Karen Taylor-Goodrich, former Superintendent at North Cascades National Park Service Complex in Washington passed away on January 30, 2023, after a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer. Karen retired from the National Park Service on September 11, 2021, after over 44 years of devoted public service — fostering staff, building relationships, and leading excellence.
She was a fierce and fearless trailblazer, opening opportunities for women throughout the Service. Karen was the first female Associate Director for Visitor and Resource Protection (National Park Service Chief Ranger) and the first female superintendent at both Sequoia and Kings Canyon and North Cascades National Parks.
Cards can be sent to her husband, Gil Goodrich, at North Cascades National Park, c/o Denise Shultz, 810 State Route 20, Sedro Woolley WA, 98284. A celebration fund for Karen has been set up with Washington’s National Park Fund to benefit the parks. Memorial gifts may be made by mailing checks made out to WNPF or online at www.wnpf.org/remembering-karen.
Following is the announcement Karen wrote for her retirement in 2021:
Karen spent the first 12 years of her career in Yosemite – first as a volunteer, then in seasonal and permanent protection ranger positions there with her last assignment as a horse-mounted patrol ranger in Yosemite Valley. She also had the opportunity to work in a wide range of field and supervisory positions at Grand Canyon, Lake Roosevelt, Cumberland Island, and National Capitol Parks – East. From there she went on to the Washington Office where she served as the first female Associate Director for Visitor and Resource Protection for seven years. She met her husband Gil at the National Park Service Horse Patrol Training Academy at Yosemite in 1984 and together they tackled the dual-career work life in a number of parks and offices. More recently, Karen returned to the Sierra Nevada and served as Superintendent at Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks for three years before transferring up to the North Cascades for the last eight years. Karen’s passion, too, for international work was an important part of her career in public service including fostering sister park arrangements in China, Cambodia, and Portugal, along with other transboundary and international protected area-related ventures in Australia, Tanzania, Italy, South Africa, Mexico, and Canada.
Karen holds a BS in Geography from Portland State University in Portland, OR, and completed the NPS Natural Resource Management Training Program and interagency DOI Team Leadership Program.
Karen recently reflected on her long career starting with one of her favorite quotes by Theodore Roosevelt: “Far and away the best prize life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.”
“That sums up nicely what has kept me working so hard for our important protected areas here and in other parts of the world for all these years. But, most importantly, I have been so very fortunate to fulfill my passions while working with so many of the best and brightest, those truly dedicated and talented agency, interagency, and supporting organizations colleagues who strive to do their very best at all things, often under very demanding circumstances.
It’s also with much gratitude that I’ve been able to work alongside such great staff(s) and teammates, and so many others that have made our daily responsibilities and whatever special projects, committees, and initiatives a collective accomplishment. While there are always challenges in navigating a long career – including, of course, my fair share of regrets, missteps, and vocal detractors and naysayers along the way – I so much appreciate the genuine camaraderie, caring, fellowship, and excellent mentoring and vital professional support (Rest in Peace dear Randy Jones) that I’ve received since I first started as a volunteer in Yosemite.
As a working-class kid from LA, this support was essential to building my understanding of and commitment to the importance of what we do, and getting to work in that esprit de corps with such a diverse range of skilled and committed individuals and groups has been intoxicating. I’ve continued to learn so much along the way and personally and professionally benefited from building strong commitments and connections to the visitor and resource protection, wilderness management, wildland fire, resource management, park interpretation and education, trails and park maintenance, and our administrative and outside supporting organizations communities. I’ve also learned from experience that the true heart of our agency, and the glue of integrity that really keeps it together, are all the dedicated staff from all occupations that work tirelessly day after day to keep the wheels of the parks and offices turning amidst the morass of a complicated bureaucratic and politically vulnerable agency framework. Thank you for all that you do.”
Washington’s National Park Fund is the official philanthropic partner to Mount Rainier, North Cascades, and Olympic National Parks. With your help, we raise private support to preserve and protect Washington’s national parks, funding scientific research, youth and family experiences, and projects that will keep these parks strong and vital now and forever, for everyone.