager

I graduated from Green River College in 2021 with an associate’s degree in Natural Resource Management for Parks and Recreation Management, Water Quality Management, Forestry Management and Geographic Information System (GIS). I just recently completed a double major at the University of Washington in Environmental Studies and American Indian Studies in June 2023.

I am continuing my education in graduate school at the University of Washington’s School of Marine and Environmental Affairs in a Master in Marine Affairs. Much of my educational goals are centered around my passions for the Southern Resident orcas, environmental justice, sustainability, biodiversity, and native plants.

I grew up in Washington which has led my passions for the Southern Resident killer whales and local flora and fauna. My passions have grown to include salmon and all things related to their conservation and to how humans can coexist with all living and non-living things on this planet, which directly relates to the protection of the SRKWs.

I have been working with the Green River College- Free The Green, previously Green River Coalition for over 4 years now helping to manage operations for the internship focusing on restoration work along salmon-bearing streams and rivers in the Green-Duwamish River watershed. I have also worked with the Green River Coalition helping to manage high school and middle school interns on stream restorations along the river as well as helping lead community habitat restoration events that help to support the salmon, local biodiversity, and orcas.

Recently, I have accepted a board member position with the Orca Conservancy and have been looking into ways that traditional foods can be incorporated and prioritized when planning restoration sites, and am looking to continue that journey with my graduate work and projects Free The Green is working on.

Project Manager

Hello everyone! My name is Tanner and I’m thrilled to introduce myself as the team coordinator for Free the Green! I am a 2022 graduate from Green River College with a bachelor’s degree in Forestry Management I have 6 years experience in restoration work!

My journey into the world of restoration has been unconventional with me starting out with a planned major in biology transfer degree doing running start– The forestry program caught my eye for it's a genuine passion for nature and a commitment to making a positive impact and at 17 I jumped in! One of the opportunities offered to me due to my changed educational pathway was an internship focusing on river restoration which quickly found its way to being more than just an internship but a mission to ensure that our rivers thrive and provide a healthy habitat for all our species here in Washington.

Now, let's talk bugs! I have this fascination with the tiny creatures that make our world go 'round. Bugs are like the unsung heroes of nature, playing crucial roles in the balance of ecosystems. Whether it's the flies or the spiders , I find joy in understanding and appreciating their significance. Always love to talk about bugs and plants so don’t fear reaching out!!

Greenhouse Manager

Hello! My name is Zach Ziska. I am a Greenriver college graduate who earned the degree in Forest Resources Management with an emphasis on ecological sampling and assessment. I have a passion for ethnobotany, traditional ecological knowledge, invasive species ecology, and native plant identification, ecology, and horticulture.

I have experience working with salmon ecology and restoration along the Nooksack River and the Green-Duwamish River watersheds. I have partnered with the Muckleshoot tribe to build and ethnobotanical learning garden to educate the community about the importance of native plants and their medicinal uses so that we can better connect with them and the Earth.

I am the current Greenhouse and Nursery Manager for Free The Green and have experience working with native plant propagation, germination, foraging, growing, and operations. Native plants are such a key element for ecological restoration and I am honored to be a part of the team in which I oversee native plant orders and applying botanical and horticultural practices towards the native plants we work with in restoration.

Ecological restoration has a special place in my heart, as it believe it is important to give back to the land as the land has given us so much. In my free time, I love to do art and identify plants

Project Planner

Hi, my name is Jon Legin (Leg-in) and I am a Green River College student finishing my bachelor's degree March 2024 in Forestry Sampling and Assessment. I have been a site manager for over 2 years now for Green River Coalition and Free the Green managing one of the toughest sites CWA/AWC. Now I am currently in the works on Soos Creek Trail along Big Soos Creek and bringing a part back to the natural prairie. I have been doing restoration work for over two years now. I have learned so much about our environment and the important functions provided. Being able to restore the environment has been a satisfaction to me as I use a lot of the trail systems such as Soos Creek for activities, and being able to see the changes I make in the area brings me joy!

A little about myself, I always played outside as a kid growing up. Fishing was a big activity in my family as I went to Alaska two times as a kid. My family loved fishing out there, catching salmon as big as me! I also love to travel to different parts of the world as I have been to many different countries over the years. I love learning about new cultures and seeing different places. One of my recent trips was to Costa Rica and that place was awesome! It was amazing seeing a completely different climate and seeing a country where 54% of their land is conservation.

