BLM Lakeview Field Office Hires Three New Employees

LAKEVIEW, Ore. — The Bureau of Land Management's Lakeview Field Office has hired three new employees: Katherine Gendron, Oliver Liu and Lindsey Smith.

Katherine Gendron knew she wanted to be an archaeologist at an early age. Katie worked at Disney's California Adventure to pay her way through undergraduate and graduate school while interning at several museums under paleontological and Geographic Information System archaeological curators studying invertebrate paleontology and Southwest Archaeology and GIS. In 2019, Katie began intermittently working as an archaeological technician for cultural resource management firms throughout southern California. In 2020, she started her master's program at the University of Denver, focusing on GIS and archaeology. Katie is the first in her family to graduate from two undergraduate and graduate programs. In 2022, she transitioned to working in the non-profit sector as a GIS analyst while finalizing her thesis on a spatial analytic approach to understanding various ceramic styles of the southwest region. After two-plus years, Katie found her way back to archaeology and began her journey with BLM in January 2024!

Oliver Liu is a Natural Resource Specialist for weeds in the Lakeview Field Office. Oliver is from the perpetually cold and snowy lands of Northern Minnesota. He started his career in natural resources as a biotech in plants during undergrad with the National Park Service. Before starting with BLM, Oliver served as a natural resources/development specialist, Gitchi-Gami State Trail and public water access development on Lake Superior. Oliver has also worked in EMS/rescue, enforcement and emergency management. He enjoys hiking, backpacking, cross-country skiing, and paddleboarding in his off time.

Lindsey Smith has always loved animals and was convinced she wanted to be an animal control officer (thanks to Animal Planet). In college, Lindsey saw photos of people handling wildlife and changed her and hasn't looked back. Lindsey ran the seasonal circuit, taking jobs with the Forest Service, University of Nevada-Reno, Great Basin Institute, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Brookhaven National Laboratory. Lindsey found that the Great Basin always called to her. After working in North Dakota for almost four years at the National Ecological Observatory, Lindsey knew she had to return to the sagebrush-steppe ecosystem. She was lucky to obtain a Natural Resource Specialist position with BLM in Lakeview, Oregon. She loves to camp, hike, and explore new scenery when it's warm. She enjoys reading, board games, and puzzles when it's cold.

“I am very excited about all three of my new hires! Katie, Oliver and Lindsey all showed up ready to work and are very productive employees,” said Assistant Field Manager Grace Haskins. “We have a big workload with all of our BIL and IRA at the Lakeview Field Office, and these three were exactly what we needed to help us accomplish the work.”