MAINTAIN THE CHAIN HISTORY

The Adirondack Park comprises over six million acres of land, 3,000 lakes, and 50 species of mammals. It is a truly unique and special place. The Boon Family, including Maurits Boon and Carin Gonsalves, have vacationed in the Adirondack Park for over 20 years. Their children, Nolan and Isabella Boon have spent their summers falling in love with the park and creating happy memories that will last a lifetime.  When Nolan was 8 and Isabella was 7 years old, the Boon Family began cleaning up the bottom of the lake around their cabin. It began as a fun-filled activity but quickly turned into a labor of love as they discovered more garbage than they ever expected. Isabella and Nolan collected cans, bottles, food containers, and hundreds of golf balls. Yes, golf balls, which take centuries to degrade, slowly release heavy metals into the water, negatively impacting the surrounding wildlife.

Motivated by their desire to preserve this beautiful environment, the lake clean-up became a yearly ritual. Over the past ten years, Nolan and Isabella recruited help from family and friends, multiplying the amount of garbage collected with each excursion. Hauling bags of trash onto the shore gave them an incredible feeling of pride knowing that they bettered the environment, not only for the wildlife but also for the local community, which relies upon this irreplaceable resource for survival. Carin shared her children's efforts with the local newspaper to inspire others to protect the environment. As a result, the Fulton Chain of Lakes Association pledged its support to establish a yearly community event devoted to preserving the magnificent lakes and watershed of the Fulton Chain of Lakes.  Please join their clean-up efforts every summer to “Maintain the Chain” and keep the Adirondacks beautiful for generations to come.