Whatcom Watch News

June Was a Busy Month for Whatcom Watch!

Lots of positive events at Whatcom Watch propel our days faster and faster. It seems we finish one deadline and when we stretch and look up from our computers, the next one is upon us. Fortunately, we have a new intern, Sarah Kuck, and we’ll share some of our responsibilities with her when she returns from Equador in September. We’re sharing some duties with her before she leaves, as well, and are very happy to have Sarah working with us.

Below are her introduction and an article she wrote for The Planet. Sarah will write investigative stories for Whatcom Watch, and we look forward to her research and in-depth coverage of important topics. She’ll also cover the Port of Bellingham meetings as part of her internship.

On a similar subject, notice the City Council voting report sponsor on page 17. Jonathan Block of A.G. Edwards stepped in and saved our City Council voting reports! Thank you, Jonathan. Also, the League of Women Voters volunteered to continue on with our County Council voting reports until we find a sponsor for them.

We’d like to thank our anonymous donor who contributed funds to print the four extra pages that we needed for our July issue. We’re awash with great articles and can’t bear to leave any of them out.

Thanks to Tom Pratum who donated his computer to Whatcom Watch. Little by little, our equipment trudges out of the Stone Age. Also, thanks to Barbara Hudson and Lyle Anderson for proofreading our July issue.

We’ve had complaints that people can’t find copies of Whatcom Watch around town lately, but we’ve been on top of our deliveries. Perhaps more people are reading our paper and we hope that’s the reason papers are disappearing. To ensure monthly delivery to your home, post office box or place of business, subscribe to Whatcom Watch by filling out the coupon on the back page. It’s easy.

Remember, for a $35 or more subscription, we’ll send you our sexy Whatcom Watch t-shirt. It’s a Naked Clothing hemp t-shirt, sporting a colorful and alluring George Jartos illustration.

Thanks to those of you who already support Whatcom Watch!

Introducing Sarah Kuck, Our New Intern

I am a 22-year-old environmental journalism major finishing my last year at Western Washington University.

I was born in Columbus, Ohio, and then spent most of my childhood moving, as my father had joined the military to pay his way through medical school. After 11 moves around the United States and to Germany, my family finally settled in La Crosse, Wis. My father is an ophthalmologist and my mother is a social worker in La Crosse. I have one younger sister, 19, who studies English at Northwestern University.

My inspirational professors at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse helped me realize my passion for environment issues, and I sought out a career choice that would allow me to make change in the world. My goal quickly became to advocate environmental ethics through informative writing for the public. I moved to Bellingham in 2003 to pursue my goal of becoming an environmental journalist.

Last summer I traveled to Kenya for five weeks to research wildlife management studies with the School for Field Studies. My experiences with the people and their culture opened my eyes and only further fueled my passion to stop environmental injustice. The satisfaction and awareness I gained from my experience in Kenya encouraged me to continue traveling. This summer, I am traveling to Ecuador to volunteer at an orphanage. I hope to bring back stories to share.

I am the chief editor of The Planet, the environmental magazine at Western. I have been published in The Western Front and The Planet. (See “Salmon Cemetary” by Sarah Kuck below.)

My future plans are to continue traveling and writing for publications that promote environmental advocacy. §