By Deb Silverthorn

Larry Glick’s hobby as a birder is picture-perfect — nearly. Traveling to 95 countries in the last 41 years, and lately in Papua New Guinea, Glick has seen more than 7,000 of the 10,960 avian species reported by birdcount.org to share this planet. In the shutters of his camera, he’s witnessed the common, the oh-so-rare and those who since his sighting are now listed as extinct.

“This world is an amazing place. I’ve been to places where many have traveled. I’ve crossed the 80th parallel, where there is no land between there and the North Pole, where only a few humans have ever been,” said Glick, who is among the top 100 of more than 40 million active birders around the world.

A tax attorney by profession, Glick was working with a client in Hawaii in 1982 when the client invited him for a day around Maui. During a stop on the eastern side of the island, through a pair of binoculars Glick saw a yellow-green bird, one of the rarest and most critically endangered ever. It was an ‘ō ‘ū, now extinct.

“I got home and did some research and began traveling the country, and then the world, in search of birds,” said Glick. He makes solo ventures in the hopes of finding new species as well as trips with birding groups. “You must be steady, and it’s quite a challenge, but I have the best wildlife camera and lens made. Really, I have some spectacular photos,” he said.

Glick carries a monopod, his cameras and 600mm lens, binoculars, a backpack and suitcase. Through the years he’s kept a trip journal which has become a whimsical look at the sights, travel experiences and wildlife from along his journey.

Earlier this year, Glick went to Japan, where he saw two species of cranes from China, Korea and Russia. While out on a boat, the captain noted they were in Russian waters. Despite the threat they could be arrested, Glick hoped to find a Steller sea eagle, the largest there is by weight.

“We got lucky. There was no coast guard and no one looking for us. We made the sighting and got home safe,” he said. “In Jordan, security officers at the airport pulled the bag which contained my binoculars. The joy and vicissitudes of travel.”

More often it’s the excitement and accomplishment of the search, rather than the struggles, that Glick has enjoyed. During the pandemic, while his travels lessened, he still went to the Arctic, Brazil, Canada and Morocco. In 2020, in São Paulo, Brazil, he saw a marsh antwren, only recently classified as a new species.

A member of the Circumnavigators Club, Glick has captured exquisite photographs of the glaucous gull in soaring flight over East Greenland’s Scoresby Sund glacier, the red-crowned crane and whooper swans from the Otowabashi Bridge at Hokkaido Island, the harpy eagle in the Brazilian Amazon, the critically endangered Philippine eagle and the world’s largest eagle by weight — the Steller’s sea eagle — also endangered.

“In addition to birds, I’ve seen polar bears and reindeer, mountain gorillas and orangutans and muskoxen and so many other species. Nature is incredible and the beings that live in the many regions I’ve been blessed to visit are just exquisite.”

When not traversing the globe in search of wildlife, Glick can be found traversing the Metroplex in search of mitzvahs in which to partake.

Glick is the son of Anita and Isidore Glick, of blessed memory, and brother of Richard (Annie). He was born in the Bronx and raised in the shadows of Yankee Stadium; his allegiance to the team holds strong. Raised at the Cambria Heights Jewish Center, Glick is a graduate of Andrew Jackson High School, City University of New York and then the combined J.D./MBA program at Hofstra University.

His Glick & Glick Tax Consulting opened offices around the country and, in 1981, he and his wife, Jennifer — an actress in the original “Godfather” movie turned animal welfare and recycling programs advocate — made Dallas home. The couple built a home in Rowlett in 1984 when, Glick recalls, “there were maybe 9,000 residents and cows in the back yard.” There they raised their children, Lucas (Elaine) and Ilisa, and they treasure visits from granddaughter Nova.

Glick is an almost 40-year member of Congregation Tiferet Israel. He has served 13 of those on its board of directors as well as many years as parliamentarian and on the synagogue’s finance committee. “Tiferet Israel provides true engagement of the congregation and the success we are now enjoying, with Rabbi Yitzhak Meir and Sarit Sabo is just amazing,” he said.

Glick is serving his 17th year on the Garland Independent School District board including terms as vice-president and president. As a teen, he was eligible for a letterman jacket, but unable to afford it. An anonymous benefactor stepped forward and Glick has never stopped wanting to thank that individual. Now he pays it forward.

With his family, Glick has funded required medical exams and at least 1,000 letterman jackets for Garland ISD Special Olympics participants and is planning a third trip to Morgan’s Wonderland, the only theme park anywhere designed especially for those living with special needs as well as a campground visit for hundreds of students.

As a recipient of an Honorary Life Membership Award by the Garland ISD Council and a Master Trustee, he is one of just 3% in Texas to carry the honor.

He is also responsible for the planting of more than 25,000 trees around the world.

“In Uganda, one of the greatest wildlife adventures ever, I sat and ate mangos,” said Glick, whose daughter has traveled with him to Australia, China and South America and his son also to South America and to Europe. “Then, I made sure more mango trees were planted.

“The opportunities I’ve had are one more exquisite than the other,” he said, “and each, in its own moment, the most magnificent.”