It was just a day or two after the coldest days of the cold spell when I had the opportunity to interview Barbara Boyle, the new Tamarac Refuge Manager. Since she was presently with the Fish and Wildlife Service in Louisiana, the burning question was, "What was there about the Tamarac Refuge Manager position that made you want to apply?"

Barbara replied that there were several reasons. First, was the professional reason. She wanted to advance her career and be in a refuge situation where the refuge direction was more focused. In Louisiana, she was a deputy manager at a refuge system that encompassed seven refuges, some rural and some urban, near New Orleans. There were "so many issues that it was difficult to address any one thoroughly," she said. "I was interested in working at a refuge where the focus could be the community" surrounding the refuge.

In addition, she and her family love outdoor winter activities, including skiing. Also, they have wanted to come to the area because they have relatives in Minnesota. Barbara’s husband, Peter, is a graduate of Bemidji State University.

Although Barbara does not come to Tamarac with a set of predetermined goals, she would like to "see community involvement increased." One tactic she would like to try is pairing the current Tamarac Interpretive Association with a "Friends (of the Refuge) Mentoring Group" from another area of the country.  She believes that volunteers are an important extension of the Refuge staff, but that you have to be careful not to over extend the volunteers and extinguish their enthusiasm. A Friends Mentoring Group helps evaluate volunteer strengths and weaknesses and then recommends a redirection, if necessary, of programming to meet the abilities of the volunteers.  The goal is to direct the programming in such a way so that it capitalizes on the strengths of the volunteers.

Another area Barbara will be looking into is how to promote a more biological focus for the Refuge, with increasing research as a possibility. "Tamarac Refuge is in an important location," she said, "because it is situated just north of two watersheds and at the intersection of three different habitats."

Barbara grew up in Vienna, Virginia and graduated from the University of Georgia with a Wildlife degree. She has worked for the Fish and Wildlife Service for 20 years having positions in Alaska and Louisiana. Her work has centered on such concerns as gas and oil, waterfowl, passerine and large mammals, like caribou and moose.

Barbara assumes her duties at the Tamarac on February 7. Her husband and children, 12, 10 and 6, will arrive at the end of the school year.

She sees her duties as complex. "The challenge of the Refuge System is to improve the visibility of the facility - that is, develop its user base, but not so much that the users love it to death," she mused.