Carl Perry
We are sad to be saying farewell to our longtime friend and superintendent of Flagstaff Area National Monuments, Kayci Cook Collins but are excited about her promotion. Kayci will be leaving us to become the new superintendent of Mesa Verde National Park and Yucca National Monument at the end of August. The position also includes oversight of Chaco Culture National Historical Park and Aztec Ruins National Monument.
Kayci came to the Flagstaff Area National Monuments in September 2013, but you could say that she has been a part of the National Park Service since she was born. If you haven’t seen the Ken Burns documentary, The National Parks: America’s Best Idea, make sure to check out Episode 6. In the chapter titled, Generations, Kayci is introduced as the first and only fourth-generation National Park Service employee. It still brings a tear to my eye when I watch Kayci talk about taking the mantle from her father, John Cook, and introducing her then 4-year-old son Sean. There is a photo of Kayci holding Sean wearing her iconic NPS hat that will melt your heart.
Be sure to check out the photos of Kayci, her dad John, and her son Sean, taken at the 2017 unveiling of the Mather Plaque that now stands outside the Walnut Canyon National Monument Visitor Center. Her accomplishments as Superintendent of the Flagstaff Area National Monuments are too numerous to mention, but every time I visit Walnut Canyon, that Mather Plaque will remind me of her and what she has accomplished. Her friends and coworkers have universally admired her, been inspired by her, and will cherish the years that they’ve spent with her.
Best of luck to you, Kayci. We will miss you.
