Photo: Alex shredding the gnar at Alpine Meadows in Lake Tahoe.
Public information specialist, Alex Boesch, is part of Yuba Water Agency's Communications and Public Affairs group, where he's best known for his photography, videography and support of the agency's internal and external communication efforts. He's also responsible for creating one of our most popular communication features - this one! That’s right, Alex is responsible for our Faces of Yuba Water series, well, except this month it’s been taken over to feature him! Scroll on to learn a bit more about Alex, his background and where you can find him outside of the office.
What do you do for Yuba Water Agency?
I am part of the team that is responsible for communicating all of the great things that Yuba Water is doing, both internally and externally. This includes writing press releases and stories, drafting social media content, creating videos and taking photos that highlight the agency's many projects and partnerships, managing our external website and intranet and more.
What does your average day look like? Or what are some of your essential duties?
Communicating everything that Yuba Water is doing is really a team effort, so my teammates and I all pitch in and help each other out where needed. Some of the specific areas that fall within my responsibilities are photography and videography, website management and oversight, drone operations and participation on the Employee Engagement Committee.
Photo: Alex snaps a selfie with his wife, Jamey, at a Sacramento River Cats game.
Do your duties differ throughout the year? And if so, how?
I wouldn’t say that my duties differ throughout the year very much. However, the different things that we communicate definitely change a lot. We have a strategic communications plan that we use to generally guide what we’re communicating about based on our editorial theme or the time of year, like focusing on our work to reduce flood risk in the winter, but there are always other topics that we push information out about. This could be anything from actions that our board takes during their public meetings, projects that we’re partnering on, tackling misinformation and more.
What do you enjoy most about working for Yuba Water Agency?
I really like how unique we are as an agency and how our operations are truly benefiting the community in tangible ways. The staff at Yuba Water is top-notch, too. I’ve never been part of an agency or organization where you can really see how much its employees care and take pride in their work.
What is your background/formal education that led to where you are in your career today?
I graduated from California State University, Chico with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and a minor in photographic studies. After graduating, I took a job as a photographer at a Lake Tahoe ski resort before landing an internship with Placer County in their communications and public affairs office. After interning with Placer for a little over a year, I had the opportunity to come and work for Yuba Water, which was right after the agency came out from PG&E.
How did you get involved in your current career path?
My internship with Placer County really opened my eyes to the world of government communications and public affairs. That’s where I realized that I could blend my love for photography and video and my background in journalism to pursue a career in the public sector.
Photo: Alex poses for a photo while skiing at Palisades Tahoe.
Before working here, what was the most interesting job you had?
I’d have to say working as a photographer for Palisades Tahoe was probably the most interesting job I had before working for Yuba Water. I had the opportunity to shoot photos of people skiing and snowboarding, kids learning to ski and snowboard and beautiful Lake Tahoe. I also was required to take “ski breaks” throughout the day, so I ended up skiing more than 100 days that season.
Tell us something about yourself that most of us don’t know.
I played competitive ice hockey for more than 10 years before going away to college. During my senior year of high school, my team won the California state championship for the 18-year-old division. While I do not play competitively anymore, I still enjoy getting out on the ice when my schedule allows.
What do you like to do in your free time?
I really enjoying spending time with my wife, Jamey, friends and family. During the winter, you can usually find me in the mountains skiing. During the summer, I enjoy spending time at the lake, boating and wake surfing as much as possible. I also enjoy golfing, riding bikes and dirt bikes, as well as trying out new breweries.
What are three words you would use to describe Yuba Water Agency?
Community, Innovative, Transparent.