A Wraparound View of Reclamation

By Elaine Simonson

Former Reclamation leaders who participated in the Annual Managers Conference included, from left, Roger Patterson, Neil Stessman, Manuel Lopez, John Keys, and Felix Cook. The get-together was held in Denver, Colorado, on Dec. 5-7, 2000.

DENVER--For some of the participants, it was probably a once-in-a-lifetime experience, as 180 Reclamation managers reunited with past and present commissioners and key bureau executives--the people who forged Reclamation's vision and led the agency's transformation to the water resources management leader it is today.

The theme of the Annual Managers Conference was "to celebrate the past by remembering our history, assess the present by acknowledging our accomplishments, and prepare for the future by discussing the impacts the new Administration will have on Reclamation's program."

Three former commissioners--Floyd Dominy (by video), Dennis Underwood, and Dan Beard--took part in the conference. Leading the discussion of Reclamation's past accomplishments were Manuel Lopez, the former director of the Upper Colorado Region; John Keys, former director of the Pacific Northwest Region; Neil Stessman, who formerly directed the Great Plains Region and the Reclamation Service Center; Roger Patterson, former director of the Mid Pacific Region; and Felix Cook, who formerly directed the Technical Service Center.

Conference participants from a variety of backgrounds got together to look into Reclamation's future, including John Rhodes and Raymond Kogovsek, former congressmen, and representatives from the Western States Water Council, Western Governors Association, State of Arizona Natural Resources, and Family Farm Alliance. Participants networked with the speakers and among themselves. Exhibits displaying services available to managers were also available at the conference.