Yearbook photo

Yearbook name: John D. Gavitt (J.D.)

Web site: Take a look at John’s Web site here.

Bio:
After leaving Marshall High, I attended Virginia Tech with a major in Forestry and Wildlife. I also received a Master’s Degree in Wildlife Management from there in 1973. Never having much use for poachers and wanting a little excitement in my life, I decided on a career in wildlife law enforcement.

I began that career as a Wildlife Officer with the State of Florida. Alligator poaching and killing deer at night were rampant during that time, so I learned a lot (and made some really stupid mistakes) in just a few short years. In 1976, I was hired as a Special Agent for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Division of Law Enforcement. My early duty stations included the Eastern Shore of Maryland and Iowa. I then joined the Division’s Branch of Special Operations and worked undercover for almost five years on major investigations involving illegal wildlife commercialization. One of the defendants I worked on for three years was finally arrested and sentenced to 15 years in prison, the highest jail term ever given out for wildlife crime at that time.

In 1985, I was appointed as Agent in Charge of that elite undercover unit. I directed undercover operations until 1990, when I accepted a special appointment to the Secretariat of CITES (an international wildlife treaty) in Geneva, Switzerland. I traveled throughout the world on CITES enforcement matters until returning to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1995. I directed Service law enforcement operations in Alaska until my retirement in September 2000.

Soon after retiring from government service, I took a position with WildAid, a non-governmental international conservation organization. I conducted wildlife law enforcement training and/or developed in-depth enforcement assessments in Cambodia, Thailand, Ecuador, the Galapagos Islands and areas of Micronesia. Tiring of travel and airline food, I resigned in 2006 and started my own business.

My wife (Arlene) and I currently live on our 27 acres outside of Winchester, Virginia. I’m owner/manager of North River Retreat (www.northriverretreat.com) a totally unprofitable outdoor guiding business that I love! I offer hunting for deer, quail and turkey; sporting clays; pond and river fishing; hiking and camping; and lodging on my 437 acres in Hampshire County, West Virginia. Hope to see you there!

Photos:

John these days, with 8-week old Willow