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Martin Litton to be honored for leadership on environmental issues

"Martinis with Martin," a celebration of the accomplishments of Martin Litton of Portola Valley, will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, June 21, at the Hiller Aviation Museum in San Carlos. The event is hosted by the Sequoia ForestKeeper organization. Ed Begley Jr. will be master of ceremonies.

Mr. Litton, 95, a legendary figure in the environmental movement, is active in many environmental issues, particularly National Forest preservation, according to Sequoia ForestKeeper spokesman Valerie Cassity. A former Grand Canyon river runner, Mr. Litton is best known as a staunch opponent of the construction of Glen Canyon Dam and other dams on the Colorado River.

Between 1954 and 1968 Mr. Litton was travel editor for Sunset Magazine. In 1960, Sunset ran a cover story entitled "The Redwood Country," which is credited with launching a campaign that eventually led to the establishment of Redwood National Park.

Mr. Litton has worked to protect the Giant Sequoias and was instrumental in stopping logging that had been taking place in the 1980s and early 1990s in the Sequoia National Forest, according to Ms. Cassity. He was a key player in President Clinton's declaring 328,000 acres of the forest the Giant Sequoia National Monument.

Mr. Litton has served on the boards of many environmental organizations, including the Sierra Club, American Lands Alliance, and, most recently, Sequoia ForestKeeper.