Brian Stout

CHURCHVILLE — The lush beauty of the George Washington National Forest in Augusta County is apparent to any visitor, but especially to the keen eye of retired U.S. Forest Service employee Brian Stout. During a 34-year career with the Forest Service, Stout had many assignments, including a final one as the forest supervisor of the 3.5 million acre Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming. …”Diversity is most critical in managing the forest,” said Stout. Stout is a man on a mission. Since his retirement, he has preached about the science of forestry, writing a 2013 self-published book called “Trees of Life: Our Forests In Peril.” He is now working on attracting grant funds for a documentary on the same subject. Plans call for producing a one-hour documentary that could air on PBS stations. His greatest fear is the rapid deforestation of the planet Earth.