If you’ve been around WERC for a few years, you have probably met, read about, or viewed Jeremy Heft at one time or another. We thought you’d enjoy knowing just a little bit about our “lone wolf.” 

Jeremy Heft is one of our instructors for our outreach program, Passport to Wildlife, and will also be one of the instructors for our monthly classroom lessons on our website! Check out his story:

Jeremy is a Wildlife/Wolf Biologist, Naturalist, and mentor. His love for the outdoors began at an early age – spending hours in nature whenever he could growing up. A background of sports and Boy Scouts got the ball rolling for skills he would need for his wildlife career.

Jeremy received a Bachelor’s Degree in Environmental Biology with an emphasis in Animal Behavior and Physical Geography from Kutztown University. It was during this time at KU that Jeremy refined his passion for large carnivores, particularly gray wolves.

After graduating, he started his Naturalist career path with the Marine Science Consortium on Wallop’s Island, Virginia. There, he taught marine biology to students of all ages, from elementary school to college-level courses. His next stop was New Hampshire, where he taught Mountain Ecology and backcountry survival skills to students with the Appalachian Mountain Club.

Jeremy began his time with WERC through an internship, where he got the chance to work with some of the top wolf biologists in the world. He quickly bonded to the resident, captive Sawtooth Pack while doing his research. After the internship, he was promoted to Biologist and assumed all care and maintenance of the captive wolves.

Jeremy gained an incredible insight into the social world of wolves as he became the closest bonded human to both the Sawtooth and Owyhee packs. Now with 22 years of captive care experience, he promotes responsible and ethical care of captive animals through consultations with organizations around the world. He also gives lectures to animal professionals and continues the WERC mission through youth programs.

He also spends time volunteering as Fire Chief and as an Advanced EMT for his community. He teaches Emergency Medicine at Lewis Clark State College and acts as the Chief Deputy Coroner of Lewis County, Idaho.

Jeremy is one of our instructors for our outreach programs like our classroom and Passport to Wildlife. Your contribution helps us continue our work to inspire and educate students. 

Support us here or by clicking on the button below.

Thank you for your support,
Chris & the WERC Team