Eleanor's Guillemots

This bronze courting pair of Pigeon Guillemots perched on the lap of renowned wildlife sculptor Tony Angell will have a permanent home at the Northwest Maritime Center. It is anticipated that the installation and dedication will occur when the weather is a little warmer, say spring or early summer of 2014. More information about that will come later on.

Between now and then, Eleanor's friends are still working hard to complete the fundraising effort. Thanks to everyone who has donated thus far, and to those who might consider stepping up to add a contribution to the cause. Donations of any amount are welcome.

The sculpture's visibility at the Northwest Maritime Center will provide a striking presence to inform visitors and remind locals of the story of Protection Island and Eleanor's role in the creation of a National Wildlife Refuge off our coast.

Environmental Leadership Award

Protection Island in the fog. Photo courtesy Julie Jaman

Eleanor Stopps founded our local Admiralty Audubon chapter in the late 1970s as a part of her effort to save Protection Island from development. You can learn more about that important effort on the Port Townsend Marine Science center website. Wildlife cruises to Protection Island are conducted by the PTMSC.

Nominations closed at the end of August, and the 9th annual Eleanor Stopps Environmental Leadership Award will be presented on 3 October 2013 at the Marine Science Center Breakfast in Fort Worden Commons, beginning at 8:00 am. In addition to this annual tribute named in Eleanor’s honor, work is nearing completion for a sculpture in recognition of the story of the Protection Island National Wildlife Refuge and Eleanor’s pivotal role in that story. The sculpture will be installed at the Northwest Maritime Center.

Donations to the Memorial Fund would be welcome to complete the fundraising effort for the sculpture. Donations can be made by credit card via the PayPal button to the right, or checks can be sent directly to the bank at the address shown at the right. Please indicate 'AAS Memorial Fund' or 'Eleanor Stopps Memorial Fund' on the check.

work in progress

guillemots for Eleanor, March 2013.

There's a nice article in the Port Townsend Leader today that calls attention to Eleanor's involvement in the efforts to create Kah Tai Lagoon Nature Park and the Protection Island National Wildlife Refuge. It's entitled: Birds fuel economy. From what her friends and family say, Eleanor would agree with that sentiment. She admitted to enjoying sales work when she believed in her product, and she was an extraordinary saleswoman for the protection of habitat for all kinds of birds.

Now, a flock of guillemots takes shape in Tony Angell's studio in preparation for his sculpture to honor the work and life of Eleanor Stopps.

Today is the one-year anniversary of Eleanor's death. We are close to finishing an effort that was highlighted with the first post here one year ago.

Her friends and family have led the effort, and they would welcome contributions to finish the fundraising for the sculpture. It will be located at the Northwest Maritime Center.

Guillemots for Eleanor

Courting Guillemots by Tony Angell

The design by sculptor Tony Angell has been selected for the Eleanor Stopps memorial. At left is his sketch of Pigeon Guillemots courting. Click on the image to enlarge it.

Mr. Angell writes, "I'm delighted with your decision to proceed with the sculpture of Courting Guillemots.  These lovely species are of course indigenous to Protection Island and along with the auklets, are truly representative of the enduring marine bird life that so depends on this unique Preserve. Their beauty is also exceptional and a compelling subject for an artist to interpret in sculpture."

Estimated completion if all proceeds as planned will be sometime into July of 2013.  Part of the schedule will be determined by the foundry's calendar.

The sculpture is expected to be mounted on a basalt base. More information will be posted as it becomes available.

Protection Island story in OPAS newsletter

Protection Island view. Photo by Julie Jaman

The effort to fund a sculpture in honor of Eleanor Stopps and Protection Island got a nice bit of press in early January when our Audubon neighbors in the Olympic Peninsula Audubon Society featured a nice article about Eleanor by Mary Porter-Solberg in their January 2013 newsletter. They also posted a pdf flyer with more information about the effort. You can access both from the OPAS webpage. Their pdf newsletters are at the 'newsletter' link on the left of their home page and our flyer is linked on their home page at the moment. Thanks to our fellow peninsula Audubon chapter for highlighting the Protection Island story.

stick your neck out

Although Eleanor Stopps received many more well-known and prestigious awards, she liked to call attention to her Giraffe Award. Eleanor mentioned the award in a 2005 interview with Robin Ornelas for the Jefferson County Historical Society:

"A lot of people don't know about the Giraffe organization. I got a certificate one day and it said, 'Congratulations, you are a giraffe.' It is an international organization who used to have headquarters in New York but now have headquarters on Whidbey Island, WA."

The Giraffe Organization can be found at http://www.giraffe.org. Its motto is 'Nobis est (it's up to us). So stick your neck out.' Their mission is 'to move people to stick their necks out for the common good'.

The citation on the Giraffe website reads: 'Eleanor Stopps of Port Ludlow WA waged a successful 10-year effort to turn Protection Island, nesting place for three-quarters of the seabirds in Puget Sound, into a wildlife refuge. The activist retiree lobbied relentlessly, using her savings to pay the costs of her campaign.'

Protection Island in the news

Protection Island sunset. Photo by Julie Jaman.

The Port Townsend Marine Science Center recently published in Marine Pollution Bulletin the results of their four-year study on the occurrence of plastics in the boluses of Glaucous-winged Gulls nesting on Protection Island in the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

Protection Island National Wildlife Refuge is used by more than 70% of the nesting seabirds in Puget Sound and hosts the largest nesting colony of Glaucous-winged Gulls in Washington State. Gulls are efficient scavengers that regurgitate inedible items, so their boluses (the regurgitated masses) provide a non-invasive perspective on food sources and contaminants for many species in our region. Trained volunteers dissected 589 gull boluses and identified components from four years of bolus collection. Plastic was found in over 12% of boluses, with plastic film (as in plastic bags) the most common form. When plastic film was present, it often dominated the bolus volume. The study adds significance to local governmental efforts, in Port Townsend and elsewhere, to eliminate single-use plastic bags at checkout counters.

Glaucous-winged Gulls were one of Eleanor's favorite species. Her vision and perseverence led to the creation of the Protection Island National Wildlife Refuge, the only Refuge established during the Reagan administration. Eleanor also founded our local Audubon chapter, Admiralty Audubon Society, in the late 1970s. The PTMSC awards the Eleanor Stopps Environmental Leadership award each year in early October. This was the first year that she wasn't present to witness that ceremony.

Three Americorps interns and PTMSC's former volunteer coordinator (now program director) analysed the data from the extensive study made possible in part by a two-year grant from the Washington Department of Ecology and the efforts of Port Townsend's dedicated citizen scientists. The PTMSC publication, entitled 'Plastic consumption and diet of Glaucous-winged Gulls (Larus glaucescens)' by Valerie A. Lindborg, Julia F. Ledbetter, Jean M. Walat and Cinamon Moffett, is dedicated to Eleanor's memory. Citation is http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2012.08.020.