We did some collection assistance with each other. Okay. Up, up, up and down. We, we, we didn’t collaborate properly as much as we should have. Okay. Early on there was a little bit sense of competition and probably part of it was my fault too. ’cause I was a… Read More
And you mentioned something about when you were at Lincoln Children’s Zoo, did the zoo have pony rides?… Read More
Yes, it did. And what do you think is the benefit of pony rides and what was your philosophy about them?… Read More
Right. What was your relationship when you were director with the Omaha Zoo?… Read More
And so she was all excited for us. And then we were ushered into the East Room. The east room where all kinds of big stuff is announced right there by the president. And there we were called up and there’s the first lady presenting us with the recognition, the… Read More
It was quite a lucky experience. It was back when George W. Bush was in the White House. Laura was very, very supportive of museums and libraries. Mrs. Bush was herself a professional museum professional, okay. And when the Bushes were in Dallas, Mrs. Bush sat on the Dallas Zoo… Read More
But because the zoo world is a museum, okay, because we curate zoos are part of that, just like botanical gardens are, you know, and nature centers and all kinds of historical museum and natural history museums and art museums. But there was a thing, there’s a competition during, during… Read More
And that’ll be the Bronx Zoo and in New York City, the, the, the San Diego Zoo in San Diego and the Lincoln Children’s Zoo. And so I got to go to the White House after lots of security checks, take along a coworker and board members, and we were… Read More
So we got together to, to build connectivity, develop professionalism, and develop tourism more in the state of Nebraska, collaborate because it was, again, it was all about collaborating and helping each other become stronger. Read More
And, and while you were at the zoo, you had a unique experience to go to the White House. How did that happen?… Read More
Well, you know, the bottom line is we all curate collections. You know, I don’t care if it’s a quilt museum, I don’t care if it’s a children’s zoo, I don’t care. You know, Nebraska has rich history and so many communities have the mom and pop museum from the… Read More
What do you think zoo and museums have in common?… Read More
So community service, I needed to lead that. I needed to have that face out there. I needed to collaborate with all those community stakeholders. Okay. And that was a chief drive of mine. I was a Kian, you know, working in the QAs Club, I was served as Kian… Read More
Yes, I was Founding member. Read More
So you were also a founding member of the Nebraska Museum Association?… Read More
Oh yes. Abs they, they saw that the zoo leadership was all about community and collaborating. Okay. Working with human service agencies, working with all kinds. I, I served on the Human Services Federation. I even chair the Human Services Federation. I served on the Humane Society board. You know,… Read More
Oh yeah. Did, did, did you feel then that this enhanced the community embracing the zoo?… Read More
Okay? If you were a kid riding a bicycle, he’d say, go pick up some pop bottles, get them redeemed and bring me the money. He’d send thank you letters to kids who made 35 cents in pop bottles. Or he’d send the thank you letter to the guy who… Read More
So did you felt that you’ve served on many community boards?… Read More
Well finally in July of 65, the zoo did open, but it had Mr. Folsom at scavenge lamppost from the city that they weren’t using anymore. And bricks for sidewalks. He was a great scavenger and resource developer besides the money. Okay. And the zoo opened in 1965, but the… Read More