Friends welcome new executive director

Sept. 12, 2006

The Friends of the Cedar River Watershed announces it has hired Sue Rooney as its new Executive Director. She starts in the position Sept. 20, 2006.

In this role, Rooney will be responsible for overseeing all aspects of the Friends organization, including recruiting volunteers, working with the board of directors, supervising three part-time employees, managing partnerships and budgeting and fundraising.

Rooney was hired following a long and thorough search process by a search committee, said Kathleen Dowd-Gailey, president of the Board of Directors.

"We worked very hard to find the right person – one who is thoughtful, hard working, proactive, forward thinking, a strong and compassionate leader, and one who will be a solid public face for the organization for what I hope is many years to come," Dowd-Gailey said. "I believe we have found all of this in Sue."

Rooney comes from American Safari Cruises where she has served as the Operations & Product Development Manager for the past six years. Combined with her previous job at Cruise West, Rooney brings seventeen years of direct experience in the operational management of nature and culture-based cruises. In these positions, Rooney has worked as a front-line customer service representative, a naturalist, crew supervisor, interpretive programs supervisor, and an operations/product manager.

She has a background in the natural sciences including a B.S. in Recreation Management from Colorado State University, and a Northwest Environmental Issues certificate from the Mountaineers. In addition she has served as a Beach Naturalist (currently), as a volunteer guide with Seattle Inner City Outings, and as a Volunteer Mountain Guide for Beyond Malibu. 

The Friends of the Cedar River Watershed (FCRW) is a private, non-profit organization incorporated in 1996 and dedicated to the protection and restoration of the Cedar River Watershed, an ecological preserve that is source of drinking water to more than a million greater Seattle area residents.