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Photo Courtesy of Susan Luckie Reilly
Contact: George Land, 760-367-5507 Joshua Tree National Park, Twentynine Palms, CA –Longtime Twentynine Palms resident, desert advocate, and former Joshua Tree National Park ranger, turns 100 years old this month. Susan Luckie Reilly was born in 1916, the same year the National Park Service was founded. In 1965, Reilly donned the green and grey of the NPS and worked as a seasonal, ranger-naturalist for what was then, Joshua Tree National Monument.
Ms. Reilly is the daughter of Dr. James B. Luckie, a Pasadena physician who recommended the healthy, dry, desert climate to WWI veterans suffering from the effects of mustard gas. The Luckie family spent time at the family home in Twentynine Palms when not in Pasadena. It was during these family visits that Susan developed a life long love and passion for the desert environment. A graduate of Stanford University, Ms. Reilly and others founded the Morongo Basin Conservation Association which successfully fought off an initiative by the utility company to run a massive power transmission corridor straight through the heart of the Morongo Basin.
Ms. Reilly received the Minerva Hoyt Award in 2004. She also received, Woman of Distinction Award given by Congressman Paul Cook in 2013 and has been a driving force for preservation and protection of the Southern California desert.
On Wednesday, June 22nd , from 3:00pm - 5:00pm, Joshua Tree National Park and the Joshua Tree National Park Association will host a birthday celebration in honor of Ms. Reilly and the centennial of the National Park Service. The festivities will be held at Oasis Visitor Center and the public is invited to come out and participate in wishing Susan Luckie Reilly and the National Park Service a hearty, happy birthday!
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Last updated: June 8, 2016