Smith settling in as Glacier's second in command

Eric Smith has wore a lot of hats in his career both in and out of the Park Service. The new deputy superintendent has had about four months to get familiar with Glacier after moving here from Denali National Park in Alaska where he held the same post.

A Navy veteran, 43-year-old Smith began his Park Service career as a maintenance mechanic supervisor at Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in Utah after a five-year stint with the federal Department of Corrections — first as a correctional officer in Florida and then as a maintenance mechanic supervisor in Three Rivers, Texas.

In 2003 he was named Deputy Chief of Facilities Management at Glen Canyon, then he moved to  Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park in Georgia in 2005 where he was chief of facilities management and was acting superintendent for nine months. He left the Park Service and worked for the Government Service Agency for four years in Florida, but missed the West and was named chief of facilities management at Denali in 2011 and deputy superintendent in 2014.

While in Glen Canyon, he was also part of the search and rescue dive team, often, unfortunately, recovering people who had drowned.

Smith said part of the reason for moving to Glacier was for his wife, Elaine’s health. A former park ranger, she injured her back in a search and rescue in 2003 and still needs treatment. Denali was a beautiful park, but far away from basic medical services, Smith noted.

The couple live in Columbia Falls and have two boys, ages 7 and 14. Smith enjoys hiking, fishing and hunting and said he hopes to hit every trail in the park someday.