Naturalist and conservationist Alan Neal Railsback, 72, of Damariscotta, passed away at home the morning of Nov. 10 after a swift and brave battle with cancer.
Alan was born June 18, 1941 in Wellesley, Mass., the son of Edward Neal and Barbara (Varney) Railsback. He graduated from Wellesley schools, earned his degree in Environmental Science from the University of Michigan and did his graduate work at the University of Vermont. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps during the Vietnam War era.
For many years he lived in Newburyport, Mass. and was a science teacher at an area school where he started a community recycling program and led groups of middle-school children on annual mountain hiking and camping adventures.
In the late 70s he left teaching to enroll in The Landing School of Boatbuilding in Kennebunkport. While at The Landing School he studied drafting, which led to a job in the drafting department at Bath Iron Works where he worked until the mid-90s.
In 1981 he bought a piece of land on Damariscotta Lake where he and his family built a post-and-beam home and lived until 2010. His coursework and on-site experience at Shelter Institute in the 70s gave him the craftsmanship to build their home.
His lifelong interest in the natural world gave him the skills to create beautiful gardens and his teaching experiences gave him the ability to share his love of science, bird watching, plant identification and hiking with his young family.
Early in 1993 Alan learned that the former Wavus Camp in Jefferson, then privately owned, was going on the market and was vulnerable to development. His love for the lake and deep respect for the lake traditions drove him to dig into the camp memoirs and create contact lists of past campers who had grown up and were living and working across the country. Many months later, after innumerable phone calls and meetings, the Wavus Camp was resurrected and the land was protected.
For the final years of his life Alan was the executive director of Damariscotta Lake Watershed Association – a position that drew his finest skills to the fore and allowed him to work from the heart to protect the lake and the land around the lake. Under his leadership DLWA has protected hundreds of acres of forested and open land, trained a hearty group of volunteers involved in all aspects of lake surveying, developed very effective boards that get work done, and educated years of schoolchildren on the value of caring for our land and our lake.
Alan loved listening to and watching birds and enjoyed passing on his knowledge of plant and animal identification by leading nature walks throughout the watershed.
Alan is survived by his wife of six years, Kelli Railsback; children, Jennifer and husband Lou, Eric and wife Kristina, and Emily and husband Anthony; stepsons, Ethan Nedeau and wife Kim, and Erik Nedeau and wife Amy; stepdaughter, Abigail Hopper; eight grandchildren; siblings, Judi Finn and husband Tom, and John Railsback and wife Barbara; and several nieces and nephews.
A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m., Fri., Nov. 15 at the Bunker Hill Church, Rt. 213 in Jefferson overlooking Alan’s beloved Damariscotta Lake.
In lieu of flowers, Alan has asked that any donations be made to the Damariscotta Lake Watershed Association (DLWA), P.O. Box 3, Jefferson, ME 04348.
