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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (June 16, 2017)
7A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, JUNE 16, 2017 Woman crisscrosses West to fulfi ll a last wish high desert landscape and wet- lands when she showed up last spring. Poe had taken pho- tographs of bald eagles and moose on a visit to the south- east Idaho refuge. “Our refuge is fairly small. It would seem to fi t a personal- ity like Rita’s,” said Wehausen, refuge manager. “She could come out here, bird, photo- graph, and she doesn’t have to see a lot of other people.” An unlikely executor takes a long road trip By PHUONG LE Associated Press SEATTLE — Nancy Zing- heim barely knew Rita Poe when Poe approached her offi ce at a Washington state RV park. Poe, a shy registered nurse, had a request for the RV park business manager: Could Zingheim help her with her will? Weeks later, the 66-year- old Poe died of colorectal can- cer. In her will, she left nearly $800,000 to a dozen national wildlife refuges and parks, mostly in the West. She named Zingheim the executor. Zingheim knew little about Poe, who had moved to the Evergreen Coho SKP RV Park in the small town of Chimacum just fi ve months earlier. She knew even less about national wildlife refuges. That was in 2015. This year, Zingheim embarked on a 4,000-mile road trip to learn more about the woman who lived in an Airstream trailer with her dog and cat — and the wild places that captivated her. “I wanted to see what they were,” said Zingheim, 62. “I decided that I wasn’t going to suddenly write checks to places at face value. I wanted to do my due diligence and fi nd out what they needed.” Wildlife refuges Over nine days, she drove Poe’s Ford pickup truck in a loop of the West. She visited six national wildlife refuges in California, Idaho, Oregon and Washington state — part of a vast network of reserves across the United States where wild lands are protected for wildlife. President Theodore Roos- evelt established the fi rst ref- uge in 1903 at Florida’s Peli- can Island. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service manages more than 560 such refuges. From wetlands in Florida to tropical forests in Hawaii, the lands are set aside for migratory birds, Writing the checks AP Photo/Elaine Thompson Nancy Zingheim smiles as she sits in a truck given to her in Chimacum, Wash., earlier this month. Zingheim barely knew Rita Poe when Poe approached her office at the RV park in Washington state, asking for help with her will. Zing- heim, the executor of Poe’s estate, went on a 4,000-mile road trip to learn more about the woman who lived in a 27-foot Airstream trailer with her dog and cat, and the wild places that captivated her. Left: This 2013 photo shows Rita Poe’s dog Iggy and cat Sunshine, her traveling companions. Right: When Poe died of cancer, she left nearly $800,000 to a dozen national wildlife refuges and parks, mostly in the American West. She also put a woman she barely knew, Nancy Zingheim, in charge of carrying out her wishes. Rita Poe State of California DMV Zingheim also fulfi lled one of Poe’s wishes: She scattered the nature lover’s ashes in a wooded area surrounded by Washington’s snow-capped Olympic Mountains. alligators, bears and countless other creatures. There’s at least one in each state, and a major- ity are open to the public for free. At each stop, Zingheim asked around: Do you know Rita? No one did. One per- son recalled Poe’s 27-foot Air- stream trailer but little else. “To this day, I don’t think any of us knew a lot about her,” Zingheim said. Zingheim also took a tour of each refuge. She asked refuge managers what they needed and wanted. And she tried to imagine how Poe connected to these places. “The reserves, they’re quiet places. I could see Rita there,” she said. Poe’s life In time, bits of Poe emerged. Poe grew up in Southern Cali- fornia, worked as a nurse at a suburban Los Angeles hospital and spent time in Texas. Terry Poe said he last saw his sister in 2007. After their parents died, leaving them money, he said, she bought a trailer and traveled around the Western U.S. to various refuges and national parks. “She enjoyed nature and being out in nature,” he said in a telephone interview from Southern California. Rita Poe owned several high-end cameras. She was a birder. On her computer, Zing- heim found stunning photo- graphs of birds, bears, ocelots and bobcats. There were trips to New Mexico, Arizona and Canada. Zingheim said that in the process of carrying out Poe’s wishes, she felt she’d been granted her own bequest. And she’s grateful for it. “I saw things that I would never have seen,” Zingheim said. “I didn’t know a national wildlife reserve even existed. I don’t think a lot of people out there know about them. They should. They’re wonderful places.” Brian Wehausen gave Zing- heim a tour of the Camas National Wildlife Refuge’s Back on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula after her trip, Zingheim sat down last month and wrote checks. They included money to support Camas, the Merced National Wildlife Refuge in California, Little Pend Oreille National Wildlife Refuge in Washing- ton, Malheur National Wild- life Refuge in Oregon and Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge in Utah. She also sent money to Yel- lowstone National Park, two state parks and a Texas birding center. “There’s a spiritual con- nection that people feel about these places. They have a lot of meaning to a lot of peo- ple,” Tracy Casselman, project leader for the wildlife refuge complex that includes Camas. Casselman said Poe’s gift will ensure more people enjoy such places. With each check, Zing- heim wrote a letter directing how some money should be used. “I think she would have agreed with me, I really do,” said Zingheim, who has since adopted Poe’s dog, Iggy. Steve Gillard, the Washing- ton attorney who handled Poe’s will, said it’s unusual for people to name someone they barely know to distribute their estate. “But it’s very unusual for a person like Nancy to take on that responsibility. She’s a very good human being.” Zingheim also fulfi lled one of Poe’s wishes: She scat- tered the nature lover’s ashes in a wooded area surrounded by Washington’s snow-capped Olympic Mountains. She added: “Every time I drive by, I say ‘Hi, Rita.’” Military ship that sank century ago won’t be pulled from sea By LINDA WANG Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO — A U.S. Coast Guard ship that fi rst set out to sea during the Spanish-American War and sank off the coast of South- ern California 100 years ago won’t be moved anytime soon. Strong currents and an abundance of sediment would make moving the delicate ves- sel too diffi cult, offi cials said this week in detailing the dis- covery of the San Francis- co-based cutter McCulloch. They also paid tribute to its crews, including two mem- bers who died in the line of duty. Researchers focused on the area of the shipwreck 3 miles northwest of Point Concep- tion, California, after noticing a fl urry of fi sh. Sunken ships offer a great place for fi sh to hide. The archaeological remains, including a 15-inch torpedo tube molded into the bow stem and the top of a pro- peller blade, are draped with white anemones 300 feet below the surface, offi cials said. Fish swim lazily past a 6-pound gun mounted in a platform at the starboard bow. The ship sank on June 13, 1917, after colliding with a civilian steamship. The National Oceanic and Atmo- spheric Administration and the Coast Guard discovered the wreck last fall during a routine survey. The McCulloch began its career as part of Commo- dore George Dewey’s Asi- atic Squadron in the Battle of Manila Bay during the Span- ish-American War. Cutters based in San Fran- cisco in the late 1800s and early 1900s represented American interests throughout the Pacifi c. They also played important roles in the devel- opment of the Western U.S. 1 NOAA/USCG/Video Ray A fish swims past a circular skylight collapsed inside the officer’s quarters in the stern of the shipwreck cutter Mc- Culloch. YOUR #1 Cannabis Retailer Flower Concentrates Edibles Beverages Paraphernalia & More Blazing Deals 2 3 Ilwaco - 133 Howerton Way (8AM-8PM) Located at the Port of Ilwaco WARNING: This product has intoxicating effects and may be habit forming. There may be health risks associated with the consumption of this product. For use only by adults 21 and over. Keep out of reach of children. Marijuana can impair concentration, coordination, and judgement. Do not operate a vehicle or machinery under the influence of this drug. 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