Jack Herschend has served as an elder at one of LFM’s church partners and joined the Strategic Advisory Board in 2023.

For nearly 50 years, Jack served as Chairman, President and CEO of Herschend Family Entertainment and its portfolio of theme park, resorts, and aquariums.

Today, Herschend Family Entertainment and its parent company Herschend Enterprises are considered the nation’s largest family-owned themed attractions corporation in the US. Our team of more than 11,000 employees creates, develops and operates entertainment, tourism and hospitality properties that currently span 26 locations across the US and British Columbia.

Herschend’s roots date back to 1950 when the Herschend family founded their first attraction, a small cave tour in Branson, Mo., which later expanded into the famed Silver Dollar City®. Operating companies within Herschend Family Entertainment include Dollywood® Parks & Resorts, Silver Dollar City® Attractions, Adventure Aquarium®, Newport Aquarium®, Kentucky Kingdom®, Vancouver Aquarium, and Wild Adventures®.

Jack’s intensity and deep caring for people shaped the company culture into what it is today. Jack attended Northwestern University and served as a Lieutenant in the Marine Corps before returning home to focus on the family business. He has a deep passion for personal service and giving and has actively served several Christian ministries including including Lives Under Construction Boys Ranch, Kids Across America and the National Institute of Marriage. In 1992, Jack founded The Gift of Green which has planted nearly 200,000 trees to counter deforestation due to development in the Missouri Ozarks.