Featured Member

 

Our winter Featured Member is John Loo. John joined OWAC in 2006 and spends his days worrying about the Internet, social networking, and what it means to outdoor journalism.

He conquers writer's block by

  1. Typing out spontaneous thoughts on the topic
  2. Doing something else for a while (could be writing about something else, but usually involves something visual)
  3. Coming back, reviewing/reorganizing (1), then trying again
  4. Repeating 1-3 as needed.

John's favorite words? arcane, visceral

"I often fish offshore by myself in my 18’ skiff, usually launching at night. When people tell me I’m foolish, I tell them this story:

When I was 8, my Dad took a year’s leave of absence from corporate America to work with the UN. We were stationed in Iraq, in a little agricultural town call Abu Ghraib. There was no prison back in 1963, but we did manage to witness the coup d’etat that put the Baath party in power. Who knew they had so many guns at a US Embassy?

At the end of the year, Dad decided it would be fun to drive from Baghdad to Paris before we came home. Dad packed Mom, my sister (11), me (8), and my brother (6) into our ’62 Corvair (see Ralph Nader’s book “Unsafe at Any Speed”), and we took off for the City of Lights.

We passed through Jordan (where Dad was nearly shot for taking pictures of the Israeli side of the Jerusalem Wall), Lebanon, Turkey (where border guards took Mom and Dad away at gunpoint for questioning), and Greece (where the car broke down in the backcountry). We took a ferry from Athens to Rome (where we nearly had a head-on collision near the Forum); then made our way up the Italian peninsula through Switzerland and into France.

Foolish? Maybe, but it’s not my fault - I get it from my Dad."


You can find his work at: 

Beyond The Breakwater

Ocean Skiff Journal

Californian of the Year

OWAC’s Californian of the Year award is given to the person who has contributed most significantly to the promotion of outdoor recreation or preservation of nature, who exemplifies the spirit of the outdoors through contributions above and beyond the call of duty.

In 1990, OWAC gave its first Californian of the Year award to Dick Weaver, a Department of Fish & Game wildlife specialist. The award was given in the context of OWAC’s first craft awards program. Members in good standing cast their ballots for their choice among the four candidates nominated.

Few changes have been made to the program since its inception. Active members are urged to nominate candidates deserving of recognition, keeping in mind that the nomination essay is crucial in determining a winner.

OWAC headquarters distributes the ballots by mail. Headquarters staff count the returned votes, and the award is presented to the winner in a banquet ceremony at OWAC’s fall conference.

Past winners have included teachers and activists, politicians and game wardens, biologists and everyday citizens who have taken up a cause. OWAC members are not eligible.

 

Among the most recent honorees are:

2009 - Leon Lesicka

2008 - Cliff McDonald

2007 - State Senator Dave Cogdill

2006 - Bob Franko

2003 - Congressman Mike Thompson

Who will be honored as Californian of the Year in 2010? Nominees should exemplify the spirit of the outdoors through contributions above and beyond the call of duty. Candidates are nominated by an OWAC member, and presented to the full membership for a vote.

With the fingers of OWAC stretching to the far reaches of the state, you have met qualified nominees in the course of your work as a reporter or during your leisure out in the field. Think of someone who has dedicated his or her life to the betterment of the outdoors, or recently worked on a special project that benefited the industry. 

Past recipients have been teachers, biologist, wildlife advocates, politicians and everyday citizens who have taken up a cause. We should continue this tradition with a stellar contingent of candidates. OWAC members are not eligible for the award. 

Deadline for candidate nominations is June 1, 2010. Just send us solid reasons why this person should be awarded OWAC's top honor as Californian of the Year, observing the newly imposed limit of 600 words. Nominations may be made by any member in good standing, whether Active or Supporting.

Any questions please email fishrap@att.net, or call Kathie Morgan at 707/838-3270. Send your nominations to: fishrap@att.net. I will confirm all nominations received.