BY RICHARD BONHAM

It is with great personal sorrow that I write of the loss of one of Big Life’s longest standing team members, our co-founder and treasurer: Tom Hill.

Not many can claim they left this world a better place than they found it; Tom can do so in no uncertain terms.

Tom first came to Amboseli in the mid-nineties, joining me on a walking safari across the Chyulu Hills. It was the beginning of a love affair for him with all the land where Kilimanjaro casts its shadow.

During this safari, Tom, always with his sharp and inquiring mind, probed with questions that pierced the shroud of pristine, unthreatened beauty. He began to understand that the places we walked were on the brink of potentially irreversible change and that interventions were needed, fast.

Tom’s first contribution was a donation to what was then a fledgling community ranger operation; just 30 rangers tackling the poaching that was widespread at the time. Today, this team has grown to 390 dedicated men and women who have all but eradicated poaching in Big Life’s area of operation.

Together, we watched the lion population plummet in the late 90’s. Maasai pastoralists were no long tolerating the losses of their livestock to lions, and retaliatory killing was driving the lion population to local extinction. I remember Tom’s words as we considered solutions: “There is no better incentive to man than an economic incentive…”

The idea was reflected in our discussions with community leaders and the Predator Compensation Fund was born. Started in 2002, this program has been fundamental in stopping retaliatory predator killing and led to one of the most remarkable lion recoveries in Africa, to an impressive population of approximately 250 today.

Tom’s passion for lions took him one step further. He worked with the Menye Layiok, or ‘fathers of the warriors,’ to create the Maasai Olympics, an athletics competition designed to engage warriors, who are the age group most likely to spear lions. Since 2012, Tom’s passion has made the Maasai Olympics a cultural phenomenon.

For 25 years, Tom has quietly been one of Big Life’s most dependable engines. I could go on and on about his contributions to making this world a better place. Tom had a huge impact on so many lives, both human and animal, including my own.

Thank you, Tom. I will hear your voice every time I hear a lion roar.

RB