It is a great privilege to serve on the SDRA Board and I consider it the perfect opportunity to give back to a community that has given me so much.

As a Skootamatta cottager for more than 35 years, the lake and surrounding community has been a large part of my life. I learned how to walk, swim and play on the shores of Skootamatta. I spent two full months over the summer at the cottage during my first 19 years. Since then, I try to get up to the lake regularly on the weekends.

As soon as the threat of ice has passed, I start planning that opening weekend. It’s a family joke that I am one of two people that can actually open and close the cottage for the season. It’s the little things that make the cottage so unique. The kitchen light needs to be on before the plug for the coffee maker will work. You have to wait for the bathroom light to flicker once you turn on the cold water before turning on the hot water for the shower because that means the pump has kicked on and there is enough pressure in the line.

Today, I work in energy management for the City of Toronto and own a home in Waterloo. My wife and I have been married for 15 years and have two dogs and two cats. We were engaged at the cottage on the May long weekend in 2003.  We were out in the canoe around 10pm when I popped the question. After she said yes, there were fireworks in the sky as other cottagers celebrated the long weekend. I couldn’t have planned that even if I had tried!

I look forward to many more weekends at Skootamatta Lake and hope I can continue to serve on the Board in some capacity for years to come.