engelberg magazin nummer16 sommer

Geny Hess fotografiert oft in der Natur. Hier sah er Gämsen unterhalb der Pen- delbahn Trübsee-Stand.

Geny Hess, ein leiden- schaftlicher Jäger

Geny Hess, a passionate hunter.

Geny Hess is often out and about, taking photographs of the sur- rounding nature. Here, he caught a glimpse of some chamois under the Trübsee–Stand cableway.

(Photo: zVg)

(Photo: zVg)

Freeride pioneer, 30-year manager of Hess Hotel, wine connoisseur, top chef, former local council- lor – ask any local who Geny Hess is and you will receive a wide range of responses. The 68-year- old Engelberger was also a member of the board of directors at Bergbahnen Engelberg-Titlis for 35 years – until he handed in his resignation at the general assembly in March 2015. “Thir ty-five years is a long time,” says the man himself. Shor tly af ter joining the board of directors as a young – and therefore, to some, unwelcome – member in 1979, he launched a

says Geny. “But the remaining, larger area will remain untouched.” He knows the mountains and their f lora and fauna well, and has the greatest respect for them. He had no intention, therefore, of disrupting the landscape. “We must be grateful for nature,” says Geny. “It was there before us and will remain long af ter we are gone. I cer tainly have no wish to destroy it. But I also want to create a successful tourism industry that will allow future generations to remain here.” Due to opposition from nature conservation organisations, the planned “snow

successful campaign for the construction of the Laubers- grat lif t. During his time in of fice he also oversaw the building of the Engelberg- Trübsee gondola lif t, the first rotating cable car in the world

paradise” that would connect the Engelberg-Titlis, Melch- see-Frutt and Meiringen- Hasliberg ski areas has not yet materialised. Geny poured a lot of energy into this big project that ultimately failed.

“The younger generation knows what needs to be done. I will quickly be forgotten.”

– the Rotair – the Holiday Village, and numerous conversions and restorations. Naturally, with so many projects in need of investment, the board of directors and senior management did not always see eye to eye. “The meetings could get pretty heated,” says Geny. “But then you’d have to buckle down and continue working as a team.” It was precisely this team work that he loved. Teams require both the impulsive and the cautious – and Geny probably falls into the former category. Norber t Patt, CEO of Titlis Rotair, has this to say: “Thanks to his long- standing ties to Engelberg and his vast network of contacts, Geny could provide valuable input even in dif ficult areas, such as Engelberg’s detailed tourism concept and postponing the introduction of no-hunting areas.” Engelberg is dear to Geny’s hear t. Never theless – or perhaps therefore – he has been willing to make com- promises regarding its natural resources. “If Engelberg is going to survive, we have to make intensive use of some of its natural landscape,”

“If we want to remain an attractive ski area in the long-term, we need this expansion,” he says with conviction. Yet Geny can look back on his time as board member with satisfac- tion, having witnessed the Titlis cableways develop into a highly successful company. He will cer tainly miss his work: “It was an excit- ing sector to be in – helping to take action, make decisions, and devise plans.” But ever-stricter regulations and controls made his decision to resign somewhat easier. “We used to achieve so much more without all this paperwork,” he says. “Every thing is so complicated now – it’s really undermining us.” And there was one more reason why it ultimately wasn’ t so hard for him to retire: “The younger generation knows what needs to be done. I will quickly be forgotten, but the Titlis will go on running just as well, whether Geny Hess is there or not.”

You can watch a video about Geny Hess at www.engelberg.ch under “Engelberg Profiles”.

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