ELY — Clare Waldoch said as a teenager in Elk River, she was “seeking trouble.” Today, she’s part of an elite team that helps battle wildfires across North America, supporting aircraft that can scoop more than 1,400 gallons of water from lakes to douse flames.
The transformation didn’t happen overnight.
“In my later years of high school, I found myself seeking trouble and hadn’t rallied the most influential group of friends,” Waldoch says. Her father called her “the nature girl,” but at 18, she had no clear direction. “I didn’t have a strong force guiding me to environmental work or schooling.”
A friend’s suggestion to visit Minnesota North College changed all that. The outdoor setting and hands-on classes clicked immediately.
“Hands-on, problem-solving, and outdoor classes were my favorite,” she said, particularly wildland fire courses where students learned to operate chainsaws and lay fire hoses.
After graduation, Waldoch dove into fire aviation work, spending four years loading fire retardant into aircraft and supporting pilots flying into danger zones. That led to her current role with Bridger Aerospace as a mobile repair unit support driver.
Her specialty: maintaining a fleet of amphibious aircraft called Super Scoopers that skim across lakes to collect water for firefighting.
“I transport and maintain the Mobile Repair Unit, a 45-foot enclosed trailer containing everything an aircraft mechanic may need to repair a Super Scooper,” Waldoch said.
The work can be urgent. During a recent fire in Oregon, a grounded aircraft needed a part from Montana.
“Within hours, I was on a commercial flight with the part in hand. The aircraft was flying again that evening,” she said. “It was gratifying to help get it back in the air.”
Now based back in Ely, Waldoch finds herself protecting the same wilderness areas she once explored as a college student. The work takes her across the U.S. and Canada, making her return to the region unexpected but welcome.
“The best part of being back has been the unplanned meeting of old friends in the park, grocery stores, or on the streets of downtown,” she says.
For young people struggling to find direction, Waldoch offers advice born from experience: “Find a career that gets you fired up! If you are proud of what you’re doing, you will undoubtedly perform better.”
Her message to anyone still searching: “Don’t settle for a mundane career; challenge yourself. Some people take a lifetime to find a career that checks all their boxes, so don’t give up the search.”