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RALEIGH, N.C. (July 15) – Kenneth Everhart, a 22-year veteran officer, has assumed the top wildlife enforcement post in North Carolina.
Col. Everhart will lead more than 200 uniformed officers statewide. The Enforcement Division of the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission enforces hunting, fishing, boating and trapping laws; offers hunter and boater safety courses; and investigates hunting and boating accidents. Everhart’s promotion follows the retirement of Col. Roger LeQuire. The new colonel foresees no major changes. “Roger left this division running great,” he said. “Even though our personalities are different, the direction he had this division moving, and the direction I’d like it to go, are identical.” Like his predecessor, Everhart worked up through the ranks. His first posting was in Granville County in 1982. He also worked in Union County, as a sergeant for Catawba, Lincoln and Gaston counties and as a lieutenant stationed in Wake County when, in 1993, he earned a promotion to captain in charge of officer recruit training. In 1996 he was promoted to major in charge of wildlife enforcement’s administrative operations. A year later, he accepted the other wildlife major’s position, in charge of field operations. He retained that position until his promotion this week. Richard Hamilton, chief deputy director of the Wildlife Commission, praised Everhart for bringing “strong credentials to the leadership position of the Wildlife Law Enforcement program. His field experiences in stations from the mountains to the coast have prepared him well for the challenge to continue and expand the important tasks of protecting our fish and wildlife resources in North Carolina. Col. Everhart has a particularly effective way of leading by example and gets the maximum from every officer’s potential.” Everhart said he patterns his leadership style after his predecessor’s. “[LeQuire] had the most sound, down-to-earth management practices — treat everybody right, and do the right thing every time,” he said. An Eagle Scout who grew up in Rowan County — where his parents Howard and Diane Everhart still live — Everhart earned an associate’s degree from Brevard College and a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Appalachian State University. He and his wife, Marilyn, have three children, Abby, Kyle and Hunter, and are members of Millbrook United Methodist Church in Raleigh. |
