Tri-Citians head to Washington for Women’s March
As a scientist, Scott Butner traveled to Washington, D.C., countless times in his nearly 30 years with Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
Between meetings, he took in the sights and once attended the Daily Show’s March to Restore Sanity and a separate gathering honoring an anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s March on Washington.
“I love Washington, D.C., and the sense of history one gets to have out on the mall,” he said.
Now retired, Butner is returning as a freelance photojournalist to document the Women’s March on Saturday, the day after the inauguration. He’s viewing the march as a chance to peacefully share a vision for a united, diverse country.
“I am attending partly to document the event as a freelance photojournalist and partly out of support for the agenda of the march,” he said.
I am attending partly to document the event as a freelance photojournalist and partly out of support for the agenda of the march.
Scott Butner of Richland
Namely, he wants to remind Donald Trump that he’s the president of all Americans, not only people who voted for him.
“People want to be heard, in this America he wants to make great again,” he explained.
The trip is a natural outlet for his scientific curiosity and his interest in photography, now a full-time job since he retired.
Butner was a research scientist and chemical engineer in alternative fuels, renewable energy and biofuels. He worked on pollution prevention, a field in which he was honored by the U.S. chemical industry.
As he heads back for another march, he said common discourse is something he still believes in.
He will be joined by a friend and colleague, Jennifer Ovink, a mother, grandmother and science writer at PNNL.
The Richland woman is traveling to the East Coast armed with a handmade “kitty-cat” hat, her polite term for the pink-eared hats being knitted nationwide for the occasion with the mission of making a common visual statement.
We need to come together and find a base of core values that we can all work toward instead of picking apart each others’ faults and beliefs . That’s what I’m looking for.
Jennifer Ovink of Richland
She’s piggybacking a visit with her daughter and grandchildren in Virginia onto the trip, but said her aim is chiefly political.
She decided to attend the march as soon as she learned of it. She said she’s been frustrated the public discourse and the outcome of the election.
“We need to come together and find a base of core values that we can all work toward instead of picking apart each others’ faults and beliefs,” she said. “That’s what I’m looking for.”
Residents wishing to participate in similar marches have many choices in Washington and Oregon with marches planned in Seattle, Portland and Spokane and numerous smaller communities.
Locally, the Tri-City Democrats plan a march and meditation event from 1 to 2:30 p.m. Jan. 21 at John Dam Plaza, 1815 George Washington Way in Richland.
Wendy Culverwell: 509-582-1514, @WendyCulverwell
This story was originally published January 18, 2017 at 7:32 PM with the headline "Tri-Citians head to Washington for Women’s March."