The UAA is proud to honor and congratulate Operations Manager Diona Neeser and Member Services Manager Renée Phillips as winners of the UAA President’s Award for 2023. How did UAA leadership effectively hide this news from both winners? Get to know these professionals and what working for UAA behind-the-scenes means to them.
We imagine you were knocked out of your chair when the announcement came at Trees & Utilities that you were the winners of the President’s Award.
Diona: “I was extremely surprised, considering I am the one that processes all of the awards and have done so for years. I am usually the one who springs the news on the winners. Tim Walsh got me good, that is for sure.”
Renée: “I was incredibly surprised. In fact, I still think it might be an elaborate prank.”
How were Tim Walsh, Dennis Fallon and others able to keep this a secret?
Diona: “I am not really sure to be honest. I thought Craig Kelly (Principal Land Consultant – Land Operations, Natural Resource Management, PG&E) was this year’s recipient and was so excited for him. I even arranged to have his wife come to the luncheon ceremony. I am still shocked! Tim, you did well, my friend.”
Renée: “From what I understand, Tim brought Craig in on the secret. Diona and I thought that Craig was getting the award, so we ordered a plaque for him. In the meantime, Tim had the two plaques for Diona and me made on his own. You know, I was a little annoyed before the luncheon and awards ceremony because Tim had not gotten his speech to me for the winner introduction. We were fooled.”
Share the story about what led you into the industry and to UAA?
Diona: “I started in the industry when my youngest started second grade. I was hired as director of Rainbow Tree Care’s lawncare division. That led to me eventually overseeing the tree care division, the holiday lighting and scientific client services as well.
“I was also on the original brainstorm creation committee for Saluting Branches. While on my way to our first-ever event at Fort Snelling, Minnesota, I was in a really bad car accident. My life changed in a blink of an eye. I was out of work and recovering for several months. During that time, our good friend Nelsen Money called me and encouraged me to apply for the Operations Manager position at UAA, where my husband, Jim Neeser, was treasurer. The rest, as they say, is history.”
Renée: “I was friends with a UAA member (Joe Marshall, now retired from ACRT) and he sent me the job posting. I was working for another membership association at the time and the jobs were similar. He encouraged me to apply for the job, even though I didn’t know anything about a utility arborist!”
During those early days working for the UAA, did you know this is where you wanted to be?
Diona: “To be honest the first few days (weeks and months) were tough for various reasons. There were a lot of changes happening. Former Executive Director Phil Charlton and I were re-creating so many things, and that is what I loved about the job. I was a part of something new. As my friend Will Nutter once said to me early on, “Here is your life preserver. Now let’s swim for shore!”
Renée: “We are a small team, and Diona was very helpful and thorough with the onboarding. Everyone I worked with on our committees was very welcoming and understood that I was coming from a different working environment and was patient with me.”
What do you love most about your career?
Diona: “It is cliché, but it’s the people. The people in this industry as a whole are just the greatest, salt of the earth, real people. There are so many in this industry that I have a high level of respect and admiration for.”
Renée: “I like that that the UAA is so member-driven and our members are generous with their own time to serve as volunteers. I enjoy working for the UAA. There are many different parts to this job, so there is always variety in what I do. The work with and for good people makes it all worthwhile.”
If there’s one piece of advice that you could give a young person thinking about entering the UA industry today, what would it be?
Diona: “Get Connected. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. And when one door closes, don’t just crack the next one open. Blast through it and jump in!”
Cindy is the Senior Director, Vegetation Management Services and she manages departments responsible for maintaining vegetation in REC’s rights-of-way with the goal of reducing exposure of the electric grid to tree caused outages while encouraging habitat and species diversity. Cindy also has a consulting business, EcoAcumen, LLC that focuses on residential, commercial and government clients.
Kimberly Laing has had an exciting career in the energy industry, gaining valuable experience in various areas for almost 20 years. During her career, she has worked with numerous customers worldwide in a diverse cross-disciplined technical environment. She has extensive experience working with utilities, asset owners, equipment manufacturers, and consultants to facilitate transmission and distribution projects. Kimberly is particularly passionate about Utility Vegetation Management and its vital role in delivering safe and reliable power.
Josh Beaver is currently senior vice president of Eocene Environmental Group, a utility vegetation management (UVM) consulting and operations firm. Josh has more than two decades of experience within the UVM industry. He is currently responsible for relationship management and oversight of long-term UVM contracts throughout the United States and Canada. He considers customer and community communication to be vital aspects of his role, and he has a proven record of success working with utilities.
Sam joins the UAA crew with over a decade of non-profit experience behind her. As our Partnership Coordinator, her focused efforts on building relationships with diverse funders will include crafting proposals, cultivating connections, and cohesively earning dedicated sponsors to support the sustainability of UAA substantially and empowering our programs. Well equipped with professional skills which include program development, public speaking, proposal writing, donor relations, working with diverse stakeholders, coalition building, and public-facing service. Sam’s educational background includes a BS in Animal Ecology with a minor in Animal Science, and a MA in Philanthropy and Non-profit Development.
Sara Dreiser is a Senior Program Manager with ComEd. She works with a team to oversee ComEd’s routine cycle maintenance and ComEd’s interruption investigation programs. She has been working in the Vegetation Management industry for close to 15 years.
