Commitment...
It's going on 5 years now that I have done Whoopers Happening; hopefully it has made a small contribution by bringing the voices and thoughts of a few special people to you these past 4 years. Not every podcast has been notable, perhaps only a few even memorable. In the next few months I will offer excerpts from a few of the episodes of Whoopers Happening, with the people who made things work and kept this project close to all of us. These are not people you find in just any vocation, but fortunately their dedication and hard work has helped bring the Whooping cranes to a much more comfortable population in North America, and extinction further from the reality it was not many years ago.
There are many species deserving of conservation... some even closer to complete loss than our Whooping cranes. All any of us want to do is help in some way... even a small way, to bring a reality check to others and motivate and educate, bringing awareness to what can be done to save these creatures.
In the weeks ahead, I hope you will enjoy some reminders of past individuals and what they have done to make this work successful... giving us nearly 100 birds in the Eastern Introduced Flock. If you have a comment or question about anything, do send an e-mail to whoopershappening@earthlink.net .
Thanks for listening!
Mark
Posted by Mark Chenoweth at 1/17/2010 2:15 PM 
Categories: uncategorized
Tags: endangered birds Whooping cranes birds Whoopers Happening bird migration podcasts Operation Migration
Categories: uncategorized
Tags: endangered birds Whooping cranes birds Whoopers Happening bird migration podcasts Operation Migration
Mark ... I for one, and I am certain that I echo the voices of thousands of conservationists and craniacs alike, will miss your periodic, behind-the-scenes insights and human interest stories that have, for these several years, added an extra, and an extra-special dimension, to the Operation Migration initiative. Your silenced voice, your stilled words will leave a vacuum in the annals of the Whooping Crane's saga ... truths unrevealed, chapters unwritten in a quest that has come a great distance but that has so far, so very far to go before the goal of self-sustainability is, if ever it will be, reached.
When you relate that your decision, at least in part, has been driven by those who have been difficult to work with or unwilling to speak, I've felt the same inhibitions and have come to the same conclusion as have you. As a consequence, I, too, have decided to decamp from the world of Grus Americana and its associated lecture circuit where I have plied my volunteer trade, to work with my friends and colleagues in Asia in support of efforts to conserve and rescue another species at risk, the Critically Endangered Siberian Crane. My contacts in China and Russia, in Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, India and Azerbaijan are people whom I find to be without pretense, without judgement, easily and readily accessible, welcoming and thrilled to share their work, their materials, their insights and successes, to reveal the obstacles they face, their failures, their environmental and species-related fears.
In closing, Mark, I wish you all the best in anything and everything that you do, on every path, on every flyway that the currents and thermals of human existence may take you. May you always SOAR FREE!
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Thanks, John... I wish you the same; the Siberian Cranes with the political issues that surround them and their loss of habitat make them perhaps even more endangered than the Whoopers now. Let's hope people can change and make a positive difference!
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Mark, as a simple craniac, I don't know much about the behind-the-scenes actions, but I do know that your comments have added a significant amount to my enjoyment of following Whooping Cranes. Thank you for all the time and effort you have spent, and best wishes in your new ventures. You will be missed!
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Mark, you have brought the cranes closer to all of us and we will certainly miss you. I wish you well in your upcoming endeavor.
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Peg Carlson Lauber commented on your note "Commitment...":
"Excellent job, Mark. And I know Peggy supported you all the way. I hope all things good for you and yours.
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Mark you are making me cry! :-( sorry to hear that you are leaving Whoopers Happening. Hopefully you will be doing something you will be able to share with us ,as you have W H 's reports. You will be missed, fondly, Lynn Walsh
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Been enjoying "Whoopers Happenings" for a couple years now as a compliment to Operation Migration. I will miss your contribution and hope your life's path keeps you close to us Craniacs in some form or another. Our world needs you! God speed.
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Hi Mark,
I've met you on the viewing platform at Necedah and listened with much pleasure and anticipation to your podcasts.
I am among many online chatters who have appreciated your hard work and professionalism in bringing so much color to our understanding of the effort to reintroduce the endangered Whooping crane to the central United States. I am a resident of Wisconsin.
Godspeed in your future work for the health of our planet.
Jane Maher
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