Roger Smith Receives Lifetime Achievement Award

We are proud to share that Teton Raptor Center’s Co-Founder and Chief Mission Officer, Roger Smith, has been awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award for Raptor Conservation—a fitting tribute to more than four decades of unwavering dedication to wildlife and environmental education. The award was presented at the 1st Annual Jackson Hole Birding Festival, celebrating Roger’s extraordinary impact on birds of prey and the people who care about them.

Roger’s journey began in the 1970s as a field biologist studying grizzly bears, eventually leading him to Jackson Hole, where he and his wife, Margaret Creel, began caring for injured raptors out of their home in 1991. Their efforts grew into what is now Teton Raptor Center, a thriving hub for raptor rehabilitation, research, and education. Roger’s tireless work—from hands-on care and long-term ecological studies to inspiring the next generation of conservationists—has shaped the future of raptor conservation in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and beyond.

Today, as Chief Mission Officer, Roger continues to guide TRC’s vision and programs with the same passion and purpose that sparked its founding. Please join us in congratulating him on this remarkable and well-earned recognition!