by Tiffany Heill. (Heill is a volunteer intern for the Maryland Coastal Bays Program.)

The Coastal Bays Program is fortunate to have so many dedicated volunteers who work tirelessly on behalf of our program. This summer the volunteer spotlight is shining on Bill Killinger.

After living and working in Baltimore and visiting Ocean City for more than 30 years, the 64-year-old Ocean Pines resident decided that Worcester County was the place where he wanted to spend his retirement. Drawn to the area for its natural beauty and species diversity, Killinger found it too hard to resist. A property owner in the watershed for 25 years, he has been an outstanding volunteer for the MCBP and has been involved in almost every facet of the program.

Killinger is actively involved in MCBP activities such as water quality and horseshoe crab monitoring, and he also serves as the Legislative Chair of the Citizen’s Advisory Committee (CAC). Becoming a water quality monitor was a way for this former chemist to engage in a continual hands-on project by collecting water samples and measuring nutrient levels, site conditions, and physical parameters of waterways not routinely monitored. Since the inception of the rigorous water quality-monitoring program in 1997, Killinger has sometimes monitored four sites at a time!

As the Legislative Chair for the CAC, Killinger is involved in tracking legislative issues for the group. The CAC allows the tall and amiable philanthropist to become actively involved in protecting and preserving what he loves about this area.

In addition to all of his activities with the Coastal Bays Program, Killinger works with elementary and middle school children through an educational program developed by the Department of Natural Resources. Within this program, he speaks to children on a variety of topics including horseshoe crabs, oyster reefs, the Chesapeake and coastal bays watersheds, and ways students can protect and preserve natural resources. He is also an active member of the Ocean Pines Boat Club, the Ocean Pines Angler’s Club, and the Maryland Saltwater Sportfisherman’s Association.

Whether he is manning a booth at a local festival, monitoring water quality at one of his numerous stations, or educating others about ways to protect the coastal bays, Bill Killinger is proof that one person can make a difference.

--Tiffany Heill