Laura and Frank: Protecting the Great Lakes

Growing up, Laura believed she would only see certain birds in photographs. Crediting EDF’s work, she reports, “In the last 20 years, I’ve been seeing species like bald eagles with increasing regularity.”

Laura and her husband Frank live near the largest of the Great Lakes with their son. “I was stunned to see the north shore of Lake Superior in 1970 and then find a paper mill's unrestricted flowage into the lake along the same shore a few days later,” Frank shared.

In decades since, the lack of regulation surrounding business practices that are blatantly destructive to Lake Superior has been a continued shock. “Lake Superior holds 10% of the world’s fresh surface water that is not frozen in a glacier or ice cap. We ask ourselves, ‘What will future generations know of Superior and the other Great Lakes?’ ” Laura added.

In addition to protecting fresh water, both share a belief that our environment must be defended from short-sighted business plans. This is one of the reasons they appreciate EDF’s approach to environmental protection. “EDF uses economic-based solutions to environmental challenges. This automatically provides incentives to do the right thing,” Frank shares. “Countries and corporations need a fact-based economic rationale even to consider change that benefits the planet.”

In addition to their annual support, Laura and Frank determined a planned gift to EDF was the right way to be part of the solution that would ensure the Great Lakes and many other ecosystems would be available to the next generation. “It feels good to help make a change toward a better world.”

*The supporters in this story prefer to remain anonymous. The story content and quotes are published with the supporter’s consent.