THE OFFICE: 3,500 square miles of heavily forested mountains and geyser fields.
THE INHABITANTS: Grizzlies, black bears, moose, bison, elk, wolves, coyotes, pronghorns, deer, eagles, trumpeter swans and bighorn sheep.
THE CUSTOMER: 3-4 million people annually from all over the world.
THE JOB: Treating people mauled by grizzlies, gored by bison or burned by geysers, making helicopter and snowmobile rescues, finding the lost, fighting fires and responding to drownings, falls, airplane crashes, car wrecks and heart attacks.
test manager and train rangers on detection. From swift water to high elevation to fire rescue and jail operations, we take turns taking the lead and instructing. Teaching or learning is easily one quarter of what I do,” he said. While at SFC, he took a part-time job at St. Joseph Hospital, which led him to become a paramedic in Fort Wayne and New Haven. That segued to the park service and law enforcement. He worked for Denali National Park in Alaska, Ozarks National Scenic Riverways in Missouri and the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore in Porter County before arriving at Yellowstone. Placement in Yellowstone is competitive and driven by prior training and experience. Years of experience make him calm on the job. “It’s rewarding more than exciting,” he said. “And challenging. Sometimes it’s hard to believe I’m entrusted with protecting such incredible natural features and managing such complex incidents. “I feel good about what I’ve accomplished. There are over 400 units in the park service, but Yellowstone’s one of the crown jewels.” Bueter lives in the park with his wife, who teaches ranger classes, CPR and first aid, and two children, a daughter graduating high school this year and a son in high school.
Love of a Lifetime
USF is the place for Bueter When Saint Francis College alumna Elaine Bueter traveled to Yellowstone National Park for her granddaughter’s high school graduation in May, she saw her son, Joe, also an SFC grad, in action. As a park ranger, he was responding to traffic accidents related to a two-foot snowstorm, actually making an ambulance run on graduation day. “He loves the park and action,” mused Elaine, back in Fort Wayne and spring like weather. “I always say it’s a great place to visit,” she said, humorously trailing off to indicate full-time residence would not be her cup of tea.
But if places are beverages, then Elaine’s all-time favorite drink is USF. A volunteer docent at Brookside, she has treasured memories of her college days, earning a music education degree in 1957, and student life when the university was an all-girls school. Before college, she taught baton and music and wanted to continue in music. “They offered me a scholarship that led me right to them. I could live at home, and it was such a small class, we are still friends.” Today, Brookside stirs a lot of memories, as its ballroom was her music department. “We drove everybody in the library crazy with the racket learning all the instruments,” she said. Trinity Hall was a dormitory and “smoker”—a gathering place, whether one smoked or not. In a building behind Brookside, Sister Maurella and Sister Clara conducted art classes. After graduation, Elaine taught music at East Allen County Schools before turning her attention to her family and a 50-year career giving home piano lessons. But throughout the years she maintained her Saint Francis connection and friends, returning to campus for alumni parties and Christmas activities. “My heart is still at Saint Francis—I love the college and always have,” she said. Above photo by Steve Vorderman