Charles Johnstone, Sound Steward

This story first appeared in People For Puget Sound's 2011 Annual Report.

Charles began working with People For Puget Sound when he signed up to become one of our first Sound Stewards. He has since become one of our most active Stewards with over 400 volunteer hours logged. Not only is Charles an exceptional volunteer, he also chooses to give back through philanthropy.

When asked why Charles donates to People For Puget Sound he said, “It sounds like cliches but my donations are motivated by wanting to help make and leave a better world, and put my money where my mouth is.”

Working for the City of Everett as an Industrial Waste Inspector, Charles has a vested interest in protecting Puget Sound by keeping Everett’s water pollution and wastewater treatment under control. During his career, Charles has seen first-hand how development and the large amount of debris and polluted run-off costs the City of Everett and degrades Puget Sound.

While living in a beach house on the Tulalip Indian Reservation in the 1980s and '90s, Charles yearned to learn more about the ecology and science of Puget Sound itself. It was People For Puget Sound’s Sound Stewardship program that offered him that outlet when he began the training in 2007.

When he saw the Union Slough site that year, completely overrun by invasive Scotch Broom and blackberry, he thought, “You people are nuts!” After five years of stewarding the site, Charles is pleased to say, “We’ve cleared over half a mile of that shoreline, transplanted several thousand new native trees and plants, and spread hundreds of yards of mulch. Most importantly, we see many of the wildlife species that rely on what is now the most valuable salmon habitat among Snohomish County People For Puget Sound sites.”

For Charles, it’s the impact he sees that keeps him working and keeps him giving. “The ‘voice’ of our checkbooks and choices as consumers is as impactful as ever, but I rarely, if ever, actually see the results myself. Here, ‘acting locally,’ I can nearly every day see the tangible improvements (i.e. habitat restored, people informed) from my donations to People For Puget Sound. Puget Sound gives us so much. I’m fortunate to appreciate the importance of giving back.”