In Memoriam
The California coast and Coastwalk California have many special supporters. Here we acknowledge those who have left us but who bestowed a legacy of caring and contributing to our beautiful coastal commons and our California community in their own unique way.
Bill Kortum
1927 – 2014
Bill Kortum co – founded Coastwalk in 1983. He loved our coastal “commons” and spent much of his life defending the California coastline and working to preserve public access to the coast.
Click Here – To read more.
Lucy Kortum
1928 – 2022
Lucy Kortum, a historian who championed the importance of local and statewide architectural preservation, died on November 30, 2022, at her home in Petaluma. She was born on August 8, 1928, in Coronado, California. She attended Pomona College after the war and then moved to San Francisco with some of her college classmates. After working in San Francisco for a few years, she married Bill Kortum in 1953. In the ensuing years Bill and Lucy became effective advocates for environmental protection on issues such as the battle to save Bodega Head from a nuclear power plant in the early 1960s and the prolonged effort (beginning in the late 1960s) to preserve access to the California coastline and to save it from over development.
Click Here – To read more.
Click Here – To make a donation in honor of Lucy Kortum.
Mike Reilly
1944 – 2019
Mike Reilly, a beloved figure in west county politics for over 40 years, passed away after battling ALS. He dedicated his life to serving the community, from his early involvement with social services to his tenure as Fifth District Supervisor. Reilly’s impact was profound, securing funds for flood relief, championing redevelopment projects, and advocating for the unique needs of each unincorporated community. His commitment to making government work for everyone and his tireless constituent service left a lasting legacy. He had a particular passion for Coastwalk California as a member and volunteer. He enjoyed taking hikes along the beaches with his family and friends. Reilly will be remembered for his kindness, wisdom and unwavering love for the west county.
Image credit to The Healdsburg Tribune.
Laura Julietta Hirschfeld Mulley
1976 – 2015
In loving memory of Laura Julietta Hirschfeld Mulley, who loved California, and loved the coast. Here she is on one of her many visits to Goat Rock and Salmon Creek area.
Don Nierlich
1936 – 2011
Don Nierlich served on the Board of Coastwalk and was fiercely dedicated to the California coast. A lifelong resident of Santa Monica, he was spent many hours working on Coastwalk’s California Coastal Trail website and database.
Don had seemingly infinite energy and enthusiasm. He was an avid nature photographer and hiker, and loved nothing more than hiking or backpacking with family and good friends. An inveterate tinkerer, his life was full of projects and repairs, spanning a ham radio license in his youth to numerous computer and media projects in recent years.
He will be greatly missed by his family and friends.
Charles Lohr
1953 – 2019
Charles co-lead and helped to revamp the SLO Coastwalk. A dedicated volunteer, he trail blazed and helped organize the walk for 8 years. All the participants in those walks remember his caring and helpful manner, always there to aid when something needed doing.
Charles Lohr never went for the ordinary. A Hollywood native, he worked in cutting edge entertainment- from arcades to television to audio technology. The work took him to many exotic locations for extended periods. He led a full life; always returning to hike the California Coast that he dearly loved. During the long Coastwalks, we would all look forward to being entertained by his recounts of a lifetime in the industry.
Charlie’s ashes were scattered at sea from a Polynesian war canoe during the 2019 SLO Coastwalk. He will be missed and always loved.