LightHawk, a nonprofit group that promotes the use of airplanes for conservation, has named Terri Watson as its new executive director. Watson had been a volunteer pilot for the group, starting in 1997, and previously served on the board. She also was executive director from 2000 to 2003. Watson was working for a nonprofit parks association in Hawaii when she heard that LightHawk was searching for a new leader. “I did a bunch of research to see what they were currently doing,” she said. “I was so excited to see a smartly focused and concise strategic plan … that’s when I knew I wanted to be an integral part of this incredible organization again.”
Watson has been a pilot for 30 years, LightHawk said, and has an ATP and more than 11,000 hours. She has worked in many professional roles including search and rescue,firefighting, and as a support and training pilot in Iraq and Afghanistan. She was an aviator with the U.S. Army in Europe, Greenland and Korea, and has worked as an aviation consultant. Watson succeeds Rudy Engholm, who served as LightHawk’s executive director from 2007 until last year.