Project Planner

Hello! My name is Bryce Bloodworth, and I am a 4th year in the Natural Resources Program at Green River College. I have already obtained my associate degrees in forestry, Park Management, and Wildfire. By June of this year, I will earn my bachelors in Natural Resource Management!

I found myself joining the program purely based on my passion for wildlife and conservation of our beautiful environment. The work we find ourselves doing can be tough, tedious, and tiring, but the reward makes it all worth it.

I’ve been with this organization since my first year of the program and have enjoyed every second of it. I started out as a technician, which most do, and I quickly worked my way up to becoming a restoration site planner. Maybe you can too!?

I think my favorite part of being a member of this organization would have to be the amount of outreach and connections that are made in the process of ecological restoration. You get to meet some cool people that can also share their knowledge as well. There have been quite a few places we have been able to go that most can’t, such as the Cedar River and Green River Watershed.

Lead Technician

My name is Seabrina Baccus and my current role is a technician. I am a GRC second-year student earning an AA in Forestry, Water Quality, and GIS. I have a passion for educating myself and the public about the intricacies of land & water sustainable stewardship. In 2021 I took a solo trip to Germany and fell in love with the culture and how they steward their forests/resources. GRC Natural Resources program was the next right choice to further my education. This Summer I hope to intern at a laboratory to learn deepen my understanding of the relationship between marine biology and forestry.

My first internship was when I started working with Kayley, Tanner, Bryce, Jon, Zach, Andrew, and Darrel last Spring while we were still known as Green River Coalition.

Meanwhile, I have been with Free The Green team since and am proud of the environmental and humanitarian impacts we are creating. Working with amazing people have helped me to learn that if something is worth doing it is worth doing with others.

Over this past Summer, with help from the NATRS Rec. class, GRC facilities and FTG we were able to reconstruct the Greenhouse, enhance nurseries, potting stations, and sheds. Ultimately improving our day-to-day functions as technicians, site-planners, volunteers, and management. I am excited for 2024 and adventures that come along with it.

I am also the artist behind our LOGO!!!!

Project Planner

Hi my name is Andrew Schnereger I'm in my third year of obtaining a BAS in Natural Resource Management I've been with FTG since its inception and the Green River Coalition before that.

Before the fall of 2021 I didn't know the difference between a native plant and invasive/introduced plant. I joined the Coalition at the time to start getting experience and fell in love with restoration.

Project Planner

Hello! I'm Ben, a second-year natural resources student at Green River College. As a proud member of Free the Green, I hope to help restore our natural systems and bring life back to neglected areas of our cities and environments. At Green River, I’ve focused my studies into the areas of water quality and GIS, I hope to use this education and experience to dive into the world of fisheries and wildlife conservation, restoration, and research.

Freshly back from a summer job in California, working in fisheries conservation restoration and research, I've seen firsthand the impact we can make. I returned to Free the Green in the fall after my summer, ready to hit the ground running. Starting as a restoration technician, I recently had the opportunity to embrace the role of site-planner. With this new position, I hope to work with everyone to plan and restore some vital areas of our stream systems.

Technician

What does nature or the land ask of us? Should we not steward the land for what we have received, and find that we are much more akin to biota in traits— like parenting— than we often take time to realize? Think about it for a moment, if you please. The Earth, I think, demands hard labor sometimes in this field, but it is something beautiful to see where a fraction of endurance and patience takes driven individuals.

Relevant coursework includes plant biology, environmental sustainability, indigenous philosophy, indigenous ethnobiology, indigenous ethnoecology, eco-art, physical geology and WA environmental law. Outside of academics, I have experience in land stewardship, plant inventory, and basic plant ID, gained from contributing to several projects and research within the Green River Watershed.

The most enjoyable part of working with the FTG team has been understanding how diverse restoration can look. Whether it’s brainstorming outreach material, compiling a digestible greenhouse handbook, or learning from your peers and personnel at various sites, you can expect to absorb relevant information with a side of laughter on a typical workday.

Technician

Hello! My name is Russell. I am a first-year student in Green River College’s Natural Resources program, with interests in botany, mutualism, and nutrient cycling. I’m joining Free the Green in January 2024 as a restoration technician.

Born in Texas and raised in the Pacific Northwest, I was never content to stay in one place for long and after seeing much of the mountains of the West Coast while hiking on the PCT, I struck out to Europe and lived for a while in Germany and Denmark.

Since returning to the US, I’ve been exploring the potential of a career in forestry and spending much of my life in forests where I always most felt I belonged. I spent some time as a backcountry caretaker in New England and there had my eyes opened to the wider world of natural resources. This summer, I was fortunate to work in trails in Alaska.

