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From:Rose Winkels <br />To:Adam Edwards <br />Cc:LLRC Long Lake Rowing <br />Subject:Orono Parks Commission - LLRC Boathouse <br />Date:Wednesday, February 26, 2020 7:19:59 PM <br />Orono Parks Commission, <br />My husband, our five children and I have been living in the Orono/Long Lake/Maple Plain area for the past 25 <br />years. We do not own a motorboat, we do not fish, and we do not live near a lake. My husband grew up near water <br />and it was always his dream to own a boat and live next to the water, but that never worked out for us. We drove by <br />Long Lake often, but never found a way to engage in the lake and enjoy it. Then our youngest daughter Ava, after <br />trying numerous sports, tried rowing with LLRC and she fell in love. <br />She would get giddy just driving past Long Lake and could not wait to get out on the water and just be - just be one <br />with the water. Rowing has become her passion and she feels a tremendous devotion to Long Lake. She is so proud <br />to say that she is part of Long Lake Rowing! It has not all been easy, there has been lots of hard work, and she has <br />had to work harder than rowers from most clubs because we are such a young club that does not have the facilities <br />that most clubs have. <br />Ava has recruited friends from school and the community to join the rowing team. These are people that have never <br />had a connection with the water. She also convinced my husband and I to join LLRC. So my husband did not get his <br />dream of owning a motorboat and living on the water, but instead we are rowing on Long Lake three days a week <br />and thoroughly appreciating all that the lake has to offer. It has given us the opportunity to use the lake that we had <br />been driving past for 25 years but did not have a way to engage with. <br />Ava was recruited by the University of Kansas to row on their D1 Collegiate team. She was so proud to tell the <br />coaches, teammates, and all of her fellow classmates that her heart is in Long Lake. LLRC opened a door to the lake <br />that Ava, her friends that she has recruited to be on the team and my husband and I would never have gotten without <br />rowing. <br />The next step is to build a boathouse for LLRC so that the club has a home to invite the community into and share <br />this beautiful life long sport of rowing. We personally feel a commitment to the club, to the lake itself and the <br />community surrounding the lake and we hope that the Orono Parks Commission will support LLRC in it’s efforts to <br />build a boat house that will promote the lake and bond the community together. <br />Thank you in advance for any support that you can provide! <br />Rose Winkels