Board of Directors
Dennis Keschl
President
He enjoys hunting and fishing year round and is introducing both his daughters to the outdoors. In addition to serving on the SAM-ILA board, he also serves on the board for the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine since 2012.
Butch Moore
Vice President
Butch Moore holds a BA in biology, a BS in leadership and organizational studies, and an MS in leadership. He is a former vice president of the Pleasant River Fish & Game Conservation Association and the Narraguagus Bay Chapter of Waterfowl USA. He also sat on the board of directors for the Downeast Salmon Federation and wrote for Outdoors Magazine as a columnist and feature writer. Butch is a life member of both SAM and the NRA and is active in outdoor and veteran’s issues. In addition to serving on the SAM-ILA board, he also serves on board for the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine.
Lynn J. Madison, Jr.
Clerk/Secretary
A transplanted Floridian, he has lived in Waldoboro for 21 years. He hunts and fishes every season in Maine. He is also an avid target shooter, mostly skeet/trap/sporting clays. When not serving as an Assistant District Attorney in Knox County, he can always be found fishing, hunting, or at the nearest sporting clays range. He has a BS in Computer Science, an MBA in Contracts, and a JD Law from University of Maine Law. His career has included an eight year stint launching shuttles at Kennedy Space Center, managing a branch of Skowhegan Savings Bank, and working as a criminal defense attorney for Andrus Law, LLC in Brunswick. He constantly drags his girlfriend Angela, daughter Emma, and granddaughter Haylee on his outdoor adventures. He is a Patron Life member of the NRA, a lifetime member of SAM, and a life member of the National Sporting Clays Association. He is serving his first term as a SAM-ILA board member.
Mike Shaw
Treasurer
Michael Shaw has dedicated his life to the great outdoors, public service, and hard work. An avid fisherman and hunter for his entire adult life, he has spent decades advocating for Maine’s natural resources and sporting traditions.
Shaw served in the Maine Legislature from 2008 to 2015, where he was a steadfast voice for outdoor enthusiasts. During his tenure, he served four terms on the Inland Fisheries and Wildlife Committee, including two terms as
House Chairman, where he played a key role in shaping policies to protect and promote Maine’s fish and wildlife.
Beyond his legislative service, Shaw built a strong career in the railroad industry, working for 32 years in a demanding and essential field. His dedication to hard work and community service continued after his time in the legislature, as he joined the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine (SAM) Board of Directors in 2015. As a board member, he remains committed to representing the interests of hunters, anglers, and conservationists across the state.
With a lifetime of experience in the outdoors and a passion for preserving Maine’s sporting heritage, Michael Shaw continues to be a respected leader and advocate for the state’s outdoor community.
Christi Holmes
Christi Elliott is a Maine native, outdoor author, Registered Maine Guide, and Appalachian Trail thru-hiker. She is the founder of Maine Women Hunters, one of America’s largest female hunting groups with nearly 8,000 members, where she organizes group hunts, fishing trips, and educational and social events to encourage women to be comfortable outside.
Nick Archer
Nick Archer started his career in the environmental field in wastewater facility operations. He has extensive experience in the construction of, as well as the biological and mechanical startups of wastewater facilities. His wastewater experience was at the Portland Water District, the town of Millinocket and then at the Presque Isle Water District before being hired at the Maine Department of Environmental Protection in 1986 as the regional section head in the Bureau of Water Quality at the Presque Isle Office. Here his primary responsibility was to manage the department’s NPDES program which included the operation, maintenance, compliance and enforcement of the industrial, commercial and municipal wastewater facilities in the region. He was hired as the Northern Maine Regional Office Director in 1999 retiring from that position in 2020. As the regional Office Director he planned, directed, and oversaw the DEP’s programs at the regional level to ensure statewide goals were being met while being consistent with both the agencies’ mission as well as that of the region. A career highlight was the organizing of municipal, state, county, private industry and federal organizations to remove two dams on Salmon Stream, a major tributary to the Aroostook River in Washburn. This resulted in the restoration of eighty thousand acres of historical brook trout and Atlantic salmon habitat that had been blocked to fish migration since the middle part of the 1800s. Nick is past president of the Presque Isle Fish and Game Club and the current chairperson of the Presque Isle Fish and Game Club’s Sportsman Show. He is a member of Ducks Unlimited and sits on both the ILA and the overall board of the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine. He is also Vice Chairman of the town of Waterford’s Planning Board. He is a graduate of the Wastewater Operations program at the Southern Maine Community College and holds an AA degree in Environmental Science from the University of Maine at Presque Isle. He also maintains a grade V State of Maine wastewater operator license. Nick was awarded the Department of Environmental Protection’s highest individual award named in honor of Evelyn Jepson in 1989.
Brian Smith
Lifelong Mainer living on the coast of Washington County almost 50 yrs. B.S. in Environmental Science from University of Maine Machias. Worked for IF&W Wildlife and Fisheries Divisions while in College. 22 yr Maine State Police career retiring as Major Crimes Detective in 1984. Served on various IF&W Committees and on Advisory Council for 3 yrs. Worked 3 yrs for National Wild Turkey Federation and 7 years for the National Rifle Association. Received the Maine NWTF Wild Turkey Conservation Award in 2012 and was named NRA Eastern Region Field Representative of the Year in 2018. Served many Years on the Maine Bowhunters Association BOD and chosen Bowhunter of the Year twice. Hunt and fish all species but especially enjoy bowhunting big bears and bucks and fly fishing. Married over 40 years to hunting partner Joyce who usually kills bigger bucks and a lot more coyotes.
Joseph LoPorto