Park Ranger Kirby Brady

Park Service Profiles

Ranger Kirby Brady was born and raised in Portland, Oregon. She moved to South Carolina to attend college and has been here ever since. Brady graduated from the University of South Carolina with a degree in Tourism Management in 2015. She started as an assistant ranger at Dreher Island State Park while still in school, and accepted a full time park ranger position at the park in 2016. Brady realized she wanted to be a park ranger during her senior year of college. She worked as an intern at Dreher Island and decided that the park service was where she belonged!

As a park ranger at Dreher Island, Brady does a little bit of everything. Brady says: “Some activities I perform can range from customer service, administrative duties, maintenance, law enforcement, interpretation, and retail. Over time, I find in my career I learn something new every day and that helps me to be a better park ranger.” We asked Brady what she finds the most satisfying about her job and she replied: “…I get to help people. Nothing makes me happier than being able to fix a guest’s problems, from correcting a reservation error and giving a guest a wonderful vacation experience, to helping a parent locate a lost child. If I can get a gratifying reaction from making a guest’s day, I know I am doing my job well.”

When asked to talk about the funniest thing that has happened to her as a park ranger, Brady cited the day when she was giving an interpretive outdoor speech to a class of first graders on the wildlife at the park and a deer ran through the parking lot- just feet away from the group! Brady says: “They were so in awe and it made it gratifying to know that they would remember visiting our park because of that moment.”

Brady says she would encourage others to become a park ranger if they are interested in more than just a career- as being a park ranger is more of lifestyle. “It is a huge responsibility and it can be over whelming, but it is one of the most gratifying things I've ever been a part of… It is an excellent agency to work for and the people I work with are like family.” For our final question, we asked Brady to sum up her job in one phrase. She said: “Albert Pine once said ‘What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world remains and is immortal.’ There is no better way to describe what I do as a park ranger. One of the greatest joys I have in life is helping others, and that is the best way to sum up my amazing career.”

Thank you, Ranger Brady, for all that you do!