Press Release

Inyo National Forest Welcomes New Mono Lake District Ranger

BISHOP, CA August 16, 2021 —The Inyo National Forest warmly welcomes Stephanie Heller as the
new Mono Lake District Ranger.
Stephanie is originally from Petroleum, Indiana. She moved to Lake Tahoe in 1999 to spend a year as
an AmeriCorps member. At the end of that year, Stephanie was not ready to leave the natural beauty of
Lake Tahoe behind, so started her Forest Service career as a 30-day emergency hire at the front desk
of the Lake Tahoe Basin’s Supervisors Office.
She worked her way up from a seasonal wildlife biologist to a permanent hydrologist, discovering her
love for the land and the agency along the way. Most of her career has been with the Lake Tahoe Basin
Management Unit’s Restoration Program, where she focused on planning, designing, and implementing
stream and meadow restoration projects.
Most recently she has been the acting District Ranger on the Santa Barbara Ranger District on the Los
Padres National Forest.
Stephanie and her partner David have enjoyed recreating on the Inyo National Forest for many years. “I
am excited to start this new chapter in such an amazing forest,” Stephanie said. “I look forward to
working with our partners to tackle the many complex issues this forest faces.”

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