Cathy and Bill Herzig

Cathy Herzig’s passion for helping animals in the wild and her need to make a difference in the world has always served as her North Star.

When Cathy turned 30, she realized she wanted to give back to this planet, more than just merely existing on it. Since she had a small daughter to raise and educate, she felt she could not travel to exotic places to experience species in their natural habitats. However, she quickly discovered zoos have all those “unusual” animals, all in one place. With that realization, came inspiration and a major career change.

“I knew I had always had a passion for helping animals, mainly wild animals. We humans share this planet with all different kinds of animals. I feel the focus has been mainly on caring for domestic animals and our pets, while wild animals are being ignored.”

So Cathy went back to college to earn her biology degree, began volunteering at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in Washington, D.C., and never looked back. “I soon learned that animals in all zoos act as ambassadors for their species in the wild, around the world,” Cathy explains. The National Zoo hired her as a full-time keeper in the mammal department. Later, she took a keeper position at Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Orlando, where she gave educational talks with trained exotic animals. She later retired in 2013 and moved to Seattle with her husband.

Eventually, Cathy started to miss the camaraderie of zoo culture and the connection that comes from caring for exotic animals. Since she and her husband, Bill, wanted to travel in retirement, Cathy decided that volunteering at the Woodland Park Zoo was the best way to feed her passion at this time.

Woodland Park Zoo’s naturalistic exhibits and park-like environment continue to impress Cathy. In her current volunteer role, Cathy can share her deep animal knowledge and inspire the next generation to foster a sense of empathy for all species.

Cathy’s legacy goes beyond inspiring our guests, however. She and Bill have named Woodland Park Zoo as a beneficiary in their will, because of their work with animals here at the zoo, as well as wild animals around the world. Cathy made this generous planned gift because she wanted to do some good with an organization she trusts. She also wanted to see the impact of her giving during her lifetime, so they also created a donor advised fund, allowing them to give to organizations that are important to them, and are tax deductible. She says with this donor advised fund, “It’s as simple as having a check issued, whenever we see the need.”

This simple but impactful planning opened a new avenue for Cathy and Bill to make a difference for future generations, now and forever.

If you would like more information about leaving Woodland Park Zoo in your estate plan, please contact Alex Kerl at 206.548.2437 or alex.kerl@zoo.org.