As mentioned earlier this month, Jack Potter, Glacier National Park’s Chief of Science and Resources Management, retired on May 2 after 41 years with the Park Service. Recently, Headwaters Montana posted a very nice article discussing Jack’s career and accomplishments . . .
On May 2 of this year, Jack Potter retired after 41 years with Glacier National Park, one of the few National Park Service employees to spend his entire professional career in one place. To many of us on the ‘outside’ of Glacier’s internal operations, Jack has been the conscience of the bureaucracy for Glacier’s safekeeping. The future challenges and threats facing Glacier are many and Jack’s vigilance and integrity will be hard to replace. It is fair to ask, “Who will be the next Jack Potter for Glacier?”
Referenced in the above article was a lengthy Park Science profile published last March, shortly before Jack’s retirement . . .
Resource managers who stay in one national park for their entire career, building and refining their knowledge of the place, exercising judgment, sharing insights, and defending park values are a rare thing in the National Park Service. Thus, we explore the long-tenured career of Jack Potter in Glacier National Park, Montana, as a way to learn from his experience, help preserve institutional memory, and celebrate his special contribution to the National Park Service.