The Mass Forest Alliance Annual Meeting will take place at the 1761 Old Mill Restaurant in Westminster on Thursday, October 22, from 4:30 – 8:30 pm. The meeting will be sponsored by Farm Credit East, longtime sponsor of MFA’s Annual Meetings.
Registration and social hour with a cash bar will be from 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm. The meeting itself will begin at 5:30 pm and run until 8:30 pm, and includes the Old Mill’s famous buffet dinner. The meeting will include a legislative/regulatory update and a short business meeting.
The keynote presentation will be related to prescribed fire. Called MassWildlife Prescribed Fire: What, Where, and Why We Burn, it will discuss fire history, fire ecology, restoration planning, and emerging threats. It will also touch on the benefits of fire to wildlife and show examples of Wildlife Management Areas that are managed by MassWildlife with prescribed fire.
The talk will be presented by Alex Entrup, the Prescribed Fire Project Leader for MassWildlife. He has been working in restoration ecology for 20 years. He grew up in Illinois on the Mississippi River and came to New England in 2019 after many years of burning in the pine flatwoods of Louisiana. He has been on more than 450 prescribed fires, bossing about half of them. He lives in Rhode Island with his family and dog and enjoys the outdoors.
We will also present awards at the meeting, and have some very deserving recipients.
MFA’s Friend of Forestry Award goes to an organization or individual who have worked to increase knowledge of the benefits of sustainable forest management. This year it goes to the Woodlands Partnership of Northwest Massachusetts. Representing 21 towns in northwestern Massachusetts, the Partnership focuses on forest conservation and stewardship, natural resource-based economic development, and more. Yoni Glogower, Program Director, will accept the award and share more information about the Partnership.
The Douglas B. Cook Wood Producer of the Year Award is named for the late Doug Cook, former MFA Board member. This year, the award goes to Larry Lashway of Lashway Lumber. Larry is a former MFA Board member, and is well-known in the industry. Like most surviving sawmills, Larry has had to innovate and find new markets. He’s done so with his vacuum kiln-drying business – drying wood for various products including wood for high-end acoustic guitars; a new slab business providing slabs that are kiln-dried and squared with advanced machinery for ease of use; and more. Larry has been a leader in the industry and is full of ideas for the future.
The Howard F. Mason Forester of the Year Award is named for a legendary forester with the Peck Lumber Company. This year, the award goes to Mark Mueller of Hull Forest Products. Mark is the chair of MFA’s Foresters Council and a member of our Policy Committee. He’s been recognized by the Ruffed Grouse Society for his work improving bird habitat and has worked to promote forest management with the public. Mark helped name this award after Howard Mason, who served as a mentor to him – making this award particularly appropriate.
MFA’s highest honor is the John H. Lambert, Jr. Forest Stewardship Award. Named for its first recipient, the state forester Jack Lambert, it recognizes a lifetime of service to forestry including impacting forests and forest policy in Massachusetts. This year, the award goes to Keith Ross. Keith began his career with a degree in forestry from UMass Amherst. Developing an interest in land protection, he then pursued a degree in environmental law and founded Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust. He subsequently worked in land protection for Mass Audubon and the New England Forestry Foundation, where he was a driving force behind the largest conservation restriction in history – the 762,000-acre Pingree Forest Partnership in Maine. Now working for LandVest, Keith has found ways to help forest landowners meet their goals with innovative financing. Keith has been a major part of countless forest policy committees and groups – from the Forester Licensing Board to the Forest Visioning process – and continues to impact forest policy here. Congratulations, Keith!
Registration is now open for the Annual Meeting. The cost is $40 for MFA members and $50 for non-members. Click here to register online.
Click here to download a paper form to print and mail in.