- Division of Marine Fisheries
Last January, Jack Sheppard stepped down as the Director of the Office of Fishing and Boating (FBA) after a 48-year career in public service. He had been at the helm as director of this office within the Department of Fish and Game since 1988. He started his career in public service at the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife in 1972 after completing an engineering degree at Northeastern University. Sadly, Jack succumbed to an illness in early March. Jack’s legacy, however, will live on. No one would guess, judging by his humble ways, that he oversaw the creation and management of 300 fishing and boating access locations in his career.
As a civil engineer with a passion for fishing, Jack loved visiting new locations and others that his agency had been instrumental in developing. At every visit, harbormasters, town managers, and others would greet Jack like an old friend. He knew how to treat and work with people. In Jack’s tenure, FBA purchased land to transform it into public ways to water; built boat launches and fishing piers; protected the Commonwealth’s investment in access facilities through Land Management Agreements; permitted use of facilities for activities like fishing tournaments; and lent its engineering expertise to other state agencies. DMF benefitted from Jack’s expertise at Craven’s Landing on Scorton Creek in Sandwich; fishing piers in Oak Bluffs, Newburyport, Yarmouth, and Boston among others; and many diadromous fish passage projects.
The former President of the Massachusetts Sportsmen’s Council, Mike Moss, championed Jack as a public servant who always “showed up” to defend access for all. Jack will be missed but the sporting public of the Commonwealth will reap the benefits of his work for generations. The next time you’re launching your boat or fishing from a shore location, remember Jack Sheppard. He gave his all for many years working behind the scenes to create a legacy providing shoreline access to the masses.
