It was supposed to be just like the other trips they took to the Sonoma Coast. But this time, they wouldn’t make it to Fort Bragg for the Memorial Day Weekend holiday. Parked along a two-lane road, the brake-line in their RV-Bus conversion failed and the Bair family was tossed about the camper as it rolled several times down the steep embankment.
Three-year-old Lewis Bair came away with only a few minor cuts and bruises. His parents, Sheryl and Lewis, 18 and 21 years old at the time, were both paralyzed in the accident.
That single moment may have changed everything – but it didn’t limit who the Bair family would become or how they would act from that point on.
“To my parent’s credit, we did everything that other families did,” said Lewis Bair, III. “They may have had physical challenges but it never stopped them from living life to the fullest.”
Both parents were the first in their families to graduate from college and became teachers. Sheryl, a speech pathologist and Lewis Jr, teaching computer applications at the local community college. It was not just their careers that inspired Lewis, it was outside of work. Sheryl set the world record at the 1979 Boston Marathon while Lewis Jr briefly held the record for the longest disabled water ski jump. Lewis the third’s young life was filled with camping, travelling to marathons, basketball tournaments and para-Olympic events.
“It was exciting and I simply didn’t know anything else when I was a kid. It was only when I got a bit older that I realized I was along for a ride with two very special people. “They showed me early on that if you have the right attitude, you can accomplish anything.”
His parents would not let that one fateful day ruin their rest of their lives. In fact, life would be tackled with a new found determination and zeal.
An outlook that has shaped how the younger Lewis goes about his job as general manager of Reclamation District 108.
“When problems arise or we run into difficult challenges, I think about what my parents had to do and it reminds me that we can overcome anything that comes our way. We may have to work at it, but there is a viable option somewhere.”
As the lead water manager of one of the oldest reclamation districts in the state, Lewis is confronted with the task of delivering water to landowners who are growing rice, walnuts, tomatoes and other crops with the needs of wildlife that depend on the precious resource for survival.
“It was apparent when I first started with RD108 how dedicated the landowners were to doing the right thing for the entire Sacramento Valley. It has allowed us to implement water efficiency techniques and technology to ensure we are using all of the resources wisely.”
Bordering along the Sacramento River, RD108 has been a leader in flood control since the 1800s, it developed new irrigation techniques in the 1900s and now in the 2000s, is setting new standards of how to integrate fish and birds into its everyday practices.
“We know that the health of salmon and migratory birds relies on how and when we use our water. RD108 has built fish screens to prevent juvenile salmon from veering off into irrigation canals, helped foster programs to grow fish food on fields to offer nourishment for salmon in the Sacramento River and have been flooding rice fields in the late fall and winter to provide shore birds and waterfowl rearing habitat sites along the Pacific Flyway.
Over the last 150 years, RD108 has rarely shied away from addressing the largest issues of the day. While it can be easier to wait things out and let someone else prove a concept – the people of RD108 have rarely taken the easy way. They’ve made a determined effort to do what is right for people and wildlife.
Not only has Lewis helped continue that effort, he has fostered relationships and expand the district’s work with conservation groups to determine the best practices in creating wildlife habitat – while still maintaining functioning farm lands. The collaborative spirit he says is a big reason they’ve been able to show positive results for fish, shorebirds and waterfowl.
“I truly believe this is a special moment in time where we have significant alignment among state and federal agencies, environmental organizations, fishing groups, tribes and farmers who are all energized to change the narrative around resource management. The opportunity is ripe for all of us to work together for a future where we reimagine a Valley that can serve multiple benefits.”
While Lewis is quick to give credit to his staff and landowners for the district’s success, the culture and support system created at RD108 may be one of the best you’ll find at any organization. Spend a day in the district and you’ll quickly understand what makes Lewis so revered by the landowners and staff. He takes the job serious, but offers a lightheartedness to each task that makes any obstacle feel obtainable.
It is the perfect attitude for a job that is requiring more patience, understanding and collaboration than ever before. Lewis doesn’t remember the accident that changed his family’s life, but the aftermath is still felt today. While it was devastating in one way, in another it has helped shape a man who is leading with a belief that together we can create a better future. Not just for the Sacramento Valley and within Reclamation District 108, but a confidence that we will overcome today’s challenges and find a sustainable balance for the people, the land and the wildlife of California.
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Like a human fingerprint, California’s Sacramento Valley is truly unique. On the leading edge of ecological and economical sustainability, it’s also an exceptional place to live, work and raise a family. The Sacramento Valley joins together a world-renowned mosaic of natural abundance: productive farmlands, wildlife refuges and managed wetlands, cities and rural communities, and meandering rivers that support and feed fisheries and natural habitats. Through efficient management of the region’s water resources, the Sacramento Valley will continue to provide what’s essential to California’s future success and prosperity. Nourishment and sustenance from the fields, habitats for fish and wildlife, recreation and a special quality of life—the Sacramento Valley is home to all of this, and more.
