Elizabeth Leite was a former Education Volunteer and Hospital Docent at the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito, CA, and the inspiration for this website. She was a steadfast supporter of environmental stewardship, and the author of Simply Beautiful - Living With the Earth In Mind, an early, seminal volume on ecological values published in 1980. She lived her life by her highest ideals, and is missed by her friends, family, and fellow workers in the conservation movement.