"I am done with great things and big plans, great institutions and
big success. I am for those tiny, invisible loving human forces that
work from individual to individual, creeping through the crannies of
the world like so many rootlets. Or like the capillary oozing of water,
which, if given time, will rend the hardest monuments of pride." These
words of philosopher William James had a special meaning for Rich
Gordon, who passed away October 28 after a long and courageous battle
with cancer.
An avid outdoorsman with a taste for politics, Rich had recently traded
in the latter for a quieter, simpler life, working to ensure a bit of
his much loved prairie could be passed down to those who will come
after him.
A South Dakota native, Rich began his career in the human
services field, before being bitten by the political bug. In 1983, he
started working for former Congressman - then Senator - Tom Daschle,
first as a volunteer and then as a field director. In 1993, Rich joined
Nebraska Senator Bob Kerrey's re-election campaign as field director.
Two
years later, Rich left politics to pursue his life-long love of
wildlife, taking on a job working to protect their habitat for his
fellow sportsmen. He was hired as a field director for the Rocky
Mountain Elk Foundation and quickly rose to the position of Director of
Public Relations for the organization, based in Missoula, Montana. In
2002, Gordon accepted the position of Vice President of Operations for
the Mule Deer Foundation, based in Reno, Nevada.
A year later, Rich and his wife, Cheryl, moved back to his
beloved Black Hills and built a mountain cabin near Custer with a
breathtaking view of the southern Black Hills. After a brief period of
consulting work for Custer State Park Resort Company, Rich turned his
talents and passion toward advocating for permanent protection for some
of South Dakota's precious waving prairie - working as a consultant for
- and helping to establish - the South Dakota Grasslands Wilderness
Coalition. His ability to bring together a broad range of people of
varied backgrounds was instrumental in the creation of this group of
hunters, Native tribes, business owners, ranchers and conservationists.
Rich's experience in coalition building and politics was critical in
helping to build and shape the effort to win protection for the
Cheyenne River Valley Grasslands Wilderness proposal. Rich's work will
be carried on by those who share his commitment and dedication to this
natural legacy.
But Rich would be the first to remind us that it is just as
important to take time to get out and experience that legacy. One of
his favorite Edward Abbey quotes, tacked on his refrigerator, reads:
"One final piece of advice. Do not burn yourselves out. Be as I am - a
reluctant enthusiast...a part-time crusader, a half-hearted fanatic. Save
the other half of yourselves and your lives for pleasure and adventure.
It is not enough to fight for natural land and the West; it is even
more important to enjoy it. While you can. While it's still there. So
get out there and hunt and fish and mess around with your friends,
ramble out yonder and explore the forests, encounter the grizzly, climb
the mountains, bag the peaks, run the rivers, breathe deep of that yet
sweet and lucid air, sit quietly for awhile and contemplate the
precious stillness, that lovely, mysterious and awesome space. Enjoy
yourselves, keep your brain in your head and your head firmly attached
to the body, the body active and alive."
To the sound of bagpipes, more than a hundred friends and family joined
together at Crazy Horse Memorial Mountain near Custer on November 12 to
celebrate Rich's amazing life that although far too short, touched so
many. They remembered Rich's grin and sparkling eyes, his compassion
for his fellow man, his joy in besting a hunting buddy by getting in
the first shot, his generosity, his adventuresome spirit, his ability
to get along with most everyone - from whatever political or
philosophical bent, his quick wit, his absolute love of the wild
outdoors, and his even greater love for his wife, Cheryl.
"Rich was an absolute class act and a gentleman," says Mike Beagle,
president of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, on whose board Rich
served for the last year. "He was selfless, friendly, polite and
gentle. I will miss our conversations about the hunting, the wild and
the prairie that he loved so much. I had much more to learn from him."
We all did.
Backcountry Hunters and Anglers is establishing a conservation library
section in Rich's name at Black Hills State University in Spearfish,
SD. If you'd like to get involved, please contact Mike at mbeagle@tu.org.
