Evaluator Larry Clark

"My parents bought our Hancock Pond property in the late 1930’s, during the Depression. They knew the Pond because my mother, Peggy, was a teacher and worked summers as a counselor at Wabunaki girls camp. At that time the only road access to the Pond was the Hancock Pond Road. They accessed the property by paddling their canoe from near Camp Wabunaki or walked a mile through the forest. They built a log cabin with pine and hemlock trees they cut on the property.

"Around 1947 they finally bought a house, an old farm in Windham. I grew up on the farm. So you could say that my LakeSmart background with dirt and water started at an early age. Additional relevant experience came later as I had jobs related to construction and logging and was on the Windham planning board for a time. 

"We are fortunate that the watershed for our ponds is mostly forested, a huge benefit for water quality. We also have significant stretches of shoreline that are relatively undeveloped. Over time these conditions are likely to change and not for the better, thus my interest in LakeSmart. 

"In my 84 years I have learned, all too often the hard way, that preventing problems preemptively is far more efficient than trying to correct the situation after the fact. We can’t control the future of the entire watershed, but we can each influence our own small piece of it. Not everyone will qualify for a LakeSmart sign, but we can all take steps to protect our water quality."