From our inception in March of 2021, Responsible Wakes for Vermont Lakes (RWVL) has operated as an unincorporated association of Vermonters who share deep concern and commitment regarding the negative impacts of wake boats and wakesports on our inland lakes and ponds. This informal structure has served us and our hundreds of supporters well up to this point. But, with recent delays in the rule-making proceedings and difficulty in moving ANR beyond its original 500-foot distance from shore, leadership has moved forward and formally incorporated RWVL to improve our operational and strategic flexibility.
Rest assured that our culture, our leadership team, our membership, and even our name (except for adding “Inc.” as required by Vermont law) remain unchanged. But as of December 15, we are now formally organized as a Vermont not-for-profit corporation. This change was driven by leadership’s recognition that RWVL will be well served by having an experienced, professional advocate from here to the finish line. Contracting with and raising the funds to engage a lobbyist require that we become a legally recognized entity.
Your current leadership team, consisting of Jack Widness, Meg Handler, Tom Ward, Dani Sharpe, Diane Lehder, and Jim Clemons is now RWVL’s Board of Directors. The initial Officers are Jack as President, Meg as Vice President, Dani as Secretary, and Jim as Treasure. We are taking final steps to engage Warren Coleman of MMR Vermont, who we believe has the right experience, approach, and reputation to be an effective and valuable member of our team. This week we will be working with Warren and other advisors to refine our strategy as we await ANR’s final rule and gear up for the final step of the ANR petition process: the Legislative Committee on Administrative Rules (LCAR) hearing that we anticipate will come in January. We appreciate the continued support of our hundreds of loyal members and will seek funding commitments as needed.
We welcome your comments, questions, and advice. Write us at info@responsiblewakes.org.