Next to the podium where speakers recalled the accomplishments of David Getches, the former dean’s cowboy boots rested on a table as if to remind everyone how much of a legacy he was leaving behind.
“No one will ever fill David’s boots,” said William Meadows, president of The Wilderness Society. “We are following in the footsteps of a giant.”
Hundreds gathered in the courtyard of the University of Colorado’s Wolf Law Building to share memories of the educator and advocate. Among the speakers were CU Chancellor Phil DiStefano, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar and U.S. Sen. Mark Udall.
Getches, 68, died in his home July 5 of pancreatic cancer, 40 years to the day after he first moved to Boulder.
A member of the CU faculty since 1979, Getches became dean of the school in 2003, but only after some convincing. DiStefano recalled how hard he had to work to get Getches to accept the job.
“I asked him, ‘What would it take for you to be the next dean?’ I remember the answer quite vividly,” DiStefano said. “He said, ‘Nothing personally, but I want more faculty scholarships for students and a commitment from the university to finish this building.'”
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