{"id":77081,"date":"2020-03-04T08:00:25","date_gmt":"2020-03-04T13:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aroundfortwayne.com\/news\/?p=77081"},"modified":"2020-11-24T18:58:11","modified_gmt":"2020-11-24T23:58:11","slug":"zoo-jim-anderson-to-retire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aroundfortwayne.com\/news\/2020\/03\/04\/zoo-jim-anderson-to-retire\/","title":{"rendered":"Zoo: Jim Anderson to retire"},"content":{"rendered":"

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News release from the Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo:<\/p>\n

Fort Wayne Children\u2019s Zoo Announces Retirement of Executive Director Jim Anderson at end of 2020 Season<\/strong>
\nNational search for new leader to begin immediately<\/em><\/p>\n

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(March 3, 2020) – The Fort Wayne Children\u2019s Zoo has announced that longtime Executive Director Jim Anderson will retire at the end of the 2020 season, bringing to a close a career of 40-plus years overseeing and driving much of the Zoo\u2019s growth into a nationally recognized attraction. Anderson is working closely with the Zoo\u2019s board of directors in its national search for a replacement director. <\/p>\n

Anderson has served as the Zoo\u2019s executive director since 1994, when he succeeded its founding executive director, Earl Wells. During his tenure, he\u2019s driven more than $30 million in improvements and new attractions at the Zoo, including the Australian Adventure in 1986, the Indonesian Rain Forest in 1996, and the new African Journey in 2009. Today, the Zoo draws an estimated 600,000 people a year – nearly double what it was in 1994.<\/p>\n

Anderson originally joined the Zoo in 1976 as a seasonal zoo keeper and was promoted to curator in 1979 and assistant director under Wells in 1986. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhile walking away from the place I\u2019ve loved for 44 years is never easy, I\u2019m confident there\u2019s no better time for me to do so – and no better team to continue building our success than the one we have in place now,\u201d Anderson said. \u201cIt\u2019s been incredibly rewarding for me to work with so many dedicated employees, volunteers, and board members to create the Fort Wayne Children\u2019s Zoo experience for 20 million guests during the time I have worked here. We have grown and improved – all while staying true to our founding ideals and remaining small and personal, clean and green, and full of engaging experiences and memories for our guests.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOn behalf of the board and the entire community, we are incredibly grateful to Jim for his vision, his commitment, and his years of dedication to the Fort Wayne Children\u2019s Zoo,\u201d said Chuck Surack, board president. \u201cAnd while we don\u2019t think anyone could ever truly \u2018replace\u2019 Jim, we will be thorough and comprehensive in our search to ensure the next executive director builds on this institution\u2019s success and sustained momentum.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anderson has led or been a part of a number of highlights and initiatives over the course of his 44 years at the Zoo, including: <\/p>\n