Meet the Proprietor — Greg Vital
Background
Greg Vital is a co-founder and president of Morning Pointe Senior Living and a healthcare entrepreneur and real estate investor.
He earned a B.S. in Business Administration from Southern Adventist University.
He served on the Collegedale Board of Commissioners (1979 to 1982) and the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Hospital Authority Board (1983 to 1988).
Vital Buffalo Farm
Vital Buffalo Farm in Georgetown, Tennessee was established in 1996.
Vital owns Vital Buffalo Farm.
Today the farm has over 50 buffalo on hundreds of acres.
The Tennessee Wildlife Federation describes the farm as originally a cattle ranch that Vital improved for wildlife, with designated wildlife areas and land set aside for conservation.
The herd began when a man with three buffalo said they had outgrown his property during a real estate deal Vital was involved in. Vital offered to take them, then acquired a bull to go with the three females.
In 2017 he said of welcoming people to the farm: “I've come to appreciate the fact that so many people are fascinated by the American bison.”
Vital protected the farm with The Land Trust for Tennessee in 2006, the Land Trust's first conservation easement in Southeast Tennessee.
He went on to serve as a Land Trust committee member and board member, and in 2020 he became board chair, the first chair from Southeast Tennessee.
Conservation and recognition
- Wildlife Conservationist of the Year, Tennessee Wildlife Federation, 2021.
- Conservation Legislator of the Year, Tennessee Wildlife Federation, 2024.
- Leader Against Litter Award, Keep Tennessee Beautiful, 2026.
The Leader Against Litter Award was presented at the Keep Tennessee Beautiful Month kickoff at Beale Street Landing in Memphis. News coverage of the award cites his support for waterway-protection legislation, Duck River protections and state parks advocacy.
He previously chaired the board of the National Parks Conservation Association.
He funded the creation of the Greg A. Vital Center for Natural Resources and Conservation at Cleveland State Community College.
The Blessing of the Buffalo
Vital created the Blessing of the Buffalo before he became a state representative.
The Warriors of Ani-Kituhwa, from the Eastern Band of Cherokee, bless the buffalo calves and perform dance and music at the Blessing.
Public service
Vital serves in the Tennessee House of Representatives for District 29, which covers part of Hamilton County.
He was first elected in a special election in 2021.
He serves on the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee.