Événement

Celebrate Springer 2025! The true story of how an orphaned orca went home

In 2002 a young orca named Springer was discovered near Seattle - lost, alone, and 300 miles away from home. Six months later she was rescued, rehabilitated and reunited with her pod on the north end of Vancouver Island. Today she is thriving with three calves of her own. s the only successful orca reunion in history!

Author and Whale Trail Founder Donna Sandstrom will share the inspiring true story of how a community came together to rescue Springer, and how the whales responded. Celebrate Springer's success, and learn how you can help endangered southern resident orcas today.

The event is free and family-friendly. Donations welcome to support The Whale Trail.

Co-hosted by The Whale Trail and Inner Alchemy Sanctuary and Studio.

About the Venue

The Inner Alchemy Sanctuary and Studio located at 3618 SW Alaska Street, Seattle 98126. The entrance is on 37th Ave Sw, on the lower level of the building. You will see a sign to the right of the door for Inner Alchemy.

Doors open at 2:45 PM so that you may get settled and ready for a prompt 3:00 pm start.

Please make sure to arrive with time to find parking.

Please note this is a shoes free studio, you are welcome to bring slippers.

About the Speaker

Donna Sandstrom was a community organizer on the successful project to return an orphaned orca,, Springer, to her pod. She was inspired by that collaborative success to found The Whale Trail in 2008. The Whale Trail is a series of sites to watch orcas and other marine mammals from shore. In 2018, Donna served on Gov. Jay Inslee's Orca Recovery Task Force, where she championed solutions to reduce noise and disturbance around the southern resident orcas. Her middle-grade nonfiction book about Springer, Orca Rescue! (Kids Can Press 2021) was a 2025 Sasquatch Award Nominee, Washington Book Award finalist, and Winner of the Best Children's Book 2022 (Science Writers and Communicators of Canada)