The Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission used part of Tuesday's meeting to recognize agency staff and highlight a major land‑conservation milestone.

Fisheries chief Jason Heniger introduced Aaron Burch as Fisheries Technician of the Year and Alex Bible as Fisheries Biologist of the Year, citing achievements including hatchery operations, new fish‑attractor designs, survey work, outreach and a $115,000 National Fish Habitat Partnership grant supporting aquatic connectivity projects. The commission also presented a lifetime‑achievement award to Daryl Bonesburn for 39 years of service to TWRA.

In a separate presentation Director Maxedon described the Hatchie Bottom acquisition in West Tennessee — ‘‘more than 7,400 acres of rich bottom and hardwood forest along the Hatchie River’’ — and said the property will be managed as a new wildlife management area once finalized. The director thanked partner organizations including The Nature Conservancy, The Conservation Fund, the Heritage Conservation Trust Fund and the Tennessee chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation, which he said contributed $170,000 toward closing costs.

Mark Darnell, state chapter president of the National Wild Turkey Federation, told commissioners the chapter had committed to a $250,000 gift to the project and had provided $170,000 to date, and that the chapter expects to finish the commitment within one to two years.

The presentations underscored a mixture of staff recognition, cross‑agency grants and private‑sector philanthropy supporting both outreach and land protection as the agency closes out its 2025 agenda.