Staff Spotlight, Brandy Nethery
Brandy Nethery, Park Ranger
Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park
From Bloomington, Indiana, Brandy has worked across the United States to protect the environment. She spent time with the Coconino Rural Environment Corps in Flagstaff, Arizona, and with the Bureau of Land Management in Las Vegas, Nevada, as a wild land firefighter. She’s worked for the National Civilian Community Corps in Utah, Hawaii and California.
Brandy was also a white-water rafting guide on the Gauley River in West Virginia. After returning to Indiana to earn her bachelor’s degree in outdoor recreation and resource management from Indiana University, she moved to Florida to enjoy the perpetual summer and the wilderness.
Brandy joined the Florida Park Service in 2013. Working for Florida State Parks is a way that she can help people appreciate nature and the outdoors, and she enjoys the freedom she feels when spending time in nature. Spring is her favorite time of year because of the new life that is evident all around her. When Brandy is not working, you might find her bicycling along the Gainesville-Hawthorne State Trail, where she enjoys seeing so much diversity.
Her favorite trail within Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park is the Bolen Bluff Trail, where she can see the wild horses and lotus flowers and possibly catch a glimpse of a snail kite. Brandy appreciates that Paynes Prairie is a preserve and provides a place for the horses and bison to roam free. Come by and say hello to Brandy when visiting the park.