By Wynn Muller
WILTON – The Friends of Wilson Lake sincerely thanks the boaters who have been so gracious in their response to the efforts to keep Wilson Lake free from invasive plants.
Through the Courtesy Boat Inspection program, FOWL has people inspecting boats on Friday afternoons and all day on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. The purpose is to assure that fragments of plants do not move from lake to lake by attaching themselves to boat parts. Through July 4, FOWL has inspected more than 400 boats entering or leaving Wilson Lake – including nearly 60 on July 4 alone.
The cost of this service is supported by sponsorships from local businesses and a grant from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. The business community has generously provided sponsorships for each of the 15 weekends throughout the summer.
KeyBank sponsored the first two weeks. They believe that: “being part of a community means working to make it better. KeyBank has a deep commitment to the communities where we work and live.”
J’s Boathouse in New Sharon was the sponsor for the third weekend. They provide boat storage, boat service, trailer work, shrink-wrap and other special services for boats.
FOWL thanks Otis Federal Credit Union in Jay for sponsoring the fourth week. They have partnered with us for the past three summers and we cannot thank them enough.
Gary Paling, the Designated Broker for Coldwell Banker, Sandy River Realty on Wilton Road, is sponsor for the the fifth week.
“I appreciate the work FOWL does to preserve the quality of Wilton’s greatest asset: Wilson Lake,” Paling said.
Another financial institution well known to the community is Franklin Savings Bank. This is the third year of their CBI sponsorship.
This is also the third year for Franklin Printing, a local business that is widely known and proud to be considered the most technologically advanced, high-quality printers in New England.
Jamie Schanck is in his sixth year protecting our lake both as a boat monitor and as coordinator for our other monitors. Jamie has also attended annually the Milfoil Summit in March and makes regular reports at our annual meeting, which will be held this year at Kineowatha Park on Sunday July 15 at 1 p.m. Guests are welcome.
Our program has also received considerable support from Sandy Muller and her staff of local volunteers. We ask a member of FOWL to contribute one weekend each year to serve as the support person available for any issues the monitors might encounter – out of supplies, finding a plant, questions from boaters, and this year a brief invasion of wasps at the dock.
Please look to these pages for word about our sponsors over the remainder of the season. We wish you all a most wonderful and safe boating season. We are pleased to note that the warden service has been on Wilson Lake on at least four occasions so far this summer, looking out for our safety on the lake.
Thanks Wynn for all you do to keep FOWL’s activities front and center.