Seamans visits Windham for a stroll down memory lane

WINDHAM―One might think, with two children who were both high school valedictorians in the wintry mountains of Windham, that Chip Seamans would be wise enough to retire somewhere summery.

Seamans, the former president and CEO for what is now the Windham Mountain Club, was back in town last weekend for a celebratory sendoff and a reminiscent stroll down memory lane.

He retired last spring, after nearly 40 years in the ski industry that included 14 years at Windham. He led the local slopes through what was described, upon his retirement, as a “remarkable transformation.”

Seamans, in the official announcement of his stepping down, was credited with “navigating multiple changes in ownership and implementing a long-range development plan that has positioned the mountain as a premier resort destination in the Northeast.”

It was further pointed out he’d gotten his start as a ski patroller at Sunday River Ski Resort in Newry, Maine, where he met Wendy, his future wife.

He also rose to become president and managing director at Sunday River which deeper explains his affection for a state that, in a typical winter, is capable of receiving anywhere between 50 and 123 inches of snow.

Seamans has already relocated to Maine, not far from Sunday River, and in an interview prior to his party joked, “I guess I wanted to be a little colder.”

If that was his plan, he came to the wrong place last Saturday, being warmly greeted by a crowd of well-wishers at his old stomping grounds, proving he is probably sagely, after all.

Seamans was accompanied by Wendy, their son Malcolm and daughter Mattie.

Malcolm is nowadays a ski operations consultant. Mattie is a dentist. Mom and pop have been traveling some while settling into what are familiar haunts, keeping a getaway in the Pine Tree State for three decades.

There were some guest speakers at the belated adieu such as Seaman’s successor, Kristen Garraghan, who lauded him as a mentor and leader.

“I honestly don’t know if anyone else could have accomplished what Chip did in fourteen years.” Garraghan said. “It is amazing.”

Jay Galluzzo, part of the ski slope ownership team including North Castle, similarly praised Seamans, saying he was responsible for a period of “unparalleled infrastructure” improvement, “making miles of new snowmaking pipeline,” critical to economic sustainability.

“More importantly, we owe you a huge debt of gratitude for how you have impacted all our lives. What you’ve done… is remarkable,” Galluzzo said.

Josh King, an associate, described how Seamans first came to Windham in the summer of 2011, in the immediate wake of Tropical Storm Irene which wreaked flood destruction on the region and beyond.

King told how Irene, “slammed into this town and laid waste to Main Street,” sharing a quote reportedly given to the local newspaper by a resident, saying, “That’s it. We’re done. Windham will become a ghost town.”

Seamans, however, less than a week into his tenure, joined the community in beginning the painstaking recovery, donning “muck waders” to clean mud deeper than maybe any Windham snowfall ever, King said.

“You arrived the same year as Irene, “Garraghan said. “You could have left but you stayed the course. You will forever have a home and family here.”