Dawn Schanz didn’t choose the High Peaks—it chose her. Her family’s been here since some of the first settlers broke the wilderness. “It’s the only home I’ve ever known,” she says simply. That pull deepened when she and Tony settled nearby. “I grew up in a family that loves the woods, lakes, and mountains. When Tony and I married, we settled down just a few miles from my childhood home. That was over thirty years ago. When you’ve lived on one piece of land for so long—walking it, working it, enjoying it—you get to know it very well, and the roots get a bit deeper every year.” 

Now those generational spots welcome her grandson. “There are places here in Maine that we have been going back to since we were children, as our parents and grandparents did before us. Now we get to share those places with our grandson. That’s incredibly special.”

Her days run on the land’s clock. Spring means maple: “In the early spring, we make maple syrup. During that time the whole routine of our days revolves around whether the sap is running or not. Gathering, boiling, bottling, checking for leaks in the sugar bush, dealing with bumps in the road.” 

Summer’s for gardens and firewood; fall, harvests and hunts; winter, rest.

It’s all guided by care: “We view ourselves as stewards of the gifts God has given us in this life. The land is one of those gifts. This little piece of Earth we live on is beautiful, and we want to keep it that way. We are thoughtful about the way we use it. We selectively harvest firewood. We are careful about the maple trees we tap. When it comes to the food we produce, we want to know that what we are putting into the ground and into our bodies is free from things that would harm. We farm organically using cover crops and natural fertilizers to build up our soil and help our production.”

Brent pulled her into HPA’s orbit for bookkeeping. “I had heard of High Peaks Alliance, but at that point I didn’t really know much about them. As I learned more about what their mission was, I found that we care about a lot of the same issues.” 

She tracks projects from beginning to end — like Perham Stream, where her family caught an eclipse, or the Heritage Festival with her daughter’s moose permit draw. “To see a project like Perham Stream or the High Peaks Heritage Festival develop from an idea to a reality is special. And when my family actually gets to watch the solar eclipse at Perham Stream, and my daughter gets the thrill of having her name drawn in the moose lottery at the High Peaks Heritage Festival and also dunking a game warden in the dunk tank, it makes it even more real that HPA is touching lives and impacting the region in good ways.” 

It’s about access for all: “I think it’s important for people to be able to get out and enjoy this beautiful place we live. That is a big part of HPA’s mission. And I like that their mission takes into consideration many ways that people enjoy the outdoors; walking, hiking, birding, canoeing, as well as hunting and fishing, and more.”

 

Places like Mosher Hill Falls endure as public treasures, secured by HPA’s efforts for families to roam freely. “I think the most rewarding thing is knowing that people—including my family—have opportunities to enjoy places that they wouldn’t otherwise have access to because of the work that HPA is doing. Mosher Hill Falls is an example. Because of HPA, that local gem will continue to be available to the public, and that is special to me.” 

Those broader horizons give way to even deeper anchors for Dawn’s family: sweeping sand beaches of Upper Richardson, the whispering streams and ponds of the Enchanted area, the serene Chain of Ponds, and Flagstaff’s sweeping vista of Bigelow beyond. Yet it’s the intimate vistas near her doorstep that stir her most profoundly. “But I really think the most special places to me personally are the ones close to home. The view of Porter Lake and the mountains beyond when I’m headed down the big hill at the end of our road, the three peaks of the New Vineyard Mountains looming over our little town, the spot within walking distance of home where we look out across the valley and see mountain after mountain lined up on the horizon.” 

Layered across that landscape is the essence of home itself—a north-facing ridge alive with decades of shared life alongside Tony and their family. “Home to me is where Tony and I have raised our family, here on this north facing ridge of ours. That’s where it is, but what it is, is harder to put into words. It became home by all the living that’s gone on here. Every spot has its own memories tied to the people I love most. And when they are all here, that’s when it feels the very most like home.” The affection extends outward to her blink-and-you ‘ll-miss-it hometown and the rugged state that holds her fast. “In a wider sense, this little town I’ve grown up in. If you blink on your way through, you’ll miss it, but it’s special to me. And this state. I cannot imagine living any place else. I may grumble when the winters are too long and too cold, but Maine is home.”