Andrew Dutterer Memorial dedicated

Helen Schmidling | Last updated Jul 23, 2024 10:34am0

Andrew Dutterer's family, friends, and partners in river and watershed restoration gathered Saturday morning to dedicate the "Otter Be Fishing" bench and plaque beside Whychus Creek in Creekside Park. The bench is dedicated to Dutterer who, before his tragic death in an auto accident in 2021, was instrumental in supporting the various agencies and individuals involved in the restoration of the creek.

For Andrew Dutterer, fishing connected his past, present, and future. Family, fishing, and the health of wild rivers were the many tributaries of his life.

Kris Knight, Executive Director of the Upper Deschutes Watershed Council in Bend, facilitated the project and the event that brought together Dutterer's family, friends, and associates from around the country, to celebrate his life and their mutual dedication to fish and river restoration.

Photo by Dennis Schmidling

Skip Armstrong crafted a memorial bench in honor of Andrew Dutterer, a tireless advocate for Whychus Creek.

The centerpiece is a ponderosa pine bench, carved by local sculptor J. Chester "Skip" Armstrong. The three-person-wide bench has eight river otters and a plethora of salmon playfully running around its perimeter. Nearby, an interpretive sign explains the work that has happened to restore Whychus Creek over nearly 25 years.

At the time of his passing, Andrew Dutterer was the Partnerships Coordinator for the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB), a state agency that provides grants to help Oregonians take care of local streams, rivers, wetlands, and natural areas.

Knight said that Andrew worked closely with his agency on a variety of projects here. Whychus Creek, a tributary of the Deschutes River, flows through Sisters and connects to the Deschutes near Alder Springs.

During the event, Andrew's widow, Caitlin, and his father, Dennis, thanked all who were involved to create this memorial and explained why they chose this park and how Andrew was connected to this place.

The bench is carved from a 250-year-old tree, 40 inches in diameter, which stood on U.S. Forest Service property in Sisters. It was taken down to make way for the new Forest Service headquarters and donated by the Forest Service for stream restoration . Part of it went to Skip Armstrong to create this bench, and part of it is submerged in Whychus Creek, as habitat supporting fish restoration.

Armstrong worked closely with the Dutterer family to select the theme of the bench. He spent a year pondering and then carving and perfecting the design. Eight pine-hearted river otters and many salmon run around the perimeter of the bench. For comfort, Armstrong hollowed out three "seats," positions where people can rest and contemplate the creek. The bench rests on a base made here in Sisters, at Ponderosa Forge.

Wildlife cameras have since recorded the presence of otters not far from the bench, Knight said. "Someone who didn't even know about this project reached out to me with footage of otters in the creek."

Nearby, an interpretive sign explains the work that has happened in stages over many years. While the interpretive sign, and others like it, are not part of the memorial itself, they enhance and explain it.

As Knight said, Dutterer understood that this spot was a natural draw, readily accessible for locals, student groups, and visitors to the campground. It's a place where they can learn about the broader restoration that is taking place on the creek, on the Deschutes River, and around the state.

A key player in the project was Chuck Newport of Sisters, who is a former member of the Upper Deschutes Watershed Council board of directors. Newport recommended Skip Armstrong to Knight, and the minds came together.

Over several years, the City of Sisters, in partnership with the Upper Deschutes Watershed Council, has performed many improvements at Creekside Park, including installation of natural fencing, creation of four water access points, pathways, and improvements to the pedestrian bridge. Charlie Patterson, with Sisters-based Construction Management Services, constructed the underlying pad and Paul Bertagna and the City's Public Works crew installed the bench, weighing in at a hefty 800 pounds. On behalf of the City, Councilor Susan Cobb expressed gratitude to the family and the various agencies, for their ongoing partnership.

For those who wish to see the bench, it's located on the southwest side of the park, the campground side near Locust Street. Parking is available on the north side of the park, off Jefferson Avenue.

Who was Andrew Dutterer?

Helen Schmidling

In nature, Andrew Dutterer was a force.

Professionally, he was the Partnerships Coordinator for the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB). Personally, he was a devoted husband and father, a loving son and brother, and a genuine friend. He was a tireless advocate for fish and their habitat. He loved to fish and devoted his life so that fish could thrive in Oregon’s wild rivers and tributaries.

Andrew’s life ended in September 2021 as a result of an automobile accident. But his spirit and his dedication to Oregon’s rivers and the fish that swim in them live on.

This was the message shared by those who came together to celebrate Andrew’s life and dedicate a memorial in his honor at Creekside Park in Sisters on Saturday. His father, Dennis Dutterer, opened the gathering with thanks. “We are really happy that you came here to celebrate Andrew’s work and remember him.”

Andrew grew up in Chicago and fly-fished the rivers of Vermont when he attended Middlebury College. After a time fly fishing in New Zealand, he moved to Oregon, a land of many wild rivers. In Maupin, he managed the well-known Deschutes Angler Fly Shop, owned by John and Amy Hazel. It was there that he discovered the impacts of river and fishery management on the community, and decided to pursue a career that would effect positive change.

At the University of Oregon, he earned graduate degrees in water science and water policy, and he met his wife, Caitlin. Their son, Henry, charmed Saturday’s gathering when standing beside his mom, he spoke directly into the mic,“Welcome!”

At OWEB, Andrew coordinated state grants for collaborative watershed restoration efforts. Meta Loftsgaarden, the former director of OWEB, said, “Andrew’s personality fit so well because he worked for the agency that just got to give away money (for habitat restoration). Over the years, Andrew was a leader in OWEB’s support of the many restoration projects on Whychus Creek. And that is why the Otter Be Fishing bench is here.”

Loftsgaarden was Andrew’s first mentor. “But he also mentored me,” she said. “He made me feel special, but that was his way. He found out what is special in you, and he cultivated that. He did the same with rivers. No matter which river he was advocating, everyone would say, ‘That’s Andrew’s River.’”