Well known Langley author, blogger and photographer, and friend of Sound Water Stewards / WSU Beach Watchers, Dan Pedersen passed away at the end of July. In his position as Communications Manager for the Island County Marine Resources Committee for 10 years, Dan had many opportunities to work with Beach Watchers and their coordinators over the years. The 167-page second edition of Getting to the Waters Edge, published in 2006, was written and photographed by Dan, Sarah Schmidt (second Beach Watcher coordinator) and Stacey Neumiller (WSU Extension). The book was co-published by WSU Beach Watchers, WSU Extension, and Island County MRC. Many of the essays in the current edition of GTWE were carried over from ones he wrote for the 2006 edition.
Dan was instrumental in arranging for the creation and installation of the many shoreline signs along our beaches, an MRC project he worked on with artist Kris Wiltze, Sarah Schmidt, Maribeth Crandell, and others. You can view them here or see them at most beaches on Camano and Whidbey. Dan’s non-fiction book Whidbey Island’s Special Places, published in 2009, featured many of the island’s most interesting people. In 2015 he began writing Whidbey-based mystery novels, just finishing his tenth one recently. About the time he left the MRC, Dan began writing a weekly blog, Off the Rails, which he published every Saturday. Number 462 in late July was a great one on the wildlife on Whidbey. His last blog post was sent out after his passing. – written by Scott Chase
SWS welcomes memorial contributions in their honor. SWS website lists all of the Stewards who have passed.
