When Tiffany Wilt decided to take a zoology course through the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium during her senior year of high school, she never imagined that she would end up traveling the country with Jack Hanna for more than a decade.
When she first began the zoology course, she had already decided on becoming a veterinarian, hoping to work for the Columbus Zoo, and had written her thesis on Humboldt penguins. Since 2020, Wilt has been executive director of the StoryPoint Senior Living retirement community in her hometown of Grove City. At first glance, the two careers may seem vastly different. However, the change came quite naturally to her.
During her time at The Ohio State University, a class project led her to interview one of the education directors at the zoo, who then offered her a seasonal position.
“And from there, everything just fell into place,” Wilt says.
After the end of each season, Wilt would pass her resume along to the right people and continue her stay at the zoo. She spent time working in the bird show, the wings of light show and community outreach, where she would travel to schools and senior living centers with various animals. During one such bird show, she met Suzy Rapp, Hanna’s right-hand woman. After a discussion about Wilt’s ambitions, Rapp offered her a job after graduation.
A few months later, Wilt was traveling the country with the very same Jack Hanna and Suzy Rapp that she had grown up watching on Fox 28 Kids Club. It was a dream come true for her.
“Jack was obviously my hero growing up,” Wilt says. “It was a very surreal part of my life.”
Wilt accompanied Hanna to talk shows such as the Rachael Ray Show, Good Morning America and the Late Show with David Letterman. She fondly recalls sitting in the back of a van with a cheetah and a penguin while Hanna was on the phone ordering flowers for his wife. Wilt describes her role as much more than a zookeeper. While traveling, she also took an active role in public relations, as an educator, training the animals and keeping Hanna on schedule.
“He is the kindest man you’ll ever meet,” Wilt says. “He would stop and talk to every single person that recognized him.”
After 11 years on the road, Wilt’s work was waylaid by COVID-19, as well as Hanna’s plans for retirement. Inspired by her love of her hometown and interest in working with older adults, Wilt took on an entirely new position at StoryPoint.
“I had been a zookeeper my entire life; it was like my identity,” Wilt says. “I’m more than just someone who travels with Jack Hanna or takes care of the animals.”
Working in Grove City again made sense for Wilt, whose parents own and run Coffee Break Pottery Art here in Grove City. As a child, Wilt would spend time helping out with the business and building relationships with the community. Her family members were also avid attendees of Grove City’s Christmas celebration and parade.
Her identity up until 2020 served as a motivator to explore a different path. For a long time, she considered herself a “lifer” at the zoo. However, after years of visiting senior living centers with animals, planning events at the zoo and interacting with countless people on a daily basis, she realized StoryPoint made sense for her. Her position as life enrichment director requires someone who is familiar with business and good at working with people, and her work fundraising and planning events made her well prepared.
From day one at StoryPoint, Wilt was set on challenging the norm.
“Why do we have to stick to normal? Let’s do something totally different,” she says. “That’s what I came in to do.”
Events for the older adults living in the community became more frequent. To battle feelings of isolation during the height of the pandemic, employees would go door to door with “party carts” containing snacks and games to every resident, every day.
“There are a lot of parallels with enriching the lives of people. We want to make people’s lives better,” Wilt says. “I have that ability to connect with people and figure out what they need to be healthy and successful.”
Connor Quinn is an editorial assistant at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
