If you have visited the Chattanooga Zoo in Tennessee any time in the last decade or so, you have seen the passion of Tom Donovan at work. Tom, now an assisted living resident at Morning Pointe at Happy Valley in Walker County, Georgia, together with his late wife, have played a major role in making the zoo what it is today.
Career and Family
Tom has always been interested in the natural world. He earned a bachelor’s degree in biology, followed by a master’s degree in microbiology from the University of Mississippi. Finally, he earned a doctorate in environmental health from Johns Hopkins University. He put that education to work in a 20-year career with the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) out of Chattanooga, including working with water quality and environmental protection.
After that, Tom worked for 27 years for the Department of Energy, specializing in non-electrical nuclear power. He shared, “Most of what I did was really fun. I got to see some things that most people have never seen or heard of.”
With a successful career that he enjoyed, Tom also enjoyed his family. Tom married the love of his life, Barbara, in 1965, and they went on to have two children. They took their kids to the zoo to see the animals, and as their children grew up, they found another, unique new way to pass on a legacy.
Chattanooga Zoo Involvement
Very early in the 1990s, the couple got permission to go several times a month to the Chattanooga Zoo to help feed the animals. “We went through and thought we could do some things to help improve it. That began our love affair with the zoo.”
Barbara joined the board of directors, and their involvement continued to grow. “The zoo was building a new chimpanzee exhibit called Gombe Forest, with an interpretive center,” Tom said. “When they ran out of money for the interpretive center, we helped finish it.”
Over the years, Tom has had the opportunity to not just help with financial contributions but also interact with the animals. He says he has no favorites, but he still remembers several specific animals. “I used to feed a male cougar – he played first, then he’d eat. He’d lie down and purr. A big cat has a big purr.” He also remembers Sophie, the zoo’s first fennec fox, and Frankie, a hyena that Tom formed a special friendship with.
When Barbara sadly passed away several years ago, the zoo hosted her memorial service… and dedicated the bridge to the new Himalayan Passage exhibit to her. Zoo visitors today can cross over Barbara’s Bridge for themselves near the exhibit that houses snow leopards, red pandas, and other animals native to Asia.
Coming to Morning Pointe
As he got older, Tom developed more health concerns. He moved in to Morning Pointe at Happy Valley, a brand-new community, in early 2024. “It’s the best place in the company,” he said. “We’ve got a good staff, the building is new, and the food is good.”
He especially bragged on the executive director, Alisha Landes, for rolling with his sense of humor. Oh, yes, Tom is also a practical jokester. On Alisha’s official first day at the community, she walked into her office and discovered that everything was duct taped, thanks to Tom.
When the Chattanooga Zoo opened its latest exhibit in 2024, Cape of Africa, Tom got to be there, and he loves to participate when the zoo brings animals to Morning Pointe to do educational presentations for the residents.
At Morning Pointe, Tom has also made it his project to create a museum-style exhibit on Happy Valley Farms. The Happy Valley Farm and estate were established in 1935 by John L. Hutcheson, Jr. They were the site of an award-winning Jersey cattle and dairy farm, and later a world-class American Saddlebred horse-breeding facility. Morning Pointe at Happy Valley is located across the road from the barn. Tom has helped organize several artifacts for display, including Mrs. Hutcheson’s 1933 wedding gown.
But as Tom looks back on what he has accomplished in his life, he is proudest of his involvement with the Chattanooga Zoo.
“We took our kids to the zoo, and our great-grandchildren are going now,” Tom said. “It’s an unknown pearl in the community, and I will continue to support the zoo as long as I live.”
Generations have been blessed and will continue to be blessed because of Tom and his wife’s generosity.
