Chad Baker, from the Sullivan County community of Piney Flats, has been named to the Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission (TFWC) in an appointment made by Governor Bill Haslam. He will represent the TFWC’s District 1, which is comprised of 13 counties in northeast Tennessee.
Mr. Baker is a graduate of Tennessee Tech University in Cookeville, earning a bachelor’s degree in animal science. He works as a grading contractor. He is involved with several organizations and various outdoors-related activities.
He is a member of the Northeast Tennessee Retrievers Club, the Association of General Contractors (AGC), and the Tennessee Road Builders Association.
Mr. Baker is active in training and competition with Labrador retrievers. He won the National Retriever Championship in 2011 and 2012, winning with a different lab each year. He is also enjoys tournament bass fishing, waterfowl hunting, and big game hunting. He is a past champion of a Bassmaster Fishing Tournament.
“I am looking forward to helping promote the natural resources of Tennessee and learning how the TWRA operates,” he said. “I am also looking forward to finding ways to get youngsters more interested in the outdoors.”
TFWC District 1 counties are Carter, Claiborne, Cocke, Grainger, Greene, Hamblen, Hancock, Hawkins, Jefferson, Johnson, Sullivan, Unicoi, and Washington.
Mr. Baker’s appointment is effective through February 2019. He and his wife, Paige, have a daughter, Ira, and a son, Wick.
He replaces Clayton Stout, of Johnson City, who resigned from his position earlier this year.
The TFWC is the governing body of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. The TFWC has nine members appointed by Gov. Haslam to represent the commission’s districts. Two members each are appointed by the Speaker of the House and the Speaker of the Senate. There are 13 voting members of the commission. The governor and the commissioners of Tennessee’s Department of Agriculture and Department of Environment and Conservation serve as ex-officio non-voting members.