The Season 4 kickoff features Brett sitting down with his friend and former boss, David Rathke. David is currently the Executive Director of Resiliency Florida and Executive Director of Florida Association of Mitigation Bankers, but he has decades of experience working in many facets of state government. That experience includes working for former Congressman, Dan Miller; working as an aide for former Senate President, John McKay; a community affairs role with The Peace River Manasota River Water Supply Authority; a sixteen-year stint at the Southwest Florida Water Management District, culminating in his service as chief of staff; and leadership roles at the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission and the Florida Department of Management Services.
They discuss his early life in the outdoors; the gift of music given to him by his mother and grandmother; the winding path that led him to government service; how he has used his experiences to learn and create successes later; his theory for success in government relations which includes community and the importance of friendship; how he has overcome life-threatening strokes to end up better than ever; and of course, Brett makes David explain what a Hammer Dulcimer is.
You still have time to attend the 3rd Annual Florida Resilience Conference starting on September 11. To learn more and get registered, go here: https://floridaresilienceconference.org
To get involved in Resiliency Florida’s mission, visit their website here: https://www.resiliencyflorida.org
To learn more about the Florida Association of Mitigation Bankers, why not visit their website here: https://floridamitigationbanking.org
And because we know you’re going to look it up anyway, here’s the Smithsonian Institutes page on the Hammer/Hammered Dulcimer.
This episode is brought to by my friends at Resource Environmental Solutions (RES)
RES is the nation’s leader in ecological restoration, helping to restore Florida’s natural resources with water quality and stormwater solutions that offer communities guaranteed performance and outcomes. Check them out at www.res.us
This episode is also brought to you by my friends at Sea and Shoreline.
Sea and Shoreline is the Southeast’s leading innovator in protecting coastal communities from devastating storms and restoring ecosystems that once faced ecological collapse. Visit their website at www.Seaandshoreline.com.
Please be sure to check out the Florida Specifier Podcast hosted by Ryan Matthews and myself as part of a new venture where we’re striving to become Florida’s first source for environmental news, educational tools, and unique perspectives on our state’s natural environment and the events that shape it. To learn more about its flagship print publication and more, visit The Florida Specifier.
You can follow the show on LinkedIn and Instagram @flwaterpod, and you can reach me directly at FLwaterpod@gmail.com with your comments and suggestions for who and/or what you’d like to know more about.
Production of this podcast is by Lonely Fox Studios. Thanks to Karl Sorne for making the best of what he had to work with. And to David Barfield for the amazing graphics and technical assistance.
And finally, a very special thank you goes out to Bo Spring from the Bo Spring Band for giving permission to use his music for this podcast. The song is called Doing Work for Free, and you should check out the band live, or wherever great music is sold.
