KENNEBUNK — In honor of the sixtieth anniversary of its founding, the Maine Lobstermen’s Association (MLA) is holding a raffle for its members. Those who become members or renew their membership before September 15 will be entered into a raffle for $1954. The prize figure was chosen to represent the year of the Association’s creation.

“Meetings are always interesting and there are good people on the board. I think every person in the industry should belong to an industry organization. It’s the best chance we have to be represented,” explained MLA board member Tad Miller of Matinicus.

The MLA was formed in 1954 largely due to the efforts of one man — Leslie Dyer. A Vinalhaven fisherman, Dyer thought that if lobstermen could get together and see themselves as part of something bigger, they could become a force to be reckoned with by lawmakers and lobster dealers alike.

Dyer traveled the coast talking up the idea of a unified lobstermen’s group. In an interview in 1974, Dyer recalled some of the difficulties getting lobstermen to become members. “Some of the old-timers were afraid they were going to have to give up some individual rights… The main thing was to convince these lobstermen that our industry was run by the monopoly of a half dozen big dealers,” he said.

Getting lobstermen to work together remained a daunting challenge for Dyer, as well as subsequent MLA directors, including Ossie Beal and Ed Blackmore. “Lobstermen are the most independent breed of people on the face of the earth. They’re so damned independent that anything you propose to them that’s new or different, they want nothing to do with it,” Dyer declared in an interview.

“Whether it’s whale rules, bait issues or proper mar­keting of our lobster, MLA is in the forefront. I wanted to be a part of shaping that voice,” said MLA board member Bob Baines of Spruce Head. Over the years, the MLA has successfully brought Maine’s independent lobstermen together to tackle the issues that affect them individually and as a fishery. Whether it is in Augusta or in Washington, D.C., the MLA makes sure that Maine’s lobstermen are heard by those who make the laws. Issues in decades past may have focused on such things as a lobster’s legal size, or escape vent configuration. Today’s issues, however, cover the waterfront, from federal regulations based on the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Clean Water Act to marketing and promotion of the state’s signature seafood. 

“It’s amazing,” explained David Cousens, MLA president since 1991. “Whenever you turn around there’s another thing coming at you. We have to be there when the decisions are made. In fact, we have to be there before the decisions are made if we want to keep this industry going for the future.”

To become a member of Maine’s oldest fishing organization and be part of the commemorative $1954 raffle, lobstermen are invited to visit www.mainelobstermen.org, email sarah@mainelobstermen.org, or call 967-4555 to learn more.