Don Greene, Defender of Buffalo Bayou, Has Died

Don Greene on the water, c. 2001.

Aug. 21, 2014

Don Greene has taken his last trip.

Don, beloved and admired by many, was an ardent defender of Buffalo Bayou for more than forty years. He knew its history, geology, and ecology. He was one of Houston’s most dedicated conservationists. Much of what you read here on this website was influenced by Don Greene.

Update Aug. 26, 2014: Read remembrances from Don Greene’s friends in a tribute compiled by Lisa Gray and published today in Gray Matters in the Houston Chronicle.

Don, founder of Whitewater Experience in 1975, educated several generations of people about our bayous and rivers, here in Houston and across Texas and New Mexico and into Mexico.

Just a couple of months ago Don explained the bayou to Channel 13 reporter Ted Oberg in Oberg’s report on the project to bulldoze Buffalo Bayou. You can watch Don on the water with Oberg here.

Here is Don’s obituary in the Houston Chronicle. And watch this slideshow of Don doing what he loved best.

Don Greene on the Rio Grande in Big Bend, c. 1976.
On the Guadalupe with his Yorkie, Shadow, and friend Cliff Wood, c. 1976.
On the road, 1978.
Handling the oars in the Grand Canyon, 1981.
Don Greene on Buffalo Bayou, c. 2001.
On Buffalo Bayou rapids passing Memorial Park in Houston, near the railroad bridge, 2007.
Safety instructions before a bayou float trip, British School of Houston, 2007.
Don Greene, always safety equipped, right, with fellow bayou activist Frank Salzhandler, on the landscaped banks of Buffalo Bayou in downtown Houston, 2008.