884 izlenim

Favori ekle

Yorum yap

Share |

News Link

June Haimoff, or Captain June as she is known hereabouts, is a petite, elegant British woman, whose persistence and courage, often in the face of adversity, has meant that the beach at İztuzu was saved from developers, providing a vital sanctuary for the endangered Loggerhead Turtle or Caretta caretta.

Her sterling work has now been recognised by Queen Elizabeth II in the British New Year’s Honours List and in May she will be visiting Buckingham Palace to receive an MBE.

This distinguished and prized medal has been awarded to June for her long and often lonely battle to stop the beach at İztuzu, near Dalyan, being taken over by developers and turned into a tourist resort.

The 2011 New Year’s Honours List announced that June has been awarded an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) ‘for services to environmental conservation and the protection of endangered turtles in Turkey.’

The honour will be presented to her at Buckingham Palace this May but there will also be a presentation later in the year in Dalyan, for friends and the people of Dalyan.

When asked how she felt, June said that for her this was a wonderful honour and also a surprise. “I am so happy to share this wonderful news with all my friends and the people of Dalyan.”

Ambassador David Reddaway told the Land of Lights, “I know that June Haimoff-Fairey’s legion admirers around the world will be as delighted as I am that The Queen has recognised June’s extraordinary work on behalf of the environment and endangered turtles in Turkey by awarding her the MBE.

A visit to Buckingham Palace requires some preparation and June is wondering whether she should buy a new hat. “I am not sure at this stage whether it should be something exotic with feathers or maybe a captain’s hat. You will have to wait and see,” she laughs.

At the moment she is not sure whether Queen Elizabeth II or Prince Charles will present the MBE to her. “I have so much respect for both the Queen and Prince Charles,” says June. “The Queen is a contemporary of mine [they are very similar in age] and Prince Charles’ interest in the environment, together with his love of Turkey, means that I would love to be able to talk with either of them if the opportunity arises. I also had occasion to meet with Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, when we were both sailing at the Royal Norfolk and Suffolk Yacht Club in Lowestoft. We are both keen sailors.”

For June, elegant dressing in something she also knows very well. For many years she was a member of the elite European Jet Set; living a privileged existence in the English countryside and later in Switzerland. She first visited Turkey on board her yacht and became entranced with the country and its people.

However, by the mid 1970s, June had given up her glamorous existence for a hut on stilts, and then for many years wrestled with the authorities to protect the beautiful beach at İztuzu from the developers. She has described her many adventures and the highs and lows during the battle for Dalyan in a book “Kaptan June and the Dalyan Turtles.”

She and Associate professor Yakup Kaska from Pamukkale University in Denizli have been instrumental in setting up the June Haimoff Sea Turtle Foundation for the rescue, rehabilitation and return to the sea of the endangered Loggerhead Turtle. She explains that, “Much of the paperwork and bureaucracy has now been done and we are now waiting for the foundation to be given the green light.” It seems that this remarkable woman has endless enthusiasm and energy – more than many half her age.

Kaska is thrilled by the news. “I think for June to receive this honour is really excellent news. Congratulations to her. Turkish people are fully aware of the prestigious value of an MBE. It will wonderful for June, the Rehabilitation Centre, the sea turtles and of course Turkey. I think it will really help to put the centre on the world map.”

In the January sunshine, surrounded by friends in her garden, June lifts a glass of chilled champagne to toast the coming year and all that it may bring. Mustafa Şıkman, the British Honorary Consul in Fethiye said, “It has been an great pleasure to be able to meet with June Haimoff. She is a truly extraordinary woman who has done wonderful things for the sea turtles, Iztuzu beach and of course Turkey. We must all thank her from the bottom of our hearts.”