By: Pat Winter
When I asked the Whittens why they chose Albemarle Plantation for their pre-retirement home, Dave quickly replied, “It’s a great location.” David, who works for a wood export business located in Pennsylvania, was familiar with this area because he not only did business locally but brought his family here for summer vacations.
The Whittens remember one summer when their family attended a “water and music” festival in Edenton and strolled the Edenton Docks to view the Newbold Whitehouse’s periauger. There they struck up a conversation with a woman volunteer who suggested they might like to live at AP. Albemarle Plantation was completely unknown to them, and they decided to take a look on their way out of town.
Their drive-through visit of AP piqued their interest, so Dave and Lynn took advantage of the Discovery weekend package to get a closer look. Albemarle Plantation’s location suited them well, positioning them to reach family in less than a day’s road trip. They have two daughters living in Norfolk, a son and his family in Wilmington, NC, and a son and his family back in Pennsylvania. They finalized their move here in November 2022.
Dave, who grew up in Schenectady, New York, met Lynn, from White Plains, at SUNY Geneseo in western New York State. After two years of college, Dave decided to attend a votech logging school in Calais, Maine, which he describes as a bootcamp on how to log timber. His goal has always been to learn how to “harvest timber safely and efficiently so there is a forest forever.”
After forty-five years in the lumber industry, Dave is now on the cutting edge of working worldwide to develop policies to help forests grow for the future. “It’s easy,” quips Dave, “if you treat the forest like a garden. Satellite data from the USDA Forest Service shows that North American hardwood forests are
growing at double the rate of harvest.”
Dave and Lynn are still actively working, both of them able to do most of their work remotely. Lynn is employed by a non-profit re-sale clothing group in central Pennsylvania that operates seven large thrift stores. Giving out generous grants to their non-profit partners to meet very specific local needs is their goal, in addition to developing more storefronts. They are “doing amazing things,” reports Lynn, including sending needy children to summer camp, providing a therapist for a community’s mental health needs, and securing a trailer outfitted with showers and laundry facilities for the homeless.
“Living here is like the cherry on top,” comments Dave. “We are both able to continue to contribute to our respective fields and enjoy this fantastic community.” Since moving here last November, the Whittens have been involved in taking sailing lessons with the OYC, and Dave provided some specially treated wood for the dock box replacement completed last month for the OYC’s Sunfish. Dave, a beginning golfer, has also joined the ranks of our local CERT. Lynn has joined Beryl’s Sit and Stitch Group and is interested in joining a book club
“We can do everything together,” remarks Lynn as she relates how much they enjoy riding their bikes on the golf course trails after golfing hours and attending beginning line dancing classes. “But we do have our work offices located on opposites sides of the house,” she is quick to add.
When you get the chance to meet Dave and Lynn, be sure to ask them about their five grandsons. And be sure to welcome them “home!”