Ben White

Mac Hawley Photo

A man who devoted his life to the protection of animals, from man, has left us. Ben White was a well know animal protection activist who lived on San Juan Island with his two children. Ben worked as an arborist to support his family, and to supplement his frequent trips off the island in the defense of creatures unable to defend themselves.

Ben was a director of The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, which had established headquarters in Friday Harbor in 1998, and Ben had sailed on Sea Shepherd II back in the early eighties when the Shepherd was involved in intelligence gathering of illegal whaling, and blocking actions to stop it. Both then, and later, Ben took an active part in the protection of whales and seals, and later in the nineties he became heavily involved in work to protect dolphins.

At a local level, Ben was the man who had the idea of releasing the "turtle army" in Seattle during the 1998 World Trade Organization meeting. Contrary to a local misunderstanding, the "turtles" were not real turtles, but only Ben and others wearing cardboard turtle "shells", and the "army" was an army of non-violent protesters who simply stood around in an attempt to bring an awareness to the plight of sea turtles. While Ben was not afraid to confront wrong doing, or take direct action to protect animals and the environment, he was not an angry person, and would listen and discuss -never argue- a point of view that differed from his own, and he would do so respectfully, and with an honesty that is too often lacking in today's world. One of his last political acts was to run on the Green ticket for County Commissioner for District One in San Juan County.

For his work in the defense of animals and the protection of the environment, Ben was awarded the lifetime Achievement Award by the In Defense of Animal organization.

Ben spend his last hours in Friday Harbor with his family, He was 53 years old.

A celebration for Ben will begin with an outdoor service at 1 p.m. Wednesday, August 3 at Mariella, followed by burial at the community cemetery on Madden, and then, as Ben put it: "A Kick Ass Party" back at Mariella. The party at Mariella will be potluck, and is expected to begin around 5 p.m. Carpooling is suggested.

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