Hunting and Advanced Technology Working Group Members

Kimberly Johnson is a retired Forest Service employee. Most of her career (35 years) was spent as a wildlife biologist working in Idaho, Wyoming and Montana. She spent a lot of time in our national forests monitoring wildlife and their habitats. Since her retirement 11 years ago her passions involve volunteering at the local pet rescue and becoming a board member for the Shoshone County Mining and Smelting Museum in Kellogg. The Silver Valley is a great place to enjoy some of her favorite activities of skiing, biking and golf. She enjoys spending time with her family and helping take care of her 99-year-old father!

Dillon Halvorsen grew up outside of Santa, Idaho on his parent’s ranch, which along with much encouragement from his parents, he largely credits for his love of the outdoors. In 2011, he graduated from the University of Idaho with a bachelor’s degree in Forest Products, Operations. He and his wife Rachel live in St. Maries, ID, and have three young children Hannah, Carl, and Olivia. Currently, Dillon is employed as a professional forester for a local timber company. He enjoys many outdoor activities that North Idaho has to give, but especially hunting, trapping, and fishing.

In 1990, Kevin Rogers left the plains of Oklahoma and the family ranch for the mountains of Idaho. Since that fateful move, he has been blessed to explore, hunt, and fish across our beautiful state, mostly on horseback. Recent years have found Kevin competing nationally in team field sniper competitions throughout the West. Kevin is honored to bring his wealth of experience to the HAT working group.

Jason Topp comes from a family of 4 generations in Bonner County, Idaho. He loves the outdoors and has spent most of his life hunting and fishing. Jason has guided for mountain lions and bear with his hounds, as well on his days off from work. Jason has been working for Bonner County Road and Bridge for the past 30 years where he currently serves as the Director.

Halli Hemingway, a lifelong Idaho resident, grew up in the southeast Idaho sagebrush and is now raising her family in the north Idaho timber. A forester for Bennett Lumber Products, Inc., she specializes in forest inventory and biometrics and enjoys working in the beautiful forests of northern Idaho. In her free time, Halli enjoys hunting and fishing adventures with her husband and three young children. She loves calling in turkeys and elk for her daughter, and watching her oldest son catch bigger fish than his parents. Although bowhunting for elk in September is Halli's favorite way to hunt, she has also enjoyed hunting success with rifle, shotgun, and muzzleloader.

Jeff Shinn is an Idaho native (3rd generation) and was born and raised in Boise. He received his education from TVCC and Oregon State University where he received degrees in Range Management, Forestry and Agriculture. Jeff has worked for the US Forest Service for over 30 years and currently serve as the District Ranger for the Salmon River Ranger District on the Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest. Jeff and his family live in White Bird, Idaho where they enjoy the annual pursuit of deer, elk and chukar.

Larry Hatter has been a resident of Idaho County for 41 years and an Idaho outfitter and guide for 25 years. He is also a licensed guide and charter business owner/captain in Alaska. Larry is a ranch owner, outdoor author, and most importantly, a proud father, and uncle of two sportsmen in training!

Tim Frost is an avid public land hunter and board member with Idaho Sportsmen - Access & Opportunity. He's committed to preserving the legacy and heritage of hunting, fishing, and trapping in Idaho for generations to come. Tim formerly served as Chief of Staff to the Idaho Attorney General, and Deputy Administrator of the Idaho Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses. Tim is a licensed pharmacist and president of 50 Elixir, a healthcare strategy consulting firm. Tim is married to his high school love Candace, and they are proud parents to their daughter Raegan and yellow lab Cash!

Nathan Guy has spent over three decades in the outdoors industry, building a reputation for his expertise and passion for hunting and shooting sports. As a small business owner, Nathan has operated various outdoor shops, including gun, fishing, and archery stores, and currently owns a gun shop in Idaho. His love for the outdoors began at an early age, taking his first deer at the age of six, and he has been dedicated to honing his skills ever since. With a strong background in long-range shooting, Nathan has worked closely with cities and counties to design and develop shooting ranges, sharing his expertise to create safe and functional layouts. He is also an avid sporting clays shooter, preparing for major events like the 2025 US Open, Western Regionals, and US Nationals.

Chelsea Merriman is an Idaho native and life-long outdoorsperson. She earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame in Environmental Science and Anthropology and a master’s degree from Boise State University in Biology. Chelsea has been passionate about natural resources since being a part of her high school TREE (Teens Restoring Earth’s Environment) Club and has worked with natural resources and emerging technologies for the past 15 years. When she is not working in and for the natural resources of Idaho, you can find her fishing, exploring, or getting lost in a good book.

Jason Carr is an avid hunter and fisherman. He has been an Idaho resident since 2001 whose hobbies include camping, mountain biking, reloading, running the smoker, and raising his two daughters. Jason has been in the Geographic Information Systems industry since 1997.

Alex Martin was born and raised in the Treasure Valley. As a 4th generation Idahoan raising a 5th, he is passionate about conservation and perpetuating Idaho's wildlife, natural resources, and outdoor lifestyle for future generations. Alex is the former president of the Idaho Traditional Bowhunters and love the challenge of hunting with his longbow. In his professional life he builds precision hunting rifles. Alex enjoys the time he gets to spend teaching new hunters to be safe, responsible, and ethical sportsman.

