Eileen Sutz

ELY- The International Wolf Center is one of three recipients of a $2.45 million bequest aimed to further wolf education and research.
In one of the largest donations made in support of wolves, Eileen Sutz, a native Chicagoan, bequeathed her estate to three organizations dedicated to educating the public about wolves in North America. The recipients of her gift, Yellowstone Forever, the International Wolf Center, and Wolf Park will share in the funds equally. Each organization has plans to expand their wolf education programs and research with Sutz’s support and vision behind them.
Sutz was a lifelong wolf advocate who had strong feelings about protecting and supporting wolves. Believing they were misunderstood and unjustly maligned, she saw the importance of educating people about wolves and protecting the wolf population.
Employing a legacy
The International Wolf Center has sought to teach the world about wolves since it was founded in 1985 by Dr. L. David Mech. The center brings 40,000 visitors a year to Ely and reaches many more people through its busy website, quarterly magazine, virtual learning, and webinars.
The center will use the Eileen Sutz estate funding to train new wolf educators across the world so they can bring the science about this misunderstood apex predator into their home communities.
“Thanks to these funds, our organization has a huge opportunity to leverage our community of followers around the world through the launching of a wolf educator training program,” Executive Director Grant Spickelmier said.
“It’s inspiring what this woman’s passion for wolves is creating,” Spickelmier told the Timberjay. Spickelmier outlined that the center will draw from its vibrant online community and partner with other science education organizations to develop its volunteer educators.
The center knew about Sutz’s gift in December and started planning. “We will be able to support the training program for three years with our third (of the money),” said Spickelmier.” The center will hire a manager for the program who will be based in Ely. The training for the volunteer educators will have three components: live interactive education with the center’s staff, online general knowledge modules about wolves, and pre-recorded videos with specialized content about wolves. The center has already created the first five of the online modules.
“We will have a pilot program in place by May,” explained Spickelmier, “with a slow roll out as we ramp up to the full program in 2025.” The pilot will enroll 30 people, focusing initially on western states with wolf populations.
“By training and equipping community wolf educators we can reach new audiences that might not otherwise hear from the International Wolf Center and simultaneously create a new set of engaged volunteers and champions for science-based wolf education. We like to think that Eileen herself would have been the first person to sign up.”
Eileen Sutz
Sutz’s connection to wolves began in her youth. As a ballet dancer, model, and free spirit ahead of her time, she overcame many obstacles in pursuit of her dreams. She often experienced being misunderstood and constrained by the confines of conventional life and found strength and resonance with wolves. She admired and found inspiration in their independence, loyalty, and resilience as well as their beauty and gracefulness.
Over the years, Sutz’s successful business career allowed her to pursue many of her passions including founding a theater company, supporting animal rescue organizations, and traveling the world to follow the Rolling Stones on tour for over 10 years, but her most enduring and passionate interest remained the welfare of wolves.
Physical ailments led to Sutz being homebound in her later years, and during that time she devoured news about wolves and began passionately defending them at any given opportunity.
Following Sutz’s unexpected passing from a stroke in 2022, the search began to find organizations that fulfilled her vision and weren’t laden with bureaucracy. The three selected organizations have spent the past several months determining how they’ll expand their efforts thanks to the gift from Sutz.