Bigelow District Manager
New Gloucester, ME
EMAIL: bigelow@matc.org
Mike is a foundry man and business owner of the Auburn Stove Foundry Company, Inc., in New Gloucester. Mike served as the Maintainer for Frye Notch, in the Baldpate District, for ten years, one of the most difficult sections to access and maintain. Prior to becoming at maintainer for MATC he maintained trails for Appalachian Mountain Club, in NH.
Manager of Campsites
EMAIL: campsite@matc.org
Laura grew up in Winthrop, Maine and was privileged to be introduced to the outdoors at a young age. Her first big adventure on the A.T. was in 1986, at the age of 11, when she hiked White Cap Mountain via the old Fire Warden’s trail while staying at West Branch Pond Camps. She graduated from the University of Vermont in 1997 with a BS in Environmental Science and has enjoyed a career with the U.S. Geological Survey since 1995. In 2005, she became a trail maintainer on the Grafton Loop Trail, and in 2015 shifted to maintain a section of the A.T. on Wyman Mountain which she still stewards today. Currently, Laura serves at the Campsite Manager on the Executive Committee as well as a member of the Communications Committee.
Baldpate District Manager
EMAIL: baldpate@matc.org
Ron has been a maintainer on the Grafton Loop Trail since 2020. He was on the UMO faculty from 1979 to 1984 as an Instructor of Forest Resources, and holds a BS Forest Management degree from LSU. Ron has been a hiker for years, first stepping foot on the Appalachian Trail in 1973. Now that he is retired, he wants to spend more time on the trail while also “giving back” to the trail community. Ron will have two assistants, Emily Zimmerman and Dave Welbourn, who were appointed by the Executive Committee on January 9, 2021.
Kennebec District Manager
EMAIL: kennebec@matc.org
Dave has been a maintainer with the club for 4 years. Along with his wife, they have maintained a 3.5-mile section of trail that runs from the South bank of the Kennebec River to Bowtown Road; this section includes two blue-blaze side trails and half of the Kennebec River crossing. Dave has been an active hiker and has section-hiked a large portion of the Maine AT and can be found out hiking somewhere in Maine almost every weekend. Volunteering is something he is passionate about as a way to give back to the trails that have given him so much enjoyment. Dave is currently employed at Maine General Medical Center in Augusta as a Radiology Equipment Specialist maintaining the x-ray and ultrasound equipment.
Katahdin District Manager
EMAIL: katahdin@matc.org
Rick has hiked all of the A.T. in Maine and New Hampshire as well as trails in Baxter State Park, Acadia N.P. and the White Mountains. Rick became a member of MATC in 1989 and shortly thereafter became a Trail and Campsite Maintainer. In 1997, Rick became the Overseer of the Katahdin District. Over the years he has also volunteered with the FORCE Crew, the Maine Trail Crew, the Baxter Park Trail Crew, the Campsite committee and he is certified in chain saw use on the A.T. He lives in Augusta, Maine. Rick is a graduate of the University of New Hampshire with an associates degree in forestry.
Manager of Lands
Trail Champions Honorary Committee Chair
Hampden, ME
EMAIL: meeser3@roadrunner.com
Dave has 65 years of volunteer Trail maintenance experience on the Appalachian Trail. He has served on the Executive Committee of the Maine Appalachian Trail Club for 54 years, including 10 years as President. He served on the Appalachian Trail Conference Board of Managers for 26 years, including six as Board Chair. From 1970-1990, MATC relocated more than 170 miles of the Appalachian Trail to place it in more scenic and protected locations. Dave designed, laid out and led the work crews to build about 115 miles of those relocations. In 1984 he designed the original corridor to be purchased by the National Park Service to protect the A.T. in Maine. He is an honorary life member of both the MATC and the ATC, and was inducted, in 2013, into the Appalachian Trail Hall of Fame. Dave holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Forestry from the University of Maine and a PhD from Purdue University. He taught forestry at Purdue, Yale University, and the University of Maine, where he retired in 2006 after 30 years on the faculty.