Matt Goff is a Transmission Vegetation Manager at Georgia Power Company. He lives in Brookhaven, GA with his wife, two daughters, and the family’s two dogs Sam, and Payton. For leisure, he enjoys sports with his family, bird hunting, and salt-water fishing.Matt holds a BSFR from the University of Georgia in Forest Resource Management and he graduated in 1997. He has worked in the vegetation management industry for 26 years. His work experience includes six years as a procurement forester for a forest products manufacturer, and 20 years in the utility vegetation management industry with Georgia Power.
Brandon graduated from Minnesota State University–Mankato with a B.S. in Geography. Brandon has been with Rainbow Tree Company since 2009 and has gained experience in several roles, including Business Developer for our utility products division, GIS Tree Inventory Analyst, and Technical Arborist. Brandon has been the Director of VM Services, the fastest growing division inRainbow Tree Company, since 2012.
A winner of the David H Nabi Award for dedication and service, Dr. Robert Vanderhoof earned his Ph.D. from the College of Forest Resources at Mississippi State University in 1995. A veteran natural resource manager, Robert spent 15 years as Florida’s Deer Management Section Chief during which time he coordinated range management activities across Florida’s seven-million-acre wildlife management area system.
Amanda Opp, Certified Utility Vegetation Management Professional Flathead Electric Cooperative, Integrated Services Manager, University of Wisconsin Stevens Point, Course Facilitator
Jim Neeser is a business developer for the Davey Resource Group, a division of the Davey Tree Expert Company. Jim primarily works with utility companies to provide innovative and customized solutions. Jim earned his AA from Vermillion Community College in 1997 and his BS in Forestry with an emphasis on Hydrology and Soils from the University of Minnesota in 2000. Jim is an ISA Certified Arborist with the Utility Specialist endorsement. Jim has been involved in the UAA training committee for nearly a decade as a past chairman and is currently the treasurer and Champion of the finance committee. Jim spent his first 7 years in the industry as a field arborist in the commercial and utility markets. The last 10 years, Jim has been working with utility companies to enhance their Integrated Vegetation Management programs. Jim’s other interests include spending time with his family, sports, hiking, fishing and coin collecting. Jim is also active with the Boy Scouts of America as an Eagle Scout. Jim lives in Forest Lake, MN with his wife and 2 children.
Adam’s experience includes leading business development strategies for a utility vegetation management consulting firm, vegetation management field operations at two major investor-owned utilities in the southeastern US, project management at a variety of utilities in the mid-Atlantic and southeastern regions, and vegetation management program development and assessments across the country. His utility arboricultural experience provides a broad understanding of the many different methods used to create a successful utility right-of-way, vegetation management program, including remote sensing, data analytics, optimization, and the utilization of third-party consulting foresters for planning and auditing duties.
Craig works for Pacific Gas and Electric as a Principal Program Manager in Land Management. His career spans 30 years in the utility industry serving numerous roles. He is an ISA Certified Arborist, Utility Specialist, and hold his TRAQ and is a TCIA Certified TreeCare Safety Professional. Craig has been engaged and involved in the UAA for many years, starting back in 2008. He then wanted more so he ran for UAA President and was elected in 2014. Today, Craig looks back over his 30-year career and wouldn’t change a thing, he’s made life-long friends and considers many as mentors. He also claims he would not be where is in his career if it weren’t for these people, and pledges to pay it forward to support others in their success.
Erin Creekmur has been in the UVM industry for over 20 years. After graduating with a Bachelors in Botany from Northern Arizona University she relocated to Northern California to start her professional career. Starting as a consulting utility pre-inspector with Western ECI she quickly moving up to the ranks to Supervisor under the tutelage of folks like Nelson Money. In 2004, Erin joined PG&E as a Quality Assurance Auditor for the VM program. Eventually becoming the Program Manager for the North Coast Division, helping stand up the beginnings of CEMA as the Emergency Drought Response Initiative Lead for the Enhanced Inspection & Mitigation Program, targeting off-cycle hazard trees across the system. In 2015, Erin moved back to her home state of Arizona and took the role of Division Supervisor with Arizona Public Service, managing both transmission and distribution UVM programs out of the Flagstaff area. As part of her role with APS Forestry Fire and Resource Management Department, Erin had responsibility for creating a Hazard Tree Mitigation program. maintaining APS’s ROW Stewardship Accreditation, FERC reporting, and the Transmission Lidar program. In 2021, Erin took a shift in her career and is now Supervising the Customer Construction and Design team for APS, expanding her overall understanding of the Utility industry. Erin continues to maintain her ISA Utility Specialist Certification and TRAQ. She has also completed certifications in both Six Sigma and Lean Sigma Green Belt through accredited universities. In addition to her current service on the UAA Board of Directors, Erin spent the last 6 years as an officer with the Arboretum at Flagstaff Board of Directors. In her free time, you can find Erin in the woods taking pictures of native plants and beautiful western landscapes.
Fallon is a Utility Arborist and Executive Director of the Utility Arborist Association. Prior to his current role he was responsible for leading vegetation management programs across several upper Midwest states on behalf of a large investor-owned utility. He’s also been an adjunct professor at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, where he facilitated the 
Renée is our Member Services Manager. She is available to UAA members for questions on committee assignments, educational opportunities, scholarships, CEU questions, and any other assistance.
Diona has been with the Utility Arborist Association (UAA) since December 2015 and has worked in various capacities within the organization.