Commission meeting news : Assistant Executive Director Victor J. Heller honored with Humphrey Award :

News Release

FWC Assistant Executive Director Victor J. Heller honored with Humphrey Award

December 5, 2007
Contact: Patricia Behnke, 850-410-5291

The Wildlife Foundation of Florida (WFF) presented the prestigious Louise Ireland Humphrey Achievement Award to Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) Assistant Executive Director Victor J. Heller at the FWC’s Commission meeting in Key Largo on Wednesday, Dec. 5.

Dr. C. Tom Rainey of the WFF, who presented the award, said, “Vic’s 29-year career with the FWC has resulted in significant contributions at every level through his biological expertise, management practicality and big-picture thinking.”

Each year the WFF honors former Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission (GFC) Chairwoman Louise Ireland Humphrey by recognizing an FWC employee whose dedication and service has made a significant contribution to the protection and conservation of Florida’s fish and wildlife.

Heller began his career in Oklahoma after receiving a bachelor’s and Master of Science degree in wildlife ecology at Oklahoma State University. His first job brought him to the Oklahoma Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit, where he conducted research on the impacts of stream alteration on riparian wildlife.

In 1978, he joined the GFC as a biologist in charge of the Everglades. During his two-year stint in this position, he established sound deer management practices by instituting the first-ever deer harvest quotas and issuing tags as a way to control harvest.

These practices, which obviated the boom and bust cycle of the Everglades deer population, brought him statewide recognition, and he was promoted in 1980 to Assistant Bureau Chief of Wildlife Management. Within four years, Heller became the first leader of the newly formed Nongame Wildlife Bureau, developing one of the premier nongame programs in the country.

As an assistant director in the Division of Wildlife in 1986, Heller helped develop a comprehensive management program, which brought about a recovery in the alligator population, which had been an endangered species.

Heller dedicated himself to ensuring access to fish and wildlife resources by all Florida residents and visitors. He created special hunts for the mobility-impaired and established special dispensation for the handicapped to participate in standard hunts.

In 1995, Heller’s hard work brought him to the position of assistant executive director, where he has remained through the GFC’s transition to the FWC in 1999. As the agency doubled in size, Heller’s leadership role has been an integral part of the success of the FWC.

In accepting the award, Heller said, “Right now I feel I am the luckiest man on earth working with one of the best fish and wildlife organizations in the country.”