Dear Friends,

With great sadness, we are letting you know that Mr. Whitekeys or “Keys” passed away late last week, surrounded by family in Anchorage, after a brief illness.

Keys lived in Alaska since 1971. He was always interested in wildlife, but birds became a serious pursuit for Keys in the 1990’s. He rapidly became a recognized local bird ambassador and was elected to be President of the Anchorage Audubon Society in 2009. He contributed substantially to building a devoted membership at Anchorage Audubon through many outreach and educational activities. He promoted events that brought people together, that highlighted the amazing lives of birds, and that raised awareness and support for habitat protections for birds in Anchorage. Most recently, he spearheaded the donation of significant resources to the new Potter Marsh Watershed Park, which protects wildlife habitat and wild spaces for people to enjoy. He encouraged citizen science by helping to lead the annual Anchorage Christmas Bird Count and by promoting events that taught people how to use eBird to record their bird sightings. He also spread his love of birding with people by hosting group events like the Gunsight Mountain Hawkwatch and the Potter Marsh “Summer Smackdown” that allowed for some friendly ribbing and competition.

His enthusiastic leadership inspired many people to begin or renew their fascination with birds and the outdoors, wherever they might be. In a news article in the Mat-Su Sentinel about this spring’s Gunsight Mountain hawkwatch event, Keys said, “No matter where you are, there are going to be birds. Once you start paying attention to what is around you, it just sort of opens up the whole world.”

More information will be shared as it becomes available.