Events
Makers of San Diego History honoring the San Diego Zoo
Makers of San Diego History Annual Dinner: Honoring 100 Years of the San Diego Zoo
Saturday, June 25, 2016
Schedule of Events
4:30 – 6PM Lore Behind the Roar: 100 Years of the San Diego Zoo exhibit tour at the San Diego History Center
6 – 7PM Hosted Beer/Wine Reception
(No Host Cocktails)
7 – 9PM Dinner, Entertainment, and Program
PREVIOUS MAKERS OF SAN DIEGO HISTORY HONOREES
2015 Centurions of San Diego
2014 U.S. Military in San Diego and Walter J. Zable
2013 The Craft Brew Industry
2012 The Tuna Industry 2011 Sol Price
2010 Qualcomm, Inc.
2008 Transformation of Naval Training Center into Liberty Station: Wayne Donaldson, Jack Ensch, Susan Golding, Wayne Raffesberger and Mike Stepner
2007 Daniel J Tucker, Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation and Terry Cooper, Las Patronas
2005 Fred Lewis, Heart of San Diego
2003 Pauline des Granges, The Junior League of San Diego, The Evans Family and The Hom Family
2002 Honorable Lionel Van Deerlin, Honorable Leon Williams, Mary and Dallas Clark, and Robert M. Witty, Retiring Executive Director
2001 Philip Klauber, Dorothy Smith, Gustavo Romero, The Burnham Family
Each year, the San Diego History Center honors those individuals, businesses, and institutions that have “made history in their own time.” This year, we honored the 100th year of the San Diego Zoo and Zoological Society.
The San Diego Zoological Society (today San Diego Zoo Global’s San Diego Zoo) began with a collection of animals left over from the 1915 Panama-California Exposition that were brought together by its eager and visionary founder, Dr. Harry Wegeforth. As years went on, the Zoo was the beneficiary of financial gifts from local philanthropists who realized what a zoo could do for San Diego.
The Zoo’s popularity grew when millions of soldiers and sailors who came through the city during World War II brought tales of the Zoo’s prowess home after their service. Zoorama, San Diego’s first nationally-syndicated show, and local Zoo ambassador, Joan Embery, (via “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson”) brought the Zoo into the living rooms of families throughout the nation, adding to its popularity.
Today the San Diego Zoo is the most-recognized zoo in the United States, frequently cited in movies like Anchorman and Madagascar. Its presence on social media and the web captivate audiences through the Zoo’s outreach and marketing. This in turn brings in millions of visitors from around the world and adds mightily to the City of San Diego’s economic impact and leads other related institutions in the realm of habitat conservation and ending extinction.
We are proud to have celebrated this one-of-a-kind institution that is a must-see experience for many, and a local treasure to San Diegans.
The MADCAPS Class of 2021 (7th Graders) performed their benefit show performance, “Africa Rocks”, at the San Diego History Center’s 2016 Makers of San Diego History dinner on Saturday, June 25, 2016.
The San Diego History Center thanks all of our sponsors and attendees for a ROARing good time. We hope to see you next year as we celebrate the Jewish Community’s history in San Diego and the contributions of some of its earliest pioneer families
Event Gallery
For more photos, visit: Bob Hoffman Photography
