WCHF Governor Dave Engleson Passes
David Engleson passed away, at the age of 84, peacefully on Friday, August 10, 2011.
Dave was born on May 9, 1928, to Albert and Lucille Engleson. After graduating from Beloit High School in 1946, he served in the U.S. Navy. In 1950, he married Marguerite (Peg) Resler. The couple had four children, Richard, Catherine (Sean), Christine and Michael (Kari).
Dave Engleson, as a member of the Wisconsin Conservation Hall of Fame (WCHF} Board of Governors for many years, brought his impressive knowledge of “Who’s Who in Conservation and Wisconsin” to help us induct great conservation leaders into the WCHF. The Board of Governors serves as an independent panel of scholars/historians which recommends nominees for induction to the WCHF Board, which is composed of representatives of the member organizations.
As an Environmental Education Consultant for the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) for nearly three decades, he helped shape the policies of three governors, the state legislature, state agencies, and local school boards. With his warm, gentle, engaging and enthusiastic personality, Engleson had a remarkable ability to bring people together, harness diverse talents, and build coalitions of support for environmental education and conservation. With persistence and dedication, he perfected his “Can Do” philosophy by using the committee approach, organizing conferences, developing plans, creating and leading organizations, developing teacher training programs, drafting and lobbying for legislation, writing and editing newsletters, books, and journals articles, and promoting environmental education statewide, nationally and globally.
He led and promoted the causes of many environmental education organizations including Wisconsin Association for Environmental Education (WAEE), Correctional Education Association (CEA), and North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) and contributed greatly to such Wisconsin conservation organizations as the Ice Age Trail Foundation, Nature Conservancy, and Wisconsin Conservation Hall of Fame. David also served on the Sierra Club Advisory Council of the Sigurd Olson Institute in Ashland.
It is, however, as a lifetime educator that he has had his greatest impact. For nearly 40 years, he touched the lives of thousands of students, teachers, and aspiring environmental educators, and is his influence on environmental conservation extended internationally.