Remembering A Great Friend Written by Save Our Canyons Supporter Sue Hitchner
Lew Hitchner passed away in June 2020 after a short battle against cancer. Lew was born in Philadelphia, PA and was very close to his family. He attended Dartmouth College graduating with Honors in 1967. It was at the Dartmouth Skiway where he was introduced to skiing which became a lifelong passion. After Dartmouth, Lew attended UC Berkeley where he received a Masters of Science in Operations Research in 1968. Lew moved to Wilmington DE for work and was active in the Wilmington Ski Club making frequent trips to Vermont and Utah. Having decided he loved the Wasatch Mountains, he picked up and moved to Utah. He was very active in the Wasatch Mountain Club. For several years Lew studied and worked at the University of Utah receiving his PhD in Computer Sciences in 1984. Lew then moved to California and became a computer and information sciences professor at the University of California at Santa Cruz until 1988 and later at California State Polytechnic University in San Luis Obispo, CA for over 11 years. During his tenure at CalPoly he took a sabbatical year teaching at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. For 5 years he was a scientist at NASA Ames Research Center in CA Lew Hitchner, 1945 to 2020 where he was the technical developer of the Virtual Planetary Exploration project, a system for virtual exploration of the planet Mars. But his heart was always in the Wasatch Mountains and after retiring in 2007, he moved to Sandy. The Wasatch became his new “office” where he spent most of his time either backcountry skiing or hiking. Over the years, he took several extensive hiking trips to Bhutan, Italy, Spain, Slovenia, Switzerland and France. Lew had many interests and passions - his family, traveling, photography, wine, the environment and the Wasatch Mountains.
Life After Quarantine Written by Save Our Canyons Intern Caroline Weiler
2020 has been unexpected in many ways for many people. As a member of the 2020 graduating class from Utah State University, the unexpected shut-downs and social distancing due to COVID-19 have put a spin on just about every aspect of post-graduation life. Something I have learned through the unexpected turns and twists of the past 4 months since finishing my degree is that these events, although unforeseen, might lead to new and exciting opportunities. One unexpected opportunity granted to me in this whirlwind of a year was interning for Save Our Canyons. The title for my internship has been Community Development Intern, and my purpose was to engage and encourage more of the Utah County population to get involved with Save Our Canyons and their mission through various outreach events. Because social distancing measures put a stop to most of our planned outreach events this summer, I used social media as a way to advertise and promote the various Zoom calls and virtual events as well as educate the public on the mission of Save Our Canyons. I also personally enjoyed participating in Zoom calls with guest speakers like Oakley Gordon and Louis Arevalo. Before quarantine, however, I was able to attend and help with the 18th annual Lone Peak Celebration event in early March, which was a great introduction to the terrific and stalwart protectors of the Wasatch and a great way to raise money and awareness for wilderness areas. The other unexpected and yet positive outcome from my time with Save Our Canyons has been getting to coordinate our Wilderness Stewardship Project this summer. The WSP is a project aimed at giving back to the wilderness areas we love by maintaining and protecting trails with assistance and guidance from the Forest Service. This summer we focused
6 Save Our Canyons, Fall 2020
www.saveourcanyons.org
