If you’ve visited ZooMontana, then there’s a good chance you may have met this week’s Super Senior.
Loren Salsbury is a familiar face at the zoo where he has earned the nickname “The Loren of all trades.”
He started volunteering at the zoo about 10 years ago with the Optimist Club.
“I started working some of the events and helping with the cleanup and it was just so much fun. I enjoyed being here,” Salsbury says.
After he retired, he continued volunteering at the zoo—impressing the staff there with his ability to do just everything. It turned into a job.
“We were like, we want that guy on staff, and he amazingly agreed,” says ZooMontana director Jeff Ewelt. “As the director, it means the world to me that he cares. He is not just here for the paycheck. He cares. He really wants to see the zoo succeed and he wants people to enjoy the zoo so to see him out and about giving tours and glowing about the zoo that’s real.”
Loren works as volunteer coordinator—helping supervise all the volunteers who play an integral part at the zoo. You can also find him helping with the events, giving tours, and helping with maintenance.
“He is a gentleman who does about everything here at the zoo. Honestly, I don’t know how we would operate without him,” says Ewelt.
“The thing I enjoy about working here is the people that I work with. We’ve got some of the most caring people that work here. The keepers and the people that take care of the animals here—they love these animals. They are just like members of their family,” Loren says.
When he is not working at the zoo, you can find Loren volunteering for several organizations including the Yellowstone Art Museum, Community Channel 7 television, and the Optimist Club.
Those are some of the ways that Super Senior is making a difference right here in the community where he grew up.
“It’s a wonderful place to live and the people here are so wonderful—so you just feel like you need to be part of the community and share your talent and time,” Loren says.
Click here to nominate someone for our “Super Senior” segment.
