Terry O'Sullivan

Originally from Cupertino, California, Terry came to Alaska in 1976 after earning a degree in natural resources management from Humboldt State College and working as a wildlands firefighter. He started to work as an outdoor recreation planner for the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in Fairbanks, Alaska, and by 1979 was hired onto the BLM's Iditarod National Historic Trail Project Planning Team in Anchorage, Alaska. He helped research, write, prepare and get approval for the Iditarod National Historic Trail's Comprehensive Management Plan (Volumes 1 and 2). Starting in 1982, Terry became the Trail Administrator for the Iditarod National Historic Trail, and spent a few years based out of the office of Alaska State Parks in what they called the Joint State Federal Trails Office. As trail administrator, Terry tried to implement aspects of the comprehensive management plan, provided public education about the history and importance of the Iditarod National Historic Trail, collaborated with the Iditarod National Historic Trail Advisory Council and local Iditarod Trail Blazer groups, oversaw permitting for commercial use of the trail, and assisted with land conveyance issues. Terry went on to work for BLM in the McGrath Resource Area, as the Recreation Planner for the Anchorage District Office, and as the State Lead for Recreation in Alaska. Around 1990, Terry transferred to become the State Lead for Recreation in Arizona, and retired from the BLM in 2003.