SAM must represent Maine’s grass roots

I’m writing in response to a letter from Bill Randall (BDN, July 6), taking issue with the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine.

As a SAM member, I waited two years wondering why President Edye Cronk never answered or put letters in SAM News questioning why they ignored a “mandate.” Their own survey showed 10,700 members (77 percent of 14,000) opposed North Maine Woods fees.

Another member complained that he, wife and two grandchildren paid $42 at Bowater 20-mile gate. Seven dollars per vehicle, six days. The next year, NMW’s charged $216, same group, same stay, nine dollars per day per person. These “reasonable fees” do shut out regular sportsman.

After “giving up,” I finally received Cronk’s “recruitment” letter saying: “Sam is the only statewide organization battling full time against attempts to limit hunting, trapping and access to land and water,” (an insult to the Fin & Feather Club) and if I decided to quit SAM (I did) she wanted to know why.

Any day now we’ll be in court in an awesome effort against Great Northern Paper/Bowater. They reneged on our 30-year agreement giving Maine citizens free day use of their roads and lands (1.2 million acres). The suit may cost more than $50,000, but with 500 members our little group dares to stand up to the corporate giant. All attempts to get SAM’s to help for free day access have failed.

SAM officers meet at cozy resorts, take junkets and ignore their own surveys. You didn’t support leaseholders when gate fees ruined businesses behind the gates; supported a bill diminishing rights of Maine citizens to vote by referendum; you even supported repeal (of hunting) “residents day only.”

If SAM doesn’t get back to representing the grass roots they should be: “We are the corporationists” instead of “We are the conservationists.”

As SAM’s Sportsman of the Year in 1988 it took much thought to drop out, but I can no longer support the present leadership.

Darrell Morrow is the public relations director of the Fin & Feather Club in Millinocket.