GYC celebrates the life of visionary co-founder Rick Reese
On January 9, 2021, the Greater Yellowstone Coalition lost one of its visionary co-founders, Rick Reese. We express our sincerest condolences to Rick’s family, including wife Mary Lee, and his many friends, colleagues, and climbing partners who shared his love for Greater Yellowstone.
Rick Reese (right) with long-time friend and Greater Yellowstone Coalition supporter Peter Metcalf in 2013. Rick was a co-founder of the Greater Yellowstone Coalition in 1983 and passed away in 2021. (Photo Donna Watson Lawson)
In the early 1980s, Rick literally put what is known today as the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem on the map. With his travelling slideshow, he forwarded a vision for thinking about the 20 million acres surrounding Yellowstone National Park as a large, connected ecosystem in need of coordinated management and protection. As Rick put it, “momentum was building for the creation of an organization to advocate for the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.” Rick and others were the source of that momentum as they set about organizing advocates and leaders from Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana to attend several gatherings in Jackson, Wyoming and Montana’s Centennial Valley. These gatherings resulted in GYC’s incorporation on November 7, 1983.
Nearly 40 years later, the concept of a Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem has been the basis for countless conservation campaigns and projects that have resulted in better protections for the region’s wild lands, rivers, and wildlife. The organization Rick helped found operates today from six offices in three states with a staff of 30 who stand in awe and appreciation of his efforts. What he started has blossomed into a broad and multifaceted understanding of the importance of this special place, as well as a call to action that has resonated with ongoing support from more than 100,000 people.
(L-R) Former Greater Yellowstone Coalition Executive Director Caroline Byrd, Rick Reese, Rick’s wife Mary Lee, and Peter Metcalf, 2013.
Beyond his dedication to conservation, Rick was an accomplished climber and mountaineer. I first remember learning about Rick in the mid-90’s when I was scrambling up his first ascent classics in Utah’s Wasatch Range like Crescent Crack and Tingey’s Terror. I felt pride in sharing my Utah roots and culture with Rick, who I got to know well when he stepped in and led GYC during a leadership transition in 2009. Listening to him share his climbing adventures and passionately advocate for protecting the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem are cherished memories.
The ever-growing family of GYC staff and board – past, present, and future – is deeply grateful to Rick for the foresight and determination he brought to bear in establishing a brand, a voice, and a movement for Greater Yellowstone. His legacy will live forever in the work we and others continue to do on behalf of this remarkable place.
— Scott Christensen, Executive Director
The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem is the land of 49+ Indigenous Tribes who maintain current and ancestral connections to the lands, waters, wildlife, plants, and more.
