John Moses, who works in our sawmill operations in Bath, NH, was recently featured in a Northern Woodlands Magazine article titled North Country Calling: Finding Home in Northern New Hampshire. The magazine featured four young professionals in their print magazine along with a feature video on YouTube.
Below is an excerpt from the article and the link to the full article can be found at the end.
Northern New Hampshire exerts a strong pull on millions of people attracted to its deep woods, cold ponds, and rugged terrain. Riverside towns add to the draw, combining historic charm and entrepreneurial grit. As waves of visitors flow in and out of the region on a seasonal cycle, rooted residents carry on the land-based traditions that distinguish North Country culture: forestry and the manufacture of wood products, close connection with nature, and thirst for outdoor adventure.
Last summer, Northern Woodlands and the Northern Forest Center asked filmmaker Asher Brown to document how residents in their 20s and 30s are upholding the North Country way of life and adapting it for the future. Brown, himself a young professional from New Hampshire, met people working in various sectors of the economy. Each has forged a unique relationship with the area, either beginning in childhood or as a recent arrival; yet, all have chosen to make it their home.
In what follows, we introduce four individuals with excerpts from their interviews: Sierra Giraud, John Moses, Rachel Freierman, and Helon Hoffer. Their stories continue in short accompanying films posted on our YouTube Channel.
Together, the images and words reveal an enduring appreciation for the importance of place, of family, and hard work – of looking out for each other and finding joy in the outdoors. This spirit is not unique to northern New Hampshire. Rather, it lives in heavily forested regions from the Great Lakes to Atlantic Canada, along with the trees and the wildlife that call many of us to the woods.
John Moses, 31, Easton
Britton Lumber Company, product manager
John grew up in Lebanon, New Hampshire, and earned a degree in environmental studies from the University of New Hampshire. After college, he moved west to San Francisco and landed a job with a utility company. Family, work, the mountains and forests, and the lower cost of living drew him back home.
I like working with my hands and working with equipment. My dad had acquired Britton Lumber [while I was in San Francisco], so it was kind of in the back of my head that I would be coming back to work for him at some point. I like the idea of having a family business and hopefully continuing it on, and who knows, maybe eventually passing it down to the next generation.
I’ve learned every position in the mill. I started out at the bottom of the hill, literally, at the sorting sheds stacking lumber. From there I would come up to the sawmill and fill in a little bit, go up to the planing mill and fill in, go to the bagger, and just move around the operation and get a feel for how the different jobs worked. I enjoy the work. It’s tough, but it’s rewarding.
We strictly saw eastern white pine, all locally sourced by loggers within a hundred miles or so. The majority of our wood is sold through our wholesale department over in Fairlee, Vermont, to local lumberyards in New England and upstate New York.
I enjoy living back in New Hampshire. It’s a lot more peaceful. A lot of my friends went out and explored other parts of the country and realized that the Upper Valley and the North Country are nice parts of the country to live, and the quality of life is high, and the outdoorsy activities are here.
Link to full article: https://northernwoodlands.org/articles/article/north-country-calling
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