Save the Bee’s
Being a journalism major I was given the freedom to create stories that I found both interesting and important based in the Eugene, Oregon area. For one of my first stories I searched for something that would be both visually appealing while pertaining to a pressing local issue. After some research I found the story of the bees. While the issue of bee populations decreasing is not a pressing matter within just the Eugene community it was an issue however, that has taken on quit a bit of publicity in the Eugene area. There are both companies and individuals in the Eugene area that are working to SAVE the BEES and I found it to be a perfect concept for my first story. Below is some of the work that I created that talks about what a few of the local beekeepers have to say about the bees.
Donald Martin an environmental scientist from Wallaceburg, Ontario is no average man who resides in Eugene, but rather an enthusiast of the honeybee. Donald Martin is a Eugene beekeeper who lives just off campus of the University of Oregon. Donald owns three crates of bees where he is constantly working to maintain a healthy living environment for these honeybees to flourish while also adding new honeybees to his fast growing community in his backyard. Donald works to remove swarms of bees that have populated nearby areas either bringing them back to live with him or to near by sanctuary where they are kept safe and may repopulate. Like most Donald has not always been a beekeeper. Donald lived in Victoria, BC while he attended Royal Roads University working towards becoming an environmental scientist.
Donald first became involved in beekeeping nearly 6 years ago, with his reason being his kids. Donald tells us that he “wanted to show his kids Gods creation and the marvelous realm of the honeybee”. I found this answer particularly strange seeing as how Donald is a scientist. Donald however quickly put my curiosity to rest when he tells me “there is no other example in the world that shows the presence of God in creation. Bees cannot have gotten to where they are with evolution”. Donald is passionate in showing his kids this phenomenon that drives his love for both nature and the honeybee through the roof.
At first I thought that Donalds kids must have been this revelation that created his drive in pursuing the disappearance of so many honeybees, but I dug even deeper and found that there is much more. Donald explains that “managing bees and seeing how many bees we are still losing tells us that there is a lot wrong with the environment”. This is it managing bees. Once Donald became involved with bees he understood the issue at hand. Over the years Donald has seen many of his hives die. Every time a hive dies he questions what he did wrong and what factors may have contributed to this loss.
Although still a mystery to Donald on why so many bees are dying Donald persists everyday to find the answer. As we explored his property and dug through his crates of bees he explained how there are many factors as to why some of his hives have potentially died but no real reason as to what actually happened. Donald works to find this answer in the future as he continues to show his children the significance of the honeybee.