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Founder Of The Wilds Dies

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A family member says that Robert Teater, a long-time public servant who led Republican Gov. James Rhodes' expansion of Ohio's state park system in the 1970s and was a candidate for Ohio governor, has died. He was 86.

Daughter-in-law Phyllis Teater said Teater died Sunday in Columbus of complications from Parkinson's Disease.

Bob Teater served as Rhodes' director of natural resources from 1975 to 1983. He served previously as director of the Ohio State University School of Natural Resources.

Teater was a founder of the Wilds, a Muskingum County animal preserve, and a three-term Columbus school board member. He retired as major general from the Ohio Army National Guard.

Teater is survived by wife Dorothy, a former Franklin County Commissioner, four sons and 11 grandchildren.