A Tribute to Mary Cabela, Conservationists and Hunter
By John Geiger, SAFARI Magazine Managing Editor
Mary Cabela, a renowned conservationist and co-founder of one of the world’s largest outdoor retailers, died May 30, in Sidney, Nebraska.
“Mary had the heart of a lioness,” said PH Mark Haldane, who worked with her and the Cabela Family Foundation to relocate 24 lions and 12 cheetahs to a former wasteland in southern Mozambique. “Whenever one of the projects had a setback, she was an endless source of optimism, hope, and encouragement. She was an inspiration to all of us. Mary has left behind an incredible legacy which continues to shine today as she always did.”
Born in Casper, Wyoming in 1937, Mary married high school sweetheart Dick Cabela in 1955. The two started a mail-order business selling trout flies and bamboo fishing rods in the basement of their home.
Through hard work and acumen on the part of Mary, Dick and Dick’s brother Jim turned their cottage business into the multi-billion-dollar Cabela’s outdoor retail network. That success also spawned the Cabela Family Foundation, which has contributed immeasurably to conservation around the world.
Cabela was a strong supporter of SCI. She became a member in 1991, won the Diana Award in 2001 and the Beretta and SCIF Conservation Leadership Award this year. She was also a Hunter Legacy Fund member and NRA Lifetime Achievement Award winner.
“She was a woman of sacrifice,” said Dan Cabela, one of her nine children.
“Mom sacrificed daily for her family and spent the last 10 years of Dad’s life taking care of him and sitting by his many hospital bedsides. She continually put her life on hold for those she loved but saw none of this as sacrifice. To her, it was all just part of what it means to be a mother and a wife.”
When people speak of his mom, Dan Cabela said three things are usually mentioned: God, family and nature. He said a quote of hers characterizes it perfectly:
“I cannot separate conservation from God and family,” Mary Cabela once said. “My relationships with Him, with my loved ones, and with wildlife are nurtured in the outdoors. Conserving that is essential.”
SCI President John McLaurin said the hunting and wildlife-conservation world has lost a champion.
“She was a true sportswoman along with her husband, Dick, and supported SCI and our advocacy and conservation efforts for many years,” said McLaurin. “She was a true icon in the hunting and wildlife conservation world and will be remembered for her dedicated contributions and friendship.”
“Today we mourn her loss,” said SCI CEO Laird Hamberlin. “But I take comfort in knowing that her memory has set an aspirational example for hunters, conservationists and the outdoor community that will outlive us all.”
The Cabela family’s legacy lives around the world.
In New Mexico, they created the Dick and Mary Cabela Sustainable Use Area, located at the 2,700-acre Philmont Scout Ranch in northeast New Mexico. Annually, more than 3,500 youths learn fundamental outdoor recreation and wildlife conservation skills there.
In Mozambique, Mary Cabela and the Foundation have spearheaded the re-wilding of a million-acre conservancy called Coutada 11. The crowning achievement of the project has been the relocation of lions and cheetahs to their natural range. The project originally transported 24 lions from around southern Africa to southeastern Mozambique, a country that was torn apart by civil war for years. It has been called “the largest international lion relocation project,” said Mark Haldane who runs Zambezi Delta Safaris there.
“Today, thanks to Mary and her Family Foundation, cheetah once again roam the delta, for the first time in 100 years,” said the outfitter. “Lions can be heard roaring from camp and the king of beasts once again dominates the night. In a time when predators lose habit and range every year, thanks to Mary, these two amazing cats are expanding their ranges in the Zambezi Delta.”
Craig Boddington said she was an amazing role model who led by example, and she will be remembered for spearheading the ground-breaking 24 lion reintroduction project in Mozambique.
“She was kind and gentle, a lady in every way, but tough as nails,” he said. “She loved wildlife, nature, family, friends and hunting.”
In her own words, Mary Cabela admitted as much about herself and faith in us, whom she was leaving behind. At the end of her Conservation Leadership Award acceptance speech on stage at the 2023 SCI Convention, she expressed her hope in the work of all hunters and conservationists.
“Generations from now, when we have joined our loved ones in the endless beauty of heaven, someone will stand here and declare with confidence the animals and places we love so dearly still exist because he or she was given the chance to be a hunter,” she said.
“Thank you for your dedication to our wild places, and I pray all your endeavors will be blessed with hope that lasts far beyond tomorrow’s sunset.”
The family encourages friends and admirers to view and share condolences, photos and stories at gehrigstittchapel.com. Memorial contributions in her name should go to Regis University, at 3333 Regis Blvd., Denver, CO 80221.
Hunters Are ‘People of Hope’
Acceptance Speech for the 2023 Beretta and SCI Foundation Conservation Leadership Award
Mary Cabela, a renowned conservationist and co-founder of one of the world’s largest outdoor retailers, accepted the 2023 Beretta and SCI Foundation Conservation Leadership Award on Feb. 21 at the SCI Convention in Nashville. We wanted to share her eloquent and heartfelt acceptance speech with those who were not there to experience it firsthand. —The editors
Thank you. It is truly an honor to be standing here among so many dedicated hunter-conservationists. I am humbled to be included alongside the good people nominated for this award. You all deserve it as much as I do, as well as the unsung heroes working day in and day out, in the field, who have dedicated their lives to better understanding and preserving the wild places we all love so dearly. We owe them our gratitude.
What does it mean to be a conservationist? I think for most hunters it comes naturally. Why? It’s simple, you cannot spend so much time in the outdoors, pursuing the most honest relationship with nature that exists, and not fall in love with it. What do you do when you love something? As a mother of nine children, I can tell you, you nurture it, you protect it, you watch it grow, and you allow it the freedom to become what it is meant to be. Most of all, you enjoy it. Because without it your life would be less meaningful.
You all know, hunting and conservation go hand-in-hand. What makes hunters such effective conservationists is that we are people of hope. Our hope gets us up two hours before dawn because there might be a chance we will see something truly special when the sun reveals the horizon. It keeps us on the stand during the last second of dusk staring into the shadows for that elusive sight that can make our hearts stop for just a moment. It pushes us over the next hill because we would rather go home empty-handed knowing we gave everything we had than go home wondering if we could have given more.
We have hope that if we take our children hunting and show them that we are dedicated to conserving the places we love, they will carry on the torch. We hope, that if we share our passions with them, they will forever look into the horizon with a desire to step away from the concrete path and into the wilderness where a true taste of freedom waits for them. If we give them that, we give them hope, and they will give it to their children. Generations from now, when we have joined our loved ones in the endless beauty of heaven, someone will stand here and declare with confidence the animals and places we love so dearly still exist because he or she was given the chance to be a hunter.
I stand here today with a humble and grateful heart. I thank you for your dedication to our wild places, and I pray all your endeavors will be blessed with hope that lasts far beyond tomorrow’s sunset. I shared so many beautiful sunsets with my husband Dick and would like to accept this award in his honor.
Thank you, Beretta and SCI Foundation, and may God bless you all.