Alumni Spotlight: Colin Towne — From NAU Forestry to Leading Reforestation Efforts
From his days leading NAU’s Logging Sports Team to overseeing the production of nearly 14 million conifer seedlings annually, Colin Towne (Business Economics ’13, Forestry ’18) has built a career rooted in leadership, innovation, and a passion for forestry.
Today, Colin serves as Site Leader for Weyerhaeuser’s Mima Nursery near Olympia, Washington, where he leads nursery operations supporting reforestation efforts across the timber industry.
Some of Colin’s favorite memories from NAU include meeting his wife, Cheyenne Adamonis-Towne (Forestry ’17), and helping build the Logging Sports competition grounds in the Centennial Forest for the 2017 AWFC Conclave.
We caught up with Colin to learn more about his career journey, his favorite NAU memories, and the advice he has for today’s School of Forestry students.
Where are you now?
I am currently the Site Leader for Weyerhaeuser’s Mima Nursery, located south of Olympia, WA. The Mima Nursery is a bare root nursery that grows ~14 million conifer seedlings annually, primarily for reforestation purposes for the timber industry. It is my job to ensure the team here is safely executing on key elements of our annual agricultural cycle so we can deliver the best product at the least cost to our customers.
What are you working on?
I have been in my role for roughly six months now and am working hard to learn all the aspects of nursery operations. The Mima site is about to begin the “lift and pack” season where we have a large influx of contract labor to assist our team in, lifting out of the fields, grading, packing, and shipping ~14 million seedlings to customers. This will take roughly three to four months of dedicated effort from the Mima team and all that are involved. I am excited to help guide this effort and to look for opportunities where we can innovate and automate the process with new and existing technologies.
What’s your favorite NAU Forestry memory?
My favorite NAU Forestry memory would have to be meeting my wife Cheyenne Adamonis! But a close second, and very related to that, was the time I spent involved with and leading the NAU Logging Sport Team/Club. That club sport in particular takes a lot of hard work and effort for its members but it is incredibly rewarding with the tangible skills that you learn, the leadership experiences that you can gain, and the friendships you make with your teammates. For me, this all culminated with NAU hosting the AWFC Conclave in 2017 at the competition grounds that the team and I built that year out in the Centennial Forest. It was the first time NAU hosted the annual competition, and it took a tremendous amount of effort to make happen. The few times that I have visited Flagstaff since graduating, I have enjoyed going back out to the grounds and seeing the team still active and being good stewards of the resources that were left for them.
A fellow NAU Forestry alumna, Cheyenne Adamonis-Towne (Forestry ’17) has also built a career in forestry! Cheyenne has worked with the U.S. Forest Service for approximately 10 years and currently serves as a certified silviculturist on the Gifford Pinchot National Forest in Washington. Together, Colin and Cheyenne are putting their NAU Forestry education and experiences to work, supporting forest management and reforestation in the Pacific Northwest.
What advice would you give today’s Forestry students?
The advice that I would give students is two parts, “get involved and embrace opportunities”. Getting involved- In somehow or some way, get involved with all the other things that happen besides just attending classes. Whether it’s forestry related or not, join a club, attend the extracurricular activities, volunteer your time to various causes. I can almost promise that doing so will lead to opportunities for individuals to grow in experiences related to responsibility, and leadership. As an employer and from my own personal experience, getting involved directly translates to successfully landing a summer internship or starting a career in natural resources. Embrace Opportunities- Careers are a long time and in many cases a journey that can take unexpected turns. When I started my forestry degree at NAU I was dead set on being a wildland firefighter. Never would I have imagined that I would now be where I am today doing what I’m doing now, running a Nursery. I got to where I am today in part by following the opportunities that were in front of me, embracing new experiences, and being uncomfortable at times. I did not say yes to every opportunity that came my way, and the ones that I did take, not all were 100% success stories. But keeping an open mind about the work that you enjoy doing, jobs/roles/positions that are even somewhat related to that, and where your career might take you is beneficial in my experience.
Alumni Giving Back
Colin continues to stay connected to NAU and support the next generation of forestry professionals! This fall, he returned to campus with his employer, Weyerhaeuser, to participate in CEFNS Career Week 2026, connecting with students, sharing career opportunities, and recruiting NAU students for positions with the company.