‘Passionate about outdoors’

MT. PLEASANT - One of Caleb Waters' favorite things to do is simply sit in nature and watch the world come alive.

'I got to see the sunlight coming up through the trees, the birds started chirping like crazy. Deer were meandering past me - they didn't even know I was there. I just try to sit there and take it all in,” he said, describing a recent hunting trip.

Now, as the Henry County native and nature lover, takes on the role of Henry County Conservation director, he hopes to share his passion for the outdoors with everyone else in the county.

Waters assumed the position in October and described his new role as 'a dream job,” taking over after longtime department director, John Pullis, retired.

The new director, who grew up on a family farm in Henry County, has an extensive background in conservation. The 33-year-old graduated from Upper Iowa University with a bachelors in conservation management and worked as the watershed coordinator at Lake Geode for nine-and-a-half years.

Before taking on the position, Waters served on the county's conservation board as acting-president. Waters said serving on the board helped him understand how the department is run and exposed him to the financial side of the job.

As the director, Waters will oversee the operations and maintenance of all county parks, work with the conservation board and department staff to make decisions and improvements to county parks and maintain a budget for the department.

'I'm passionate about the outdoors and improving the land for the general public,” he said.

Waters credits a lot of his interest and passion for nature to growing up on a farm.

'I was the fourth-generation that grew up on my family farm. A lot of times, if I wasn't helping around the farm, I was doing some sort of outdoor activity - riding four-wheelers or hunting,” he said.

Waters added he was always 'intrigued by wildlife,” and has made it one of his goals as director to manage county parks and recreation areas to encourage more natural wildlife for southeast Iowans to enjoy while recreating on county property.

'My main focus is maintaining what we have - the Nature Center, cabins, campgrounds and public hunting areas,” he said.

'We have a lot of great amenities … that just need some TLC, a new roof, maybe a new coat of paint,” he added.

Having grown up on a farm with access to hunting grounds, Waters said he hopes to provide that same experience to others in the county who may not have private property where they can hunt.

'There are a lot of people who don't have that same opportunity and that's where the public hunting comes in. People can hunt for free and get their outdoor fix,” he said.

Waters added his goal is 'to get people into the outdoors and enjoy the same passion” that he has for nature.

The director said that since the pandemic has started, he has seen an increase in people 'getting outside.”

'I'm excited to see people getting out and using our public areas,” he said.

As director, Waters not only wants to maintain county parks and create good recreating opportunities for Southeast Iowans but also hopes to involve local residents in park projects.

'I'd really like to get the community out here, have some volunteer work days on minor projects,” he said.

Looking forward, Waters hopes his department can encourage more people to explore the outdoors and enjoy more time among nature.

'I want to be making it more clear to the citizens of Southeast Iowa, not just Henry County, of the recreation opportunities that we have here,” he said.