FWC Officers Philip Stone and Paul Hein Receive First Guy Harvey Awards

As an FWC officer, Stone has worked with local law enforcement agencies to minimize the impact on nesting and hatchling turtles while they conduct essential nighttime beach patrolling. He’s also helped Palm Beach and Martin County businesses and homeowners reduce coastal lighting that can disorient turtle hatchlings, luring them away from the ocean.

Widely covered in the media in 2016 was the FWC’s apprehension of an individual whose poaching threatened loggerhead turtle eggs from Jupiter Inlet in Palm Beach County, an investigation led Stone. By apprehending the person in the act of digging up eggs, 92 eggs were reburied, which led to the hatching of 32 loggerhead turtles.

Also receiving the Guy Harvey award for marine conservation was Monroe County resident Paul Hein. Investigator Hein was honored for his exemplary performance protecting marine resources and ensuring public safety through enforcement of state Boating Under the Influence (BUI) regulations.

“Investigator Hein was nominated by his colleagues in recognition of his dedication, teamwork in and outside FWC, and record enforcing state conservation and boating laws,” Walker said. “His undergraduate and graduate training in biology and ecological restoration and conservation enhances his ability to work with the public and numerous partner organizations and outdoor recreation groups.”

In addition to collaborating daily with the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office and Florida Highway Patrol, Investigator Hein regularly assists the Coast Guard and U. S. Border Patrol with migrant landings and search and rescue missions in coastal waters. He’s also worked with youth on Islamorada and donates fish to the Florida Keys Wild Bird Center for food for the birds. He’s been honored as the Coastal Conservation Association’s 2016 Officer of the Year, and with five of his colleagues by Mothers Against Drunk Driving for efforts to prevent boating under the influence. He’s also a member of FWC’s first South Florida dive team and a certified Drug Recognition Expert.

“We think Officer Stone and Investigator Hein are fitting choices for this new award,” said Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation Executive Director Greg Jacoski. “They exemplify all that Guy Harvey and our Foundation stand for – an unwavering lifetime commitment to understanding, conserving and appreciating the irreplaceable creatures that inhabit our oceans. We congratulate them and the FWC for all they do.”

The Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation presented Officer Stone and Investigator Hein with $1,000 honorariums and two-night stays at a Guy Harvey Outpost for the officers and their families. “We know how much family support goes into the work of Florida’s conservation officers,” Jacoski said. “This is one small way we can say thank-you to them as well.”

The Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation, in partnership with the Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida, created the Guy Harvey Marine Conservation Award to recognize sworn and non-sworn FWC employees who distinguish themselves through exemplary service and dedication to public safety and acts or accomplishments towards the conservation of Florida’s marine resources.

About Guy Harvey:
Artist, scientist, diver, angler, conservationist and explorer Guy Harvey is devoted to the sea. Graduating with honors in Marine Biology from Aberdeen University in Scotland in 1977, Guy returned home to Jamaica to resume his education, earning his Ph.D. from the University of the West Indies in 1984. Though he gave up a budding career as a marine biologist for that of a highly acclaimed artist, Guy has continued his relentless pursuit to unravel the mysteries of the sea, traveling the world to better understand the habits and habitats of the marine wildlife he paints. For more information, please visit www.guyharvey.com.