TACOMA, Wash — Two Gig Harbor sisters are wading into the frigid waters of Puget Sound every single day for a year, combining cold-water swimming with conservation advocacy to raise awareness about endangered Southern Resident orcas.
Emma and Annie Stafki began their daily plunge challenge after creating “Echoes of the Sound,” an award-winning student film about the killer whales. Their interest was sparked by family history — their grandparents witnessed the 1968 capture of an orca named Hugo in Vaughn Bay.
“There’s kind of this moment of like, what am I doing?” Annie said before entering the icy water…