Film shows life of bear expert

Frank Tyro became visibly tearful when talking about his longtime friend and colleague after showing a documentary film about the man who dedicated his life to research on polar bears.

The nearly hour-long film about the late wildlife biologist Chuck Jonkel was shown at the United Methodist Church Sunday afternoon to a small crowd of people from Plains, Paradise, Trout Creek, and Missoula. The event was free, donations went to the Great Bear Foundation, a nonprofit organization that was cofounded by Jonkel in 1981.

Tyro, president of the Great Bear Foundation, was the film's director and spent four months editing the documentary "Walking Bear Comes Home: The Life and Work of Chuck Jonkel a Pioneer of Bear Biology," which was finished last year. The goal of the documentary was to examine the life and legacy of Jonkel and his work with bears, though much of the film centered on his labors with polar bears. The Sunday showing was sponsored by Jean Morrison and the Clark Fork Enrichment Corporation.

"I wanted to tell people about his life and the work he did with bears and their habitat," said Tyro, a Pablo resident, an Arctic guide and a bear habitat conservationist. Tyro met Jonkel in 1984 on a trip to the Canadian frontier town of Churchill, where tourists flock each year to get a close look at polar bears. Tyro said Jonkel loved going to Churchill and telling people about the bears. Part of the trip usually included Jonkel teaching his clients how to build an igloo.

"Chuck always amazed me in his specific knowledge of bears, but also of geology, edible plants, ecosystems, mushrooms, habitat, and media. He authored scores of scientific papers on a wide range of topics but also could speak eloquently to kindergarten children and PhD students," said Tyro, who taught at the Salish Kootenai College in Pablo for 32 years.

Jonkel began his work on polar bears in the Canadian Arctic in the mid 1960s, working with the indigenous people, as well as biologists and other polar bear experts. He spent over 50 years traveling to the Arctic, where he entered hibernation dens, survived a helicopter crash, collared bears, and was even bit by one that was coming out of a tranquilized state. Plains resident and gunsmith Dennis Olson, who was present at Sunday's film, said he made tranquilizer guns for Jonkel in the 1970s.

Jonkel made his last trip to Churchill in 2012, but continued his work with the Great Bear Foundation, which studies all eight of the world's bear species: polar, brown, black, sloth, panda, Asian black bear, and the spectacled bear. The organization has offices in Missoula and Haines, Alaska. Jonkel passed away in 2016 at age 85.

"Making the documentary was a huge emotional challenge," said Tyro, who served as co-director, the principle cinematographer and editor of the film. "For four to eight hours per day for about four months I watched and heard Chuck and his colleagues' images and voices flash before me. There were times when I had to walk away as the tears welled up remembering Chuck and the incredible impacts he had on me and the world," said Tyro, who was elected president of the governing board in 2012 and continues to make two or three trips a year to Churchill.

The film featured interviews with several of Jonkel's associates, friends and family members, along with stories by himself. "I still feel heartache as I watch the film, but realizing that he influenced so many lives and made such a difference softens the blow," said Tyro, who spent nearly 45 minutes answering questions about Jonkel and polar bears after the film, which will be shown at the Bigfork Performing Arts Center on April 6 at noon.

"Chuck's life made me think about what made him stand out: a commitment to education, habitat, all animals and honesty," said Tyro. "He was never afraid to stand up for his beliefs, even in hostile environments."