Meet the Team: Sarah Brau
Sarah Brau is back for her second season with Teton County Weed and Pest! Last year she joined us with experience in this line of work. Sarah caught on quickly, learned the invasive plants in Teton County, showed initiative on projects, and fit right in at TCWP—now she’s one of our newest crew leads. Hear all about her day-to-day on the job, least favorite weed, hobbies, and wildlife encounters:
Q: Where did you grow up and what brought you to TCWP?
A: Nashville, TN. I heard about this job through a coworker when I did environmental restoration work in Illinois.
Q: What’s your current role at TCWP?
A: Highway Crew Lead
Q: What did this week look like for you?
A: This past week I worked with one other person spraying noxious weeds (mainly spotted knapweed, dalmatian toadflax, and musk thistle) along WY 390 and Spring Gulch Road.
Q: Best parts of the job?
A: Being outside all day and telling people the different weeds we are spraying!
Q: The biggest challenges of the job?
A: It’s a challenge knowing all the weeds and then seeing them when I’m hiking, camping, or even just on a walk.
Q: What have you learned between your first year at TCWP and now?
A: I’ve learned how interested the community is in learning about different weeds and how they can help us.
Q: Best memory while working at TCWP?
A: Spraying the bike path in the Grand Teton National Park—because I got to look at the Tetons all day!
Q: If you could get rid of one weed in Teton County, what would it be?
A: Houndstongue. The seeds are just so annoying!
Q: What do you want every member of Teton County to learn from your work at TCWP?
A: I hope that they know our work is benefiting the environment and this community by removing invasive species to allow the beautiful native species to thrive.
Q: Coolest wildlife experience in the field?
A: One time while working on the National Elk Refuge, a coworker and I were driving the UTV back to our truck at the end of the day; and a pronghorn was laying down on the two-track we needed to take! We had to wait around ten minutes for it to get off.
Q: What is your favorite part of living in Jackson?
A: I love being so close to a national park and have the opportunity to do new hikes every weekend. Also, Jackson is a small town so I appreciate the strong sense of community.
Q: Hobbies?
A: I like to hike, swim, ski, read, cook, make pottery, and listen to Taylor Swift <3
We’re glad to have Sarah Brau back again this season!