Way back in 2004, as a private fisheries biologist and newly appointed editor of Pond Boss magazine, I had an idea. I'd started traveling the nation, listening to landowners and helping them with their lakes, ponds, and fish. Most wanted more knowledge, bigger fish, different ideas, and many had a driving passion to learn the stuff I was doing and preaching.

 

By then, knocking on the door of my 25th year in the business I was really absorbing many of the pieces of the big picture of people, land, water, and pond management. I'd come to the conclusion that what I was doing truly wasn't about fish. It was about the people- and fish, water, and ponds actually play a secondary role. 

 

The idea I had back then was to offer what I playfully called the Institute of Higher Pondology, because I honestly hadn't thought of a better name. As this vision grew, I felt called to share. The idea was to host a series of privately-tutored seminars for those passionate people who wanted more depth to their knowledge. Queen Debbie and I talked it over and thought we could figure out how to host these events at our home, affectionately called Lusk Lodge. But fate intervened to push this idea way back.

 

On November 8, 2005, our home burned to the ground.

 

And my idea had to go to the back burner, so to speak.

 

Our Pond Boss team decided to take a different direction and we started the Pond Boss Conference and Expo. We've held seven of those events between 2007-2017. Those big events have been designed for all comers, as a way to unify our industry via vendors, speakers, and attendees with the primary focus of exchanging lots of solid, mostly general, information.

 

Still, I've sensed there are people who want more. 

 

It's time.... time for the inauguration of the Institute of Higher Pondology online master class!