Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
U.S. Forest Service District Ranger Mike Rassbach will leave Sweet Home in July to take a job as head of the Walla Walla, Wash., Ranger District, part of the Umatilla National Forest.
He will move with two of his children and wife, Tracii Hickman, who works remotely for the Mt. Hood National Forest.
Hickman may continue to work for Hood River Ranger District, where she is a fisheries biologist. She also is looking at possible open positions at Walla Walla.
Rassbach moved to Sweet Home in 1998, when he succeeded retiring District Ranger Rolf Anderson.
Rassbach is taking the new job for multiple reasons, he said. He has been here nine years and is “kind of looking for a bit of a change.”
Two of his children are at middle school age, and if he is going to move, he wanted to do it before they enter middle school and high school.
They also will be closer to Hickman’s family in Idaho.
He had not been actively looking for a new position, he said, but when he saw this one come open, he applied for it.
Rassbach and Hickman will leave Sweet Home with pleasant memories and a sense of pride in the community.
“I think Sweet Home has been really good for me,” Rassbach said. “This was my first time as a district ranger. I’ve loved it.”
Rassbach previously had worked in the regional office and in other parts of the organization, he said, but “district ranger provides a unique opportunity.”
District rangers make local decisions and manage employees, something that provides a lot of variety, he said.
“We couldn’t have been in a better community for our family,” Hickman said.
She grew up in small towns, she said, and small communities have advantages.
“They know you and your children,” she said. “In a way it’s like an extended family.”
Hickman has been involved in economic development efforts in Sweet Home over the years, primarily through the Sweet Home Community Foundation.
“I’ve been so impressed with how people volunteer in this community,” she said, and that is the reason that Sweet Home has been able to keep moving forward.
“It’s been a wonderful place to raise a family,” Rassbach said, and in terms of his job, he is impressed with the number of partnerships the Forest Service has in the community, something that arises from the same mentality that Hickman described.
The Forest Service has been active in the Ames Creek Restoration Project and the Scenic Byway most recently, working with youth organizations, helping youth learn about work, the outdoors and more.
It’s an attitude that everyone is in it together, he said, and the people of this community will solve problems.
Hickman pointed to all the changes they have seen in the past nine years. Notably among them, she said, is the downtown beautification work.
“Sweet Home has some good leadership that has a vision of the future, and the people are willing to roll up their sleeves and work,” Rassbach said. “I would say that history has a history of success.”
They will miss Sweet Home, Hickman said. “You can’t replace friends. You can add new ones.”
They’ll maintain their friendships, but they will miss that day-to-day contact from living here, she said.
They’ll also miss the area, she said. “The backyard of Sweet Home is this incredibly beautiful place.”
That was apparent when they first arrived in Sweet Home and camped at House Rock Campground, she said.
Rassbach said he is looking forward to learning about a new district and issues in a different kind of area. “It’s kind of the spirit of learning, learning a new people, learning that environment and who the partners are.”
He leaves the district in capable hands, he said. “I feel really positive about the people that are here.”
The district has had some turnover the past couple of years, he said, but both the experienced employees and the new ones are doing a great job.
Most recently, “moving over here (the new district office) has been occupying my time,” he said. Like private companies affected by the decline of timber, the district office also was affected and downsized.
“It made sense to invest here,” he said. With almost $2 million into the new facility, “to me that’s a pretty good statement to a general commitment to the community.”
Among accomplishments, Rassbach is proud of the district’s work on the Ames Creek Restoration Project, bringing many of its neighbors together in a natural resource project.
It provided opportunities for middle school and high school children to get involved in natural resources, he said.
Hickman is a member of the Community Foundation Board of Directors. She is on the Oak Heights Parent-Teacher Club and volunteers in schools.
Rassbach is a Rotary Club board member and president of the Sweet Home Swim Club. He also coaches Boys and Girls Club baseball, ages 8 to 10.
They have two children at home, Elli, 11, and Lucas, 9. Jason Rassbach, 23, is a graduate of Sweet Home High School.
The district office will host an open house from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Thursday.