fall 11 / 24:3 - Grand Canyon River Guides

of the aforementioned email from a fellow boatman,a medium length letter that boils down to one or tworeal questions. The most pressing of which is, “Why isthe President of gcrg working for the National ParkService?” In all seriousness, a multitude of reasonsexist for why I have continued my service to gcrg asI begin my new career. But if I turn the seriousnessoff for a moment, it boils down to the fact that I am aguide, a Grand Canyon River Guide no less—and I amcommitted to the Canyon and its community. That’sall. That’s the reason. We all have other things we do—construction, teaching, parenting, school, masonry,etc.—I just happen to be a Ranger. And, as such, manyof my “other job” goals and concerns match up withthe goals and concerns of gcrg. Funny, I’m doingthe same things as a Ranger that I was as a Guide…only now I have a gun and a ticket book instead of alifejacket and a twenty-horse. This revelation broughtforth a vision—Park Ranger in full uniform with atwenty-horse strapped to her side and a book of lifejacketsto be handed out. Laughter restored.So, with a much lighter heart, I have a few thingsfor you to think about as we plunge into the next yearof gcrg’s service to the Canyon and the Community.The mission statements of both the nps and gcrg speakto the fact that these “environmental organizations”are designed with one main goal, a common goal: toprotect Grand Canyon—in its entire splendor—forthe enjoyment of future generations. When KentonGrua et al founded gcrg, the goal was to create acollective voice on resource management issues inGrand Canyon. Though grcg has expanded over theyears, this remains our main focus. The National ParkService was founded with the goal of protecting ourspecial places from resource damage. Though theapproaches may differ, no doubt should linger, thatin the end, each organization strives to preserve theCanyon.Please remember that no organization has obtainedperfection, but collectively we can make decisions thatare best for the well-being of Grand Canyon. If, asothers have, you ever find yourself asking “What hasthe nps ever done for me?” remember that the nps—whether we like it or not—is the entity with the mostability to protect the Canyon through policy change.Remember that the National Park Service at GrandCanyon is your partner in protecting the place that welove. Remember that without the umbrella of a ParkService there would be no park for us to work in—itwould be a series of lakes or a huge mine or any ofthe other numerous things that people have wantedto do with it. Remember that nps employees are not“Parkies,” but friends who care about Grand Canyonequally and want our children to experience it as well.After four years of reading and reading and readingand reading—that’s what gcrg board members do—Iam passing the Presidential torch to Nikki and wishingher the very best of luck! I will see you all in theCanyon, as a Ranger and a Guide.Erika AnderssonChanging Of The Guard—And Other MusingsTime marches on—come September 1st, ErikaAndersson will step down as President and NikkiCooley will take the helm. Board members LauraFallon, Jed Koller, and Beav Weaver will be finishingtheir terms. The guide membership will determinewhich enthusiastic nominees will take their places. Onceagain, I am so incredibly thankful for having such wonderfulpeople involved with gcrg—such intelligence,humor, and supreme dedication. I am always humbledby the great people I get to work with over the years andhonored to count them as my friends. Each and everyone of these river guides really stepped up to the plateand committed their time and energy because theyfervently believe in what gcrg does and the necessityfor actively protecting the places they love. Please thankthem next time you see them for a job well done.I too was pondering gcrg’s mission statement andwishing that I could get a glimpse into the minds ofthe “gcrg founders.” So I rooted around in the backof a dusty old file cabinet and pulled out the veryfirst issue of the newsletter, published back in Aprilof 1988. The newsletter wasn’t called the Boatman’sQuarterly Review back then and it was only four pageslong. Heck—the newsletter didn’t even have a nameyet, gcrg had no staff and no full time central office.However, what these river guides did have was a wealthof passion and vision. The officers at that time wereKenton Grua (president), Billy Ellwanger (vice president),Denice Napoletano (secretary/treasurer) andthe directors consisted of Terry Brian, Dave Edwards,Mike Walker and Tim Whitney; just to give them therecognition which they so richly deserve. Hats andvisors off to all of you for putting your vision into action!I found it so inspiring to hear firsthand what theywere thinking (rather than our interpretation of whygcrg exists), and I could not be more proud that we’restill on that same path that they set more than twentyyears ago. As they wrote in that very first newsletter:“Yeah, but just who is gcrg? Well, we are,boatman’s quarterly review page 3