Member Bios

Alex Nerad is originally from Aurora Illinois. He attended Waubonsee Community College in Illinois and Prescott College in Prescott Arizona. His degree is in History with a minor in Education and Leadership. He is an alumni of the National Outdoor Leadership School. Alex also worked for two seasons as a Wildland Fire Fighter on the San Juan National Forest. And has served as a corps member in SCA's Massachussetts Parks Americorps program. Alex has also led an SCA High School Crew.

During his offtime he enjoys mountain biking, fiction writing and learning new skills. He is excited to get into the Santa Fe backcountry. And "Eat green chili peppers until I explode."

My name is Christopher Gee, and I recently finished undergraduate studies at the University of California, at Davis with a degree in International Relations. I returned this past December from a semester of education abroad at Fudan University in the cosmopolitan city of Shanghai, China. My studies in conjunction with my time trekking around conjured me to realize the circumstance of the world’s poor and disenfranchised. Many of them suffer due to ecological and environmental concerns, leading me to seek hands-on experience in the conservation field with the goal of possibly working internationally in the future. But with no desire to return to school (for now – I think), I found myself hopping onto a plane bound for Idaho to serve with the SCA. Other things about me: I enjoy singing and classical music (having also majored in Music -Vocal Performance), science fiction, the free things in life, and serving at my church.

My name is Brett Boisjolie, I'm a 23 year old guy from Southampton, MA. My last name means "pretty woods" in French, which makes sense because I grew up on a Christmas tree farm and live for the outdoors. Since graduating from Stonehill College near Boston last May, I've been able to do some pretty solid adventuring. I spent last summer trudging through swamps, hiking through thorn bushes and swimming through rivers as a surveyor on a massive field study for The Nature Conservancy's Connecticut River program focusing on the link between altered hydrology and floodplain ecosystems. This past winter I was a member of a fire ecology strike team - a small 3-person nomadic team who traveled throughout Georgia assisting in, planning, and leading prescribed burns in various forest lands. I spent numerous days riding on ATVs with flamethrowers attached, running from raging head fires, taking down burning snags with chainsaws and other such ridiculous "this is my JOB?!" moments. My work has given me an understanding of and passion for imperiled forest types, and this opportunity in Idaho represents the ideal opportunity to learn more about forestry in order to further my life work in the field of environmental conservation.

My name is Nellie A. Bunce. I know a little bit about a lot of things and a lot about a few things. My favorite parts of life are my family, whitewater rafting, and my dog Yeti (better known as THE Yeti). I believe in picking up litter whenever and wherever you see it. I love a good cup of coffee and getting up early. I have traveled extensively throughout my life and moved around a great deal growing up. I hope one day to change the world but until then will let the world continue to change me.

I grew up in the same town my entire life, where there weren't too many outdoor activities besides soccer, baseball, and the occasional cub scout camping trip. And I did the same thing that many of my friends did- went to school, got a normal restaurant job, earned money for college, and eventually graduated from college. However, I had recognized early on that the environment was pretty important to me, as I discovered the literature on global warming in the mid-90's and became a vegetarian early on. This is the first time I have had a prolonged period to devote to something non-school related, and the Salmon-Challis intro described the job as good for those who needed to get their hands dirty; thusly, I took the job.