- Division of Marine Fisheries
Ed Clark retired from the Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) Fishway Crew in September after over 25 years of dedicated service helping sea-run fish find their way to spawning habitats in coast watersheds. Ed arrived to DMF from up-state New York as an outdoorsman and carpenter. He had little experience with fish swimming in streams. He developed an understanding of fish behavior and water flow that when matched with his growth in fabrication skills working with wood, concrete and metal, resulted in a rare capacity within the field of diadromous fish management to make a difference in fish population health. The exact number of projects that Ed worked on is uncertain. When combining custom fishways, eel ramps and fishway repairs, the number of jobs exceeded 100. Some of these locations had no possible fish passage prior to Ed’s unique traits of brainstorming, trial and error, and fabrication creativity. Ed’s sharp wit and decision-making could sometimes present a challenge to public discussions with project partners or the misguided intentions of supervisors. He was always there for these sea-run fish. He was the core of the Fishway Crew and will be missed and recalled in tales from the ditches for a long time.
In December, Whitney Sargent moved on from DMF after 16 years with the Division. Whitney started as a contractor for the Statistics Program in 2009 and quickly proved her diligence and willingness to work on a variety of projects. After two years, she worked as a permitting clerk and later became DMF’s CVA Program Coordinator in 2017. Since 2024, Whitney has worked as DMF’s Procurement Specialist, working closely with vendors and maintaining essential relationships with partners. Having worked in both DMF’s Boston and Gloucester offices, Whitney’s impact has spread far and wide throughout the agency. Whitney is joining the Department of Fish and Game with the Commissioner’s office. We wish her all the best in her future work!
