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The Cumbia family, left to right, Philip,
Christy, Dean, Connie, and William. |
Dean Cumbia Recognized for Distinguished Service
The Distinguished Service Award was
established by VFA to recognize individuals, groups or
entities that have made significant, long lasting
contributions to Virginia’s forest-based community. The
recipient must be someone who has demonstrated leadership
and a positive impact on Virginia’s forest resources. The
recipient must also have a history of a personal commitment
to the enhancement of Virginia’s forest resources and have
the qualities of integrity and good citizenship.
This year’s recipient is Dean Cumbia, who currently serves
as Director of Forest Resource Management for the Department
of Forestry. Dean began his forestry career with Continental
Forest Industries in 1983, after receiving a B.S. in
Forestry and Wildlife Management from Virginia Tech. He has
served for many years as a member of the Board of Directors
of this organization and has been a tireless member of the
Virginia Forests Magazine Editorial Committee. He has been a
member of the Virginia Forestry Association since 1980.
Dean played an integral part in introducing VFA’s current
president, John Burke, to the importance of forestry and the
Virginia Forestry Association. When Mr. Burke’s father
passed away in 1990, Dean was there to aid in the
continuation of a forest legacy by aiding in the decision
process of forest management, including replanting some
parcels that had just previously been harvested.
Dean is tireless in his commitment to people, to sound
forestry and to the organizations and institutions that
allow us to wisely manage, harvest and profit from our
forest resources in Virginia. I think we can all agree with
the sentiments of John Burke’s father-in-law when he
remarked that “the world needs more people like Dean.”
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Billy Newman
is Virginia 2007 Inspector Of The Year
 The
green and white diamond shaped Tree Farm sign displayed on
forestlands throughout Virginia signals that the landowner
is committed to sustaining the forest. The four sides of the
sign tell the story of how a thriving forest provides clean
water, wood products, wildlife habitat, and recreational
benefits. The American Tree Farm System is committed to
sustaining forestland by establishing standards for property
owners and requiring that a professional forester volunteer
makes an on the ground inspections in a five-year rotation.
These inspections are a detailed look at the management of
each farm and Billy Newman is one of the volunteer
inspectors who has performed more than 100 tree farm
inspections during his professional forestry career. The
Virginia Tree Farm Committee recognizes this achievement and
awarded Billy the 2007 Inspector of the year at the Virginia
Forestry Association 2007 Annual Convention. Fifty is
significant because it indicates that the professional
forester is diligent in educating the private landowner
about the benefits of sustainable forest management.
Billy Newman lives in Shipman, Virginia. His commitment to
forestry began as a young man at Carroll County High School.
He matriculated to Wytheville Community College and Virginia
Tech where he received a bachelor’s degree in Forestry and
Wildlife Resources. He earned a master’s degree from Averett
University.
His professional career began with the Virginia Department
of Forestry as the Area Forester for Nelson County. He has
also worked for Smurfit-Stone Container Corp. as the
Procurement Forester in central Virginia. Billy is a
Certified Forester through the Society of American Foresters
and is a Life Member of the Virginia Forestry Association.
Billy started his forest consulting company EnvirFor LLC in
2000. Billy also serves on the Virginia Tree Farm Committee
as the Chairman of Region 4 and continues to perform Tree
Farm inspections.
VFA and Virginia Tree Farm Committee congratulate Billy
Newman for his contributions to sustainable forestry
management through the American Tree Farm System.
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