Animal lover Stephen Claussen, 41, found life "so much fun"

When Stephen Claussen was a child, and his cat killed birds and mice, he'd bury the creatures in his yard and craft Popsicle-stick crosses to mark the graves.

His love of animals and passion for doing the right thing were part of his "moral compass," said Mr. Claussen's brother, Jim.

From helping with the rescue of Keiko the killer whale to rescuing dolphins washed ashore during Hurricane Katrina to helping with the relocation of Springer, a Canadian killer whale rescued from Puget Sound, Mr. Claussen was known for living his passion.

Mr. Claussen was killed May 17 in a small-plane crash in New Jersey while conducting an aerial survey on the effects of wind turbines on marine mammals and birds.

Now, words left on a Web site in his memory fill pages.

The youngest of five children, Mr. Claussen, 41, grew up in Bellevue and graduated from Bellevue High School.

He didn't attend college; instead, he became a chef at various Seattle restaurants, including Sit and Spin, a combination restaurant-laundromat in Belltown. During that period, he volunteered at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium in Tacoma, driving down before work at 4 a.m. to help feed the animals.

This early-morning volunteer work led to a job at Oregon Coast Aquarium tending to Keiko, star of the "Free Willy" film; the killer whale had been moved to Oregon from a Mexico City amusement park.

Mr. Claussen worked with the Free Willy Foundation and was in the plane in 1998 with Keiko when he was taken to Iceland to be set free. Keiko died in 2003 in Norwegian coastal waters.

"It was very hard when Keiko died," said Jim Claussen. "He resented the fact that Keiko was released when he was. Keiko was as close to a child as Stephen ever got. Keiko was his kid."

Mr. Claussen spent four years in Iceland with Keiko, and friends remember the Thanksgiving dinner he cooked there using turkeys he had obtained from the American Embassy.

"He was an incredible person," said friend Greg Schorr, who worked with Mr. Claussen in Oregon and Iceland. "The marine-mammal community is a small community and difficult to get into, but Stephen became part of it because of his passion and how smart he worked."

Karen Claussen, Mr. Claussen's mother, recalled how her son had always loved animals and that he volunteered at the Woodland Park Zoo. He was so passionate, he was hired at the Oregon aquarium without a college degree, she said.

"Stephen loved that whale [Keiko] and was heartbroken when he died," she said. "But a lot of good research came from it."

She said her son helped rescue dolphins that washed ashore after Hurricane Katrina by putting them in swimming pools. He also did whale research in Alaska.

"He told me, 'Mom, I'm doing what I love to do, and they pay me for it. I'm not afraid of dying, but I don't want to do it now because I'm having so much fun,' " Karen Claussen said. "He was such a nice, gentle human being — the kindest person I know as far as treating other human beings."

Mr. Claussen's sister Jenny Claussen recalled when her brother flagged down a car passing his Crown Hill home so he could change the unaware driver's flat tire.

"He waved her down and changed her tire," she said. "Who does that?"

Her brother was so passionate about water, he could be asleep in the moving car on family vacations and wake when water was near. "You think there are fish in there?" he would ask. She said her family got so sick of his question they would spit in their hands and say, "you think fish is there?"

"He was an old soul," she said. "I can't feel more proud to have him as my brother."

In addition to his mother, sister and brother, Mr. Claussen is survived by sisters Susan Maitland, of Seattle, and Dana Gagnerm, of Tapps Island, Pierce County. His father is deceased.

A memorial service is set for 6:30 p.m. today at the Lake Washington Rowing Club, 910 N. Northlake Way in Seattle.

The family suggests donations in Mr. Claussen's name be made to Food Lifeline, 1702 N.E. 150th St., Shoreline, WA 98155-7226.

Susan Gilmore: 206-464-2054 or sgilmore@seattletimes.com