Meet San Diego’s 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient—Glenn Gargas
We are very thrilled to share that at this year’s Founders’ Day event, we have the privilege of presenting a Lifetime Achievement Award to longtime chapter leader Glenn Gargas.
The Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes chapter leaders who have served in a role (or multiple roles) with a chapter for 10 or more years and have performed well in those roles in service to the chapter and the University of Wisconsin Alumni Association. Get to know a little more about Glenn before you meet him at this year’s Founders’ Day Celebration on Saturday March 25, 2023.
Glenn grew up in Wausau, Wisconsin, graduating from Wausau East in 1975. Graduating high school, Glenn admits he didn’t know what he wanted to major in, so was attracted to the University of Wisconsin by its size and diversity of degree programs. He loved the campus, surrounded by lakes, lakeshore path, and the Memorial Union Terrace - plus Glenn grew up cheering on the Badgers across all sports.
Glenn graduated from the University of Wisconsin- Madison with a degree in Urban Geography in 1980. He was a member of the Tau Kappa Epsilon (TKE) Fraternity, holding offices of Rush Chairmen and Hegemon (i.e. Pledge Training). As a member of TKE, Glenn was involved in several fundraising efforts for St. Jude’s, Multiple Sclerosis and Easter Seals. Some of Glenn’s favorite memories include home and away football games! He has fond memories of road trips to Ohio State, Michigan State and Iowa but also just as fondly enjoyed the Fifth Quarter, after which they would follow the marching band from Camp Randall through the streets back to the Humanities Building.
Glenn attributes his connection and love for UW to being there at a special time. He enjoyed Halloween on State Street when it was still a student government sponsored event (only from ’79-’88). Reflecting on student government, Glenn also attended when Pail and Shovel built the iconic Statue of Liberty on Lake Mendota and placed pink flamingos in the lawn up Bascom Hill—back when it was pretty unexpected and not attached to the current day ‘Fill the Hill’ campaign. Additionally, Glenn was nominated by his fraternity for Homecoming King one year. Though he only got to the interview round for Homecoming Court, he noted a great consolation prize was that he roomed with Bucky Badger for a year—Definitely a win in our book!
Glenn has been in San Diego since January 1984. After a very cold day in Madison—35 below zero with a windchill of 77 below—Glenn waved the white flag and moved to ‘America’s Finest City’. He had visited during the previous summer for a friend’s wedding and knew the city was growing so he could find his way into some sort of city planning, all while escaping the harsh winter. And that is exactly what he did. Glenn worked for 3 years in City Planning for the City of Escondido, then moved on to work in City Planning for the City of San Diego for 32 years. He held positions in environmental planning, permit planning, and spent the last 19 years as a project manager taking privately owned projects through the complex hearing process.
Since retiring in April of 2020, you can find Glenn golfing, hiking, walking the beach, skiing and bicycling all over the county. Newly, you may even find Glenn and his girlfriend Kathleen kicking butt on the Pickleball court. Glenn also enjoys time with his daughter Morgan (27), who lives close in San Diego after graduating from Mizzou, and his son Dylan (26), who calls Scottsdale home after graduating from Penn State. (We only rib Glenn about this a tiny bit!)
Along with the lifelong connections, and brothers, Glenn has made at Madison, he remains active and connected through the San Diego Wisconsin Alumni Association Chapter. He shared he has met a ton a great people through the Alumni Association over the years, many who he still sees regularly. Glenn was President of the San Diego Chapter in the late 80s and early 90s. He also represented the University of Wisconsin on the Holiday Bowl Committee and was involved with the Back to the Big Ten event for a number of years, even serving as Chairman in 1994. One of his favorite events was the San Diego Crew Classic, where the chapter raised money for our scholarship program by selling shirts and bratwursts at the Wisconsin tent near the race finish line. While we wait for the Crew Classic to return to our shores, you can still find Glenn coordinating the North County game watch locations, serving diligently on the chapter board, and at many other Alumni oriented events!
Whether at home or on the go, Glenn has always been a proud San Diego Badger! Thank you for all you have done over your many dedicated years to this group and for all you continue to do to help this community grow stronger. We are thrilled to have Glenn as part of our Wisconsin Alumni Association: San Diego Chapter legacy and to present him with the 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award. On, Wisconsin!