On Monday 4 January 1999 – now 20 year ago – I started my first day working at Parks Victoria.

My first role was as a project marketing officer based in a shed at what was then a regional office at Brimbank Park. I was only meant to be there 8 weeks but one job led to another and by the end of the year I’d landed a contract role which led to my dream job as a Regional Marketing and Communications Officer.

While my career with Parks Victoria has certainly had it’s ups and downs I’ve had some really good times and there are plenty of great career highlights and memories I’m so grateful for.

I’ve worked with some of the most incredible people… rangers… who commit their lives – and sometimes put their lives on the line – to protect and look after our precious parks and waterways for us all to enjoy.

I’ve worked with some of my favourite places on the planet and experienced many places I didn’t know existed.

The first fire I ever worked at was in my favourite park – Wilson’s Promontory National Park. I was thrown in the deep end but it was a fantastic experience. Since then I’ve seen the incredible skills, knowledge and experience of our fire crews first hand through many fires I’ve worked at including the 2009 Black Saturday fires. Our fire teams across Victoria are seriously amazing.

After 15 years of boat shows and producing our popular waterproof boating guides I’ve learnt more about boats and fishing than I’ll ever need to know (I probably should get a boat license one day… I’ll blitz the test). I may have even felt a little intimidated when ex AFL footy player Dipper banged an angry fist on my boat show desk. A little bit of customer service on my part and he left with a glossy new boat guide and a smile on his face.

Connecting people with our parks and waterways comes in many forms, especially when it comes to signage. Whether it’s telling interpretive stories, helping people know where they are or providing clear and simple information about regulations and warnings, there’s not much I haven’t done in signage. I’ve lost track of how many signs I’ve removed, replaced and installed but it would have to be 1000’s by now.

Working directly with media for well over 10 years has enabled me to lead pier safety campaigns with one of the most inspirational people I know Nazim Erderm and I’ve had the opportunity to work with one of my favourite TV Shows Gardening Australia on more than one occasion. Although I think I’ve become quite cynical about media, I’ve worked with 100’s of journalists over the years and there are some great ones out there whom I really respect and enjoy working with. We’ve shared many great stories on the screen and in print.

One of the best things about Parks Victoria though is it’s people. There’s not many work places these days where 20 years is still not that senior within the organisation and I think we’re better for it. The incredible passion, knowledge and experience I’ve been exposed to over 20 years is nothing short of incredible. It’s the people and the characters I’ve met that I think I value the most.

There’s so many people who have been highly influential and critical to my career at Parks Victoria that I would love to thank as I reflect… but there’s far too many to mention here. So perhaps my mission this year is one of gratitude. Maybe I can track down and thank those who got me here.

20 years on and with too many career highlights to mention, it’s been a fantastic ride so far. I’m looking forward to seeing how the next 20 years unfold.