Emergency Management Director
Carbon Valley Emergency Management Agency
Firestone, Colorado, United States
Merrie Garner is a seasoned emergency management professional with extensive experience in public safety, disaster preparedness, response, and recovery.
Since April 2019, Merrie has served as the Emergency Management Director at the Carbon Valley Emergency Management Agency in Frederick, CO, where she built a multi-jurisdictional emergency management program from the ground up, developing comprehensive plans, an EOC system with supporting processes and equipment, and a training and exercise program for community stakeholders.
Prior to CVEMA, Merrie worked at the county level, coordinating planning, operations, and recovery while building partner relationships across complex multi-agency environments. She also contributes to the field through consulting, training delivery, and exercise support for a national training and exercise firm.
Alongside her emergency management work, Merrie is the founder of The Balcony Guild, LLC, developing leadership tools and resources for EM practitioners and writing about adaptive leadership in the field.
Merrie holds an MS in Organizational Leadership, a bachelor's degree in music and business, and is a Certified Emergency Manager. A musician and lifelong arts lover with a background in the performing arts, she lives in Firestone, CO with her husband, two dogs, and two cats, and is mom to two grown children, a daughter and a son.
From Burnout to Boundaries: Adaptive Leadership for Under-Resourced EM Programs
Monday, November 9, 2026
9:45 AM - 10:45 AM PST