Our Story
HoneyBeeAwareness.org began with a personal loss. Watch this introduction to learn where the project came from, why we chose to build something from that loss, and the purpose guiding the work today.
Trouble viewing the embedded video? Watch the introduction directly on YouTube.
Continue to Tammy’s Story
Next, watch Tammy share her firsthand account of the April 9 attack, the loss of Summer, Bunny, and Wingnut, and the lasting impact the event has had on our family.
Their loss is part of why this project exists and why HoneyBeeAwareness.org is focused on education, research, and public safety.
The Event That Started This Project
On April 9, 2026, our family experienced a serious bee attack that changed the direction of our lives. What began as an ordinary visit to a family property became an emergency involving highly defensive bees, first responders, medical care, veterinary care, and the heartbreaking loss of our three little dogs.
This page is not intended to sensationalize that event. Some parts of the story are painful, and some details are being preserved carefully for private records, public-safety documentation, and future case-study work. The important point is that the incident revealed how quickly a bee-related hazard can become dangerous and how unprepared many families, workers, animal owners, and responders can be when it happens.
Why We Chose To Build Something From It
In the days after the attack, the central question became simple: what can be done so another family, worker, animal owner, responder, or community is not caught by surprise in the same way?
That question became the starting point for HoneyBeeAwareness.org. The project grew from personal grief into a public-safety effort focused on education, documentation, and responsible honey bee stewardship.
The Message
Save the Right Bees.
Do Not Normalize Aggressive Bee Behavior.
Honey bees are valuable and worth protecting. But highly defensive behavior around people, pets, livestock, workers, or public spaces should not be dismissed as normal or ignored until after someone is hurt.
What We Hope This Site Will Do
HoneyBeeAwareness.org is being built to help organize information that is often scattered, forgotten, or misunderstood. Serious bee incidents may appear briefly in local news, emergency records, veterinary stories, beekeeper conversations, or family experiences, but they are rarely collected in one place where patterns can be studied and lessons can be shared.
The goal is to create a resource that helps people recognize risk sooner and respond more safely. That includes homeowners, outdoor workers, city and county employees, landscapers, ranchers, pet owners, livestock owners, beekeepers, teachers, public officials, and first responders.
Not Anti-Bee
This project is not anti-bee. We are beekeepers, educators, and strong supporters of responsible honey bee stewardship. Gentle, manageable honey bees are worth protecting. Productive managed colonies are valuable to agriculture, education, and communities.
The issue is not whether honey bees matter. They do. The issue is whether dangerous behavior should be excused, ignored, or normalized when it creates risks for families, animals, workers, and the public.
Where the Story Continues
Our Story explains where HoneyBeeAwareness.org began. Tammy’s Story preserves her firsthand account of the April 9 attack and the loss of Summer, Bunny, and Wingnut. The Rest of the Story explains what happened afterward, and Truth and Consequences explains why this issue reaches far beyond our family.
The Rest of the Story answers what happened to the colony and how the mission began. Truth and Consequences connects that experience to honey bee movement, swarming, public safety, aggressive genetics, and the larger issue of genetic biosecurity.
Our hope is that this work will help others learn before they are forced to learn through loss.
Continue With Tammy’s Story
Tammy’s firsthand account is the next part of this story. From there, continue to The Rest of the Story and Truth and Consequences to understand what happened afterward and where the mission goes next.