My Watermark is Lake Erie, New York.

I am a master student at SUNY Buffalo State and I am getting my masters degree in Great Lakes EcoSystems, particularly the effects of sewage on the emerald shiner that is a forage fish species. So this native minnow is important for all the other predatory birds and fish in the area. So the Great Lakes are very important to me.

I live just a few blocks away from Niagara River so it's really important to me but I have a special memory of Lake Erie.

Lake Erie was where me and my now husband had our first date, we went there really late at night and it smelt horrible, there was dead fish everywhere. We were in between the Windmills and Woodlawn beach. We were overwhelmed by the smell and it was only our second date ever, but we still had the time of our lives. There was a huge pile of wood debris from the water that washes up on shore and our dog was playing with the wood when all of a sudden a huge storm came. It was magical and we had our first kiss and that's my fond memory of Lake Erie.

We actually got engaged and married in the same spot of the winter of 14 where it was below 0 degrees for months on end. It’s amazing because Lake Erie can be the most disgusting place but also the most magical place.

To me what’s really important that people understand that the water isn’t just the federal government it's all of ours. Where we all can have these types of memories, when the future generations know that it's time to look at the regulating and deregulating of ur water. To see that making money of our water is in nobody's best interest.