Throughout my many years leading bird walks at O’Melveny Park, Gary Park was always the first to arrive with his giant camera. He was an excellent birder and outstanding bird photographer, using his long lens and extensive knowledge to make the call when I had trouble identifying a distant bird. He was a steadfast companion, one I looked forward to seeing on every excursion.
Gary had been battling lung cancer for several years and was given extra time in this world thanks to modern medicine. Sadly, he succumbed to his illness in October.
Gary was the owner of GaryParkTookThese.com, a website showcasing his best bird pictures. He mentioned that he was arranging for the site to remain active for some time after his passing. Hopefully, it is still up when you read this, and you can view his beautiful photographs. Gary didn’t maintain his website as a business; his pictures were, and may still be, available for everyone to use. He only asked to be credited for his work.
SFVAS gifts a small booklet to children who participate in our Sepulveda Basin Education Program. The newest version of this booklet, developed by myself and Muriel Kotin, features most of its photos from Gary’s website. His pictures are also used for educational purposes by the Placerita Nature Center. The photo of Gary above is from their newsletter, “The Rattler”.
Memories of Gary shared by other birders in our chapter:
Pat Turner commented that, “I was such a beginner when I first did walks with SFVAS and he was always so generous with ID information and photography tips.”
Pat Bates related that she had many adventures with Gary at Hansen Dam. She added that in the Sepulveda Basin “We even put out a small brush fire together by Haskell Creek ”.
Paula Orlovich said she always thought of Gary as a “very unassuming and intelligent gentleman”.
Gary Park will be deeply missed by us all.
Written by Carolyn Oppenheimer