Tongass gets new forest supervisor

JUNEAU (AP) The Tongass National Forest has a new forest supervisor and a new deputy forest supervisor, the Forest Service announced Monday.

Forest Cole, currently the Alaska Region director of forest management, was selected to replace forest supervisor Tom Puchlerz, said Alaska regional forester Denny Bschor. Cole has spent 23 years of his career working on the Tongass.

''I welcome the challenge,'' Cole said, ''and I'm happy to be back on the Tongass again.''

He and his wife, Shirley, plan to make Ketchikan their home.

Cole holds a BS degree in Forestry from Northern Arizona State University where he was named Outstanding Forester in 1975.

Puchlerz recently accepted a job with the Forest Service's Northern Region in Montana.

Olleke Rappe-Daniels, the deputy director of the Forest Service's Northern Region Public and Governmental Affairs staff, was chosen to be the deputy forest supervisor. Rappe-Daniels has spent 27 years in the Northern Region working on various assignments, including fire, recreation and appeals and litigation.

Both will assume their duties late in August.