Education about whales boosted by license plate

Orca Network receives $3,000 grant

By Patricia Guthrie • December 11, 2018 1:30 am
Lighthouse Environmental Programs staff present a $3,000 donation to Orca Network volunteers. Left to right: Lighthouse president Rick Blank and staff Ellen Dickey, Wendy Visconty and Orca Network founder Susan Berta and volunteers Shari Devlin and Wendy Sines. (Photo provided)
Lighthouse Environmental Programs staff present a $3,000 donation to Orca Network volunteers. Left to right: Lighthouse president Rick Blank and staff Ellen Dickey, Wendy Visconty and Orca Network founder Susan Berta and volunteers Shari Devlin and Wendy Sines. (Photo provided)

Lighthouse Environmental Programs donated $3,000 to the Orca Network recently to help strengthen an orca education program for children.

Every year, Lighthouse Environmental Programs provides grants to nonprofit environmental stewardship projects and organizations.

The funds come from sales of the Washington State Lighthouse License Plate.

Orca Network has a long history of providing significant ongoing education about orcas and other whales of Puget Sound. Each year, 20,000 adults and youth visit Orca Network’s Whale Center in Langley.

With the growing attention on the declining orca population, the organization’s work has gained even more significance, said LEP president Rick Blank.

The Orca Network receives no funds from sales of Washington state’s orca licence plates, according to Blank. Funds from the orca plates go to the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

The core organizations LEP supports are Sound Water Stewards, Island County Waste Wise and Admiralty Head Lighthouse Keepers and Docents.

In addition, it provides grants to help 11 other lighthouses in Washington State do restoration and interpretation work.

“Over the last couple of years, our mission has broadened some,” Blank said. “The board and I have felt that some local groups doing the work of educating kids about Puget Sound could use a boost.”