Gift 
Walt Suhre
Walt Suhre's life philosophy has served him well for eight decades. It is that life has three dimensions: learnin', earnin' and returnin'. He says all three occur throughout the life journey - not necessarily in successive phases, and often overlapping one another. The Saint Louis Zoo celebrates having Walt in its family and being an integral part of his journey.
In addition to 21 years of formal education, Walt's learnin' phase included three years of active duty in the U.S. Marine Corps, which he describes as invaluable. His earnin' phase spans 30 years of practicing law, his last 10 years as chief legal officer for Anheuser-Busch. Following retirement in 1992, Walt describes his focus as "putting back into the well from which I had drawn for 60 years. I went to clown school, then did weekly visits to children's hospitals for the next seven years. What satisfaction!" Another returnin' activity has been volunteer leadership and financial support of the Zoo, serving on the board and numerous committees and being an active member of both the Marlin Perkins Society and the Heritage Society.
"I'm proud to be a member of the Heritage Society," says Walt. "It was a win-win opportunity to use my appreciated Anheuser-Busch stock to create a legacy gift to benefit the Zoo. Funding a charitable gift annuity with appreciated stock saved me capital gains taxes and augmented my retirement income. What better way to help our beloved Zoo?"
The returnin' phase also led Walt to serve on the board of Operation Food Search to support its mission of feeding the hungry, and in 2009 he was one of a dozen Marines who founded FOCUS Marines Foundation (FMF). FMF assists disabled post-9/11 Marines to assimilate into meaningful civilian lives. Walt is proud to report, "To date, FMF has brought 617 wounded warriors into St. Louis for assistance. Lives are being saved."
One life, three dimensions, a world of positive difference made.
