In Memoriam: Rick Turner and Cass Turnbull

Seattle recently lost two active participants in community engagement, and we mourn their passing.

Rick Turner, founder of the Meaningful Movies Project, passed away on December 16th.  Rick was passionate about, and tirelessly committed to, the vision for Meaningful Movies:  educating people about social justice issues, while at the same time building bonds and having fun
along the way!  Rick ignited an amazing spark and grew it into a fire that is now nurturing communities far and wide.  We will miss him greatly; he was an inspiring mentor to those of us who have worked on creating and building our own chapter of Meaningful Movies through Sustainable Ballard.

Cass Turnbull, founder of Plant Amnesty, passed away on January 26th.  Cass cared deeply about trees and open space. Plant Amnesty’s goal was “to stop the senseless torture and mutilation of trees and shrubs.”  It now has nearly 1,200 members in 32 states and three countries, operates a referral service for arborists and offers pruning classes and workshops. If you’ve enjoyed the whimsy that popped up, went away, then popped up again at the corner of N 80th St & Aurora Ave, we now know that Cass was the guerilla artist behind the joy. Cass was also the power, energy, humor and magic behind TreePAC, a Polital Action Committee, dedicated to saving trees on public property.  We all benefit from Cass’ life and work and will miss her very much.