Free the Green was on my radar from my very first trip to check out the GRC campus on a whim the day I returned from Anchorage. I was particularly taken with the forest, the greenhouse, and the native plants nursery. I am passionate about sustainability, and intentional relationships between humans and ecosystems, and I look forward to examining these ideas through the lens of restoration and ecology.

Technician

My name is Samantha, and I’m currently a third year Natural Resources student at Green River College pursuing my bachelor’s degree, as well as being a restoration technician for Free the Green.

As a lifelong resident of Western Washington, I am very passionate about maintaining and restoring our local ecosystems and the habitat features that are unique to the Pacific Northwest, particularly as it relates to salmon. I love spending solitary time in nature, and my favorite place on earth is along the banks of the Nooksack River near Mt. Baker.

I also like to spend my free time gardening, thrift shopping and estate sailing, taking analog photography, and teaching myself to sew. I’m very excited to be a part of Free the Green, and the work I’ve done so far has been immensely fascinating and rewarding. I’m really enjoying learning about botany, native species, gardening techniques, and habitat restoration, and working alongside other people that share my passion.

Prior to my career in natural resources, I was a phlebotomist for several years and planned to pursue a career in nursing. I realized that I am so much happier working outside and making a real difference in my community and my state than I was in healthcare. I’m excited for my future career in stream restoration, and I’m thankful for the experience and networking opportunities that Free the Green will provide me.

Technician

Hello, my name is Anthony, I am a father, a Mojave Desert native, and a U.S. Army veteran. Growing up, I explored the outdoors vast expanse of arid landscapes with my brother, which helped me develop a profound connection with the environment.

The Mojave Desert helped foster an understanding of nature's resilience as my brother and I would ponder the intricacies of the organisms inhabiting the area while camping, hiking, and hunting. My journey took an adventurous turn when I enlisted in the Army National Guard as a Combat Engineer. A pivotal experience that honed my survival skills and instilled a profound respect for the delicate balance between humanity and nature. Living and training outdoors, I gained firsthand knowledge of the importance of preserving ecosystems and human activities impact on our environment. After nine years and a deployment to the Middle East, I chose to leave the military and pursue a degree that would serve the same meaning in life and a job I would be happy doing.

I am currently pursuing a degree in Forestry at Green River College, and I am committed to advancing my understanding of sustainable land management practices. Opting for the GIS degree track alongside Forestry, I seek to merge technology with ecological conservation, leveraging Geographic Information Systems to enhance our ability to make informed decisions for the preservation of natural habitats. As a father, my motivation extends beyond personal enrichment, rooted in a genuine desire to create a better future for my daughter. I envision a world where she can revel in the beauty of nature, much like the landscapes and curiosities I cherished growing up. This aspiration fuels my dedication to ecological restoration and sustainable forestry practices, driving me to contribute meaningfully to initiatives that safeguard our environment. My goal is to actively participate in projects that restore ecosystems and inspire communities to embrace sustainable practices. With a commitment to building a future where my daughter and future generations can thrive in harmony with nature, I am excited about the opportunity to make a meaningful impact through this organization's ecological restoration initiatives.

Technician

Hello I’m Stef, been a homemaker for the last decade while working part time for the Lake Stevens school district when my daughter started kindergarten.

I loved the opportunity to stay home and raise my daughter, so many special moments not missed while having the opportunity to instill important values to my daughter.

I have never been a stranger to the forest and over the last couple decades really formed a connection with it. I knew one day when I’m not entirely obligated to my family and home that I’d like to pursue something where I could be part of working in the forest. Now I’m a student here at GRC, originally came in with the plan of being a WDFW officer but not so sure about that now.

Honestly I’m not exactly sure what I want to do, I just know I want to work in a position which makes a positive impact on our natural environment. Working with Free the Green is an awesome opportunity to learn so much! Thanks for having me.

Technician

Hello! My name is Caity Rigg. I graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies and a minor in Earth and Space Sciences from the University of Washington in 2023.

Before transferring, I graduated from Green River College with an Associate of Arts in 2021, where I began my focus in environmental science and research in ecology. I recently joined Free the Green as a restoration technician after finishing a project on bycatch mitigation and threatened species conservation with NOAA Fisheries.

My love for the outdoors inspired pursuing a career that will support sustainable ecosystems for my daughter and her generation through policy and creative solutions, and now, hands-on work with tangible results in restoration. I’m also passionate about geoscience and geomorphology.

I was born and raised in the beautiful Pacific Northwest and enjoy hiking and mountain biking in my free time