Park Ranger Brooks Garrett

                Brooks Garrett grew up in Salem, South Carolina and spent summers camping at Oconee State Park with his family. He attended North Greenville University and graduated with a degree in Sport Management. After college, he went back to Oconee State Park to work as an assistant ranger. It was there he realized that being a park ranger might just be a fulfilling career choice.  

                In his six years as a ranger, Garrett has worked at Oconee and Lake Hartwell state parks. Although his home base may currently be Lake Hartwell, he has worked on special projects at many other parks including Table Rock, Dreher Island and Hickory Knob state parks and Oconee Station State Historic Site. Garrett mentioned this kind of work when we asked about the hardest thing he’s had to deal with as a ranger. He said: “The hardest thing I think I’ve dealt with is something all rangers deal with at some point-- post-storm cleanup from hurricanes, ice storms, or tornados. Thankfully rangers from all across the state work together to help with this cleanup process.”

                At Lake Hartwell, Garrett is part of a small staff. He said he loves working at his current park because of “the wide variety of jobs that I get to do at a smaller park, as well as the closeness and team mentality of a smaller staff.” In his current role, Garrett does everything from arborist work and trail maintenance to revenue tracking and aquarium upkeep. We asked Garrett to sum up his job in one phrase and he told us: “While each day can provide a different and new challenge, if you truly love what you do, you’ll always cherish the opportunity to take the challenges head on.” Thanks, Ranger Garrett for all you do!