When the Discovery Channel contacted Janet Little about promoting Seattle's Fishermen's Memorial on the TV show, The Deadliest Catch," she was a little surprised.
But the president of the memorial quickly learned why a television network was approaching her.
It was to honor Capt. Phil Harris. The chain-smoking curmudgeon who was part-owner of the crab fishing vessel, the Cornelia Marie, and one of the biggest stars on the Discovery Channel's reality TV show.
Tragically, Harris passed away from an intracranial hemorrhage a few days after suffering a stroke in late January onboard his crab vessel. The Discovery Channel had been in the middle of filming the new season of shows at the time and was given permission to record Harris' last days.
The network aired the series of episodes chronicling the death of Harris this past summer, culminating in the season finale July 13. It was the most-watched program in the history of the Discovery Channel, as 8.5 million viewers tuned in to watch Harris and his two sons deal with the inevitable end of this larger-than-life fisherman.
At the end of the show, the Discovery Channel asked people to donate to the Seattle Fishermen's Memorial, which is a non-profit organization aimed at working with and supporting people who have lost loved ones at sea.
"[The memorial] helps the families of survivors. We see [the danger of the Bering Sea] first hand, and it's just hard for the people left behind," said Elizabeth Hillman, director of communications at the Discovery Channel. "If we can help people stay on their own two feet, then we want to do that."
To prepare for Harris' final episode, Little increased the capacity of the Fishermen's Memorial website and also partnered with Paypal, the ecommerce financial transaction service, to handle the influx of donations.
And she was right. The Fishermen's Memorial received more than 350 donations totaling $8,000.
"I was very thrilled. People are very generous," Little said. "All the fans obviously connected with the show and really understood where the money was going to."
The Discovery Channel also made a donation to the fund, though they requested that the amount of their donation not be made public.
Little also said that a majority of the donations came from the East Coast.
For both the East Coast and West Coast broadcasts of the show, the Discovery Channel set up a live online chat through their website, in order to create a community where people could watch the episode and talk about it together. "The amount of emotional outpouring was overwhelming," Hillman said. "It was really humbling and wonderful for us to have direct communication with our viewers like that."
The money in the memorial fund is primarily divided into two programs: a scholarship program that is available to any family member that has lost a parent at sea; and a four-year educational scholarship with a limit of $11,000 per year. There are currently seven people participating in the scholarship program.
"It's just great to know that even in these hard economic times, people are taking time from their busy schedules," Little said. She added that they received many emails that were very caring and nurturing from people who had been touched by Captain Phil and wanted to support the memorial.
The Fishermen's Memorial also supports a safety program. Any fisherman that takes a class concerning safety at sea receives a rebate.
The Discovery Channel didn't set any specific goals about how much money they hoped to draw into the fund after the episode aired.
"We just wanted to do whatever we could," Hillman said. Before the airing of the season finale, Hillman said that they had people writing in, asking how they could help.
"We wanted to help rally people around the families of the fisherman," she said.
The Fishermen's Memorial primary source of support is an annual auction. However, Little said the donations brought in this year will help sustain the programs.
The upcoming annual Fall Fishermen's Festival takes place on Saturday Sept. 25, at Fishermen's Terminal, of which the Fishermen's Memorial is a beneficiary. The event lasts from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m., and the event is free. Little said she even invited the Discovery Channel to come enjoy the festivities.[[In-content Ad]]
