Members of the Great Bend Zoological Society had a lot to celebrate at their annual meeting, Monday night at the Great Bend-Brit Spaugh Zoo. But  members were also saddened by last week’s announcement that Zoo Director Scott Gregory will be leaving at the end of the year, to accept a job in Florida.
“He’s going on to something bigger and better,” Zoo Society President Joe Cannon said. “We’re going to miss him.”
Gregory, who was hired toward the end of 2009, announced his plans to resign by posting it on the zoo’s Facebook page late Friday afternoon. Then he headed for Omaha to pick up the zoo’s newest animal, a breed of African cat known as a serval.
“I have accepted a position as director of operations for the Wildlife Center of South Florida,” Gregory wrote. He described the state-of-the-art rehabilitation facility as “quite possibly the largest volume rehab facility in the United States with over 12,000 animals passing through per year.
“This is a new challenge for me and one that can test and improve my skills and knowledge in the animal field,”  he added. Gregory manages a staff of 12 employees in Great Bend; in Florida he’ll oversee 70 employees.
At Monday’s meeting, Gregory praised his staff and the Zoo Society, along with the zoo’s many volunteers. “We love our volunteers here,” he said. “I couldn’t do it without our volunteers.”
One of the hardest things about leaving Great Bend will be leaving the people here, Gregory said. “The town took us in when we moved here.”
The director also praised the City of Great Bend. Although the zoo is on a tight budget, Gregory said it has gone “above and beyond what I would expect.”
The Zoo Society helps with some of the extras, from education to buying new animals.
Celebrity animal expert Jack Hanna, who came to Great Bend last month for a Zoo Society fundraiser, noted that it’s rare for a zoo to operate without charging admission, as the Brit Spaugh Zoo does. Cannon said Hanna later donated $1,000 to the Zoo Society, which made him a lifetime member.
John Cross, treasurer for the Zoo Society, said the organization will net about $23,000 from the Hanna program. One hundred percent of the society’s money helps support the zoo. In 2014, the Zoo Society didn’t buy any animals but did help transport several new animals, including lion and bear cubs.
Cannon and Zoo Society Vice President Penny Quinn are leaving the board of directors at the end of their terms, so members elected two new board members at Monday’s meeting. The new members are Sarah Shirer and Charlotte Kluza.
Board meetings are at noon on the second Monday of each month, at the zoo. Annual Zoo Society membership is $25 for an individual or a family.