Rick Brown served for 30 years as a Park Ranger with the National Park Service working in several National Park Areas across the U.S. Over the course of his career he received numerous awards for actions in law enforcement, search and rescue, wildland firefighting and emergency medical missions, including the Department of Interior Valor Award and the National Ranger of the Year Award (the two highest awards in the USNPS for Protection Rangers).Rick retired from the National Park Service in 2007 and currently is a part time instructor in the National Park Service approved Seasonal Law Enforcement Training Academy at Southwestern Community College in Franklin, NC, a Swiftwater and Technical Rope Rescue Instructor, a published book author, and is working for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Disaster Response Team as an emergency response specialist. He is an avid fisherman, hiker, boater, nature photographer, woodworker, and enjoys everything involving the great outdoors.