Hello and Happy Thursday!
Throughout this process, we have caught Theodore Roosevelt National Park in a series of lies. All that we, the tax-paying public, are asking, is that they be truthful with us. Is that too much to ask?
Read on and we believe you will be able to answer that for yourself by the end of this blog.
I had a meeting with Theodore Roosevelt National Park Interim Superintendent Nancy Finley and Chief of Resource Management, Blake McCann, on August 23, 2024. This was our first meeting with the park since they were forced to allow the wild horses to stay in April of this year.
It was our first meeting with Superintendent Finley, who is currently on loan to TRNP from the NPS Regional office. Finley’s actual title is: Associate Regional Director, Natural Resource Stewardship and Science, National Park Service Interior Regions 3, 4, 5.
You may ask yourself, as we did, why the Associate Regional Director is currently at one of the smallest national parks?
Nancy told us during that meeting that she was here to lay the groundwork for the next superintendent. She stated that she would only be here for about 3 months. Now we know, she was here just in time for last week’s roundup to be completed. Nancy should be saying what will no doubt be a tearful goodbye to us any time now as she heads back home to Omaha.
You will remember that on September 27, 2024, I had another meeting with Finley and McCann. I initiated this meeting. They had asked me during the August meeting to share my management thoughts and concerns with them. After I sent an email sharing some concerns and requesting that some mares be taken off GonaCon, Finley responded that they would be happy to discuss my concerns and suggested that we meet in person. The date of the meeting was scheduled for September 26th and then wouldntcha know it! Tuesday, the 24th, Nancy email me saying she was sorry but she had to change it to the 27th because her schedule was so slammed now for Thursday.
Friday it was! I was really looking forward to having a talk with them about taking some mares off GonaCon.
You will remember that we said about a half hour BEFORE our scheduled meeting, a local news station had released what was supposed to be an embargoed press release that talked about the roundup. I felt betrayed by Theodore Roosevelt National Park BEFORE our meeting even began!
During the meeting, Nancy explained everything that went into that press release. The approvals that had to sign off on this before it could be released to the public. Now I see why our meeting was changed from Thursday to Friday: the press release was NOT signed off on yet. Not to mention that releasing the press release at 4 pm Mountain Time on a FRIDAY meant there would be NOTHING we could do about this until MONDAY!
Here’s where it gets fun!
Nancy told me that they “had an opportunity” to use helicopters to bring in the horses because of the planned bison roundup at the North Unit. She elaborated on this as she explained to me with all the wildfires out west, it was hard to get helicopters at this time of the year. This is why they had to take advantage of this opportunity.
That sounds great, doesn’t it?
Remember, this was first being told to me on September 27th.
Well…
The thing is that things like helicopter roundups require contracts to be secured, usually months in advance, with federal government approved helicopter companies.
The other thing, is that those contracts are readily available for the public to view on https://www.usaspending.gov/
According to this website, Finley is correct, there is a contract to herd the bison: https://www.usaspending.gov/award/CONT_AWD_140D0424FP090_1406_140D8020A0009_1406
BUT
There is ALSO a contract to roundup the horses: https://www.usaspending.gov/award/CONT_AWD_140D0424FP209_1406_140D8020A0009_1406
See the “action date” on there? September 17, 2024. That would be the day that the contract was awarded to what we now know was 1 of 3 companies who bid on this contract for Theodore Roosevelt National Park.
That means that the park had planned to roundup the wild horses MINIMALLY 30 days prior to the contract being awarded – on or around August 17th. This is a basic requirement for ALL government contracts. Contracts MUST be open for bids for AT LEAST 30 days before the contract is awarded.
That would also be right around the time that Finley made her way to Theodore Roosevelt National Park.
It would seem that they did NOT simply “have an opportunity” to roundup the horses, as Finley told me in our meeting. They PLANNED to roundup the horses and those plans were in place AT LEAST 2 MONTHS before the tax paying public knew ANYTHING about it!
Oh yeah…you will also be happy to know that this roundup cost US – the TAXPAYING PUBLIC – $39,767. That is ONLY the cost of the helicopter!
We are sure that you will be equally happy to know that this current helicopter roundup contract – FOR THE SOLE PURPOSE OF ROUNDING UP OUR WILD HORSES – does NOT expire until September 16, 2025.
What does that mean?
Theodore Roosevelt National Park CAN use helicopters to round up our horses, under this contract, through NEXT September!
Will they?
Remember, Deputy Superintendent Maureen McGee-Ballinger has told the press several times over the last month that it would take about 12 months for the park to analyze their data and that there “LIKELY” would NOT be another roundup before then. So MAYBE there will – MAYBE there won’t. I think we can understand her seemingly noncommittal answer much better now!
NOTHING ABOUT THIS ROUND UP WAS THE “MATTER OF CONVIENENCE” THAT THEODORE ROOSEVELT NATIONAL PARK PROFESSED! THIS WAS A CAREFULLY PLANNED AND ORCHESTRATED PLAN FROM BEGINNING TO END! (IS it REALLY over?)
Also, for those of you who have inquired about WHO the helicopter roundup contract went to….
Drum roll please……..
HELICOPTER ROUNDUP SERVICE LLC
743 WEST HWY 132
NEPHI, UT 84648-2600
And when you put that into a google search engine, THIS is what you find:
Sue Cattoor is the primary contact at Helicopter Roundup Service, LLC. Helicopter Roundup Service, LLC is located at 743 W Highway 132, Nephi, Utah, 84648.
(Mike drop)
To answer our question at the beginning of this blog, IS it TOO much to ask that Theodore Roosevelt National Park be TRUTHFUL with the tax-paying public?
YES! It would seem so! The ongoing insanity is that they continue to lie to our faces when the TRUTH has its own literal paper trail.
Not ONLY should we NOT have to dig so deep to get the TRUTH from ANY government agency, people working for our government agencies SHOULD NOT be LYING DIRECTLY TO OUR FACES!!!
Now we have to wonder, what else have they or WILL they lie to us about? I am sure some of those answers will be found in their CYA (Cover Your Ass) report that recaps what they did to our wild horses last week – due out any moment now.
I’m hanging on the edge of my seat waiting to sift through the LIES in their report, aren’t you?!
The time for TRANSPARENCY has passed. Theodore Roosevelt National Park needs to be held ACCOUNTIBLE for their heinous actions against the wild horses in this park!
We have 2 Calls to Action for you to speak up for the wild horses of TRNP and demand ACCOUNTIBILITY for their heinous actions.
This one is a petition to DEMAND that these collars come off OUR horses!
Please sign just ONCE and share!
https://secure.everyaction.com/x-5WrjPo20Cb4LGbj5PD-A2
This one is to send an email to elected officials DEMANDING TRNP be held accountable for their heinous actions against our wild horses!
You can send this as many times as you like! https://secure.everyaction.com/brPfquNQ2EqN-6XVh-16Rg2
Please share!
We also hope that you will consider making a tax deductible donation to help us with our critical advocacy work! You can make your tax deductible donation here: https://secure.everyaction.com/cBmDbRA6cUuzERpShcQOCg2
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