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Ginger Gilmore
2001 Engineering Technician of the Year

Ginger Gilmore is a road development engineer for the Colville National Forest transportation systems and development staff from Region 6 in Washington State. Ginger is an acknowledged technical expert in the contracting arena and a recognized leader in furthering civil rights efforts throughout the USDA Forest Service. As an outstanding employee who has risen through the ranks to her current professional responsibilities, Ginger's willingness to share her knowledge and experience and her ability to effectively manage challenging projects with limited staff and funding are invaluable in mentoring others and in promoting effective training and career opportunities for all USDA Forest Service employees.

Several certificates of merit in 1983 punctuated Ginger's odyssey from entry level employee to well-respected professional. She was recognized for outstanding performance in testing/debugging the Contract Information Management System (CIMS) and data entry operations and by the regional office for exceptional achievement and contributions assisting in developing, piloting, and implementing CIMS. In 1987 Ginger received the People Serving People Award for planning and executing the "Challenging the Future" conference. She earned a 1989 certificate for planning and executing the "Strength Through Diversity" conference.

From the 1990s to the present, Ginger continues to maintain her high standards. She earned certificates of merit for dedication in the 1991 formation of the Child Care Facility for the Colville National Forest, for the quantity and quality of her work in 1994 and 1996, for planning support of the Bead Lake Boat Launch in 1995, for conducting contract administration training in 2000 and 2001 as a cadre member of E63, for participating on the Orient School Curriculum Committee and School Improvement Team in 2000, and for furthering forest civil rights in 2001.

Ginger's ability to resolve complex problems has contributed greatly to the successful operation of the Colville National Forest, Region 6, and other forests in engineering and other disciplines. Her mentoring has enabled the Colville National Forest to manage one of Region 6's largest road-related timber programs. Ginger supervises a small staff of student employees and technicians with limited experience in planning, implementing, and administering road maintenance that encompasses road development for the entire forest. She has strengthened the program through applying development skills and mentoring, despite downsizing, attrition, series and program changes, and new employees from outside the USDA Forest Service. She represents the forest's timber resource group in establishing targets and priorities.

Her small staff supports the entire Colville National Forest timber program through efforts in the transportation systems and development section. In FY 1999 the Colville National Forest development section constructed 17.7 miles of new road and reconstructed 98.3 miles; in FY 2000 the section constructed 18.5 miles of new road and reconstructed 113.5 miles. None of this new and reconstructed development was designated as "Roadless."

As a testimonial to her contracting expertise, Ginger has served for more than 5 years as a recognized member of the Regional Engineering Cadre Team, which is responsible for teaching standard procedures and techniques in construction contract administration. She has also served on the Regional Contract Road Implementation Cadre Team for 6 years.

Ginger has applied her keen knowledge of contracting principles to understanding and implementing recommendations of the regional geotechnical engineer in forest designs and contract packages. Her efforts in performing scoping, issue identification, alternative development, and implementation of the Bead Lake Recreation Site and the Scatter Creek Environmental Assessment are examples of how her technical skills complement her contracting ability. By conducting effective time and equipment studies, Ginger buttresses her ability to determine appropriate cost estimate standards, contract modifications, and design changes for road construction projects.

She has continued to learn, apply, and share new software and hardware technology skills with Colville, Okanogan, and Wenatchee National Forest employees. Ginger's technology support ranges from participating in beta testing new software to effectively training others for applications ranging from the CIMS program to the Forest Level Road Design System (FLRDS); participating as a team member in creating the Transportation Information System (TIS) user's guide; and contributing technical knowledge, communication skills, and a thoughtful perspective while holding full membership rights in a bridge position on the Forest Leadership Team from 1991 to 1993.

Ginger's technical ability does not overshadow her concern for fellow employees. She has championed regional and forest civil rights efforts for many years as an individual, as a member of the Regional Civil Rights Action Group for 3 years, and as chairperson of that group for one of those years. Ginger was also the Federal Women's Program Manager. As training coordinator for the forest engineering program, she encouraged the Regional Director of Engineering to convert an employee from a technician to a professional series after successful completion of technical educational training. She continues to foster employee development opportunities for successful careers through mentoring and providing work experience.

Ginger draws on 20 years of designing road and drainage structures experience to train and mentor other road designers in the region and the forest. She continues to enrich her experience by completing full training to achieve a professional understanding of the design criteria of Infish, the Clean Water Act (CWA), Best Management Practices (BMP), the Department of Ecology's Memorandum of Agreement with the USDA Forest Service, and the Memorandum of Understanding with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). Ginger represents engineering interests on interdisciplinary NEPA teams. She has expanded her expertise beyond her program area to encompass the mineral materials program. Despite the absence of a working geology program, she works to ensure safe, practical, development plans by learning to identify field situations that require geotechnical expertise.

Since 1999, Ginger has been instrumental in dramatically improving the Colville National Forest Engineering Certification Program. She has personally mentored and trained forest employees to achieve an almost 100 percent passing rate in 2001, the highest percentage of forest employees to successfully pass the National Engineering Certification Program exams in the region. Ginger's followup assignment to initiate, complete, and coordinate a regional project to replicate certification successes on a larger scale increased the passing rate of the Engineering Representative (ER) certification test from 35 percent in FY 2000 to 80 percent in FY 2001.

Away from the office, Ginger helps work a cattle ranch with her husband and three children. She is an active member of the Orient School Curriculum Committee and School Improvement Team and a member of Bobcat Boosters, which initiates fundraisers to support local children.

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