Election of Team Conasauga’s Board of Directors is held each October at the annual Volunteer Appreciation Picnic. All volunteers who contribute 20-plus hours of service within Team Conasauga during the previous year (October-September) are eligible to vote.

Tom began volunteering with the Forest Service in the Cohutta Wilderness so long ago he can't remember when. Or that could be just his poor memory. In that time he has contributed over 400 hours, and some of those he actually did something. He is a certified Pulaski operator and will soon complete the advanced Rake course. He believes strongly in the value of wilderness, in conservation and sustainability. A frequent hiker and backpacker, he cherishes the renewal that time outdoors brings. "The Cohutta Wilderness is the best and most beautiful backpacking in Georgia, and I want to keep it that way," he gives as his simple reason for helping maintain our trails. "Advocate with your hands, not with your mouth."

Wayne has been a Team Conasauga volunteer for two years. A native of Georgia, Wayne returned to Northwest Georgia in 1974, and has been a regular visitor to Cohutta for 37 years. He enjoys hiking, backpacking, trout fishing, hunting and just hanging out in God's loveliest creation. He is convinced that God does not subtract from our alloted days, time spent appreciating what He created.

After retiring, Wayne joined Team Conasauga to provide a volunteer service and work with people who feels as he does about North Georgia's mountains. He knows that the fellowship, hiking, and physical work are great fitness keepers.

Wanda Brown took her first backpacking trip with her husband in April of 1991 and signed on as a volunteer with the Forest Service in November. Her love of the outdoors has been the driving force for her volunteer activities since that time. She and her husband have hiked, camped and backpacked all over the United States, but they always come home to the Cohutta Wilderness to perform trail work.

Wanda has achieved crosscut certification as a B level sawyer and has spent numerous hours as crew leader on all types of trail maintenance projects. She & her husband have been responsible for a major portion of the crosscut saw work in the Cohutta Wilderness in the past 19 years. Wanda received certification as a wildland firefighter, but dropped out of the program because of her husband’s chronic knee problems.

During her tenure as a Forest Service volunteer Wanda has performed all types of trail maintenance, including blowdown removal, water bar maintenance, campsite designation & rehab, trimming & swingblading, trail building & rerouting, as well as occasional campground hosting. She also maintains the database of volunteer hours accomplished on the District, and is a charter member of theTeam Conasauga nonprofit organization.

She has led service projects with out-of-state college students, affording them hands-on experience in various types of trail work as well as extra college credits. She has also been instrumental in training many new volunteers.

Wanda achieved the title of Volunteer of the Year in 2009 and has been among the Top Guns each year since her volunteer career began. She has amassed in excess of 7,000 hours of volunteer time for the Forest Service.

Jim Bishop began volunteering in the Cohutta Wilderness in 1991 as a recruit for an REI Work Project (Emery Creek Trail construction). He has performed all aspects of trails maintenance and recently received chainsaw & crosscut saw certifications from the US Forest Service. Jim has also worked with the US Forest Service at the Canoe Wilderness Boundary, MN. and US Fish &Wildlife, Northern Maine during The American Hiking Society’s volunteer Vacations program. He is a Certified Arborist (ISA), an avid whitewater canoeist and horseman. ”I think Wilderness is a magnificent playground; however, it can also be a great University.”

Nicole started volunteering with Team Conasauga in 2009, from hearing about them at REI. She enjoys spending time volunteering & giving back to the outdoors. She has a passion for the outdoors & enjoys spending her time hiking, backpacking, camping, and fishing. She has a Forestry degree & enjoys educating people on the outdoors.

A 30-year veteran of the Forest Service, Larry Thomas is a co-founder of the Team Conasauga volunteer program, going back to the days when it was originally know as Team Cohutta. Larry has served as a Recreation, Wilderness and Trails Program Manager on the Chattahoochee National Forest since 1990, first on the old Cohutta Ranger District -- now called the Conasauga Ranger District. He began his Forester career in 1979 on the George Washington NF in Virginia.

“My proudest accomplishment is helping to build the volunteer program with my colleague Mike Davis from its humble beginnings to what is now one of the most successful volunteer programs in the country. The most fun I have on the job is working with all my friends on our monthly scheduled volunteer trail workdays.”