Meet our Ocean Heroes Award Winners - by Oceana/Jon Frank

World Oceans Day was last Tuesday, June 8th and Oceana celebrated in style with Nautica and GQ in Los Angeles. The event, held at the Sunset Tower Hotel in West Hollywood, was co-hosted by GQ Publisher Pete Hunsinger and Oceana spokesperson and shark activist January Jones. Guests were treated to a live set from Jakob Dylan, which was fantastic, but in my opinion the highlight of the evening was the presentation of the Ocean Heroes Award to our 2010 winners – The Finatics and Jay Holcomb.

Robin Culler, a teacher from Green Chimneys in Brewster, NY, accepted the ‘Junior’ award on behalf of her students, who make up a group of young shark advocates called The Finatics. Robin created the group about three-and-a-half years ago as a way to keep her students busy during the tumultuous holiday season of Thanksgiving and Christmas. Green Chimneys is a school that provides animal-assisted therapy and education to students who are dealing with traumas, both emotional and physical. Naturally, the holiday season brings out a lot of emotions in these kids and the process of learning about sharks was a way to keep their minds and hearts occupied.

Needless to say, it worked! Robin’s students found a real connection to sharks – they admired their power and majesty, but also related to the hardships sharks face, like shark finning.  During the past three years Robin’s students…have devoted countless hours to learning about sharks and have become vocal advocates and fundraisers on their behalf. Personally, I think the real magic is that while these kids are excited about helping sharks, the sharks are helping the kids too – according to Robin, their speech and social skills have improved by learning how to engage and discuss shark issues with total strangers.

As for the adult award, Paul Kelway from the International Bird Rescue and Research Center (IBRRC) accepted the award on behalf of Jay Holcomb. Jay received the most votes out of a group of eight exceptional finalists for his work protecting birds with IBRRC, where he serves as Executive Director.  Jay couldn’t be in LA last Tuesday to accept the award because he was in Louisiana where he’s been for the past seven weeks helping out in the Gulf by cleaning birds covered with oil from the Deepwater Drilling Disaster.

Now more than ever, the importance of Jay’s work has been highlighted by the awful images of oiled wildlife coming out of Grand Isle and the wetlands that surround Barataria Bay. As the oil continues to creep inland and accumulate in bird feeding and nesting areas this summer, the numbers of oiled birds will continue to mount and Jay will be on the ground, soaping, cleaning and restoring oiled birds to health.

Through tears and 1000 watt smiles, the appreciation felt by Robin and Paul was on display for all to see and, for me, that’s why World Oceans Day 2010 felt so special.  It was a display of mutual affection for advocates working diligently to protect the oceans and it was a gathering of like-minded individuals and companies going the extra mile to make a difference in this time of great need.

You too can keep the positive vibes going by pledging to be an Ocean Hero (or buy the t-shirt!) at www.oceana.org/heroes.