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My 47th Year at Game and Parks

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Greg Wagner holds a large channel catfish on a sandy shoreline.
Greg Wagner holds a channel catfish he caught from a private western Douglas County sandpit lake. Photo by Rich Berggren, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission

By Greg Wagner

I think it is a significant achievement. To me, it is a mix of tremendous fulfillment and reward, deep passion and being in a most gratifying role.

At age 63, 2026 begins my 47th year of public service at the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, and I am beyond thankful for having a career in a “dream job”.

I roll onward!

I have always openly and honestly said, “I would never trade jobs with any of you for any amount of money!”

I have worked with and for some of the highest quality individuals in a wonderful family-oriented atmosphere. I have met and made the most outstanding friends, acquaintances and associates through my various positions at the Game and Parks Commission. Above all though, I have thoroughly enjoyed working with you — the public. 

When I finally “hang up my spurs” someday here at the Commission, I will miss YOU. That interaction with YOU is something I treasure as I begin my 47th year at the agency, whether we have had an interesting discussion on game or fish management or I have helped you and your family enjoy a state park stay to the fullest degree.

I have learned a lot from YOU!

I was told a long time ago that the major component in this work with conservation and outdoor recreation is dealing with people. Some folks get into this field because they want to deal with wildlife or spend time in the woods or on the water, but that tends to be an infrequent part of the job. My smartphone and computer go off a lot, and never once has it been a wild critter calling, texting or emailing — HA!

One thing that will certainly resonate with you when we chat is my love affair with Nebraska. It reflects an appreciation for the state’s humble, down-to-earth people (especially landowners ) and its surprising, diverse geography, habitat and wildlife that goes way beyond the common “flat, boring, nothing” stereotype.

The connections with nature I have encountered are unmatched. I have seen scenarios over my tenure that would make the Discovery TV Channel videographers scramble for their cameras — from bighorn sheep ram breeding battles in the Pine Ridge to the appearance of endangered whooping cranes on migration in the central Platte River valley. I have participated in everything from banding songbirds to releasing river otters. Not to mention checking in harvested deer, turkey and bobcats, banding Canada geese, fighting the Fort Robinson Forest Fire of 1989, collecting walleye eggs, and electroshocking and running nets for fish population surveys. I cannot wait to find out what’s in store with wildlife, fish and park work in the near future!    

I will tell you one key trait of a successful conservation and outdoor recreation professional — at every career stage is a healthy dose of humility and a firm desire to keep learning and adapting to a changing environment. Every day, every month, every season, every year, is different. That’s what makes the job I do as a communications and marketing professional so exciting.

In sum, I want to leave you with what Theodore Roosevelt said about working: “Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.” Based on my experiences over the years, a career in conservation or outdoor recreation offers an excellent shot at the best prize, which greatly exceeds simply having a job and getting a paycheck.

I look forward to hearing from you or seeing you on the job. – GW

Greg Wagner is a communications and marketing specialist and manager for the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission's Service Center in Omaha. On a weekly basis, Wagner can be heard on a number of radio stations, seen on local television in Omaha, and on social media channels, creatively conveying natural resource conservation messages as well as promoting outdoor activities and destinations in Nebraska. Wagner, whose career at Game and Parks began in 1979, walks, talks, lives, breathes and blogs about Nebraska’s outdoors. He grew up in rural Gretna, building forts in the woods, hunting, fishing, collecting leaves, and generally thriving on constant outdoor activity. One of the primary goals of his blog is to get people, especially young ones, to have fun and spend time outside!