
Julie Munger - Truckee, California
Currently, Julie’s job description includes being the Western Regional Director for Rescue 3 International, as well as the CEO and Founder of Sierra Rescue. She is a member of the Rescue 3 International Steering Committee, and helps in decisions affecting curriculums world wide. In addition to being Rescue 3 Instructor of the Year, Julie Munger is an internationally acclaimed white water professional, and was a member of the world champion US Women’s Rafting Team from 1985-2001. A graduate of UC Davis; as well as the University of Central Lancashire in Technical Rescue Instruction, she has been a swiftwater and technical rescue instructor for over 25 years. She is responsible for the development of the Rescue 3 International RRC and WRT program, as well as assisting in developing the Wilderness First Aid program. She integrates her practical experience with professional teaching skills.
Julie has worked as a Hot Shot Wildland Firefighter for the USFS, and has taught agencies as diverse as USAF PJ’s, Fish and Game personnel, Search and Rescue team members, Fire Fighters, Coast Guard Rescue Swimmers, river guides, kayakers, the Hoopa Tribe and the Marine Warfare Training Center. Her ability to apply specific curriculum to the agencies she teaches is one of her many assets. Julie’s lifetime accomplishments include the first self-support riverboard trip down the Grand Canyon and co-owning Arctic River Journeys. She has been featured in such magazines as Outside, Paddlers, American Whitewater and Canoe and Kayak.

Abigail Polsby-Truckee, California
Abigail has been instructing wilderness skills for the past 10 years. She is an Instructor Trainer for Rescue 3 International and certified American Canoe Association Swiftwater Rescue Instructor. Abigail has a strong mountaineering, First Aid and teaching background. She was a lead instructor for Hurricane Island and Colorado Outward Bound Schools and works well with all ages and abilities. Abi is a patient and dedicated instructor. She has worked professionally and volunteered for Search and Rescue and was previously the owner/ operator of Olympic Mountain Outdoors, a guide service offering backpacking, snowshoeing and backcountry skiing trips around Washington State. She has also worked as a rafting and kayaking guide for Mountain Travel Sobek. In 1998 she founded Arctic River Journeys, an Alaska whitewater rafting outfitter. When not river guiding or teaching rescue, Abigail can be found surfing in Mexico, skiing in Tahoe, or climbing in British Columbia. Most recently, Abigail Polsby was voted Rescue 3 Swiftwater Rescue Instructor Trainer 2006 and Instructor of the Year 2013.

Ron Morrison-Smithers, BC
As a co-owner of Raven Rescue, Ron has accumulated over a decade of delivering rescue, medical, leadership and adventure skills for first response agencies, government, industry, and universities. He serves on WMA’s Faculty Committee and is on the Curriculum Steering Committee for Rescue 3 International. Ron is an expert on standards surrounding technical rescue, including the NFPA, and is a Pro-Board Rope Technician examiner and a leading expert in the field of technical ice rescue. Ron’s swiftwater credentials come from years as an expedition paddler, he has served as Education Chair for Paddle Alberta and is an examiner for the BC Raft Outfitters Association. Ron is a graduate of Lakehead University’s Outdoor Recreation Program and has also served in the Canadian Armed Forces

Walter Bucher- Smithers, BC
Raven Rescue owner, Executive Director and Senior Instructor Walter Bucher has 25 years of experience in search & rescue and technical rescue instruction. He is Rescue 3’s Official Agent for all of Canada. He has taught technical rescue around the world including Sweden, Japan and South Africa. In addition, Walter is the Deputy Emergency Coordinator for the Town of Smithers, a volunteer firefighter with the Smithers Fire Dept. and coordinates swiftwater rescue for Bulkley Valley Search and Rescue. He has served as a subject matter expert on many occasions and is an accomplished speaker with an ability to connect ideas and people.

