A lifetime of conservation

By Per Peterson

Ernest Swift to be inducted into TAPS’  Wall of Fame

Without Ernest Swift, it’s anyone’s guess what Tracy’s only lake would be named.

Swift, the namesake for Tracy’s very own Swift Lake, will be posthumously inducted into the Tracy Area Public Schools’ Wall of Fame at next Thursday’s Education Banquet as part of American Education Week. Because of COVID-19, the traditional banquet that features the Wall of Fame inductees and honors student achievers at Tracy’s schools, will be held virtually at www.tracy.k12.mn.us at 6:30 p.m. on Nov. 19.

“Tracy Area Public Schools feels the Education Week Banquet is an important tradition and wants to continue honoring our students, staff, community members, and past graduates during the pandemic,” TAHS Supt. Chad Anderson said. “It is important to take time each year to spotlight the importance of receiving a first-class education from TAPS.

Swift was born in 1897, the son of one-time Tracy School Supt. Lee Swift. Swift, who died in 1968, was big into conservation and was inducted into the Wisconsin Conservation Hall of Fame in 1986; he served as a game warden in Wisconsin from 1926-35 before becoming deputy director of the Wisconsin Conservation Department. In 1947, he became the state director of the department, and in 1945 he became the assistant director of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service before accepting a post as head of the National Wildlife Federation.

Swift’s autobiography is titled, “A Conservation Saga.”

See this week’s Headlight Herald for more on this article.