Kennebunk wildlife biologist had passion for conservation and community
Jun. 9—Shiloh Schulte's family often found him exploring the woods, binoculars in hand, when he was growing up.
His childhood interest in wildlife turned into a career in biology and a love for birds that his family adopted. Though his parents and four siblings are spread out across Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont, they say one object outside of their homes ties them to Schulte: bird feeders.
The 46-year-old from Kennebunk, who has worked on several projects across the country to preserve landbird, seabird and shorebird populations, died in a helicopter crash Wednesday while conducting conservation work in Alaska to survey and record birds.
"It's just such a tragedy, there was so much more that he could have done for the world and would have done," his brother Jonah Schulte said. "All we can do is hope to be even a little glimmer of what he was at trying to help."
Shiloh Schulte, who most recently worked for the Massachusetts-based research nonprofit Manomet Conservation Sciences, was known in the company for his efforts to restore the American Oystercatcher population by 45%, according to a statement posted to social media.
On the day of the crash, Schulte and the helicopter pilot, who also died, were flying from Prudhoe Bay to a remote area of Alaska's North Slope, according to the Boston Globe. The crash occurred on the first day of the study.
'KENNEBUNK SURELY LOST A GOOD ONE'
His friends and family said his passion for conservation and community was infectious.
Schulte lived in Kennebunk with his wife, 15-year-old daughter Caelyn and 18-year-old daughter Lorien, as well as his sister, Jill, and her young children.
When he wasn't traveling for work, Schulte made efforts to be involved in his community, whether it was hosting potlucks or making friends in running groups, his wife, Shevaun Schulte, said. Every spring, she said, he and his family threw neighborhood parties to collect and boil down maple sap.
As a father, his wife said, Shiloh Schulte instilled a love of learning in his children, and the family often traveled and went camping together. Loved ones are seeking donations through GoFundMe to support his family.
Lorien Schulte said her father enjoyed reading, and was especially fond of "A Wizard of Earthsea" by Ursula K. Le Guin. Even off the clock, she said, he loved to photograph birds and share them on his Instagram account.
Schulte, an avid runner who completed the Boston Marathon several times and finished as the top Maine runner in 2019, also served on Kennebunk's select board from 2015-24. Residents will remember him as a "thoughtful, principled" leader, according to a statement posted to the town's Facebook page.
"Shiloh was encouraging, courageous, genuine, even-tempered and fair," Select Board member Kortney Nedeau said in a statement Monday. "Kennebunk surely lost a good one."
MAKING FRIENDS ACROSS THE WORLD
While "tromping through the tundra" at a camp in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in 2019, Michael Boardman, of North Yarmouth, said he was surprised to meet Schulte, a "fellow Mainer in the middle of nowhere."
Boardman, who was serving as an artist in residence for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said he appreciated that Schulte was willing to connect with him, even though he's not an expert in science. He said Schulte's willingness to teach others about the whimbrel, a type of shorebird, resulted in him putting more emotion into his field sketches and paintings.
Schulte, he said, was passionate about raising awareness of some shorebirds, working to protect them along their long migration routes.
"You may never go to the Arctic, but there's a lot of birds that you see during the course of the summer that do," Boardman said. "If they disappear, the world will be a lesser place."
Jonah Schulte said his older brother had made friends across the world, from South America to the Eastern Seaboard. Since his death, he said it's been heartwarming to see comments and stories from people on social media and online who knew him.
"There's people everywhere that knew Shiloh," Jonah Schulte said, "and were excited to see and hear from him just because they knew that if he was there, it meant there was a good reason to be there."
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