Tim Rogers- Charlotte, NC
Battalion Chief Tim Rogers is a 30 year veteran of the Charlotte Fire Department currently assigned to Battalion 5 of the Operations Division. During the course of his career, Chief Rogers was assigned as a company officer for rescue and haz-mat units and spent three years as the Technical Rescue Training Coordinator while assigned to the CFD Training Division. He possesses a degree in Fire Protection Technology from Central Piedmont Community College and has continued to further his education while completing various courses at and through the National Fire Academy and the Emergency Management Institute.
As well, Chief Rogers is an Instructor-Trainer for Rescue 3 International; coordinator of his department’s flood response and notification program; and serves as founding member as well as the training coordinator for the North Carolina Emergency Management’s Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team (NC-HART) and the swift water boat operations programs. In 1998, and in recognition of his program development and response efforts, Chief Rogers was awarded the Higgins and Langley Memorial for Outstanding Achievement in Swiftwater Rescue. He went on to receive a second Higgins and Langley Memorial Award in 2002 for an incident that involved the rescue of two teens whom caught in swift water in Charlotte, a third Memorial Award in 2005 for his response as a NC-HART member while deployed during Hurricanes Frances and Ivan in North Carolina, and a fourth award for his work with the United Kingdom Chief Fire Officer’s Association.
From 1997 to 2000, Chief Rogers was a founding member and chairperson of North Carolina Emergency Management’s Technical Rescue Task Force that identified and developed team typing models and resources for disaster response. He has also been a deployment team leader during significant flood/disaster events in North Carolina, including Hurricane Floyd and Hurricane Isabel; was an Operations Manager during significant floods that affected Charlotte in 1995, 1997, 2007, 2008, and 2009; and was the team leader for helicopter rescue technicians during Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan, Ophelia, and Hanna.
Chief Rogers currently serves as a member of the DHS/FEMA Search and Rescue Credentialing Committee where he is the chair of the Flood/Swift Water, Helicopter and Boat Operations Sub-Committee. As well, he has served as a subject matter expert for the FEMA USAR Operations Group and serves as a member of the UL-STP for personal floatation devices. He also served as the past chairperson for the National Association for Search and Rescue’s (NASAR) Flood-Swift Water Rescue Committee, and is a former member of the Board of Directors for the Higgins and Langley Memorial Awards Foundation.
For the last four years, Tim has been a presenter at various seminars in the United Kingdom and Canada delivering lectures and training programs on flood/swift water planning, response, and team development. These included the Water Safe Conference in the UK on behalf of Rescue 3-UK, the IJOCC in Toronto on behalf of Fire Magazine, and finally the UK New Dimensions Conference at the House of Commons and the House of Lords on behalf of the United Kingdom Chief Fire Officer’s Association. As well, Tim is a faculty member of North Carolina Emergency Management’s five day Managing Flood Emergencies program for emergency management personnel and emergency services responders.
During the course of Chief Rogers’s involvement with swift water rescue and program development since 1992, he has delivered a number of lectures and presentations at various venues including:
The National Hurricane Conference
National Association for Search and Rescue
National Association of Dive Rescue Specialists
North Carolina State Firemen’s Association
North Carolina Fire and Rescue Instructors Conference
North Carolina Association of Rescue Squads and EMS
FEMA "Risk Watch" Program Rollout in Washington DC
NCEM Annual Conference
APCO/NEMA Telecommunicator Conferences
Maryland State Firefighters Convention
EMS Expo
Heli Response
As well, Tim has provided articles and programs for emergency services media companies such as:
Advanced Rescue Technology
Fire Rescue Magazine
Fire Magazine
Fire Emergency Training Network (FETN)-American Heat
Tim is married to his beloved Jonnie, a high school career development coordinator, and they share the joy of raising their daughter Brooke.

Rodney Sebregts- Oosterhout, Netherlands
Rodney Sebregts started his professional career as an outdoor instructor, teaching outdoor activities as whitewater kayaking, rafting, canyoning, caving and climbing. After several years of teaching in the outdoors his background as a beach lifeguard became of use when teaching rescue techniques in the outdoors. Qualified as a teacher he started running his own business in the outdoor industry in 2000. More and more questions started to come about the possibility to train the industry in water and rope rescue. In the meantime rope access work started picking up too.
These days Rodney is running the company Rescue 3 Benelux. Rodney is acting as an advanced instructor trainer for rescue 3 International and is taking part in the development of curriculum for Rescue 3 International.
Rescue 3 Benelux focusses on several disciplines, namely teaching safety and rescue classes in water, rope and confined space. Other parts of the company Rodney is taking part in is in the delevery of rescue equipment, offering consultancy and taking care of an operational Rescue team for standby rescues.

Jon Gorman- Llangollen, North Wales
Jon is the Managing Director of Rescue 3 Europe based in Llangollen, North Wales.
He has spent most of his time working on whitewater rivers as a raft guide, safety kayaker and rescue trainer during the summer months and looking for powder as a telemark skier in the winter, throughout Europe, Africa, America and New Zealand.
He has been involved with Rescue 3 and rescue training since 1995 and is a Rescue 3 Instructor Trainer.

Paul O'Sullivan- Bala, Wales
Paul is the Managing Director of Rescue 3 (UK) based at the National Whitewater Centre near Bala.
Paul has extensive International experience working on whitewater rivers as a raft guide, kayak coach and rescue trainer and as an expedition kayaker.
Whilst working at Rescue 3 (UK) Paul has led the development of a number of new training programmes including the Rescues from Vehicles in Water and Management of Water and Flood Incidents courses, as well as implementing the partnership and validation link between Rescue 3 and the University of Central lancashire.
In 2008 Paul was awarded the Higgins and langley memorial Award for Outstandiing Achievment in Swiftwater Rescue for his involvement in the UK CFOA’s Management of Major Flood Event Research Project.

Mike Berna- Baltimore, Maryland
Mike Berna has 24 years in tenure in the Baltimore County Fire System. He is a member of the Baltimore County Advanced Technical Rescue Team and the Team Administrator for the Kingsville Swiftwater/Flood Rescue Team. He has also served as the Chief Officer for the Kingsville Fire Department for 6 years. He has been instrumental in the development of the Baltimore County Swiftwater/Flood Rescue Task Force and has served on the Governors Swiftwater/Flood Advisory Group for the state of Maryland. He has also been instrumental in training hundreds of Maryland rescuers in swiftwater/flood rescue and developed a state-wide response and training program. He serves as a technical specialist and consultant for the Maryland Emergency Management Agency and has served as an operational officer for Hurricanes Floyd and Isabel. He is also an instructor for the University of Maryland Fire and Rescue Institute. He is a featured lecturer at national conferences and regional seminars and conducts classroom and field training programs throughout the country in swiftwater/flood rescue, swiftwater boat operations, and rope rescue in the aquatic environment. He has delivered programs to thousands of students including local, state, and federal personnel as well as consultation to many fire, police, and local and state emergency operations centers as well as classified government agencies. He has also provided research and development for several manufactures of personal protective equipment for the aquatic environment. He also serves as a rescue specialist with FEMA (Urban Search and Rescue) Pennsylvania Task Force 1. He has received numerous awards for his work in the swiftwater/flood community and is the two time recipient of the International Higgins and Langley Memorial Awards for outstanding service in the swiftwater/flood community.








