Cheatham County Exchange
ASHLAND CITY WEATHER

Maxedon leads TWRA into challenging era




New TWRA Executive Director Jason Maxedon, left, and son Dalton after a successful turkey hunt.Submitted/Wilson Post

New TWRA Executive Director Jason Maxedon, left, and son Dalton after a successful turkey hunt.Submitted/Wilson Post

At age six Jason Maxedon started hunting quail with his father on their West Tennessee farm, and at nine he bagged his first deer.

And a love affair with the outdoors was born that hasn’t cooled over the years.

“I was hooked at an early age,” says Maxedon, recently named Executive Director of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, taking the helm at perhaps the most challenging juncture in the organization’s 75-year history.

“I applied for the Director’s job because of my support of the Agency,” Maxedon says. “We’ve had some challenges over the past few years, and I want to help us meet them, and make sure the Agency is relevant to the outdoors community.”

Maxedon, 48, is a native of the West Tennessee town of Newbern. He graduated from Dyersburg State and Tennessee Martin, and earned his Masters degree at UT-Knoxville. He and wife Teffany have a son, Dalton, 20. They reside in Dickson County, and plan to soon move to nearby Hickman County.

Maxedon joined the TWRA in 2000 as manager of the Lower Obion Wetland Complex and served in various capacities over the next 22 years. In April he was named interim director when Bobby Wilson announced his pending retirement this fall.

Gary Myers served as the Agency’s director for 31 years before being replaced by Ed Carter in 2009. Carter was followed by Wilson in 2020.

While the past leaderships have been solid, there is increasing pressure at the top – from political interference to budget constraints and PR problems such as an ongoing timbering controversy.

The TWRA story is generally positive – the Agency is a national model for wildlife restoration and management – but tends to be slow to respond to critics. The timbering controversy is a prime example, in which media accounts were often one-sided or inaccurate and swayed public and political opinion against the Agency.

“There was some misinformation,” Maxedon says. “We could have gotten out ahead of it earlier. We need to re-establish communications with our hunters and fishermen.”

Maxedon also says “we need to bring more diversity to the Agency” to reflect changing times and attitudes.

Dealing with invasive species such as Asian Carp and trying to control the spread of the deadly Chronic Wasting Disease among deer are costly but necessary, as they threaten the state’s lucrative fisheries and hunting industry.

“We need to meet these challenges of today while also focusing on the next generation,” Maxedon says. “We have to serve a more diverse audience while also serving our base.”

Maxdon’s favorite outdoors pastimes are turkey and waterfowl hunting, training his Labrador Retrievers and fishing for bluegill on scenic Reelfoot Lake.

Throughout his life, the outdoors has been his focus. He loves it and he lives it, and his mission now is to preserve it.

Leave a Reply