By Sue Bergstrom for VCN –
The Copper River Watershed began recognizing a community member who went above and beyond in caring for the watershed by providing leadership and inspiration in the fall of 2013. The first winner was Paul Swartzbart of Cordova, awarded at the combined Wild Food Feast and Fungus Festival. During the following months the Copper River Watershed Project board of directors developed a nomination process and form and decided to honor one hero from upriver, or the Copper Basin area, and one from downriver in Cordova annually. Katie John, who was well known for her battle for subsistence rights and who died in 2013, was named Watershed Hero at the upriver Wild Food Feast in Glennallen in the spring of 2014.
2015 Wild Food Feasts upriver and down were held on consecutive weekends this spring. In Glennallen on Saturday, April 18th, Dave Wellman was named Upriver Watershed Hero for 2015. Ken Hodges was awarded Downriver Watershed Hero on Saturday, April 25th.
Dave Wellman was the only science teacher for many years at Kenny Lake Public School. His nomination letter stated that he taught his students that science could be fun and exciting, as well as requiring rigorous thinking and careful techniques. He was also a founder of Wrangell Institute for Science and Environment (WISE) and remains on the board of directors. He and his wife Gay have made their land available for WISE nature tours on which Dave sometimes fills in as tour leader. Approximately four years ago, Dave saw a need for another environmental project: applying sound science to learn about the dynamics of the Willow Creek Watershed. To do this, he founded Willow Creek Water Consortium. Willow Creek is the only creek flowing through the Kenny Lake community, and perhaps helps feed its wells. It also provides important habitat for beavers, moose, and other wildlife.
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Ken Hodges is a Fisheries Biologist with the U.S. Forest Service, Cordova Ranger District. Ken has dedicated his career as a fisheries biologist to understanding the habitat needs of wild salmon. He has given many years to sharing his knowledge of salmon with the youth of Cordova, specifically through Kids Fishing Day. Ken contributes well beyond his job duties as a Forest Service Fisheries Biologist and dedicates countless hours of volunteer labor to sustaining and celebrating wild salmon populations. He takes great care and pride in planning and implementing salmon habitat restoration and enhancement projects throughout the Copper River Delta and Prince William Sound. The projects that he leads utilize his keen ability to “think like a salmon”, considering every detail that may enhance a juvenile salmon’s overwinter survival or entice returning adults into new spawning channels.
Copper River Watershed Project began as a series of workshops on sustainable development in 1996. It was founded on the premise that residents at either end of the river have more in common with each other than they have differences between them.
