Jim Johnson Obituary

Jim Johnson in 1992, from the Palo Alto Historical Association Photograph Collection

Jim Johnson, who is better known as the former stream keeper of San Francisquito Creek, died of a heart attack on May 26, 2014 at an ashram in India, where he had gone in pursuit of his spiritual path.  Jim was a native of Minnesota who grew up near Spring Creek and spent his boyhood in the woods and streams of his backyard.  After a stint at St. Olaf College, he came to Berkeley for a time in the late 1960s before returning to his home state. Jim came on back onto the local scene in the late 1980s, taking on the role of advocate for the preservation and enhancement of the local treasure, San Francisquito Creek. In a letter written after he had left for India, he reminisced that his interest in the creek was sparked when one day he noticed three kids walking along the creek bottom and realized that he felt destined to do his creek work for them and for future generations.  He saw the creek, indeed all the waters of the world, as sacred areas entrusted to humans for their thoughtful use and the betterment of all species. Thus what most saw as an environmental effort was, more truthfully, a spiritual quest and obligation, which he carried out in the name of love of all mankind and all species.

It can safely be said, that if Jim had not been here at just that point in time, our watershed would be a different place than it is today.  Through his efforts, chiefly, the stakeholder process known first as the CRMP and later as the Watershed Council came into being.  As a result of that program of Acterra, an enormous amount of restoration, education and planning were carried out, and continue to be so today.  The Watershed Council produced in 1997 a draft watershed management plan that set the framework for future discussions of issues along the creek.  Among its recommendations was that a Joint Powers Authority be formed which would have both the resources and the power to make substantial improvements along the lines of those outlined in the watershed management plan.  Soon, after years of planning and discussion after the 1998 flooding event, construction will begin on the first phases of a project to better manage the occasional high flows of the creek. This accomplishment is a direct result of Jim’s early work to coordinate efforts along the creek to all our advantages.

As streamkeeper, Jim was also involved in actual restoration work, which he organized and carried out first on a solo basis, then with other volunteers, and finally as a program at Acterra.  The results are still to be seen along the creek, with the jewel of them being El Palo Alto Park which he worked for many years to restore and enhance to its present condition. He was also instrumental in the design and crafting of the panels in the parks on both sides of the creek that detail the natural and human history of the watershed.  These two enhancements, by themselves, serve as a legacy from him to all the future generations of the watershed. Jim’s sojourn in our community was brief, yet of lasting importance to us all.

Jim is survived by a daughter, whose whereabouts are currently unknown.  Gifts in his memory can be made to the Acterra Stewardship Program to carry on his work in the watershed he loved.