We are saddened by the passing of longtime member Don Young. He was with the former New York City Sierra Club Photography Committee (now re-named Sierra Club Photo NYC) since the early years of its founding, fifty years ago. He died September 4th at the Amsterdam Nursing Home in New York City from heart problems at the age of 92. He will be buried with his family at the Washington East Memorial Cemetery in Indianapolis, Indiana, where he grew up.
When he joined the Photography Committee in the late 1970s, in its early years, he became very active. His participation was instrumental in shaping our group’s purpose, organization and the activities that we still pursue today. He was a former chair of our Board, newsletter editor and activity organizer. His quiet charisma brought members together, allowing each to express their point of view. He organized many of our photography exhibits, including Beside the Golden Door at the former World Trade Center in 1986 and The Nature of New York City at the Museum of Natural History in 1989. He was instrumental in bringing members’ photographs together to create traveling slide shows, such as Contemporary Views of Native America and This Fair Land! (the Centennial show) to promote the work of NYC Sierra Club group.
From our Photography Committee, he went on to become active in the Sierra Club NYC Group and the Atlantic Chapter. Over the years, he became chair of those boards as well, all the while still pursuing his career as a Sierra Club Book Editor and coming to our members nights to share his photography.
His first job was in the editorial department of Grolier Encyclopedia Americana, where he was hired by John Smith, who also was a Sierra Club Photography Committee member. Don went on to write and edit more than 20 books on national parks, wilderness, and historic preservation, including The Sierra Club Guides to the National Parks (5 volumes, editor), Great American Desert, The Sierra Club Book of Our National Parks, Historic Monuments of America, and American Roulette: The History and Dilemma of the Vice Presidency.
He was also significantly active as a coin collector and seller. He advertised and participated in international coin shows and catalogs, including the World Money Fair in Berlin.
Don was always an impassioned environmentalist. He loved the American Southwest and traveled there to photograph it throughout his life. In his photography, he sought to lift public understanding and appreciation of all that we have, value, and need to preserve.
The Sierra Club NYC Group will have a memorial for Don in the next few months. When we have more information about it, we will notify our members via email and newsletter. For those who wish to contribute to his memory, one wilderness preservation organization close to his heart is the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance.
Sierra Club Photo NYC 