We are saddened by the passing of Council member Kenny Down who passed away May 5 of this year. Mr. Down was appointed to the Council in April 2015, filling the vacancy created when John Henderschedt departed the Council. Kenny took a leading role for the Council, initiating many fishery program modifications, including Pacific cod longline fisheries, conservation and allocations issues involving the crab fishery, small boat and community issues, and more recently, initiating the development of a proposed limited access program for the BSAI Pacific cod pot fishery. Mr. Down was also the Council representative on the Alaska Ocean Observing System (AOOS) Board and served on the AOOS Regional Ocean Partnership (ROP) Steering Committee. He will be greatly missed by all.
Kenny Down’s memorial service will be live-streamed June 8 in the evening during the Kodiak Council meeting week.