We had the opportunity to sit down with Amanda Jungles to explore the partnership between Cushing Terrell and Billings TrailNet, their commitment to corporate philanthropy, and the innovative initiatives they are spearheading in the community. Amanda is the Regional Director of Business Development for Cushing Terrell and is a Billings Trail Net Board Member! Amanda is also on the MSU-B College of Business Advisory Council and involved with the Yellowstone Art Museum, the Downtown Billings Alliance, 100 Strong Billings, Billings Chamber of Commerce NextGEN, and Montana Ambassadors.
Billings TrailNet: Thank you so much for taking the time to meet with us today! We are excited to hear more about Cushing Terrell.
Amanda Jungles: Thank you for having me! We celebrated 85 years in Billings last August and have supported the community throughout that time. In addition to Billings, we have 5 other offices in Montana, 13 in the country and 420+ employees total. Community outreach is important to Cushing Terrell, and our strategic plan focuses on continued growth in the Billings region and beyond.
We’ve always been very community-minded and we’ve always contributed to organizations who need our help, a lot of times, regardless if they’re able to afford our services or not. But in the last few years, we have become very intentional about going out of our way to seek out individuals in our communities who need our help. We established a pro bono design services program where the firm has committed a certain percentage of our annual revenues or profits to set aside to serve those who need us most.
BTN: Why does your company support Billings TrailNet?
AJ: We have developed well over 100 parks, recreation, and trail projects throughout the country, incorporating our in-house planning, civil engineering, and landscape architectural disciplines. In addition, our firm’s planning and urban design team focuses on laying the foundation for healthy built environments by incorporating trail systems.
We work with both urban and rural communities and feel our priorities in this realm align with the mission of Billings TrailNet. We would enjoy the opportunity to design the next big trail system in the area. Our local landscape architect and Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) member, Stephanie Donovan, is leading the Mayfair Meadows Park Master Plan in Belgrade, Montana as we speak! In addition, many of our employees are also avid trail users and Ales for Trails enthusiasts!
BTN: What projects are you most excited about at Cushing Terrell?
AJ: Our vertical markets are very diverse, including education, commercial, government, residential, and healthcare and have a lot of opportunity for growth! We have upcoming groundbreakings for the Montana State University’s Mark and Robyn Jones College of Nursing buildings in Billings, Great Falls, Kalispell, Bozeman, and Missoula. We are currently renovating the local Eide Bailly office and renovating the Miller Building for future offices for Yellowstone County. Our engineering services are wrapping up of the new City Hall AKA the Stillwater Building. Our local structural engineering team just completed the 200,000 sq. ft. terminal expansion at Glacier International Airport in Kalispell, Montana. There are so many more! Our blog is a great way to stay up to date on all things Cushing Terrell.
BTN: How do you use the trails?
AJ: I use them a lot with my partner, dogs, and to train for The Rut in Big Sky! They help me unplug from the digital world, and recharge via fresh air and sunshine.
BTN: What’s your favorite trail and why?
AJ: I love Skyline and Zimmerman (and so do my dogs) and I run up the (future) Yellowjacket Trail a lot. My father is a landscape architect, and my mom is an artist and we traveled west in the summer to get outside and be in the mountains. There aren’t the same type of trails or outdoor activities in urban Florida, and I started hiking 14ers from a young age. Usually, we would go to Colorado or to visit family friends in West Yellowstone and I even learned to drive on a dirt road at an age I won’t disclose! I truly wanted to be closer to nature and ended up moving to Montana in 2017.
BTN: Why do you think architects and engineers are so supportive of trails?
AJ: Creatives understand the importance of both the natural and built worlds. As a firm, we believe in community-driven design, where community members are invited to give input on the design of a project so that it really reflects community value. We see this firsthand with our planning team and landscape architects acting as stewards of the land. I feel Billings TrailNet takes community input and shares it far and wide to get new trail projects done! This is something we agree with!
BTN: Anything else you would like to add?
AJ: Just that our staff really cares about the community. Not only are they volunteers, but we also have folks that are board members of the Billings Family YMCA, Education Foundation for Billings Public Schools, the Billings Depot, the Yellowstone Art Museum, and Boys and Girls Club of Yellowstone County, among others. In honor of Giving Tuesday, a global generosity movement that unleashes the power of radical generosity around the world, Cushing Terrell pledged $10,000 to nonprofits that our team selected, and boy was it competitive!
Keep your eyes peeled for news on our upcoming 2024 Cushing Terrell Golf Classic! It will be our 9th year with a named fundraising beneficiary and after our 2023 event we have raised over $100,000!