GELIA Past President, Linda Schier cited by Gov. Lynch
Linda Schier has been coming to Great East Lake with her family for over twenty years.
She joined the board of Great East Lake Improvement Association in 1999. Over the past eight years she has successfully taken on many challenges and accomplished many goals. She has led the GELIA board, continued her formal advanced education in the field of environmental education and helped establish the Acton Wakefield watersheds Alliance.
During Linda's time as director, she has initiated two important programs to help protect the water quality of Great East Lake. When news of the threat from invasive plants emerged, Linda responded by initiating a Weed Watcher Program in 2001. Supported by the NH Department of Environmental Services, Linda coordinated several training sessions with the NHDES, taking volunteers out in pontoon boats to train as weed watchers.
In 2002 Linda was one of the first to apply for and receive a grant from the State of NH for GELIA to form a Lake Host Program to prevent invasive species from entering the lake by inspecting hulls and trailers prior to launching. She secures funding annually through New Hampshire and Maine for this program.
Linda makes many public presentations reflecting her passion for protecting the environment. Two of note include; on New Hampshire Public radio, Linda joined Amy Smagula of NHDES to discuss the prevention of Invasive Species; as a co-presenter for the NHLA Lakes Congress in the Session "Involving Youth In Lakes Stewardship".
Over the past four years, two as Vice President and two as President, Linda has led the GELIA team in several other areas including loon preservation, boating safety, news letter articles and most importantly, she has elevated the concern for the health of the Lake's ecosystem, all while pursuing a degree in Environmental Education.
Much of Linda's work and experience with the GELIA board has lead naturally to her newest position, President of the Acton Wakefield Watersheds Alliance (AWWA). GELIA was the incubator for AWWA, providing resources, technical talent and some financial support for AWWA. In 2004, Linda and other directors from GELIA's Board, invited concerned citizens from other lakes in the Wakefield and Acton area to form a regional watershed alliance to address non-point source pollution. The group partnered with NH and Maine state agencies, adopted bylaws and established itself as non- profit organization. The Acton Wakefield Watersheds Alliance formed the first Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) in NH, based on the example of the YCC in Acton, ME. Linda took the lead in applying for a NHDES 319 Watershed Assistance and Restoration Grant, which provided the bulk of the funding for the YCC projects for two years.
In total, Linda spends much of her time focused on protecting the environment in this area that we have all come to know and love. She is a true guardian of Great East Lake and a strong proponent for the preservation of water quality in the lakes and streams in the Acton Wakefield region.
- Taken in part from the citation presentation to Linda Schier by Jon Rouillard
I have a big job ahead of me, having watched Linda in action over the past two years with GELIA and AWWA. Her dedication and passion, not only for Great East Lake, but for the environment as a whole is remarkable. The following citation sums up many of her accomplishments. I hope that I am able to tap into some of that dedication and passion over my time in office.
- Incoming GELIA President, Steve Dagley
