In memoriam

Jane Goodall

A tribute from the early students of Gombe, 1970–1975

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We are deeply saddened by Jane’s sudden passing. Our heartfelt condolences go to her family, and to the countless friends and admirers around the world whose lives she touched and who now feel this irreplaceable loss.

Before the Jane Goodall Institute, before Roots & Shoots, before she became a global icon, a few dozen of us students had the extraordinary privilege of working alongside Jane at Gombe. By 1970, she was already renowned for showing the world that chimpanzees make and use tools, that they hunt and cooperate, and that they have personalities, minds, and emotions. She helped reveal that they are our kin, deserving of our respect, as are all creatures who share this planet.

To us early students, Jane was a warm companion and a true friend. She was kind, thoughtful, affable — a deeply spiritual person with a profound love for people, for the chimps, and for all life in the forest. The friendships we forged at Gombe, with Jane and one another, have endured for more than half a century. Many of us changed our careers because of Gombe. Others stayed on our paths, but our view of life was changed forever, thanks in no small part to Jane.

We knew Jane’s husbands, Hugo and Derek. We knew young Grub and Chef Dominic, the camp cook. Some of us knew Flo and Flint. Others knew Goliath, Charlie, Sniff, and the chimps who lost their lives to conflict. A few were even lucky enough to have known the great David Greybeard. We hold endless memories of those joyful and wondrous days at Gombe.

We also knew Jane’s mother, Vanne. In her lectures, Jane always acknowledged the profound influence of her mother. She delighted in sharing stories of a childhood guided by a loving, supportive mother who taught her to meet challenges and criticism with hard work and determination. For those of us who knew Vanne, those stories came alive; she was a kindred spirit whose grace and warmth lived on in her daughter. It is hard to fathom how proud she must have been.

Jane’s life was not without hardship. She faced monumental challenges and met them head-on. We shared her anguish when four of her students — our close friends — were kidnapped at gunpoint from their huts and held for weeks before being released. Those were dark days. But Jane recovered, regrouped, and moved forward with fierce determination.

She came to understand that she needed to help the very chimpanzees who had given her so much. One of her great realizations was that the chimps could not be protected without also supporting the human communities nearby. In doing so, she began an inexorable and perhaps reluctant transformation into Jane the Icon.

To those of us who knew her for over fifty years, she will always be simply Jane. Watching her evolve from scientist to activist to icon was a genuine wonder. We remain privileged and overwhelmed to have witnessed such greatness.

We celebrate a life lived to its fullest. We mourn a person who gave hope and inspiration to millions in difficult times. Jane showed us how to live with grace and decency, how to respond to confrontation with understanding, and how stories can open hearts. She transformed her deep convictions and the lessons she learned from her mother into an enduring force for good. As Jane embarks on her “next great adventure” it is now up to us to carry her flame forward.

For more photos and description of Gombe in 1974, see The Figan Follow web site.