Alice Johnstone, one of our founders, remains an inspiring leader of our community and ardent conservationist. As Women’s History Month is drawing to a close, we want to highlight the important work that Alice has done for the community of Sitka. She and her husband Chuck joined forces with other Sitkans to create the Sitka Conservation Society in 1967, in an attempt to stop the clearcut logging that was destroying the forests they loved. Their dream was to get West Chichagof designated as a wilderness area before the mill could turn all of the trees to pulp. In 1980 after 13 years of pouring all their energy into this dream, it was realized and the West-Chichagof Yakobi Wilderness was created. 

As we have learned more each day and watched the impacts and spread of COVID-19, it has become apparent that we all need to take action now to protect our communities. 

We have made the difficult decision to postpone the Celebration of Life for Richard Nelson.

We are planning to reschedule, but are waiting to evaluate how the situation changes before we set dates. We will keep you updated as soon as we have plans. We all were looking forward to celebrating and remembering Nels, but we believe that he would not want anyone to compromise community health or well-being. 

In the midst of this stressful moment for human society, life is jubilantly returning to Sitka Sound. Humpback whales are playing in Silver Bay and young sea lions can be spotted along the shoreline. We're fully in herring weather, as Nels described in an Encounters episode:

It's a spring afternoon, one of those days when the weather makes itself a character in every story. It’s clear right now with sunshine pouring down but just through a blue hole in the clouds. There are squalls running around—sometimes rain, sometimes snow, sometimes hail, sometimes blustery winds.

In this season we are constantly reminded of Nels' joy and spark for life, as well as his understanding that we are not separate from the natural world but rather a part of it like every other creature. We are striving to approach every day with the kindness he always demonstrated, despite the challenges we face.

If you have any questions, please email Ellie at ellie@sitkawild.org. For the next few weeks, the Sitka Conservation Society will be working remotely as much as possible to attempt to slow the spread of the virus. Please contact us through email rather than phone calls. 

Photo by Lione Clare Photography

1941–2019

The inspiration, guidance, wisdom, and “ways of seeing” that you have given us will live on forever.

Long-time Sitka Conservation Society Board Emeritus Richard “Nels” Nelson passed away on November 4th, 2019. Nels served on our board of directors for close to 40 years, and he has enormously influenced our organization.

Photo by Ben Hamilton.

Eric and Pam Bealer transcended their earthly bodies in September of 2018.  They chose to leave a legacy gift for Wilderness and left their estate to the Sitka Conservation Society’s Living Wilderness Fund. The Sitka Conservation Society considers this a great honor and we are humbled by their gift. We will honor their love of the wilderness through the stewardship of these spectacular areas of intact ecosystems and by working to protect West Chichagof–Yakobi Wilderness so that future generations may continue to be as inspired by this remarkable place as Eric and Pam were.

Pam and Eric with some of their beloved animals

1962-2018

Eric and Pam Bealer transcended their earthly bodies in September of 2018.  They chose to leave a legacy gift for Wilderness and left their estate to the Sitka Conservation Society’s Living Wilderness Fund. The Sitka Conservation Society considers this a great honor and we are humbled by their gift. We will honor their love of the wilderness through the stewardship of these spectacular areas of intact ecosystems and by working to protect West Chichagof–Yakobi Wilderness so that future generations may continue to be as inspired by this remarkable place as Eric and Pam were.

Pam and Eric with some of their beloved animals

Eric and Pam lived surrounded by the Tongass National Forest. They fell in love with the wild, remote, rugged coastline of southeast Alaska and decided to make a home in the middle of the West Chichagof–Yakobi Wilderness, in a bay daunting to access for even experienced locals. It is a magical place, often shrouded in mists where the ocean meets the edges of temperate rainforest. Both talented artists, they were fed, warmed, and inspired by the natural world of the Tongass.

The West Chichagof-Yakobi Wilderness

Art in all they did

In addition to being a talented wood engraver, Eric was an expert carpenter, boat builder, and woodworker. Pam was a fiber artist and spun wool from her own sheep, utilized natural dyes, and incorporated hair and fur from horses and dogs into her yarn tapestries and weavings. In their home in the West Chichagof–Yakobi Wilderness, Eric and Pam built a life that was as self-reliant and connected to the land as possible; they raised chickens and turkeys, cultivated their own food, and built their house and much of their furniture from logs that washed up on the beaches. 

The connection that Eric had with the Tongass is seen through his beautiful artwork. He looked closely, noticed the finer details, and appreciated and included all facets of the forest ecosystem equally for their inherent beauty. If you look closely at the details of his work, you will see the faces of forest spirits and references to Mother Earth, often resembling his dear wife, Pam. 

Eric Bealer making prints

Letting Go by Eric Bealer

Surge Bay Puffins by Eric Bealer

Swan Song by Eric Bealer

West Chichagof Wilderness provided a home and inspiration for Eric and Pam. The inspiration that this marvelous landscape creates is also the reason that people originally united to form the Sitka Conservation Society in 1967.  The area was scheduled to be clearcut by the pulp mills, but the dedicated citizen activists who formed as the Sitka Conservation Society fought to save it from this fate. After 13 years of advocacy, the West Chichagof–Yakobi Wilderness area was designated by Congress. 

Eric and Pam were as connected to each other as they were to the West Chichagof–Yakobi Wilderness. The legacy they chose to leave behind is one of protection and honor for these lands. The Bealer's living-with-the-land and wilderness values are shared by the Sitka Conservation Society and the Living Wilderness Fund and it is our honor to uphold this legacy and love of sacred wild places.

Sea Pony Farm sunset

Pam and Eric Bealer at an art opening for one of Eric's many Southeast Alaska gallery shows

We are incredibly grateful for Eric and Pam’s gift to our Living Wilderness Fund, and for how beautifully they expressed their shared love of West Chichagof and deep connection to nature through their art, their inspirational partnership, and the way they manifested their values through the ways they lived their lives. We are honored that Pam and Eric believed in our work so deeply that they entrusted their legacy to us. May we continue to be inspired and transformed by Eric and Pam’s love for the forest, their legacy of advocacy for the wilderness of southeast Alaska, and by the art they left behind for us to remember. 

If you wish to make a donation to the Living Wilderness Fund in memory of Eric and Pam Bealer, or work with us to honor their legacy, please click here or call us at 907-747-7509.