August 2017 MAINE COASTAL NEWS Page 11.
D. E. L. A. - F D Commercial Fishing News
From the Director - Good morning! As I write this report,
it is the fi rst Monday after Stonington Fish- ermen’s Day, which was a beautiful day for all. The Island Fishermen’s Wives work very hard to make this event a success and I commend them for their eff orts. I have a birthday in the month of July (with many family members), and fi nd this event to be a great way to see all of our family at one gathering. I’d like to “Thank” Hanover Insur-
ance with Atlantic and Spencer Insurance Agencies for hosting our booth each year. We all work together and have a great time helping to promote our industry. Thank you to Hilton, Mike, Marty, Allen, Mark and my family for helping out at the booth. Last month, I was unable to write my report in time as our family member, Riley, our 11 year old black lab, was very sick and needed to go to the veterinarian that day. We almost lost him due to a tick bite that was one of the deadly ones. He tested positive for the tick disease and needed antibiotics for thirty days. He is doing much better now. The doctor told us to be very careful and warn people of these particular ticks, as there is no vaccine for this one. If a human is bitten by one of these ticks, they can also have the same deadly symptoms. So please be very careful when you are out walking or even mowing your lawn. It is a dangerous year for ticks and mosquitoes. At this point in time, the Lobster Boat
Racing is well under way. This is always a high point for a lot of people. Congrat- ulations to Shawn Alley for his success in the gasoline division. Congratulations to Patrick Faulkingham for his success in the diesel division. There are many more win- ners in their divisions, but I can’t name them all, so please take a look at Jon’s race report in this newspaper. He does an excellent
job reporting the races and the time speeds as well! Thank you, Jon for your devoted eff orts and the folks that are sponsoring each town’s race. A lot of work goes into these events. For industry updates, the summer is
buzzing with events and the tourists are very kind and supporting DELA with their interest and donations at our booth when they see us each year. I’d like to say “Thank you” for your support, every little bit counts. Maine is known as the capital of the lobster industry in this country, and darn proud of it. We have worked very hard to maintain our product, through the conservation eff ort of our generations before us, such as our fathers and grandfathers. Now, the next generation is coming to the front. Now it is our responsibility to do our best to teach and guide them in the same manner. Personally, I love these young men and women. This is my 13th
year offi cially with DELA and I
have seen many changes over these years. I didn’t know much about leadership when I came in, but I did come in with the feeling (coming from a generational fi shing family myself) that we all needed to be able to trust our DELA leadership and work with the industry such as the Governor and the Department of Marine Resources to the best of our ability with the well-being of our membership and industry in mind. I was told by my elders, that we lead by example and teach along the way. Each person has their own personal opinion - right or wrong…. we need to keep our mouths quiet once in a while and “listen” to what others are trying to say. I have learned this myself and I have pointed this out a meetings when I keep get- ting drowned out by other’s agendas. Over the years, sometimes I have waited to the end of a meeting, raise my hand and give my point or opinion. Sometimes it has been a “cliff hanger.”
Marine Insurance An employee-owned company serving Maine people and their boats since 1866. P. O. Box 88
Belfast, Maine 04915 –
dassatt711@yahoo.com 2017 – “Working together”
Name: _____________________________________ Address: _________________________________ Town/city: __________________ Zip: ________
Offices in Rockland, Camden, Belfast, Southwest Harbor, Portland and Waterville.
AllenIF.com/marine (800)439-4311 OWNER, VESSEL, FLEET OR CREW
JOHANSON BOATWORKS Full Service Yacht Yard
Phone number:___________________E-mail address___________________ Type of membership:
( ) Lobsterman/stern man ($100) yearly
( ) Lobsterman – age 70 & over ($50) ( ) Student ($56) yearly ( ) Business associate ($113) yearly ( ) Avid supporter ($132) yearly ( ) Friend of DELA ($100)
( ) I wish to support DELA’s legal fund _____________
( ) I wish to support DELA’s Scholarship Fund____________ We also take Master Card and Visa
Card _ _ _ _ - _ _ _ _- _ _ _ _- _ _ _ _ Expiration date _ _/_ _ Security code _ _ _
Card holder’s name (print) _______________________________________________ Card Holder’s signature___________________________________________________
Rockland, Maine • 207-596-7060
info@jboatworks.com •
jboatworks.com
*Downeast Lobstermen’s Association is a qualified tax exempt organization under section 501 ( c ) (6) of the Internal Revenue Code
License no. ___________ “Divide and conquer” seems to be the
method of doing things in this modern soci- ety, and I don’t believe it for a minute. We accomplish more by working together and not straying from our belief system. That is what works the best and always will. I am passing this word along to our membership and pray that you feel the same. The latest piece of legislature that we
worked on was the LD 575 An Act to Im- prove the Enforcement of Maine’s Lobster Laws. This was signed by the Governor on June 14, 2017. A letter was sent out to ensure that every license holder is aware of the changes that have been made. This has been in an eff ort to stop “cutting wars” and the worst of violations, such as scrubbing lobsters and burning another fi sherman’s boat.
I feel sad that it had to come to this,
but rules need to be followed and respected. There are those that opposed some of these rules, stating we have constitutional rights. Yes we do, but if we are not guilty of these violations, what is there to worry about? As long as people are carrying their I phones, they can be tracked, referring to tracking devices. There are drones now and satellites that can zero in on you and see what you are watching on TV. So please, let’s get with the program. If you are not on the lobster license list,
and are interested in knowing more about this new law, please see the DMR website at
www.maine.gov/dmr. Please feel free to
contact the Commissioner’s offi ce at 207 624-6553 or your Marine Patrol Division Offi ce at 207 633-9595 (Division I) or 207 667-3373 (Division II). I have enclose a quote from Commis-
sioner Patrick Keliher: “ In closing, I want to commend the lobster industry for initiating these changes, and supporting them through the legislative process. I have heard many concerns about the cheating that has been occurring in this fi shery, and am aware of the frustration it has caused the majority of our fi shermen, who are honest and law abiding. I sincerely hope that these new penalties will serve as an eff ective deterrent to these behaviors.” Sincerely, Patrick C. Keliher, Commisioner. With this being noted, please have a safe and bountiful season this year! Our Annual Meeting is coming up in
September. I will post the date and location as soon as we confi rm the details. I urge you to consider membership if you are not already a member. Our work does make a diff erence and there is strength is numbers and loyalty. Let’s urge our next generation to become involved for their sake now and in the future. Our information: downeastlob-
stermen.org and
dassatt711@yahoo.com. See you at the dock! Sheila
Maine Coastal News is now entirely online:
www.mainescoast.com
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