Environmental specialist sees job as opportunity to teach

Gene Elwood
Gene Elwood

As an environmental specialist with the Environmental Public Health Program at the Cole County Health Department, Gene Elwood said he sees the primary objective of his job as keeping the residents and visitors to Cole County safe.

After serving in the Navy, Elwood spent more than 30 years in the Rockwood School District in suburban St. Louis County, teaching earth and environmental science.

After leaving the teaching profession and moving to Cole County to be near his parents who moved to the Russellville area while he was serving in the Navy, Elwood got a job in the Division of Energy for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources as an environmental specialist.

He later accepted a job with the county, where his duties include inspections at child care facilities, restaurants and hotels.

"Having an opportunity to use my background in science has allowed me to put my skills to use in a broader variety of areas than I have been and it gives me the opportunity to continue to learn myself," Elwood said. "I've enjoyed learning in each of those areas."

Elwood said he likes to pride himself on being a lifelong learner so using his skills in a variety of areas keeps his job interesting.

"Whatever the facility I'm dealing with, what we're trying to do is identify potential health risks before they can cause health problem," Elwood said. "I look at this as a partnership with the owners or managers of these facilities. They know that reputation is a big part of their business and most of the time they are happy to have another set of eyes at their facilities."

Elwood said the department stresses to the businesses and facilities they expect that what they do is not a "gotcha" style of inspection.

"We use these opportunities to educate and find ways for those businesses to continue to maintain a high level of standards," Elwood said. "In today's world, it's all about reviews online, and they know that they need to keep those good reviews, and we want them to keep those good reviews."