Local Eco Activists

By Julie Duffin
July 2024 View more Books

Pauline Marie Gambill’s book, The Fox Feats and Shark Tales, tells the story of two local activists: James Phillips, known as the Fox, and Steven Hindi, founder of SHARK (Showing Animals Respect and Kindness). A Wheaton resident, Gambill began researching their stories after retiring from the Environmental Protection Agency. “I found it interesting that they were both from the Fox Valley area,” she says. “I started interviewing people, and the next thing I knew, I had a book.”

Longtime residents may remember the Fox, whose undercover efforts helped thwart companies from dumping toxins into the Fox River. A fearless advocate for the river in the late 1960s and 1970s, his story is something straight out of the movies: suburban high school teacher by day, crusader against industrial polluters by night. Hindi is equally intriguing in his fight to stop animal cruelty. A former hunter himself, Hindi has successfully advocated for statewide bans on horse-tripping and live pigeon shoots and has shut down hunting clubs across the country. “Both of these men are incredible in what they did to bring attention to these issues,” Gambill says. “More people need to be aware of what they have done so we can continue to protect our waters and the environment.”

Photos: FreedomChaser Books