April 1, 2014
Five New Members Join RMEF Board of Directors
MISSOULA, Mont.—The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation welcomes five new members to its Board of Directors. They are Phillip Barrett, Mike Baugh, Andrew Hoxsey, Bill Madison and Don Moss.
“The incoming members offer a wide skill set that will benefit our organization as a whole,” said David Allen, RMEF president and CEO. “The success in their individual professional fields translates well to our shared goal of ensuring the future of elk, other wildlife, their habitat and our hunting heritage.”
“These five men not only showed their dedication and allegiance to RMEF’s mission in the past but already stepped up for its future,” said Lee Swanson, RMEF chairman of the board. “They recently offered valuable input and guidance as the board mapped out RMEF’s strategic plan for the next five years.”
RMEF Board of Director bios:
Philip Barrett is the vice president of Finance for Chick-fil-A, Inc. An RMEF member for more than 25 years, Barrett went on his first elk hunt in 1984. Since then, he became a Life Member, Habitat Council member and currently serves as a volunteer. He is also the chairman of the board of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes' Outdoors Ministry and serves as a national board member of the Catch-A-Dream Foundation. Barrett lives in Newnan, Georgia.
“RMEF is the premier conservation organization created to ensure that future generations will be able to view and enjoy the magnificent beauty of God's creation,” said Barrett. “I will work to continue the growth of our endowments and increase the membership by not only telling the story but by finding more ways to show the benefits to elk and habitat that have been achieved in traditional elk states as well as areas that have and will become new elk territory.”
Mike Baugh is the president of Darcova Inc. and Rocky Mountain Rod Inc. He is an avid outdoorsman and hunter. Baugh has a lengthy RMEF resume dating back to the organization’s founding in 1984. As a 30-year member Baugh served as a committee volunteer, district chair, Montana state co-chair, regional chair and chairman of the state and regional chairs. He is also an RMEF Life Member and a long-time volunteer bowhunter education instructor. He lives in Molt, Montana.
“I’m really excited to serve in this new role and I will always remain an outspoken advocate for the volunteers and their mission fundraising efforts,” said Baugh. “Our legacy should be to leave more elk country for all future generations and to ensure that their habitat is in better condition tomorrow than today. Just as important is to continue to educate people about conservation and our hunting heritage.”
Andrew Hoxsey is the managing partner of the Napa Wine Company and Yount Mill Vineyards. A fourth generation grape grower, he also enjoys spending time hunting. Hoxsey is a Life Member and Habitat Council member who served two previous terms on the RMEF Board of Directors (2002-2005 and 2005-2008) and will now serve as a past board member representative. He also serves in several other business and community positions. He lives in Oakville, California.
“RMEF is a premiere wildlife group and a proven leader in placing dollars on the ground and the management of donated easements. I am proud to be associated with the industry leader in this area,” said Hoxsey. “The Board has changed substantially over the last seven years and I would like to add inputs from previous boards about what worked really well and where we can do better.”
Bill Madison has more than 38 years of experience in the insurance business and is the owner of Modoc Insurance. He joined RMEF shortly after his first elk hunt in 1985. Madison founded the RMEF Warner Mountain Chapter and served as its chair until 2001. He is also a Life Member and a member of the Habitat Council. He also served on numerous local boards and organizations. Madison lives in Alturas, California.
“I am thrilled to serve on the board of one of this nation's premier conservation organizations,” said Madison. “During the past year, while serving on the Lands and Conservation Committee, I have honestly reflected on how Teddy Roosevelt, Aldo Leopold and many others felt in the infancy of conserving the lands of our nation. I look forward to working with a group that not only focuses on habitat and conservation funding, but also understands and addresses the issues faced by today’s sportsman.”
Don Moss is the owner of Don Moss Enterprises General Contractor, Strike Back wildland fire services and is co-owner of S Bar S Ranches Inc. A hunter and outdoorsman, Moss spent years as an RMEF volunteer including service as founder, past chair and committee member of the Central Oregon Chapter and was the first Oregon state chair. He is also an RMEF Life Member and a Habitat Council member. Moss lives in Dayville, Oregon.
“It is a great honor to be appointed as a board of director’s member to the RMEF and to be in the company of the individuals who have a voice in the direction and guidance of one of the greatest wildlife conservation organizations ever,” said Moss. “RMEF is about friendship and camaraderie built over nearly thirty years of involvement in the organization. It is about people with such diverse backgrounds and a wide variety of geographic locations. All of whom have made personal commitments to support the mission of the organization.”
RMEF currently has 26 board members who live in 13 different states. The new board members began their terms in February 2014.