So I’m very, very proud of the photo arc, the beautiful photo arc that launched at the Lincoln Children’s Zoo with the naked Molera. That was our very first animal. Very proud of the photo arc. I’m very, very proud of the science focus program, our collaboration with the Lincoln… Read More
Just horrible little boxes. I wish I would’ve stayed there long enough to demolish that building. It was horrible. When I inherited it, I kept, I had retrofitted that thing a dozen times. Okay. Improving the, the animal care and the animal management in that facilities through many, many dollars,… Read More
What’s your proudest accomplishment as you think back?… Read More
There’s an old facility at the Lincoln Children’s Zoo that when I walked in there in 86, it was considered the, it was considered the new building. It was built in the, the late seventies. It was outdated when it was built. It was called the Animal Kingdom building. It… Read More
Are there programs or exhibits that you would’ve implemented during your tenure that didn’t happen?… Read More
I don’t really have any big regrets. Read More
I, I, if I could do it all over again, you know, I think I would try to stay more focused on conservation work and, and building resources for conservation. But again, it’s, it’s so hard when you’re struggling just to pay the bills to feed the animals and keep… Read More
No, I would, I would walk around the institution more. Okay. I would, I would learn more too sooner about politics and those relationships. I would do more reading on animal management. I would do more time researching if I really had the time to do that and try to… Read More
So, do I have any big regrets?… Read More
Moving obvious to Lincoln, Nebraska, I was only to in Lincoln, Nebraska going, why Lincoln, Nebraska?… Read More
I would go back in time. You know, I was pretty mouthy as a young zoo director in South Bend, Indiana. And it’s part of the reason I left South Bend, Indiana. ’cause I was kind of a young cocky zoo director. I was one of the young zoo directors… Read More
I’ve, you know, If you could go back in time, anything you would’ve done differently, your chance?… Read More
What, to what extent do you continue to be active, if at all, in the zoological field or the conservation field?… Read More
You know, I, the zoo that I retired from, Lincoln Children’s Zoo, the, the team still calls on me every now and then for institutional knowledge and my opinion, you know, and things like that. And I go and visit with them and, you know, help them, you know, figure… Read More
You know, so many national associations change their focus every couple of years, you know, and it’s like, well, we change horses again. You know? And it’s kind of embarrassing. It is just, it, yes, there’s definitely room for, but what’s more important is work together to accomplish a similar… Read More
What is our real mission?… Read More
We need to lower our, our ego some and go, what’s our real mission here?… Read More
Okay. We need to be more collaborative and we need to work together. Read More
Absolutely. Abs ab abs of positivity. You know, there’s also the A A ZK, the American Association of Zookeepers, there’s an American Association of Zoo Horticulturists. So the International Association of Zoo Educators. Okay. There’s room for all of them. But again, they’re kind of in their own silos. They’re… Read More
And, you know, it is just, we’re not, we don’t have a joint mission. And the joint mission should be touching everybody’s heart regarding, again, regarding the natural world, regarding what’s going on. So again, if we do a better job all collectively, we would have a lot different politicians… Read More