IRC Staff Spotlight - Tomas Gonzales

IRC's Infrastructure and Planning Team Member, Tomas Gonzalez.

The many trails throughout Orange County’s open spaces are what draw and allow visitors to soak in the natural beauty of the Landmarks. It’s easy to forget how much work actually goes into maintaining these hiking and biking trails to keep them available to the public. If not for team members like Tomas Gonzalez, part of IRC’s Infrastructure and Planning team, many of these beloved trails would fall into disrepair.  

Working for the Irvine Ranch Conservancy for nearly three years now, Tomas is responsible for maintaining and building trails, fences, bridges and staging areas. Tomas faces new situations every day and has to be adaptable and prepared to manage whatever problems may arise. Luckily, Tomas is qualified and has experience operating heavy equipment like the excavator, loader and landscaping hand tools that are utilized for major projects.

Tomas was first introduced to IRC by a friend and team member, Carlos Carillo, who explained the dynamic and culture of working on the land. So far, Tomas has been a part of several projects, but has especially enjoyed reconstructing viewing decks that had previously been destroyed by wildfires. Though Tomas is passionate about all of the Landmarks and trails, he is most excited about working on the reconstruction of the Orchard Hills trail, another location that has been severely affected by recent fires. 

When Tomas is not working to better our trails and surrounding areas, he enjoys fishing, live music and spending quality time with his family and friends.

To learn more about the important work being done by the IRC team and volunteers, visit IRConservancy.org, LetsGoOutside.org or follow the Landmarks on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.