Jay Keller
Fundraising on behalf of iNaturalist
Fundraising on behalf of iNaturalist
BJ Stacey, a dedicated contributor to iNaturalist, passed away on February 24, 2022 after living courageously with a serious illness for nearly four years. He was 51 years old and lived in Santee, California with his wife of 26 years, Michaeleen, who joined him on nature outings whenever she could.
To all of us who knew him, BJ (iNaturalist username "finatic") was a one-of-a-kind individual with a tremendous sense of humor, love for life and tireless pursuit of his passions with a dose of grit thrown in for good measure. His contributions to science via iNaturalist and other forums are immense and will be of significant importance to the scientific community for decades to come. His indefatigable drive to simply go outside and observe nature not only gave him a sense of peace and enjoyment but also led to amazing discoveries for science.
I had the pleasure of joining BJ on adventures all across the country over the years, and he was the person that introduced me to iNaturalist which quickly led to both of us becoming addicted to contributing there as we fed off of each other's energy and desire to see new organisms. When I took him on his first blacklighting outing, he immediately became hooked and photographing the insects came to be the locus around which most of our adventures would be centered from then on. It was these outings that bring the fondest memories, not just because of the "first for iNat" or even "first ever photographed" or "that shouldn't be there" discoveries, but mostly the enjoyment that was had from sitting around the light in our chairs eating pizza that sat on the dashboard for 8 hours telling jokes in the middle of the wilderness until sunrise. There are so many stories and amusing anecdotes that exist from our times together, and I know many people can say the same.
BJ was perhaps most proud of his key accomplishments along the way, which were numerous. He was the energy and planning behind the very successful 2017 Southeast Arizona iNat-athon which gave him such pleasure since so many contributors from across the country joined along with the founders of iNaturalist itself. Some of his other accomplishments include contributions to understanding Leopard Frog populations, gastropod research and perhaps most importantly to him, having a species of millipede, Amplaria staceyi, named in his honor in 2021.
Whether you had the pleasure of knowing BJ personally or simply benefited from his more than 100,000 observations and Iidentifications on iNaturalist over the past 10 years, we can all agree that the entire naturalist community is a better place with him having been a part of it for so long. One of BJ's final wishes was to help promote financial contributions to iNaturalist, so we hope you can donate to the site in his memory, or give to a similar cause in his name. He will be greatly missed, but his legacy will live on forever.
If you'd like to leave a comment, you can do so without donating on the iNaturalist blog post Rest In Peace, finatic.
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Donor Wall14
Gregory Coniglio | $37.22
Paul Kelly | $50
Rest Well
Gregory Coniglio | $37.22
Bob Miller
Remembering Finatic and Sidewinder kisses in the dunes.
Jennifer Rycenga | $111.81
Madeleine Claire
Sula
H. Valtierra | $105.75
In memory of BJ. His cause in nature was a cause and tradition worth keeping up!
Casey Richart | $105.75
Here's a nice one that BJ showed me <3 https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/21231471
Matthew | $111.77
If there's an afterlife, I hope it has bugs and cameras for BJ. My condolences to Michaeleen and BJ's friends and family. A kind and generous man.
Sam Kieschnick | $53.03
Extremely grateful for BJ -- I got to live vicariously through his observations and his adventures. My life is richer because of him. Rest in peace, my friend.
Jay Keller | $1,000
I miss you dearly my brother. I will be telling your stories soon in my iNat blog for everyone's enjoyment. Your passion for nature and for doing the right thing for all involved is inspirational to us all. Thank you for sharing your life with us.
Alex Shepard | $105.75
Thanks for everything, BJ.
Michaeleen | $2,636.06