Mike Bender

Mike Bender was born and raised in Erie Pa. After graduating he packed a pick-up truck to spend an adventurous summer in Alaska. The summer was much more than he had hoped, and Mike ending up staying in Alaska and starting a family. Mike started sailing, recreationally, in Prince William Sound in 1984.

In 1994, his love for the Sound prompted him to start Lazy Otter Charters, a water taxi business still operating out of Whittier. He and his wife Kelly operated the business for 32 years before retiring in 2025.

Mike is involved with the Whittier Chamber of Commerce, sat on the Whittier Ports and Harbors Commission, and crews on a SERVS response vessel operator.

The biggest pleasure for Mike is raising his kids in the Sound and the numerous family memories created here. It is his desire to protect Prince William Sound for all families.