Ken Crane and his wife, Kate, live in Jerome, Idaho, where they have a small acreage on which they raise hay and maintain their horses. Kate and Ken are active outdoors and particularly enjoy being in the mountains on their horses, hunting upland birds with their German wirehair pointer, or on Idaho’s rivers in their drift or jetboat. Ken enjoys all forms of shooting and hunting from traditional archery to high power modern rifles and feels there is a time and place for all. He also feels it is a priority for hunters to find a balance of the hunting methods used with the health of big game populations and the ethical vision of the sport for us to preserve opportunities to hunt into the future.

Nicole Swafford is a fifth generation Idahoan, a lifetime big game hunter, occasional upland and waterfowl chaser, and recent trapper. She has served as an Idaho legislative liaison and in the office of former Idaho Governor Otter and is currently an attorney. 

Jeremiah Mani was born and raised near Rupert, Idaho and retired from the Airforce after 20 years. He has hunted his entire life and has enjoyed teaching his 3 kids these invaluable skills and ethics. As a family, they also compete in multiple styles of gun competitions to include NRL22/PRS22/PRS/ELR and have very successfully applied these skills to their hunting adventures with clean, ethical harvests at extreme ranges. As someone with physical disabilities limiting his hiking abilities, the ability to shoot at longer ranges has changed his hunting experience. Jeremiah hopes his life experiences help make positive changes for all hunters and those with physical limitations become more successful in the years to come.

Tal Sampson owns and operates a plumbing business in Pocatello Idaho. He was born and raised in Idaho and spends a great deal of time in the outdoors. Tal was introduced to hunting at a very young age and is proud to say hunting has impacted his life for over half a century. He was a licensed taxidermist and has harvested a multitude of species with archery, muzzleloader, and rifle in several states.

Jeff Choules is a proud fifth generation Idahoan, a United States Army and Idaho National Guard Veteran, and an engineer by trade. He supports the ethical utilization, proactive management, and intentional renewal efforts of our natural resources. He supports the concept of fair chase liken to the model defined by organizations such as the Boone and Crockett Club and has often pondered the relationship between ethics, fair chase, and technological aides in hunting. Jeff is excited to participate in stimulating discussions with fellow working group members to understand other perspectives and to provide the hunting public with the best blend for the greatest benefit to the natural resource and sportsperson alike.

Derick Attebury has resided in Idaho for 4 decades. He has archery, muzzleloader, and rifle hunted throughout the regions of Idaho. Most recently, Derick served on the Idaho Fish and Game Commission from 2015 - 2024.

Matt Borg is an avid outdoorsman, hunter, fisherman, and houndsman. He loves working with the youth of Idaho to teach them different skills including hound hunting, marksmanship in rifle and archery, tracking, and general animal knowledge. He has assisted with both mountain lion and big horn sheep collaring projects. Matt is currently the secretary/treasurer of the Eastern Idaho Houndsmen Association, and current member of Idaho Sportsman – Access and Opportunity, Idaho Trappers Association, Idaho Wild Sheep Foundation, Idaho Houndsmen Association, Foundation For Wildlife Management, Upper Snake River Bowman, South Fork Archers, and Blackfoot River Bowman.

Rob Thornberry is a 34-year resident of Idaho Falls. After 27 years as the outdoor editor at the local paper, Rob joined the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership (TRCP) in 2016. As a lifelong hunter, Rob grew up in northwest Colorado chasing sage grouse, elk, and deer. He has hunted almost every corner of Idaho and find it amazing that he can hunt for elk for six weeks each year, four weeks with a bow and two with a muzzleloader. His favorite part of hunting is time with his friends. Rob and his wife Margaret are proud parents of two grown children and a granddaughter who he hopes to introduce to hunting when she is older.
Rob is serving as a volunteer on the HAT Working Group, not as a representative of TRCP.

Doug Talbot is a lifelong sportsman and Idaho native who spends his days as a CPA in Idaho Falls. He has 5 daughters and loves spending time with them in the great outdoors of Idaho and appreciates the many opportunities we have here in Idaho to do that. He is excited to be on The HAT Working Group where he can give his input, and hopefully help in providing and maintaining great outdoor experiences for both himself, his family, and others.

Born and raised in Idaho, Bryce spent his life rambling through the mountains and rivers of our great Gem State. His early passion for the outdoors led him to a career in quantitative ecology, where he collaborates with diverse stakeholders throughout the Pacific Northwest to tackle complex issues at the intersection of resource management and conservation. In the brief windows between hunting seasons, you can find Bryce exploring the West—fishing, rafting, hiking, skiing, biking, and backpacking—with his amazing wife and their friends and family.

Dustin Webster has been an avid outdoorsman his whole life. He enjoys hiking, fishing, hunting, camping, and generally being outdoors. Dustin has been involved with the outdoors industry for 30 years and currently manages his family's sporting goods store. He looks forward to working with other sportsmen to provide input for the rule setting process.