Happy birthday, Cypress Rudloe, from your dad

By JACK RUDLOE

Happy birthday Cypress Rudloe, you are 42 years old today!
You are doing a marvelous job managing Gulf Specimen Marine Lab. When I started collecting marine specimens in 1961, my goal was to make a living selling them to schools and biological supply houses. I never dreamed that one day it would turn into a nationally known marine environmental education center.

Twelve years ago, you took the reins of Gulf Specimen Marine Lab after your mom died of cancer. By then the lab and aquarium had grown and you had to ride the roller coaster of learning the finances, operating the complex facilities and dealing with permitting agencies. It was no small task overseeing the collection, of hundreds of species of marine invertebrates, fish and algae, and then learning how to ship them so they arrived alive.
You rose to the task by assembling a great team of staff and interns who learned to deal with tens of thousands of excited children coming from 250 regional schools, as well as on tour buses from central and south Florida. You’ve had to deal with hurricanes and FEMA, working with contractors to build back our Living Dock and repair damaged facilities.
You now oversee all the pumps, protein skimmers, blowers, ozone and ultra violet sterilizers that keep the place running, and by sharing your knowledge enable many young people working at the lab to get good paying jobs, and even two Ph.D. degrees. You created an AmeriCorps program that has helped nearly 30 young people over the past three years, while administering a large complex FDEP grant which involved building a high-tech greenhouse to grow seaweed. You’ve led teams rescuing cold stunned sea turtles, working with veterinarians to keep them alive, as well as removing hooks and treating boat strikes.
Over the past 60 years, generations have grown up visiting Gulf Specimen and returned with children, even grandchildren of their own. You, with all the people who have worked here, are helping Gulf Specimen become what I hope will be an irreplaceable part of the community. The fact is that due to a fast-growing cancer, I will not be here to help you as I have in the past, but I know you’ll prevail and will keep Gulf Specimen up and running for future generations.
So Happy birthday Cypress, under your management Gulf Specimen has come a long way since I started it in a rundown shack with a leaky roof, a box of stationery an Airedale and a dream.

Jack Rudloe is the founder and president of Gulf Specimen Marine Lab in Panacea, and the father of Cypress Rudloe.