Art Slocum (left) smiles with fellow Board member Steve Panish (right) at the Woods, Water, and Wildlife Festival.

After many years of committed board service, it is with bittersweet feelings that we announce the retirement of Art Slocum from Moose Mountains Regional Greenways’ Board of Directors. 

During his many years of dedicated service, Art was instrumental in many of our public outreach and fundraising efforts. He was Chair of the Board when the decision was made for MMRG to become an official land trust, was involved in important steps to grow the burgeoning organization, and was an early proponent of strengthening our community presence through print and social media.  Art’s impact and legacy can be seen at many pivotal moments for the organization over the last number of years and their positive effects echo through our work today. 

Ever modest, Art credits much of his work to inspiration he received from seeing the dedication and generosity of others within the organization and the broader community.“When I consider the “extra” work that our MMRG community donates in time and talent in addition to their daily lives, I know that the towns we serve are so much better for having a strong nonprofit like MMRG,” he said. In fact, it was Art’s own relationships and affiliations in Wolfeboro, his hometown, and beyond which often benefitted MMRG and led to a number of organizational partnerships and successes. 

Executive Director Jill Eldredge is quick to describe Art’s Board service with a smile. “While I never had the opportunity to work with Art during his time as Chair, he provided a lot of leadership to the organization through the Fundraising Committee and as a steady presence on the Board. He had the rare quality of being extremely well organized and able to keep things moving along while also being someone that everyone really enjoys being around and talking to. He was always first to get out the meeting agenda, but also first with a joke and I really appreciated that about working with him. His presence in the organization will really be missed.”

After retiring from a sales career, Art and his wife, Lynne, spent their time hiking, kayaking and sightseeing New Hampshire’s natural landscapes. The desire to protect these outdoor recreation opportunities for future generations was the catalyst to his conservation efforts.

“Conservation is a gift that we give to our Towns right now but it also provides a legacy for those who will live in our area in the future in the form of scenic views, recreation, water quality, wildlife habitat and environmental education,” he said. 

Art currently serves on the Board of the Wolfeboro Tuftonboro Land Bank (a sponsor of our Woods, Water, and Wildlife Festival), which was his introduction to MMRG’s work. He also remains involved with the Town of Wolfeboro Waters Committee, which seeks to improve the area’s water quality through testing, storm water mitigation and research. 

While we are sad to see Art leave MMRG’s Board, we are happy that he will continue working to protect our region’s wonderful natural resources and landscapes through his additional affiliations, while looking forward to the next generation to carry the torch.

“The work continues,” he told us, “and looking back, it is personally rewarding to know that many others are making the same effort.”