LakeSmart February E-news

February LakeSmart News

Hello Maine Lakes,

I hope you have enjoyed this season of dormancy - I sure have. But alas, the buds will soon be popping on the trees, and the ice will melt off the lakes, and the LakeSmart teams will be off to the races once again. In this issue of the e-newsletter, look for our spring virtual training dates for new evaluators. Feel free to spread the word to those who may be interested at your lake!

Virtual Training Dates for New Evaluators
The Importance of the Homeowner Report
Business Cards for Volunteer Evaluators
We Love to Hear Your Feedback

Caroline

cmurray@lakes.me

Virtual Training Dates for New Evaluators

For all of our new LakeSmart evaluators, the dates for virtual training have been set! Both of the following sessions are required for all new evaluators. Of course, we also welcome experienced evaluators that are looking for an information refresh. Both trainings will be recorded and uploaded to our website following the live presentations.

We will be hosting one session of "New Evaluator Basics: Lake Science Introduction, How LakeSmart Works, and an Overview of the LakeSmart Property Evaluation" on Tuesday May 7th at 4pm.

The second part of virtual training is "Installing and Using Survey123" with Becky Schaffner, GIS Coordinator, Maine DEP. There will be one session of this training on Tuesday May 14th at 5pm.

Once both virtual trainings have been completed, the next step in the process is to attend an on-site training at your lake or one nearby. Once your lake requests a training, Andrea, Caroline or a LakeSmart Hub Coordinator will travel to you and walk through two complete evaluations with your group. Contact Andrea (astevens@lakes.me) to schedule an on-site training.

Once

The Importance of the Homeowner Report

The main purpose of the LakeSmart Evaluation is education! Writing a homeowner report following an evaluation is a critical part of educating homeowners on lake- friendly practices, which is why it is the final piece of the LakeSmart process! The report should include the award status and suggestions for property improvements, if needed, for each of the five evaluation sections.

Include the observations you made during the visit and, better yet, include annotated photos showing how to put recommended best management practices into play. You can edit photos in the Paint program on PC computers or in the photos application on both Androids and iPhones using the "Mark-up" tool.

Evaluators - We Can Make Custom LakeSmart Business Cards for YOU

Are you a LakeSmart evaluator? Would you like custom business cards to hand out to participating homeowners?

The LakeSmart Team designed the business card below for our volunteer evaluators. Email Caroline to request 40 free cards with your name and lake (we'll print them and everything!) If you are a HUB Coordinator, we can make cards for you too.

Have Any Feedback for Us About this Newsletter? We'd Love to Hear it!

We always love hearing feedback about the LakeSmart Program, and work to continuously improve. If you have any feedback about this quarterly newsletter, or any part of the LakeSmart program, please reach out Andrea or Caroline!

LakeSmart is a volunteer-driven, community-based program that educates homeowners about how to manage their lakefront properties in ways that protect water quality.

For more information and to subscribe to this e-newsletter, visit us at our website.

Feel free to forward to a friend!