^{R. LEE HICKS
Publisher-owner Methow Valley News
1994-2001}
2035 43rd Avenue East
Seattle, WA 98112
(206) 953-3041
(206) 726-1910-fax
leemvnews@aol.com

R. Lee Hicks©
   Resource issues:
      Land use and development, water rights,
       fish and wildlife, endangered species
         Analysis, strategic planning, media,
         public-private sector relations

^{Selected commentaries}

^{SPECIAL REPORTS: from the Methow Valley News}

^{An overview of water issues}

^{Ghosts of the Past}

^{Special report: The ESA, an analysis and historical perspective}

^{Endangered Species index}

^{Thirtymile Fire: Chewuch tragedy}

^{Arrowleaf: the last resort}

^{Phantom riches?: Methow residents follow commodities trading muse}

^{A billionaire German family's love of the Methow shapes its destiny}

^{test powerpoint}

^{THOSE WHO KNOW LEE'S WORK
(References)}

CLICK FOR POWERPOINT SLIDE SHOW  (allow 20-30 seconds to load. Scroll through presentation using right frame bar or by clicking within slide)

^(References)

Lee was the lead reporter while supervising his paper’s coverage of  development, endangered species and water allocation issues that have brought national attention to the Methow Valley--a remote basin in the upper Columbia River system. This experience nurtured his knowledge and insight into the tensions of traditional values of the "Old West" and the "New West."

In his early career, Lee was a reporter and editor with weekly, daily and national wire service media in Colorado and Connecticut. Later he was a marketing and public relations advisor for a number of national and regional real estate companies with major commercial and residential projects in Denver and Seattle. He also advised other business, government and non-profit clients. Lee has been a licensed Washington real estate agent since 1990, and in early 2002 became licensed in Oregon.

Lee’s personal pursuits include nordic and downhill skiing, golf, biking, flyfishing and river rafting, which extends an interest from college summers spent as a commercial rafting guide on the Snake River in Wyoming’s Jackson Hole. His first seasons in Wyoming also included assignments in food service and housekeeping for Jackson Lake Lodge, where he developed an appreciation for customer care demands in a tourism setting.

A North Carolina native, Lee graduated from UNC at Chapel Hill and served two years in the Army before beginning his professional career. As publisher of the Methow Valley News, Lee resided in Seattle and the Methow Valley. He is now active in Sisters, Oregon, where his daughter is a middle school student.

Recent favorite books:
"The Founding Brothers": a meticulously researched and compelling history of the personal courage and camaraderie,  political conflicts and rivalries that characterized the nation's formative decades.
"Heart of the Sea" the story of the whale ship Essex, Melville's model for Moby Dick
"The Greatest Generation" profiles of World War II veterans
"A River Lost" an analysis of hydropower, agriculture, trade and salmon issues on the Columbia River
"Black Hawk Down" a vivid narrative of US special forces operations in Somalia
"Meely Labauve" a coming of age novel set on the Catahoula bayou
"Mark of the Grizzly" a compendium of encounters between man and the great bear
"Eyewitness to the American West" first person accounts of those who lived western history.
"Napa": a non-fiction narrative of growing grapes, making wine, deciding land use and the personalities involved in America's foremost wine region.
Book always in reach:
"Flyfishing Basics" a good read after a bad day of casting
Political persuasion: Independent-no party affiliation; A guiding principle: facts, issues and cirmcumstances of individual situations are more important than ideology.
Quick way to relax:
Shooting hoops--anywhere there's a rim and net; great exercise and a test of concentration. (travel tip: deflate basketball and pack a mini-pump)
Nickname:
Bear--a pseudonym from days as a Wyoming river guide--and which bears no relationship to the subject's personality.