2022 Saint Louis Zoo Conservation Award Goes to Belinda Low Mackey
Lodging Hospitality Management, The Henry A. Jubel Foundation and Ken Johnson also honored with Zoo Awards
(Nov. 4, 2022, St. Louis, Mo.) The Saint Louis Zoo announced its 2022 Conservation Award and three other Saint Louis Zoo Awards at its 31st Annual Marlin Perkins Society Celebration on Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2022. The Marlin Perkins Society has grown from 48 to more than 1,300 members over the past 31 years and has generated nearly $37 million in revenue — all to help fund Zoo operations.
Conservation Award
The Saint Louis Zoo Conservation Award was presented to Belinda Low Mackey. Mackey, who is also known by her Samburu name, Nalaroi, was born and raised in Kenya. She has 19 years of experience working with Grevy’s zebra and 17 years working with indigenous communities on Grevy’s zebra conservation. She started the Grevy’s Zebra Scout Program and the Grevy’s Zebra Trust. Belinda identified what factors, including healthy land, wildlife and community livelihoods, are critical to the species’ survival. She employs more than 100 people who work together to address threats facing the Grevy zebra. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, Mackey prioritized the continued employment of every member of the team to ensure that livelihoods were protected. The Grevy’s Zebra Trust’s Nkirreten project pivoted from making reusable sanitary pads for girls and women in the community to producing reusable protective face masks.
Mackey also helped pioneer the Great Grevy’s Rally, a biennial census of Grevy’s zebra that was established in 2016; the first-ever national census of Grevy’s zebra. Rally participants are both Kenyan and international, with a variety of skillsets, including team members from the Saint Louis Zoo. The information learned from the Great Grevy’s Rally is critical in helping Grevy’s Zebra Trust and its partners to inform and prioritize conservation actions. Her unparalleled commitment to conserving Grevy’s zebra by empowering and engaging communities that coexist with them.
Individual Award
The Saint Louis Zoo Individual Award was presented to Ken Johnson, a stalwart advocate who embodies the mission and values of the Zoo. After retiring as the President and CEO of AAA Auto Club of Missouri after 17 years, Johnson began his “second career” volunteering at the Zoo in 2009. He soon moved on as a Volunteer Training Instructor for new Zoo docents and volunteers. While he recently retired from his docent post, he still volunteers around the community, adding to his 3,305 hours of service, and continues to recruit his friends and neighbors to join him as a Zoo volunteer.
Johnson and his wife, Sharon, are 19-year Marlin Perkins Society members, and he has served as the Logistics Committee co-chair for many past ZOOFARI and A Zoo Ado events. In 2016, Johnson joined the Saint Louis Zoo Association Board of Directors and dove right in, actively participating on the Nominating, Education, and Major Gifts Committees, and chairing the Volunteer Committee.
Corporate Award
The Saint Louis Zoo Corporate Award was presented to Lodging Hospitality Management. Since 1986, Lodging Hospitality Management has been recognized in the St. Louis community for their innovation and excellence in creating premier hotels, attractions and restaurants.
With a shared commitment to building a brighter future for generations to come, Lodging Hospitality Management has been a generous supporter of the Saint Louis Zoo for many years. The company supports the Marlin Perkins Society, the sustainability efforts of the Zoo and participates in the Zoo's hotel partnership program, encouraging out-of-town visitors to experience our world-class Zoo.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Bob O’Loughlin has used his entrepreneurial expertise on the Saint Louis Zoo Association Board of Directors and currently as a commissioner on the St. Louis Zoological Park Subdistrict Commission. Lodging Hospitality Management continued their corporate partnership with the Zoo during the COVID-19 pandemic, as they believed in the Saint Louis Zoo being an economic driver for the region, and still continues to believe in that impact.
Foundation Award
The Henry A. Jubel Foundation received the Saint Louis Zoo Foundation Award. Since 2019, the Saint Louis Zoo has partnered with the Jubel Foundation to carry out the Foundation’s mission: supporting young people seeking to improve their lives through education. As a leader in conservation education, the Zoo provides learning opportunities to hundreds of thousands of children each year. The Foundation was instrumental in the construction of Michael & Quirsis Riney Primate Canopy Trails. This innovative exhibit features an elevated acrylic crawl tunnel that allows children to climb and explore like their nonhuman primate relatives, creating a one-of-kind kinetic learning experience. The Foundation’s generosity is recognized at the Primate Care Center. The Foundation is named for Henry A. Jubel, who immigrated to St. Louis from Germany. Today Henry’s legacy is carried out through his family’s philanthropy as longtime supporters of the Zoo through major gifts, Marlin Perkins Society and serve as leaders of the Saint Louis Zoo Association.
About the Awards
The Individual, Corporate and Foundation Awards are presented by the Saint Louis Zoo Association to honor those Zoo supporters and advocates whose commitments exceed expectations in contributing both time and resources to the Zoo.
The Saint Louis Zoo Conservation Award is presented by the St. Louis Zoological Park Subdistrict Commission to recognize the achievements of someone who has contributed to the understanding and appreciation of wildlife throughout his or her lifetime.
